Episode 80 Kayvion Lewis - ”Shreveport-Bossier: My City, My Community, My Home”

Shreveport-Bossier: My City, My Community, My Home

Young Adult Author Kayvion Lewis sits down with Jeffrey Goodman, Director of Marketing and Development for the YMCA of Northwest Louisiana, and Community Activist LeVette Fuller, to answer the following questions:

0:49 1. Kayvion, you are a massive, local success story. The US book rights for your book Thieves’ Gambit were acquired in a seven-figure deal and Lionsgate has acquired the movie rights with Steven Caple Jr, who directed Transformers: Rise of the Beasts and Creed II, attached to direct.

Let’s start here today.

What has it been like to grow up here in Shreveport?

2:15 2. Kayvion, if I am not mistaken, you are 24, a graduate of Caddo Magnet High, and worked at the North Shreveport Branch of Shreve Memorial Library for three years. What have public libraries meant to you? 3:47

3:47 3. Do you feel pressure to be a role model?

4:32 4. I have listened to numerous interviews with you and one thing that becomes quite clear is how driven you are. Can you talk about where that comes from? And, in general, just some about how you were raised?

6:23 5. Did you feel any pressure to maybe reconcile such a nebulous career? A very limited group of people get to actually do what they love, that's creative, and actually get paid to do it. Did you ever feel like there was any push back or resistance from your family about something they might see as impractical?

8:40 6. With all the people you’re meeting, all the new experiences, if you had to drop them into Shreveport, what would you feel like you had to answer for that isn’t ideal?

9:56 7. On the flip side of the previous question, what would you be most proud of?

10:32 8. We struggle here, exporting a lot of our best and brightest. What kind of advice do you have for leadership locally to retain more Kayvion Lewis(es)?

11:52 9. Something we have in common is both of our fathers were police officers. Is there anything in your upbringing, with your father, to make you keenly aware of your situational awareness?

13:50 10. Something we talk a lot about on this podcast is the self-esteem issue that we struggle with as Shreveporters, people just not feeling comfortable or feeling proud to be from here. I don't feel like you have that. If you don't suffer from that, why do think that is? What sort of advice or wisdom do you have for other people to embrace this as their home?

16:32 11. I was very impressed with the character development and the characters that are culturally well developed, in particular your Asian characters. How much of that is because of your travels? And is there anything else that led to that development?

18:15 12. Someone comes to visit you, never been here before, they want to shadow you on a normal Kayvion work day in Shreveport. Take me through what that looks like. I want to see it from the time you wake up to the time you go to bed.

And then they want to do the same, in a typical Kayvion fun day in Shreveport or just a recreational, non-working day. I want you to describe both of those for me from start to finish.