World Champion trainer and Judge, Stephanie Lynn can also add the title of author next to her name. Lynn just finished writing a book, A Lifetime Affair, which is about universal life lessons that horses have taught her throughout her lifetime. Lynn of Fall Creek, Wisconsin, is a AQHA World Champion trainer and an AQHA judge who travels all over the world giving clinics and judging some of the top shows in our industry.
Q: Hi Stephanie–so first off, tell us how you got involved with horses?
A: My family started taking riding lessons with family friends and I was too young to ride when they started. At age five, I was finally old enough to start with lessons. I love the horses, finding them, teaching them, handling them, and I love the people who love the horses.
Q: What are some of your proudest accomplishments in the industry?
A: My proudest accomplishments are all my youth kids–that they have turned out to be happy successful women leading good lives makes me very proud. It was an honor to be a part of their lives, and I am proud to have been trusted with them.
Q: Any advice you have for young trainers?
A: Take care of your horses first, and learn to take good care of them. It sounds obvious, but there is more to being a good horseman than teaching one to go slow, put his head down or keeping one fat. Learn what makes each horse tick and work with their mind to make them the best they can be instead of trying to make them all fit the same mold. When you look at the greatest horsemen of our time, their horses do not all look or go the same. Like people, each horse is unique. Accepting that fact, work with it and you will be successful.
Q: When did you start thinking you wanted to write a book about your experiences in the horse industry?
A: I have been thinking I wanted to write for several years. About two years ago I decided I should shut my mouth until I actually put pencil to paper and started writing. I wasn’t really interested in writing a how to book, because I don’t really think anyone cares how I think training should be done, and it is really hard to teach horsemanship from a book.
Q: What was the process of getting it published?
A: The publishing part was real simple – you simply have to pay for it. Like many in our industry, I am a control freak. A first time writer is going to pay for everything whether or not they are “published” or self-publish. You lose a lot of control when you are published, it is a tricky business meant to benefit those who have been in it for a long time. I was not willing to lose control and be left with the promotion and bills anyhow. Therefore, I did not even try to get published. I just learned how to do it myself. As I say in my book, it is a new venture with new lessons, mistakes and pitfalls.
Q: What was the writing process like? Had you written much in your past?
A: I had not written anything since college – that mattered. About five years ago, Jim Brett Campbell put an article I wrote in the Journal – with very few edits! That gave me hope. The writing process is like learning to ride all over again, except at my age, taking the criticism can be hard. I started writing what I called “chapters”. In any order, with no thoughts of how one would flow to the next. I took one chapter to my sister and mom’s to show. Proud of my work, I presented it to my sister. She took three seconds, scanned it, shoved it back at me and said that the word “was” appeared 10 times on page 1 – boring and overused. Her words left me deflated and sent me back to the computer. The whole book was like that.
Q: Tell me what your book is about?
A: The book is about universal life lessons that the horses have taught me. The readers will relate to many of the stories and lessons learned whether they ride horses or not. If they are riders, they will find validation that they are not the only one who has had to overcome problems and find solutions.
Q: When will it be available and where can people buy it?
A: It will be available September 20th on my website at stephanieannlynn.com, Roth Show Equipment, Schneiders, All That Show Clothing at the Congress and World Shows, and as an ebook available on Amazon, October 15th.
Q: Anything else you would like to tell our readers?
A: Writing is like learning any new process, but one which I am sure many of my peers can do much better than I have done. Get out your pencils and notebooks and start writing–especially if you have children. Write what you remember and what is important to you before you forget. Even if no one sees it but you or your family.
Q: Thanks Stephanie for sharing your thoughts and good luck with your book.
A: Thank you!
