With the school year over, I’m enjoying activities with our grandson. He has the role of Uncle Fester in the Adams Family play at the Westminster Playhouse with rehearsals Monday through Thursday afternoons and performances the last weekend in July and the first weekend in August. During the mornings, so far, we’ve played miniature golf and gone to the beach with plans to go bowling later this week. This picture is a sand dollar he found at the beach.
I have contracts in place for the publication of two new books through Mystic Publishers. The first is The Holiday Adventures of Sure Luck Holmes, the second book in the middle grade mystery series about a fifth grader who is an amateur sleuth in the fictional Southern California town of Londonberry and narrated by his sidekick, Johanna Watson. The second book is Begotten. Grizzly murders of rapists by a serial killer decades apart test Detective Arlin Jamison’s perseverance to track down the killer as he uncovers the secret of both his and the murderer’s heredity.
Most of my mystery novels are geezer-lit mysteries featuring older characters. This includes the six book Paul Jacobson Geezer-lit Mystery Series, Death of a Scam Artist, Unstuff Your Stuff, Old Detectives Home and Last Gasp Motel. I also have 3 paranormal mysteries: The VV Agency, The Back Wing and The Front Wing. My two historical mysteries are Murder on the Switzerland Trail and Murder in the Museo Kircheriano. A Mystery Yarn is a cozy mystery, and The Tesla Legacy is modern day thriller based on inventions of Nikola Tesla. Also, I have two sports mysteries: Court Trouble and Paradise Court, and a theater mystery, Mystery of the Dinner Playhouse. Finally, there is a middle grade mystery, The Adventures of Sure Luck Holmes. I have enjoyed branching out into a variety of mystery stories. www.mikebefeler.com
Last Saturday I participated in an event sponsored by the friends of the Villa Park library along with fellow author Duane Swierczynski. Approximately 35 attendees asked excellent questions, and I enjoyed teaming up with Duane.
This week I went to a school open house with my 9-year-old grandson. He showed me all the work he had been doing during the year. The projects and results were very impressive. His teacher gave him kudos on his writing.
When I participate in author events, I prefer to speak about my writing and experiences rather than reading passages of my books. What do you think?
During my writing career, I’ve had books published by a number of publishers. Unfortunately, some of them went out of business. Fortunately, I’ve got book rights back from all of them, so my 23 books remain in print and e-book editions.
I pick up my grandson from school each weekday, and he comes to our house until mom or dad picks him up in the late afternoon. Lately, my grandson and I have been playing chess. He’s getting quite good at it. I usually win, but he also beats me once in a while. It’s enjoyable to watch him develop new skills.
I’ll be attending a writing conference in Los Angeles in May. I haven’t attended one of this in a number of years. When I lived in Colorado, I went annually to the Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers Conference. It was through this conference and a pitch session that I sold my first book, Retirement Homes Are Murder.
I’ve notice that a number of modern mystery novels have multiple points of view and bounce back and forth between different time periods. What do you think of this?
I enjoy library events and will be speaking at two libraries in May: the Agoura Hills Library on Saturday May 17 at 1 PM and the Villa Park Library at 2 PM on Saturday May 24.
I have a reading project. I decided to reread some of my originally published books beginning with the six books in the Paul Jacobson Geezer-lit Mystery Series. So far, I’ve read eight books out of my 23 published books. It was an enjoyable exercise to reacquaint myself with characters from these earlier books.
Last Wednesday through Sunday I participated in the Left Coast Crime Conference in Denver. On Thursday I pitched to 18 tables of readers about my 3 most recent mystery novels: Murder in the Museo Kircheriano, A Mystery Yarn and The Adventures of Sure Luck Holmes. On Friday I moderated the Meet the New Authors Breakfast, introducing 15 debut mystery authors. On Saturday I was on the Senior Sleuth panel.
It was great catching up with old friends and making new ones. Here are fellow authors published through Encircle Publications: Curt Wendelboe, Cathy Dilts and B.J. Magnani.
