Crafting Suspense from Real-Life Experiences
Pamela Beason shares how her investigative background, outdoor adventures, and passion for wildlife conservation shape her mysteries. She discusses character inspirations, writing challenges, and the real-world issues influencing her storytelling.
Pamela Beason is one of the few authors who capture the untamed beauty of nature and the intricacies of human survival with remarkable depth. With a rich and varied background that includes everything from private investigation to fossil extraction, she brings a depth of realism and adventure to her novels. Best known for her four gripping mystery series—The Sam Westin Wilderness Mysteries, the Neema Mysteries, the Run for Your Life Trilogy, and The Langston Family Stories—Beason expertly weaves suspense, environmental themes, and compelling characters into each of her works.
Her passion for the great outdoors—whether hiking through remote landscapes, kayaking across serene waters, or scuba diving in the deep blue—translates seamlessly into her storytelling, creating immersive narratives that resonate with readers. In this exclusive interview for Reader’s House Magazine, Beason shares insights into her investigative past, her love for wildlife conservation, and the inspiration behind her unforgettable characters.
How has your experience as a private investigator influenced your writing, particularly in crafting mystery plots?
As an investigator, I learned that our justice system is unequal. If you are accused of a crime, most will assume you are guilty. It can be difficult to defend yourself. All criminals are not equals, and I have sympathy for those whose one reckless mistake affects the rest of their lives. I learned how malicious internet trolls can be, even accusing innocent strangers of crimes as serious as murder without a shred of evidence. And then, most disturbing to me, the troll’s followers will proceed to threaten the lives of these people they’ve never met. I often include social media influence in my books. Some of my fictional characters are former ex-cons trying to live their best lives, and they are singled out as the likely perpetrators of crimes. This happens in Endangered and The Only Clue.
What inspired you to create the character of Summer “Sam” Westin, and how much of your own personality or experiences are reflected in her?
Busted! People who know me would say that Sam Westin and Pam Beason are pretty much the same person. I laugh when readers assume I’ve had the same harrowing experiences as my fictional character. I have done most of the things and been in most settings that I use in my stories, but Sam is younger and more athletic than I will ever be again. However, fictional Sam and real-life Pam share the same attitudes and outlook on life.
Your books often highlight environmental issues and wildlife conservation—why is this an important theme for you, and how do you research these topics?
Aspiring writers often ask me what they should write about. I always answer “Your passion. What makes you happy? What makes you angry?” My passions are wilderness and wildlife, and protecting nature in general. We humans share this planet with so many amazing creatures that deserve healthy places to live. For research, I belong to multiple environmental organizations, and I regularly read magazines, newspapers, and internet news sites that highlight challenging environmental issues. I try to research all sides of the issues, which can be difficult. It’s hard to separate fact from fiction these days. We rarely get all the facts about any issue.
With such a diverse career background, including fossil extraction and translation work, which of your past jobs has been the most unusual or unexpectedly useful for your writing?
With 15 novels out now, I don’t think I could pinpoint any single job I’ve done as the most useful. My varied work experience served me well as an investigator, and much of my knowledge makes its way into one or more novels. My Spanish was instrumental in my novel Undercurrents, which takes place mostly in the Galapagos Islands. I was able to keep up with Ecuadorian news online after my enlightening trip there. As a PI, I’ve interviewed all types: engineers, factory workers, architects, children, criminals, and a lot of police officers. This really helps me see all sides of a story and flesh out my fictional characters with how they act and think.
You enjoy outdoor activities like hiking, kayaking, and scuba diving—have any of these adventures directly inspired scenes or events in your books?
Of course! Although I do my best to make sure nothing horrible happens during my outings, it’s easy to imagine what can go wrong. Many of my books include hiking. Inexperienced hikers can step too close to a cliff edge that gives way beneath their feet, get caught in an unexpected rockslide or avalanche, or simply misjudge time and distance and get lost, injured, or stranded in the wilderness. Firing any gun in the wild is always a danger; bullets travel much farther than most shooters realize, and I include shooting incidents in many of my books. Scuba diving takes you into an alien world where you are dependent on the quality and quantity of air in your tank, as well as your knowledge of your equipment and the environment. I used my scuba experience in Undercurrents, and my kayaking experience both in that book and in Backcountry. My knowledge of snowshoeing influenced Cascade, and I used my experience of crawling through a collapsed building there as well.
What challenges and rewards have you encountered in writing for both adult mystery readers and young adult audiences in your different series?
I am an animal lover. Fortunately, my readers are, too. I include animals in all my books, and people especially enjoy my Neema series, which features a signing gorilla. Outdoorsy types identify with my Sam Westin wilderness series. It’s always rewarding to hear readers describe their favorite scenes and characters in my books. As far as I know, both teens and adults read all my books. The challenge for any author can be those readers who believe they know it all. I’ve had a reader tell me that no earthquake could ripple through the earth like I described in Shaken. Hey, reader, I was there! A reader of Bear Bait accused me of not supporting our military because my character Sam wondered whether it was worthwhile to risk lives in some foreign trouble spots. My Run for Your Life trilogy is written in present tense with fast-paced plots, which appeals to both adults and teens. One review of that trilogy expressed doubt that a 17-year-old could be a champion runner. Ever watch the Olympics? Our star athletes are often the youngest competitors. I’m sure some readers of Borderland believe I don’t understand the issues along the US border with Mexico. But I’ve been to sections of the border wall multiple times and talked to people who live and work there; odds are those critics have only read opinions on the internet. Immigrants also appear in Shaken and in my latest novel, If Only, and some readers might object to my sympathetic treatment of them.
Overall, it’s very rewarding to be an author, and I receive far more compliments than critiques. I don’t know who I would be if not a writer.
