Rik Goodell recognized a bent for writing in his early teens. When most high-school kids were doodling during class, he was cobbling stories and rhymes. He picked up the handle, “Yonder,” by wandering around the country and writing of his encounters.

Rik says he had a hard time trying to figure out what he wanted to do when he grew up, so he has made his living in many varied occupations and lived an unusually adventurous, diverse life. He is a certified SCUBA diver and an NRA Certified Master in Outdoor Pistol. He has sailed a 35-foot ketch to Hawaii and back and ridden a motorcycle across North America several times and over the Swiss Alps. When he looks at a blank page, his inkwell is exceptionally deep with broad-spectrum experiences from which to compose. And words! They excite him. A good day is when he learns a new one and uses it a dozen times to own it.

Merge those characteristics, adventures, and experiences together with Rik’s love of the singular history of the American West and his passion for “The Cowboy Way.” Box them up in a corral. Leave them to breed and brew. Let the seeds gestate. Inevitably, rhyming stories that bring his readers and his audiences home to their roots and traditions are brought to light.

Mentored by an old cowboy in his teens, Yonder moved out on a life-trail of living and respecting “The Cowboy Way.” He wrangled on a horse ranch and spent years as a deputy sheriff and a Hollywood actor. He tried his hand for a spell at his own cow-calf operation on a small 40-acre spread and loved the cowboyin’ for which he found a quick affinity. His writing stems from the muscle memory of those hard-earned experiences and a deep respect for the values, history, and traditions of the singular American West, ranch-life, and old-fashioned rodeo.

Yonder has received numerous awards for his writing including four Will Rogers Medallion Awards and IWMA Cowboy Poetry Album of the year.