Have you folks heard about Mark Kenyon? If you haven't I am surprised, and if you have I am sure you will recognize him has one of the rising stars in today's whitetail industry. Mark has been chasing whitetail dreams since he was old enough to sit along side his dad in a deer blind, and has an extreme passion for whitetails! Kenyon's passion is only matched by the few highly successful individuals who have been able to carve out a fulltime career in the whitetail industry. For several years I was extremely impressed by Mark Kenyon's love for all things whitetails, which was why I asked him to write the foreword for my 2nd book, "Food Plot Success by Design". However Mark's obvious writing skill and passion for whitetails asside, Mark is an incredibly gifted talent when it comes to relating to and using the level of modern online technology now needed, to create a career while pushing his obsession of whitetails! From Podcasts to Facebook to SEO (search engine optimization) to Social Media, Mark has proven he has positioned himself to be placed on top of the world of whitetail cyberspace. If you do not already do so, do yourself a favor and enjoy visiting Mark Kenyon's journey at WiredToHunt.com
Straight From Mark Kenyon
"I just had a message sent to me through Facebook that simply said, youre living the dream. And yes, Ive been blessed to see many of my personal dreams come true. You see, Im a whitetail writer.
There are a lot of people out there these days whod love to make a living doing what they love, and for many, thats hunting deer. Given that fact, I get a lot of questions asking how I got to this point. And believe it or not, it has a lot more to do with hunting and habitat management than you might expect.
-The Seed-
For me, it all started with a simple seed in the soil of my life. Not too unlike the humble beginnings of a food plot.
Huntings been a part of my life for as long as I can remember, with trips up north to deer camp as much an annual ritual as Christmas or my birthday. I started small, with short sits in the blind with dad, and then eventually with age went off on my own, learned to use a gun, and then a bow and on and on. The love of the outdoors had grown fast and hard within me, and leaving college I knew I wanted to find a way to make a living doing what I loved.
Eventually through a little luck and a good dose of serendipity, I was inspired to start a deer hunting blog. Just a place to put my two cents on hunting out there for the world to read, and if for no other reason, just to scratch that deer hunting itch when I couldnt be outside.
-Coming To Fruition-
It didnt take long after starting my blog though to see that there was something more going on here. I could connect with people. I could impact people. I could help people.
My hunting stories, my lessons learned, my experiences in the woods. No longer were these things simply in my head, they could now go out into the world and touch other people. And they did. It was wildly fulfilling.
Think back to the first time you sat overtop a food plot and saw deer feeding in the field youd spent all spring and summer preparing. Its an incredible thing to behold. And I felt the same way after seeing how my simple words could impact other people. I could help people have better hunting success. I could share a story that brought a readers own great whitetail memories back to life. I could inspire my fellow hunters to reach for greater heights.
-What It Took-
It was amazing to see the impact I could have, but this didnt happen over night. No different than any other whitetail related project, it took a lot of time and work. I get dozens of emails from readers asking about how to get into the outdoor writing business, and the advice I give is always the same. Just as in deer hunting or food plotting or habitat work, you just need to get started. Try it out. Get your feet wet.
And then, never stop learning.
If you want to get into the outdoor industry or become a hunting writer or a fishing TV show host or whatever its all going to require a leap of faith. You have to just start doing it, start creating, start producing, start making things. And then keep fine-tuning your craft. Is it easy? No. But is it worth it? 100%.
Sounds a lot like your first couple years managing a hunting property, doesnt it?
-Chasing The Dream-
And just like those first few years of managing a property, my early years as a writer had their ups and downs. I screwed up on occasion. I missed the mark a few times. But I also had my learning experiences and wins along the way too.
Now, years later, Im reaping what Ive sown, putting the metaphoric mounts on the wall, and I couldnt be happier.
If you have a dream whether it be to kill a mature buck, or grow and hold bigger deer, or to make a living in the outdoor industry Id encourage you to chase it.
Plant that seed, put in the work and then watch it grow. And eventually, I promise, the harvest will be well worth the wait."
Conclusion
Mark Kenyon is the founder of WiredToHunt.com, Host of The Wired To Hunt Podcast, author of several books and an accomplished contributing writer to several major publications. Again, I invite you to check Mark out at WiredToHunt.com, and I am sure that you will not be disappointed!