Arkansas
A very little-publicized state with very beautiful drives. I-40 will lead you from Fort Smith to Little Rock and on to Memphis, through rolling wooded hills and past beautiful lakes like Dardanelles.
When either of us has a book ready to send in we have a reading trip, which means one drives and edits aloud, the other reads, and, given the length of time it takes to read a whole novel, this often means an overnight. When we lived in Oklahoma, we selected Arkansas as our destination, particularly a certain Holiday Inn at exit 80 something in Russellville, where they have what we called our "Restaurant at the end of the Universe"...namely Cagle's Mill. It's not as good as it used to be---all things change---but it's still good, and if you're traveling through, pick that for a stop, rather than Little Rock, which is, well, a big city, with appropriate prices.
We swear that one of the rooms in that place is haunted. Ask us that story when we're at a convention. One of the few times in my life I've ever met something I'd call downright scary-spooky.
And you mustn't miss stopping for a t-shirt in Conroy, the largest truckstop in Arkansas---the local sites of Toadsuck, Ark., and Pickles' Gap do provide conversation-piece t-shirts.
Going north, also, will end you up in Branson, MO, which is of course the country music haven. It's really changed from when I knew it as a sleepy little tourist establishment. Bright lights and glitter. But the drive up there is gorgeous---slow, but gorgeous.
Lots of caves.
If you go south, you end up in Hot Springs, where they have an alligator attraction, and beautiful flowers. Plan for a very, very slow drive if you take the state roads. It's very small town America, and charming if you're aware you're going to make very slow time.
South of that you can actually dig diamonds. Wear grungies, plan to get really dirty, and to sift lots of dirt. There have been big finds here. You pay for the dig, but you can keep your finds.
The state ranges from piney mountains to fairly boggy spots.
Do not speed near Forest City.