Lee Shaw - March 2024 Featured Author

Tell us about your books and the inspiration behind them?

My first book is titled, The Shaws Have Cookies, it is about some pesky ants that keep getting in the house.  The ants are after the cookie crumbs the little boy drops on the floor and are determined to leave no cookie crumbs behind.  My son was the inspiration for this book.

My second book is titled, Can I Just Be the Mascot?  This book touches on more serious subjects.  Parents that take little kids sports too seriously and kids that prefer the arts over sports.  There are multiple lessons in the book, speaking up for yourself, doing what YOU love, having fun, sharing your feelings, finishing what you start and most importantly loving the arts is perfectly OK.  Watching and overhearing a little boy’s conversations with his parents was the inspiration for this story.

We'd love to hear more about your writing journey. What's the process been like and how did you make the decision to pursue self-publishing?  

My interest in writing came after a funny conversation with my son about the ants getting in the house.  After some funny banter back and forth with my son, I jokingly told him I should write a story about it.  My son begged me to write the story and I eventually promised to do so.  After putting the tale down on paper, I liked it so much I decided to share it.  Now the ant story, The Shaws Have Cookies, has turned into a saga with many more books to come.  

The ‘Can I Just Be the Mascot?’ story came about after I witnessed a little boy’s not-so-great first experience with baseball and how he was treated by a parent.  Unfortunately, the actual events were 10 times worse than what is portrayed in the book.  I wanted other children who have had similar experiences to know that they are not alone.  It was a difficult book to write, but I felt I needed to do so.  I am proud of the book however I am sad I felt the need to write it.

After months of research about what publishing companies actually do, I felt I was capable of doing it all myself.  I was right!  I started my own publishing company and learned as I went.  I now have a great team that I enjoy working with.  So far, marketing and promoting have been the most challenging for me.  I’m shy around people I don’t know and an introvert so getting out of my comfort zone is difficult for me.

How do you go about finding story ideas?

Both books I have published were events that I witnessed, or I was involved in what was happening.  My next two books that I am currently working on are imagination only. The books are also getting funnier.

What do you love about being a writer?

Since I was a child, I have always had a big imagination and a great sense of humor. I was always outside playing, riding my horse, or reading.  We didn’t have cable TV, so I had to entertain myself.  I would always be thinking of funny stories and scenarios.  When I was old enough to babysit, I would always make sure to watch Saturday Night Live if the kid’s parents stayed out late.  I have so much funny material that I feel that I could be a writer for Saturday Night Live.

What's it like owning your own publishing company?

I love being involved in all the steps and the decision making.  After I get a few more books published and a little more experience I plan to start taking on books from other authors to publish.

What do you do when you are not writing?  

Hanging out with my youngest son!  He always has a game he wants to play or a project for me.  Lately, he loves to build things out of cardboard.  I recently made him a Lamborghini car and a Metallica guitar from a cardboard box.  He is always challenging my crafting skills!  It’s funny because he thinks I can do anything, and he has more faith in my skills than I do sometimes.  The projects usually end up taking 10 times longer than I anticipated so I’m building or crafting when I should be working…

What is your daily writing routine?

I keep a notebook on my desk and if I think of any ideas or funny lines for my books, I will jot them down.  When I feel I have a good list, then I sit down and rearrange them to try to create a good story.  This seems to work best for me.

What goals do you have for 2024 and beyond?

Hopefully, I will publish two more books from ‘The Shaws Have Cookies’ saga and intend on writing several more in 2024.  My long-term goal is combining all the books to create an animated show or movie depending on how many books I write for the saga.