She has traveled a great many of the New Mexico backroads while unearthing information for freelance stories and gathering images for her books, “Houses in Time,” a study of New Mexico’s history through its architecture, and “Ghost Towns Alive,” which visits 70 haunting locations. Porter has been a newspaper reporter and shooter, PBS and Folklife Festival publicist, and frequent contributor to magazines including Sunset, New Mexico Magazine, Preservation, Southwest Art, New Mexico Journey and Natural History. Porter holds a bachelor’s degree in journalism from New Mexico State. She previously taught full-time at NMSU, and continues to offer up-to-date guidance, media contacts and references to students eager to be published.