Game Warden Bob Lee’s True-Life Adventure Stories

The first advice writers get is “Write what you know.” Bob Lee has done exactly that, writing about his three decades with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC). But instead of common, everyday life, his stories are pure adventure-thriller, the stuff of Indiana Jones’ experience. On August 9, his listeners were on the edge of their seats one moment, in rapt suspense, then howling in laughter as he recounted his adventures enforcing conservation law in Putnam and St. John’s counties.

In writing memoir, Lee has faced questions all memoirists must answer: How do I handle my “characters,” who are real people, friends, co-workers? And do I stretch the truth to entertain? Lee took perhaps the easy route in answering the first—he waited until he retired before publishing. But he prepared for the day by interviewing his characters as he collected case reports, photos, clippings, and notes.

Even for one particular interview, he was forced to wait until after retirement. His main character, Roger Gunter, a notorious poacher who lived for the challenge of outwitting game wardens, wouldn’t agree to an interview as long as Lee was working for FWC. The payoff for Lee’s patience was four full days of interviews and pages full of thrills and laughs in which the reader is able to identify with the “bad guy.” Gunter, the poacher, was so invested in the story that he came to the book launch at the local feed and seed store, but, like a teen on her first date, he worried about what color boots to wear.

Lee’s goal in answering the second question, whether to stretch the truth, has been to be accurate. “Sometimes I’m tempted to bend truth to make stories more entertaining. But I don’t,” he said. Accuracy protects the reader’s trust. On at least one occasion he modified his words “to keep friends. But I’m always careful to get the story right.” That one time, an officer he’d interviewed was angry about a quote, even denied it, although it was on tape.

“I’m not a professional writer,” Lee said. “I didn’t grow up wanting to be a writer.” So he’s made a point of looking to other writers to learn “how they do what I want to do” and for feedback on his writing. A freelance writer friend edited his first story, and he joined a small critique group early in his writing journey. For almost two decades, members of that group have continued to give each other feedback. He said he writes first thing in the morning, “before my head gets cluttered up with everything that happens during the day.”

In 2007, Lee set out to chronicle his experiences in a package of selected stories. It took him three years to write his book, Backcountry Lawman: True Stories from a Florida Game Warden, published in 2013 by the University Press of Florida. The book was recognized in 2014 as the winner of the Florida Outdoor Writers Association Award for best outdoor book and has been featured in the Florida Sportsman, Florida Wildlife, Florida Game & Fish, Palatka Daily News, International Game Warden and other publications.

A native of Florida, Bob graduated with a degree in criminal justice from the University of South Florida. He is a 30-year veteran of the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. He worked as a water patrol officer on the St. John’s River and a land patrol lieutenant in Flagler, Putnam and St. John’s counties. He is a former teacher of man-tracking classes through the Florida Wildlife Commission Law Enforcement Academy.

Lee continues to work as a freelance writer for law enforcement and outdoor magazines. He and his wife, Karen, live on eighteen acres next to a secluded lake in south Putnam County.