A former biologist and primatologist, he now writes regularly for many of Canada's premier venues, such as The Walrus, Explore, Outpost and the Globe and Mail. Westoll won gold at the 2007 National Magazine Awards for his travel piece "Somewhere Up a Jungle River" , an adapted excerpt from The Riverbones. He is also a past Fellow of the Literary Journalism Program at the Banff Centre for the Arts.