From Everest to the Farm: Mitch Lewis on Storytelling, Perseverance, and Finding Your Own Summit
If there’s one thing I want to impart to the readers of my books, it’s that anyone can do (most) anything they dream of. And this means that everyone has their own Everest, whatever that might be.
Mitch Lewis
Mitch Lewis is a man of many adventures—a mountaineer who has summited Everest, a storyteller who inspires readers young and old, and, most recently, a first-generation farmer. His experiences have shaped his writing in unexpected ways, from his uplifting Billy the Baaad Goat children’s book series to his latest book, Climbing Your Personal Everest.
In this interview, Mitch shares how life on Summit Farms has influenced his storytelling, how overcoming personal challenges inspired him to write about perseverance and teamwork, and why he believes everyone has their own “Everest” to climb.
How has life at Summit Farms influenced your writing, particularly the characters and settings in your books?
In an extreme case of life imitating art, one of the reasons we ended up becoming first-generation, late-in-life farmers was because of Billy the Baaad Goat! A few years ago, when my granddaughter Clara was just a couple years old, I would read her made-up bedtime stories and some of those had Billy on his various adventures. One day I sat down and wrote the rhyming tale, filled with Beatles references that included a couple moving away from the city during the pandemic and buying a farm with a big red barn (and talking animals with a big yellow rocketship, of course!). My wife Michelle and I ended up becoming that couple four years ago, even before the book was published by Tellwell. Clara the Calico Cat and Lucy the Lioness are based on two of our grandchildren, while Vera, Chuck and Dave come straight out of “When I’m 64.” Rocky Racoon, Paul-is-the-Walrus came from, well . . .
What do you hope readers, both young and old, take away from your books and the adventures of Billy the Baaad Goat series?
I’m so excited the third and last chapter of the Billy series will be coming out very soon! I’ve always wanted the parents and grandparents to actually enjoy reading a book to the kiddos, and laugh alongside them. I like to feature characters who overcome obstacles and achieve great goals with collaboration and a sense of accomplishment. Billy is also subject to bullying (and isn’t really bad, just kind of naughty). I love to see all of the animals working together and learning about science.
Your books explore themes of teamwork, diversity, and courage. Why are these values important to teach through children’s stories?
I tend to highlight strong, smart female leaders, along with representing diversity through the different creature species and how their bravery and perseverance in the face of adversity can help them overcome many things in their own lives. They also metaphorically represent diverse teams I’ve worked with around the world that could come together and achieve great goals and celebrate as a team.
Your Everest trilogy blends adventure with deep emotional lessons. How do those themes connect with your children’s books, like The Mother Mountain?
Summiting Mount Everest without oxygen and in the middle of a deadly storm taught me a lot about life, friendship, mutual goals, and doing something one doesn’t think is possible. After completing the Seven Summits, and before that finishing a marathon on the Seven Continents, I was interested in what compelled others to transform their own lives and help make the world a better place at the same time. My first book, Climbing Your Personal Everest: A Journey of Self-Discovery and Leadership, was my own decade-long expedition from being “stuck in the rut with a gut,” a couch potato watching The Simpsons in Swedish while living in Stockholm, to running my first marathon in Sweden to my seventh summit of Vinson Massif in Antarctica.
In my second book, Climb Higher: Pursue Your Passion With Purpose, we explore eight individuals who took on new and daring life or career challenges, while also contributing to society through a number of unique projects or programs, and intertwined with how one can learn from them to also tweak their own life.
For a long time I wanted to write a children’s book about what it was like to really climb Mount Everest from someone lucky enough to have done so and survived to write about the experience. I ended up telling the (mostly) true story of my own Everest climb, together with my climbing buddy Molly, with Max as well, myself. What makes the book so special is the fantastic true-to-life illustrations from Tellwell’s Stefanie St. Denis. She was able to take original photographs and situations, plus imagine several with no pics to choose from, and turn them into beautiful images that really do show what it was like on Everest and incorporating a lot of education from the British naming and height knowledge, to the reverence of the mountain and the sherpas. Many of the real-life themes from the first two adult books show up in the The Mother Mountain: You Can Climb Mt. Everest.
What lessons from climbing Mount Everest have you woven into your storytelling, especially in terms of perseverance and facing fears?
If there’s one thing I wanted to impart to the readers of all of my books is that anyone can do (most) anything they dream of. And this means that Everyone has their own Everest, whatever that might be. We all finish many races and climb many mountains during our lives and these are different for everybody, but still incorporate the essential elements of being a good and kind human being, working well as a team towards common goals, overcoming obstacles and celebrating together. Facing my own fears at the Hillary Step gave me perspective around perseverance and how collaboration can be so supportive, whether you’re a high-altitude climber or a naughty billy goat!
With such a diverse background—author, speaker, mountaineer, and farmer—how do you balance these passions with writing?
In our own new “Everest” as farmers, I have lots of times to reflect on life’s lessons from my business life such as partnerships, strategy and focus, giving back to the community, and learning from others but also mentoring the next generation of family farmers that are critical for our healthy local food supply in the years to come. Writing gives me an outlet, whether in a book or in a post, or on one of my websites: www.yourpersonaleverest.com or www.summitfarms.co. It certainly gives me an outlet to share and connect and my passions for writing.
Note: Mitch wanted to mention his gratitude for John Abella, Jennifer, the excellence and synchronicity with editing, his main contact Rhea Mae, and the rest of the great team at Tellwell!
