Meet The Wyoming Truck Driver Behind “Roadie The Ranch Dog” Children's Books

He’s ranched, roofed, built pallets and worked blue-collar jobs in the oil patch.

Scott Haynes, 49, still uses his commercial driver’s license to haul heavy equipment, gravel and other loads for a “roustabout” trucking company during the summer months. But this winter he’s focusing on what he really loves — being the author and illustrator for his “Roadie the Ranch Dog” children’s books.

The Newcastle, Wyoming, man recently published his seventh Roadie book, and ninth overall, and is enjoying greater success as more young readers discover the colorful orange cartoon ranch dog and his misadventures in ranch life.

“I wanted to make something I wish I'd had when I was a little kid,” Haynes said. “There were no real cool ranchy, cowboy-type, farming picture books that were accurate. You had the ‘Hank the Cowdog’ books, but those weren’t picture books.”

A student who struggled in school but always loved art and cartoons, Haynes said his books developed out of a desire to help young students in schools around Newcastle and show them what was possible with art. 

In 2012, he had heard that two area school districts were considering cutting music and art programs, so he decided to create a picture book to show students what was possible with art.

Haynes, then 37, said he had done some artwork for greeting cards and had thought about children’s books, but decided it was time to put pencil on paper.

Comic Book Influences

As a boy, he enjoyed comic books, as well as books on cowboys and art. He liked to draw cows and horses, but also Spider-Man and Hulk. Haynes also enjoyed comic strips such as Calvin and Hobbes and The Far Side.

Haynes knew that the character for his book would be a ranch dog. He grew up on a ranch in a small town in eastern Montana and calls himself a “dog lover.”

“He's definitely based on dogs we've had growing up … we've always had mutts,” he said. “I wanted to make Roadie kind of an every dog. So, if a kid looked at it, he goes, ‘That reminds me of our dog.’”

The latest book put together last winter and published this summer is titled “Roadie the Ranch Dog, The Greatest Ranch Dog to Ever Ranch Dog.” Other titles from the series are “Roadie the Ranch Dog, I’m Grumpy,” and “Where Are All the Calves?! A Roadie the Ranch Dog Book.”

A synopsis of the latest ranch dog adventure says Roadie “gets a lesson on what it takes to be not just a good ranch dog, but a great ranch dog. Old man Bob, the greatest ranch dog of all time, takes Roadie through his time-tested habits to ensure Roadie’s success.”

Haynes said he gets ideas for the books from growing up on his own family’s ranch and from work on other ranches. He also has heard stories of dog exploits from other ranchers over the years that he incorporates into plots from time to time.

The first book, titled just “Roadie The Ranch Dog” came out in 2013, and is about “Roadie the Ranch Dog’s big day in the back of a pickup.”

Creative Process

Haynes said his creative process often begins with a sketch or a general idea of where he wants to start and end up. 

He tries to fill up the middle pages of the books with “funny gags.” The words of the book, written to be read by 5- through 8-year-olds, rhyme. He said sometimes he finds himself singing lines as he develops plots.

Sticky notes for those ideas that come at unexpected time can be found around his house, Haynes said.

Characterizing himself as not real “tech savvy,” Haynes sketches out his books with a No. 2 pencil, scans them into his computer and then uses a program to “pen and ink” the art and color it to give scenes a “really bright, like-comic book feeling.”

The completed book is sent to an editor who helps with his word choices, grammar and punctuation. Once that process is complete, he sends the book to a printer and orders copies. He likes self-publishing his work and no longer puts his books on Amazon. All of the books are available at his website.

He also sells the books at some stores in Wyoming, Nebraska, Montana, and other western states. The books list for $19.99.

Reviews of the initial 32-page 2013 book, which can still be found on Amazon, give “Roadie” high marks.

“Very fun children’s book with great pictures. I enjoyed it as much as my 4-year-old because it reminded me of the ranch dogs I knew as a child in Montana,” one reviewer wrote. 

Another penned: “So cute! A book for children and adults alike. You know from reading that the author has lived on a ranch. I will read this over and over.”

Haynes said it’s hard to pick a favorite book, he likes them all. But in addition to his latest, he really enjoyed “Where Are All the Calves?” His fourth in the series.

“I just like the whole gist of it. It’s calving season and Roadie gets up in the morning and wants to go down and see all the new calves that were born overnight,” he said. “When he gets down there to the barn, he sees all the calves are missing … so he gets help from his buddy, the horse, and they go on this little adventure to find out where all the calves were.”

His Kids Are Fans

When he began writing the books in 2013, Haynes said he did not have children. His wife was pregnant with their first. 

Now they have three kids ages 11, 9, and 5. All the children enjoy the books, and he said his office is full of boxes of them. But he was surprised when his son, then 8, came home from the library one day with familiar covers in his hand.

“I thought that was pretty cool,” he said. 

His children have told him that during classroom time for reading aloud, other students have asked for a “Roadie” book.

One of the reasons he no longer sells his books on Amazon is that he enjoys going to stock shows, trade shows, art fairs and other events and selling his books in person. Haynes said he enjoys talking to people — especially children.

“I like to set up my table, have all my books, and then people can come talk to me,” he said. “I can talk to kids, and they see that I’m like a real person, and not just a major publishing house on the East Coast or something, trying to sell their books.”

Often, he gets in conversations with kids who are interested in art, and Haynes tries to inspire them about what is possible in their own lives.

In his own life, Haynes said it remains hard for him sometimes to find the time for the next project. He may need to get up early or stay up late after chores are done and the kids are in bed. But he often encourages others to pursue their goals.

“I didn’t start until I was 37,” he said. “It’s just finally sitting down and saying, ‘I’m going to come up with a character. OK, now I’m going to do this … I’ll draw one cow or Roadie chasing a cow, and then that’ll be my first page or whatever. Whatever it is, just get it done.’”

While he still works for others, Haynes said it feels good to finally see the fruits of his dream and be able to spend the winter focusing on what he loves to do.

“I always wanted to do my own thing and create and then maybe leave something for my kids to look at one day and go, ‘Wow, you know dad really did it,’” he said. “Just show them that if they put their mind to it, they can do whatever they want to do.”

Contact Dale Killingbeck at dale@cowboystatedaily.com

Dale Killingbeck can be reached at dale@cowboystatedaily.com.