I began my journey as a storyteller while in grade school, writing short stories and newspapers for my friends. As a college freshman, my roommate and I started an underground newspaper, which became the talk of the campus. I also wrote articles for the school paper and magazine and applied those skills after graduation as a public relations director.

My travels include living in 13 states and visiting 38 countries. Thanks to six years in the Air Force, I made unforgettable trips to Saudi Arabia and Greenland. While working for a global manufacturer, I shot videos in Japan and Thailand and TV ads in New Zealand. I also made a business presentation in Switzerland one morning and then drove to Austria that afternoon, stopping in Liechtenstein on the way. I love to see new places.

As a Utah native, my early travels were to many of the best national parks, including Zion, Bryce, Arches, Grand Canyon, Mesa Verde, Grand Teton and Yellowstone. When traveling with me, you need to wear comfortable walking shoes because I explore on foot. At times, my walkabouts have lasted longer than expected due to navigation challenges, which has led me to borrow Daniel Boone’s line: “I can’t say as ever I was lost, but I was bewildered once for three days.”

I help Doug with his writing by serving as a brainstorming partner and proofreader. I like reviewing his drafts because my husband is a creative writer and gives me great stories to read. I found “The Witch and the Wolf” easy to read and kept me eager to figure out the mystery. I also learned to love his characters and they have become real to me.

When traveling, I look for birds and hidden gems, with some of my favorite places being the beautiful mountains and lakes in Arkansas. I also like going places where there’s an important connection to my heritage and values. With my family’s history strongly linked to Italy, Doug and I went there for our honeymoon. As a daily Bible reader, I loved our trip to Israel and touring places that brought Bible stories to life.

Since we moved to Covington on the New Orleans Northshore, I’ve discovered how much fun it is to be a backyard birder. Many birds drop in daily, including cardinals, blue jays, mourning doves, bluebirds, chickadees, Carolina wrens, goldfinches and woodpeckers. Besides enjoying their visits, I do my best to provide plenty of seeds and nuts plus fresh water. I also act as the sheriff and scare away the predators—cats and hawks.

Ms. Arla Boudreaux became our travel companion when we decided to visit state parks and other scenic landmarks in Mississippi, Arkansas and Louisiana. When selecting a website URL for our travel and book journal, we were pleased to find one available that used the abbreviations for the three states we planned to tour and created www.msarla.com to share our experiences.

We shot photos of Ms. Arla at most of the places we visited, placing her in situations where she could display her sense of drama such as dangerous hiking trails, steep cliffs and other hazards. We also captured her interest in beautiful trees and wildflowers. While taking these photos, we often received concerned looks from other park visitors and imagined that they were wondering why Linda was carrying a doll with her on a hike.

Scroll to the bottom of this page to see a photo from our visit to Avery Island in Louisiana. Ms. Arla is pointing out that feeding alligators is prohibited and dangerous.