WTAMU communications instructor Paula Schlegel will be the second faculty member this year to publish a book. Dr. Emily Hunt, assistant professor of mechanical engineering, co-authored a children’s book called Engineering Elephants.

Schlegel’s book is a children’s title called The Christmas Potato. The inspiration for the story came during a storytelling event for the Christmas open house at the Panhandle Plains Historical Museum.

“My oldest son was in fifth grade at the time and commented that the stories were too young for him,” Schlegel said.  “He wondered why there were no suspenseful Christmas stories. Within moments, the story came into my brain and out of my mouth.”

Although Schlegel is an avid reader and says that she is a storyteller first, she had no initial plans to publish The Christmas Potato.

“Every time I performed the story, people asked where they could find it,” she said. “I realized there was a need for this type of story.”

Once she had written the book, Schlegel went to work searching for a publisher and spent the late summer and fall working with editing, illustration and layout.

“It has been overwhelming and I felt very out of my element,” she said. However, Schlegel credits her students for helping her push through the process.

“Working at WT contributed to this book becoming a reality,” she said. “Watching students stretch their comfort zones in my classes gave me the courage to do something new. [It] reminded me that stretching my comfort zone is important in reaching my full potential.”

The Christmas Potato will be marketed to national chains in the spring of 2011. It is currently available through its Facebook page, a few local stores and Schlegel’s concerts.

Schlegel will also have a signing party and a storytelling concert on Dec. 2 in the JBK Commons. She will also be performing at the Panhandle Plains Historical Museum Christmas open house on Dec. 3-4.