I will be participating in Author Speed Dating today at the Left Coast Crime Conference in Denver. I’ll be teaming with fellow author Tom Farrell for each of us to give two-minute pitches as we move from table to table.
I’ll be attending the Left Coast Crime Conference in
Denver and will be on the Senior Sleuth Panel. Here’s info about it:
Many of my mystery novels feature older characters and are affectionately called geezer-lit mysteries. Even in these, I often have grandkids who play a role in the story. My latest book, The Adventures of Sure Luck Holmes, features a fifth-grade amateur detective with many of the Sherlock Holmes tropes.
I will be on the Senior Sleuth Panel at the Left Coast Crime Conference in Denver.
Day & time: Saturday March 15, 10:15 AM -
11:00 AM
Moderator: Elizabeth Crowens
Panelists:
Mike Befeler
Janet
Finsilver
Julie A.
Hennrikus
Ellen
Kirschman
I enjoy participating in library events. I will be on a panel at the Agoura Hills Library on Saturday May 17 at 1 PM, and I will be speaking at the Villa Park Library in Orange County, CA, at 2 PM on Saturday May 24.
It’s often said to write about what you know. It’s also important to write about something that interests you. I played competitive tennis as a boy and in college, but over time with aging joints I converted over to pickleball with its smaller court. The combination of my interest in racquet/paddle sports and mystery novels led me to the publication of my pickleball mystery, Paradise Court. It is set in Maui where the protagonist makes two discoveries: a pickleball court and a dead body. Things go down hill from there.
This month is the eighteenth anniversary of the release of my first published mystery novel, Retirement Homes Are Murder. Imagine yourself waking up in a retirement home, not remembering anything from the day before and being accused of murder. Or consider a male Miss Marple enmeshed in a light-hearted Memento.
When crotchety octogenarian Paul Jacobson discovers a body wedged in a retirement home trash chute, he must become an amateur sleuth to clear himself as a murder suspect while struggling with the problems of his short-term memory loss and being stuck living with a bunch of old people. As Paul’s snooping gets him in trouble with the local police and the retirement home administration, he meets eccentric residents, develops a new friendship, experiences the quirks of old age romance and must face his biggest fear in order to escape from a murderer intent upon a repeat performance.
I’m available to give presentations to service organizations, libraries and book groups.
Retirement Homes Are Murder is available in print, e-book and audio book editions:
e-book box set first four books of Paul Jacobson series: Box Set: Retirement Homes Are Murder, Living with Your Kids Is Murder, Senior Moments Are Murder, Cruising in Your Eighties Is Murder (Paul Jacobson Geezer-lit Mystery Series Book 1) - Kindle edition by Befeler, Mike. Mystery, Thriller & Suspense Kindle eBooks @ Amazon.com.
Do you make New Year’s resolutions? I’ve never really done these. I find it interesting that some people make resolutions about exercising, join gyms and then quit before February. Resolutions provide motivation for some people and frustration for others.
It’s that time of year again: preparing for the Left Coast Crime Conference in Denver March 13-16. I will be moderating the Meet the New Authors breakfast on Friday March 14. I have done this every year since the new author breakfast was initiated in 2008, except for missing Monterey in 2014 and Albuquerque in 2022 and it not being held during COVID in 2021. As of this time, we have fifteen new authors who will give a one-minute presentation on the most important thing to know about their debut mystery novel.
I enjoy sharing dumb dad jokes with my grandson. I told him I celebrated my pirate birthday: “Aye Matey.”
Reviewing my author year of 2024, I had three published novels: Murder in the Museo Kircheriano, a historical mystery; A Mystery Yarn, a cozy mystery and third book in the Omnipodge trilogy; and The Adventures of Sure Luck Holmes, a children’s mystery. For 2025, I have three manuscripts at two publishers: a geezer-lit thriller, a serial killer police procedural, and the second book in the Sure Luck Holmes series.
