Western Travel – Page 3 – Adventures in Western History

Why Mrs. Brown Chose The Titanic

By joyce4books | February 4, 2012 by joyce4books

As the one hundredth anniversary approaches of the Titanic steamship’s tragic encounter with an iceberg in the Atlantic Ocean during its maiden voyage, I will provide some details about our heroine, Margaret Brown, who consequently became known to us as the Unsinkable Molly Brown. After all, she is the inspiration for this Unsinkable blog, which celebrates her story and Western history. If you believe in fate, you will appreciate the circumstances that placed Mrs. J.J.…

Regrouping in Winter

By joyce4books | January 20, 2012 by joyce4books

January has always been a time for me to clean out my desk and my brain as I turn the calendar and make plans for a new year. How timely that the Denver Woman’s Press Club invited Cynthia Morris to coach a group of us through the process of focusing on plans and writing notes to hold ourselves accountable for ideas which will make 2012 Our Best Writing Year Ever. The regrouping, re-evaluating, and re-purposing…

A Fun Secret Hobby

By joyce4books | November 18, 2011 by joyce4books

From time to time, I like to share new ways to enjoy the history and culture of the American West. Can you identify the figure in the image above? I spotted this one while driving through Gallup, New Mexico last year on old Route 66. If you are a Southwesterner, you probably recognize it as a loose rendition of a roadrunner, and this sign is on display to lure weary travelers into a motel along…

A West by Northwest Conference

By joyce4books | October 25, 2011 by joyce4books

Once, again, the annual Women Writing the West Conference has come and gone. This year, the conference entitled “West by Northwest” took us to the Seattle area, one of my favorite parts of the country. We spent our first day seeing the local sites, such as the fabulous flying fish at Pike Public Market, and eating a memorable bowl of clam chowder for lunch at Lowell’s, while we watched the ships and ferries in Puget…

Yellowstone Savages Reunited

By joyce4books | September 16, 2011 by joyce4books

There is nothing like a weekend in Yellowstone National Park to clear the brain and boost the soul. For me, time spent with friends from Savage Days, when we lived and worked together long ago in Yellowstone Park, made the journey more meaningful and enriching. After this summer, punctuated by loss and sadness, my soul was elevated by time spent with friends in a place where stunning natural beauty and abundant wildlife speaks volumes to…

Mara Purl Interview – Segment #3

By joyce4books | September 1, 2011 by joyce4books

— Tell us about the importance of thin flip cell phones and Jimmy Choo shoes. I Googled the shoes … WOW, they are HOT!! [You could wear them, I could NOT!!!] Oh, these are such fun stories! First, the shoes. I have a “hot” character named Cynthia. She’s social climber, a blond bombshell, and is convinced she can get anything she wants by wiggling her hips and batting her eyelashes. And most of the time,…

Mara Purl Interview – Segment #2

By joyce4books | August 31, 2011 by joyce4books

— How did it come about that your book series was picked up by a large publishing house, and in what ways has that changed your work and your outlook? The new publishing contract came about as a direct result of developing a following for my books. I write a novel series, the first four of which were published over the last five years with a small independent press. Like most small indie presses, it…

Mara Purl Visits During Her Virtual Tour

By joyce4books | August 30, 2011 by joyce4books

Mara Purl has spent the month of August on a virtual book tour to promote her recent work on her Milford-Haven novel series. Her piece entitled, When Hummers Dream, is currently available as an e-book for 99 cents from Amazon.com. Her novel, What the Heart Knows, will be published in hardcover next month in September by BelleKeep Books in association with Midpoint Trade Books. If you just caught up with Mara’s virtual travels, or her…

Tourist Season

By joyce4books | April 26, 2011 by joyce4books

With spring well underway in the Rocky Mountains, thoughts naturally turn to tourist destinations and new ways to enjoy them. Our current culture did not invent the concept of traveling for fun and education. Far from it. The West can look to western expansion to explain much of its history, good and bad. After the Civil War, young men scrambled to find their fame and fortune in the West. Pioneers and tourists came in many…

Archeology and History

By joyce4books | March 6, 2011 by joyce4books

Why was I riveted to an old Indiana Jones movie last evening? Besides Spielberg’s magic and a young Harrison Ford, it had a lot to do with the archealogical tale of unfolding mysteries through material evidence of past human life. The story also touched lightly on the issue of truth as opposed to myth, one of my favorite speech topics regarding our more modern western history. How cool is that! Recently, I visited Petroglyph National…