Catherine Dilts
  • About Catherine
  • Catherine Dilts - Blog
  • Rose Creek
  • Short Stories
  • Annie's Fiction
  • Survive Or Die
  • Rock Shop Mystery Series
  • About Catherine
  • Catherine Dilts - Blog
  • Rose Creek
  • Short Stories
  • Annie's Fiction
  • Survive Or Die
  • Rock Shop Mystery Series
Search by typing & pressing enter

YOUR CART

News 

9/20/2016

Denver Mineral, Fossil, Gem & Jewelry Show 2016

Picture
The Denver Coliseum fills with every mineral, gem, and fossil imaginable during one week in September. In today's blog, I'll illustrate how this setting influenced my current novel, Stone Cold Blooded.

I attended the 2016 show with my daughter and two of her children. We both had must-see items on our agendas. Dazzled by the array of glittering gemstones and beads, displays of fossilized dinosaurs and a dire wolf, we wandered the two levels of the coliseum.

Picturewooly mammoth tusk valued at $16,995
First on my agenda was to visit the folks who kindly spent time with me in 2014, sharing details about prospecting and paleontology that made it into book three of my Rock Shop Mystery series. You can read about rock star Dwayne Hall and his wife Marsha, and geologist/paleontologist Jim Ackerman in two upcoming blogs, when I discuss how the terrific folks I met influenced my novel.

At the Sharks Teeth booth, where my granddaughters purchased tiny bottles filled with brightly colored stones, we saw a tusk valued at $16,995. It wouldn't fit either my fireplace mantle or my budget, so I settled on carved stone dinosaurs. 

At the last show, I learned that rock shop proprietors like my fictional character Morgan Iverson attend mineral shows to buy as well as to sell. Here's a brief scene from Stone Cold Blooded:
    Morgan tried out her bargaining skills. She knew the going price of shark’s teeth, both retail and wholesale. The bucket held hundreds of teeth, more than enough to replenish stock at the shop. They finally settled on a price that was much better than what she had been prepared to pay online.
     “So that’s how we start the show?” Morgan asked as she hugged a heavy canvas bag to her chest. “By buying, not selling?”
     “That’s half the reason we’re here,” Cindy said. “Hey look. There’s a trough full of geodes. I’ll bet we can get a deal on them, too.”
Pictureback entrance to Denver Coliseum
I studied the coliseum layout on my 2014 trip. This visit, I was able to compare what I wrote with reality. The mineral show is free, and there was not an attendant at the rear door shown in the photo. I invented the security guard, who later plays a role when Morgan's mineral show experience takes a dramatic turn. That's what creative license is for!
     After running the gauntlet of tempting treasures, they reached the back entrance. The open double doors could easily accommodate trucks hauling trailers full of livestock.
     A man rose from his wooden folding chair as their group approached. The slacks of his brown security guard uniform bore a sharp crease. He exuded authority with his dignified posture. Cindy presented the guard with a printed email displaying their registration number.
     “We just got here,” she explained. “We’ll get our badges first thing.”
   “No problem.” The guard studied the printout, holding the paper with elegant, if aged, hands the hue of polished mahogany. He wore his white hair combed back in dramatic waves in an old-fashioned style. “Just remember to wear your badges once you receive them, or I’ll have to deny you entry.” His lean face creased in a smile.
     “Yes, sir,” Matthew said, with the innocent seriousness of a nine-year-old. “We promise we’ll wear our badges.”

Picture
In another scene, Morgan buys lunch for a prospector from whom she hopes to glean information about an old feud between her neighbor and her uncle. The photo shows where Morgan has lunch. 
     “Do you have a few minutes?” Morgan asked. “I didn’t know Uncle Caleb well. I’d like to ask you about him.” Raymond seemed to hesitate. “I’ll buy you lunch,” Morgan added.
     Although she would have taken him for a meat and potatoes kind of guy, Raymond requested a chicken wrap from one of the healthier food vendors, and a cold organic coffee drink. They found a quiet table in the open space near the food vendors.
     “Your uncle was a fair man,” Raymond said. “And honest. He appreciated the effort it took because he’d tried his hand at gemstone prospecting.”
    

My daughter, grandkids, and I also had lunch here. We tried the hummus and veggie wraps.

Author's often use real settings for their novels. Depending on the story, the layout or circumstances might be adjusted to fit plot developments. The setting of the Denver Mineral, Fossil, Gem and Jewelry Show influenced my story. As you'll learn in two future blogs, the people I met made an even deeper impression.  

I would have enjoyed spending more time at this year's show. There were so many vendors and displays, we had to hurry through just to see a fraction of the show. I plan to return next year! 

Stone Cold Blooded release date - October 10.

Jacqueline Seewald
9/20/2016 06:54:02 am

Catherine,

It sounds like you had a very interesting visit, something I would enjoy myself. Congrats on the publication of your new novel.

Catherine Dilts
9/20/2016 07:28:21 am

Hi Jacqueline,
If you are interested in rocks, fossils, or gemstones, it is the place to be! But then, I get excited about anything dinosaur.

Carole Price link
9/21/2016 10:27:52 am

Congratulations on your new novel. In fact, Livermore (where I live) has a rock and gem show each year. The next time I go, I'll think of you and your book.

Catherine Dilts
9/21/2016 06:55:21 pm

When I have more time, some day, I would love to travel around to visit different mineral shows and rock shops.


Comments are closed.

    Subscribe to this blog:

    Enter your email address:

    Delivered by FeedBurner

    Archives

    March 2023
    February 2023
    January 2023
    December 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013

    RSS Feed

Proudly powered by Weebly