Chasing Dreams--and Catching Them
Thanks for subscribing to my newsletter—PAUSE MORE. RUSH LESS. I appreciate you following my writing career. As I promised, I would update you on my progress from time to time.
In this issue, I wanted to share with you how I’ve been chasing a dream. Come along with me as I fly to the beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains and attend the 2025 Selah Awards, where my novel, The Desert Between Us, was a finalist in this national writing contest.
NOTE: Each section of this newsletter was written as it happened—or shortly thereafter. It’s a little longer than most of my newsletters.
Wednesday, May 28—2:30 AM Central Time
It’s 2:30 AM and I’m up to shave and shower before departing for the airport to attend the SELAH Awards at the Blue Ridge Mountains Christian Writers Conference. The Selah Awards is an industry-wide writing contest for published Christian authors within 39 genres.
My wife, Karen, is asleep as I slip out of the house at 3:15 AM. It’s a crisp and cool morning as I toss my suitcase and backpack in my trunk. My 5:40 AM flight is to Atlanta, then on to Asheville, North Carolina, a city devastated by Hurricane Helene a year ago. In the quiet stillness of the early morning, I drive to the airport, feeling both a sense of peace and uncertainty.
4:15 AM
I’ve checked my bags and I’m sitting at my gate now—it’s quiet and dimly lit. The sun has not made its grand appearance yet. I ponder the Selah awards ceremony as I await my 5:00 AM boarding time. About 600 authors, literary agents, and publishers will attend this ceremony. My novel is a finalist in the General Fiction genre. I’ll be competing against the remaining finalists, hoping to finish first, second, or third. Some will go home empty-handed. My category includes an author that has published over 165 books and is a New York Times Bestseller. I whisper to myself yet again, “How did I ever make it this far?”
4:30 AM
In the writing world, writers are always putting themselves “out there.” In my case, if I fly home empty-handed, I may wonder if it was worth the cost: airfare, car rental, room and board expense, time, etc. After all, I could watch this ceremony LIVE on Facebook from the comfort of my home at no expense. My mind shifts to the benefits of attending. I will meet other writers, exchange ideas, have unique conversations and networking opportunities, and most of all, have the privilege to encourage others on their writing journey. And maybe, just maybe, win a coveted Selah Award.
4:45 AM
As I glance around the concourse, I feel vulnerable—and something else. An exhilarating sense of adventure. The thrill of competing. I realize I have both the opportunity to win—or lose—but either way, I’ll be better for it. And when I'm at the ceremony, I’ll look forward to another possibility. The chance to not only congratulate the winners—but remind those who fell just short of their goals to never give up. And it’s not lost on me I could be among them. I hope to remind them that—win or lose—our words still have the power to change lives. To inform. To educate. And most of all, to inspire. And to remind them that, in the end, our “work is our reward.”
11:15 Eastern Time
After making my connection, I've landed in Asheville, grabbed my bag, and a rental car and I'm on the road to Ridgecrest Conference Center, just past Black Mountain. The winding treelined roads are spectacular as I scale the mountains.
3:00 PM
After checking into my room on campus, I walk the grounds, have a cup of coffee in a quaint coffee shop called Clouds, and chat with the Contest Director about the festivities tomorrow night. At 5:00 PM we have dinner together with 600 other writers in a sprawling cafeteria. I sense excitement—and anxiety—is mounting.
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Thursday, May 29th 8:00 AM—6:00 PM
I have breakfast with another writer I know and ask her about the children’s books she’s writing. She’s stuck and asks for my ideas. I suggest a few; she lights up and says she will incorporate them. After breakfast, I drive to a bookstore in Black Mountain and sell my book. It’s raining today, so I wander around the various classrooms and back to the coffee shop until dinner.
Half Hour Prior to the Ceremony - 6:30 PM
Attendees begin to arrive and fill the auditorium. Women are dressed in beautiful gowns. Men in suits or sport coats and ties. I’m in a sports coat—my tie will remain in my suitcase.
The Selah Awards Ceremony 7:00 PM
It’s 7:00 PM. Finally. Six hundred authors, agents, and publishers have shuffled into the expansive auditorium and taken their seats. There’s a buzz in the room—it’s electric with anticipation. Every finalist is nervous—just like me. We’ve worked so hard to arrive at this moment. The Contest Director approaches the microphone, greets us, and launches the 2025 Selah Awards ceremony. There are 39 genres represented and the top three in each category will take home a prize—a Selah. After each winner is announced the crowd erupts with applause.
The Moment of Truth 8:05 PM
About an hour into the ceremony, my genre, General Fiction, is finally announced. I raise my phone, select the video option, and press play. “There is a tie for third place,” the Contest Director says. “The first third place award goes to …” She pauses. I hold my breath. Then she continues. “The Desert Between Us, by James C. Magruder.”
I hear applause. Then cheers. Stunned, I hand by phone to the woman sitting next to me and she keeps filming. I approach the stage, ascend the stairs, shake hands with the Contest Director, thank her, and proceed to the awards table to receive my Selah. Turning, I descend the opposite stairs and have a photo taken with the conference co-directors against a backdrop. I walk back to my seat on the other side of the auditorium in what feels like slow motion. I feel elated. Grateful. Humbled. And wishing my parents, long deceased, could see how their love for each other inspired this award-winning story.
When the ceremony concludes, I look for friends and acquaintances who are not as fortunate. We share hugs. I attempt to bring them words of comfort. Words of hope. Then more hugs.
Three hours since the ceremony began, I walk back to my room alone in the dark, and I thank God for giving me a dream to chase—and finally—catching it.
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SOMETHING TO CHEW ON: What are your dreams? Are you chasing them? How can you encourage others on the same journey?
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SPECIAL NOTE: Before I left North Carolina, I was asked to appear on two podcasts in the future and to write a column on the writer’s life for a national blog. When I arrived home, I was asked to appear on a local TV show to discuss the award and the fourth novel I’m working on, THE VIEW FROM A DISTANT MOUNTAIN. None of this would have happened if I didn’t get on that plane, put myself out there, and chase my dream. Thank you all for supporting me and reading this newsletter.
