Jefferson Marshall and Shawn Taylor are Pampa residents that have released three books over the past three years, showcasing and bringing a new love for state parks right here in Texas. Marshall was born in Marshall Texas, but is a native of Lubbock. Marshall is a high school English teacher in Lubbock.
“I live in Lubbock, that’s where I grew up,” Marshall said. “But I lived in Pampa for two years. I helped out at a lot of church camps and summer camps throughout the years, so this series is bringing a passion I have to live.”
Taylor is a born and raised Pampan, after finishing school in Pampa, Taylor went to SCAD (Savannah College of Art and Design) where he majored in illustration. The duo’s first book was released in March 2020, Marshall is the author and collaborates with Taylor for his illustrations.
“We met at Redeemer Pampa, and I had an idea about writing a book series about a group of kids having adventures in state parks,” Marshall said. “I knew Shawn was an illustrator and I liked his style, so I asked if he’d partner with me for this series I wanted to do.”
The first book features a group of kids taking an adventure in Caprock Canyons, titled “The Creatures of Caprock Canyons”. All three books are set in Texas, in National Parks we have right here.
“Texas is gigantic, there’s so many different types of adventures you can have just in Texas,” Marshall said. “I noticed there were no books geared towards kids set in a Texas State Park so I wanted to change that. So through these books, kids learn about state parks they might have or might not have been to. It gives them a chance to read about these adventures and hopefully go make some of their own.”
The illustrations are made to fit in a natural sense in the books, not colorful brought-to-life images but rather sketch-like drawings, as if the book came from someone who was journaling their time in the set state park.
“I have been to two of the three state parks we’ve written about,” Taylor said. “Caprock Canyons is the only one I haven’t been to. But when Jefferson goes, he takes so many photos that give me a sense of what the park looks like and how the images should be. So a lot of the images in the books are from real photos Jefferson has taken. A lot of the images are either story-based or random landscapes from the parks. Most are story-based, Jefferson has an idea of what he wants to happen in the scene.”
The books are a passion project for the two. The distribution of the books is all on Jefferson and Shawn.
“The books have done well, everyone I’ve talked to is excited about the series,” Marshall said. “What I’ve come to realize is that the books aren’t about us anymore, they belong to the people and these places belong to the public of Texas. It does two things, it will remind people of their own adventures in the outdoors. But two, it also inspires them to go have more adventures. These aren’t much about us. Through the images that Shawn creates, it takes people to a place where they realize the memories they’ve made out in nature.”
The process of putting out a new book takes roughly around two years, usually starting with Marshall taking a trip to a state park and rough drafting a story idea from the location. Marshall’s side of things takes around six months before he can give his ideas for illustrations and the cover to give to Taylor. Once Taylor has a starting point, the project will take six months to a year. The cover is another project that Taylor does, an unusual thing to do as most oftentimes, the cover of a book is made by someone else. A process that is completely done by the two.
“We’re self-published,” Marshall said. “I write it, he illustrates it, and then sends it back to me. Once it’s done, they come back to me and I package and put it together myself. It’s all us from start to finish.”
With 89 state parks in Texas, the two have plenty more to write about. A fourth book is in the works that will be set in the Dallas area, focused on biking throughout a state park but featuring the same group of characters.
“We want to be diverse in the Texas landscapes,” Marshall said. “But we also want to represent the cultures across Texas because they are also diverse.”
The idea of starting this project is one that the two wrestled with. No concern for the numbers or number of books sold, the sole purpose is to get more people involved with state parks in Texas and nature.
“When I told my wife about the idea, I wanted it to only be about Caprock Canyon,” Marshall said. “I went through the battles of if no one cared about the book or if they never went anywhere. My wife set it into focus when she asked if this was something I cared about and would want to share with my own kids someday. She said, if nothing else happens, I have these to share with my kids. Everything else has been a bonus.”
The duo was asked to be part of the White Deer Land Museums Summer Camp, Marshall reads excerpts of the books for students and teaches them about animals in state parks. Taylor was able to teach the students how to draw certain animals or creatures in the state parks they’d just read about.
“I brought my daughter in here to admire some of the artwork they had,” Marshall said. “I mentioned to Anita that I wrote a book about Caprock Canyon and the staff here was like we want all the books you’ve written and will you be a part of our summer camp.”
The two also visited Grandview Hopkins doing a similar event for them, as well as Wilson Elementary. Taylor teaches art lessons at The Well, so teaching art is part of his daily life.
“These events are such a joy getting to do,” Marshall said. “Without Shawn, the kids wouldn’t much care for me. They don’t want to read as much as they want to draw. So it works for both parts. These allow us to give the students permission to open up their creative side and take that avenue.”
The books are sold in the White Deer Land Museum, also available on Amazon under ‘Texas State Park Adventures’, and are available at the state parks that the stories are focused on.
