Meet the Presenter: Steven Kolbe

The mystery genre has been around for approximately 181 years, with Edgar Allen Poe's The Murders In The Rue Morgue commonly attributed with creating the first literary detective. Whether there's a body found in the library, a gritty crime scene marked off by caution tape or a prized artifact found stashed away, mystery stories of all shapes and sizes are here to stay.

Steven J. Kolbe is no stranger to a mystery — after all, he writes mystery novels, reads and reviews mystery novels, and teaches folks how to write a good mystery. His most recent novel, How Everything Turns Away, features a suspended FBI agent who stumbles upon a grisly murder and seeks to find the victim justice before the killer strikes again.

Steven studied at NOCCA and LSU in Louisiana before moving to Kansas to attend Kansas State University, where he earned his undergraduate and graduate degrees in English.  Before calling himself a writer, he was a student worker for the prestigious literary journal The Southern Review. According to Steven, if you received a formal rejection letter in the mid-2000s, he probably sealed the envelope.

When he's not writing, Steven spends time with his wife and three children in their home in Southwest Kansas. An avid library supporter and fan of mystery novels, Steven also enjoys blogging about his traveling adventures as well as sharing writing tips.

Steven will be sharing his expertise at this year's Writers Conference. He will present a session titled "Abnormal Psychology in Fiction,” lead a workshop on how to add tension to a scene and sit on a panel about rejection and critique.        

Learn more about Steven at his website.

-- written by Jesseca Bear, adult services information specialist