On Sept. 22 it will be Spooky Season for both the Food Network and area baker Shannon Mayes, when the Big Horn Basin resident competes on “Halloween Wars.”

Viewers can tune in at 6 p.m. to watch the local cake artist first in the “Road to Halloween Wars” episode and then in the first episode of the season.

“Host Jonathan Bennett welcomes four teams to the first of two qualifying rounds, where each team of talented cake, sugar and pumpkin artists must create a scene depicting a monster from a specific historical period,” the synopsis on the Food Network webpage reads. 

Mayes isn’t new to making elaborate and creative cakes, she first started 13 years ago. Her cakes range from simple and elegant to fun and complicated — one such cake features the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles on top of a pizza box while eating a slice.

Delivering a birthday cake to a member of Guy Fieri’s crew while they filmed in Park County led to Mayes’ own moment in the spotlight in Season 14 of Halloween Wars.

“I appeared on an episode of ‘Guy's all American Road Trip’ … and he was really impressed, and so he passed my information on to the network and said, ‘Hey, you should, you know, reach out to this girl for one of the competition shows,’” Mayes remembered. 

Following an application process she was selected to appear in the annual season of Halloween Wars.

This season came with a twist — each team of three bakers included a past winner of the show.

“We have seven hours to create an installation, a very big installation based on the guidelines and the theme,” Mayes said. “So they give us a theme, and then there's always a special thing we have to incorporate, and then there's also a tasting element that has to be created based on guidelines as well.”

Each team consists of a cake artist, sugar artist and pumpkin carver. Mayes was the team’s cake artist, she said, and during her time on the show she made lifelong friends and had a good time meeting and spending time with other contestants. 

“I definitely learned how to work under even more pressure than I already have, because, I mean, what I do already, I always have deadlines. You have an order due for an event, and you got to get it done,” Mayes said. “But, yeah, it was definitely a whole other level of pressure that I learned to work under and then when I came back, it was like my regular orders felt like cake, literally.”

The show filmed a year in advance and spoilers can’t be given away, but those curious about Mayes and her business can visit her new brick and mortar store during its grand opening on Sept. 28 at 145 E. Main Street in Lovell. 

Mayes can also be found at SweetArt Cake Company on Facebook.