Flathead Lake monster featured in new book

Missoula-based illustrator and author Josh Quick enjoys Montana facts just as much as the next guy, but he took his state trivia to the next level when he created his book “Montana Quick Facts.”

Quick’s book came about after he started drawing interesting facts about Montana, as one of his artistries is custom typography, and posting them to social media in his spare time. He said he started drawing these “just for fun,” but the facts appealed to a lot of his followers.

After awhile, Quick said he had 20 to 30 of these hand-drawn facts and thought he should do something with them.

“At some point I realized that I could put all these together and make them into a book,” Quick said. “I was like, well I guess I’ll do 100 and see how it looks.”

Researching these facts was a process. Quick did not just go online looking up fun facts. He used some of his personal interests, such as architecture, pop culture, natural resources and many others, to drive his search for widely unknown truths regarding Montana.

For example, Quick was looking for small towns on the map that he had never heard of to find new information.

“Like Broadus, Montana,” Quick explained as he gave examples of his findings. “It’s this little town in Montana and it’s streets are so wide. They were built wide enough for a horse drawn carriage to turn around.”

A number of facts in the book focus on Northwest Montana, including one illustration about reported sightings of the Flathead Lake monster.

He said the book’s popularity has been astonishing.

“It blew up on me,” Quick said. “I got it in most of the independent book stores that I could, but even Barnes and Noble reached out to me because the demand was so much.”

He said the book appeals to adults as well as kids, and notes that most of his sales are from Montanans or people with Montana ties.

“I feel like it’s very hyper-local. It’s Montana,” Quick said.

Quick will be in Polson on Friday signing copies of the new book. He said these event offer an opportunity to explain the book and its origins.

“I’m really trying to get awareness around the book,” Quick said. “It’s constantly doing well, but I want it to stick around.”

Following the success of his first book, Quick is hoping to keep this momentum going. He is now starting to work on a Yellowstone Quick Facts for his next release.