Western Writers of America Welcomes New Executive Director

Colorado-based member Kellen Cutsforth becomes literary organization's sixth E.D.

EMPORIA, KS, UNITED STATES, July 24, 2025 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Kellen Cutsforth, a past sheriff (president) of the Denver Posse of Westerners, nonfiction author and ghostwriter, has been named executive director of Western Writers of America, a nonprofit organization with more than 700 members who focus on the American West.

Cutsforth assumes the position August 1, replacing Max McCoy, who served roughly two years as executive director before resigning to take a position with the New York-based nonprofit Committee to Protect Journalists.

“I am deeply honored to have been hired as the executive director of the Western Writers of America,” said Cutsforth, who joined WWA in 2013. “This organization has meant so much to me over the years, and … I vow to do my best for the membership and for everyone involved with WWA.”

Cutsforth "brings a strong background of social media skills and organizational acumen," WWA president Melody Groves said. “His experience with social media and vision of the future will help WWA grow into a far-reaching powerhouse of Western literature. He’ll be a true asset to the organization.”

Cutsforth will also take over as secretary-treasurer of WWA and the Homestead Foundation, a 501(c)(3) organization that supports WWA by providing educational and award support.

He becomes WWA’s sixth executive director, following James A. Crutchfield (2004-2006), Paul Andrew Hutton (2006-2011), Candy Moulton (2011-2022), Rachelle “Rocky” Gibbons (2022-2023) and McCoy.

“I’m grateful for the opportunity to have been executive director of Western Writers these past two years,” McCoy said. “WWA, like other trade organizations for writers, has been faced with a rapid period of technical and cultural change. There are also increasing costs related to putting on the annual convention and providing other member services. While membership remains strong, it will be necessary for WWA to adapt to changing conditions in the publishing industry while keeping the best of who we always have been.

“That means community, professionalism and continuing to recognize the best judged works in the field. The definition of what is Western literature is changing rapidly, and that will present some challenges. But then, I think back to when I first joined the organization, and that’s a conversation that’s been held for decades. What is a Western? The definition keeps evolving, as it should.”

WWA’s headquarters will move to Littleton, Colorado, where Cutsforth lives.

WWA was founded in the early 1950s by writers Harry Sinclair Drago (1888-1979), Norman A. Fox (1911-1960), D.B. Newton (1916-2013), Nelson C. Nye (1907-1997), Wayne D. Overholser (1906-1996) and Thomas Thompson (1933-1982) to promote and honor literature and writers of the American West.

The organization has grown from writers of traditional Western fiction to writers across the world, including bestselling novelists C.J. Box, Sandra Dallas, Anne Hillerman, Craig Johnson, David Morrell and the husband-wife team of W. Michael and Kathleen O’Neal Gear; award-winning nonfiction authors Tom Clavin, Jeff Guinn, Paul Andrew Hutton and W.K. Stratton; award-winning screenwriters Kirk Ellis and Walter Hill; agents, editors, playwrights, poets, publishers and songwriters.

For more information or to join, log on to WesternWriters.org.

Kellen Cutsforth
Western Writers of America
+1 303-829-4872
director@westernwriters.org

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