Mason Baker, a freshman at the Grand Ledge High School (GLHS), just recently published a new book on Jan. 27, 2026, titled Have a Good Life. This novel can be found on Amazon, and is expected to be in local libraries, including the GLHS library. This book is a coming-of-age novel about a kid named Sam who is struggling to find his place in high school. As the book goes on, Sam is soon provided with resources to get better and to fit in with others around him.
“I saw a lot of people around me struggling, and not having anybody to talk to… I really just wanted to let people know that they can relate to something and know they’re not alone on how they feel,” Baker said.
This story originally started when Baker was in seventh grade, and it took him approximately 300 days to write. Baker talks a bit about how he began writing the book and decided to finish it off.
“I started the book in seventh grade as a short story, and then I picked it back up like a year later to try and write a full novel on it,” Baker said.
While writing a novel, it can be hard to stay motivated and continue to write without having roadblocks. When this happens and it gets difficult, It’s important to remember the main reason why it’s being written. This strategy helped Baker stay strong and continue writing, even when it was tough.
“I thought back to the inspiration of the book and how I wanted people to not feel alone, and I’ve always wanted to write a full book so this was kind of my idea,” Baker said.
Not only was the writing process difficult for him, but so was the editing. Before publishing a book, many writers tend to ask more than one person to edit the stories draft before being finalized.
“The book went through like 3 editors before I felt confident enough. So, first, it was my old school’s English teacher, and then it was my trimester one English teacher. Then afterwards, I had my mom read it and make sure it was good,” Baker stated.
In the years ahead, Baker plans to write more books and expects to create something different, but just as good.
“I’ve already started my second novel, and it’s gonna be a lot different than this book. My second novel is gonna be a comedy book, and I’ve written the first chapter so far, and it’s really interesting,” Baker said.
Baker pulled inspiration from a specific quote while making the book.
“Either write something worth reading or do something worth writing. That’s a quote from Benjamin Franklin, and it’s a really cool quote, and it’s a big inspiration for this book,” Baker said.
