Randy Overbeck Writes Edge-of-Your-Seat Mysteries

If you love a good mystery, you will be thrilled to learn about Randy Overbeck’s newest paranormal mystery and all the work and research that has gone into it.

What interesting jobs have you had? How have those jobs affected your writing?

I have always wanted to be a writer. In fact, when I was teenager, I dreamed of writing “the next great American novel.” Ha. But then the call to teach kids beckoned and I answered it…and I’ve never been sorry. I served children for almost four decades as a teacher, college prof and school leader. Over that time, I had the opportunity to help and support hundreds of teachers and thousands of students, I think making their lives better, fuller, and with more promise. All this time in education and in and out of more than twenty schools allowed me to collect many interesting characters and innumerable real-life stories I can mine for my fiction.

Do your travels influence your writing?

Without a doubt. The first entry in the Haunted Shores Mysteries, Blood on the Chesapeake, evolved from our travels to one of our favorite vacation spots, the Eastern Shore of the Chesapeake Bay. My wife and I had escaped there for the fall beauty and breathtaking sunsets, and I got inspired for the first of now four tales in the series. Now, we often travel with the objective of finding a setting readers will love for my next paranormal mystery. We had never been to Saugatuck until we discovered it a few years when I was searching for a Michigan location for the next installment of my series. Who knows where my search for my next great tale will take me?

How much research do you do for each book you write?

Research is a major portion of my advance work for my writing. Since each of my novels includes topics, skills or experiences I don’t possess or haven’t had, I allocate a great amount of time for this. For each of the Haunted Shores Mysteries, I’ve spent over a year doing in-person research, on location research and online research.

For example, much of the story of Blood on the Chesapeake revolves around sailing, which at the time I hadn’t done and knew little about. Research remedied that. For Crimson at Cape May, the second entry, the murder mystery is entangled with human trafficking, a subject of which I was woefully ignorant. A great deal of research into the subject changed that. For my newest title, Red Shadows at Saugatuck, the mystery of MMIW (Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women) became a central plank of the story. I had read some about this issue but was far from an expert. Part of my research came from meeting with tribal leaders of the Gun Lake Tribe who both advised me and beta read my work to make sure I had gotten the “Indian” part right. I work hard to make sure my narratives reflect the reality of places and issues that the mysteries connect to and I think readers appreciate it.

Is there any particular author or book that influenced you in any way either growing up or as an adult?

I have read and learned from many authors from Ken Follett to Robert Parker to Gore Vidal to Ian Fleming to Agatha Christie. But one current author has been a major influence on both my writing and my attitude toward the world of writing. I met William Kent Kreuger at an early writing conference and attended two sessions he offered. Afterwards, we talked, and I found him eminently approachable. We were both in the same age range and had similar life experiences. Kent—as his friends call him—has become a friend, a mentor and a sounding board. He wrote a blurb for Blood on the Chesapeake and has continued to support and encourage me through the years. Readers in search of really good mysteries with real, great characters should check out his books and they will see why.

Can you tell us about any other upcoming books, series, or writing plans?

Thus far, I’ve had six novels published, an early thriller, Leave No Child Behind,  the four entries in the Haunted Shores Mysteries, and the first entry in my new series, Lessons in Peril, Cruel Lessons. My next writing foray is a new direction for me, historical suspense set in Revolutionary America. For this work entitled Abigail Trench, Patriot Spy, I am currently working with an agent who is pitching the novel to the major publishers. Fingers crossed. It is slated to be the first entry of my Culper Ring series. And then I’m partway through the second installment of the Lessons in Peril series, as yet untitled. Whew! Let’s just say it’s I stay plenty busy.

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Red Shadows at Saugatuck

Darrell Henshaw hoped he was past it all. After all, no ghosts had visited him for years. Instead, he learns his five-year-old-son, Leo has inherited his “gift.”

Now, they both can see ghosts.

This time, Darrell drives his young family 800 miles to celebrate his Aunt Gertrude’s 80^th birthday. But, once in the resort  town of Saugatuck, Michigan, their participation gets derailed by the spirit of a Native teen who went missing weeks earlier. When he and Leo inquire about the girl, the locals dismiss their concerns—”Those girls run away all the time.”  Still, as questions pile up and threats grow, Darrell senses they may have stumbled onto something far worse and even more evil than one missing teen.

Can Darrell continue to pursue justice for the girl if it places his wife and five-year-old son in danger?

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About Randy Overbeck

Dr. Randy Overbeck is an award-winning educator and author,  as well as a popular speaker and podcaster. As an educator, he served children for more than three decades and has mined this experience to create captivating fiction, authoring two series—the bestselling series, “The Haunted Shores Mysteries” and the award-winning series, “Lessons in Peril.” His novels have won critical acclaim and garnered national awards including Mystery of the Year (ReaderViews) Thriller of the Year (Readers Favorite) Best Book Award (Chanticleer Books and Reviews) and the Gold Award (Literary Titan) and amassed hundreds of 5-star reviews on Amazon and Goodreads. Dr. Overbeck also hosts the popular podcast, “Great Stories about Great Storytellers,” which reveals the unusual and sometimes strange backstories of famous authors, directors and poets. He is a speaker in considerable demand, sharing his book talks and popular programs with hundreds of audiences all over the U.S.

As a member of the Mystery Writers of America, Dr. Overbeck is an active member of the literary community. When he’s not researching, writing, speaking or podcasting, Randy enjoys traveling with his wife Cathy around the country, often in search of inspiration for his next great story.

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