Jim Marion Etter is a retired newspaper reporter who roams Oklahoma - and occasionally crosses state lines – as a collector of history and folklore.

He beats the bushes for offbeat stories in out-of-the-way places, aiming to “tell it like it is,” plus writes fiction that’s based on real people and actual events.

 His business card reads “History & Tall Tales."

He’s also a traveling storyteller, plus an occasional ghostwriter if a particular family history, etc., strikes his fancy.

The Shawnee News-Star, photo by Ed Blochowiak.