Living in a Victorian home in a small town made me particularly interested in reading Ellen E. Withers’ novel Show Me Betrayal—a dual timeline mystery set in a Victorian home in a small town. However, mine is in Wisconsin while hers is in Mexico, Missouri. And my house isn’t as spooky. Usually. It was built in 1883 and I often wonder about the families who lived here before us.

Show Me Betrayal is first in the Show Me Mysteries series, followed by Show Me Deceit (May 2024). Each story is inspired by an actual building in Mexico, Missouri, with characters trying to solve a murder mystery from years gone by. 

Ellen has also participated in four anthologies: Murder in Tornado Alley, A Gift for All Time (Christmas novellas), Dimension of Fantasy, and Dimensions of the West.

Ellen recently added non-fiction to her body of works with the book Magic Words—How to Enchant Judges & Conjure Contest Wins. She should know. Check out the list of awards on her website here. 

Blurb

Two deaths occur decades apart. Is it possible these deaths are related? What motivates a killer, who got away with murder sixty years ago, to kill again? Was it uncontrollable rage or the hope of silencing someone who fit all the puzzle pieces together and deduced who committed the crime?

Set in the picturesque town of Mexico, Missouri, Show Me Betrayal takes flight in words and emotions of rich characters woven together into a story you won’t want to put down.

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My thoughts

If you like small town mysteries, check out this dual timeline novel that revolves around a big old Victorian house, full of secrets. In this house, Liesl Shrader’s Aunt Suzanne utters her final words, eliciting a hunt for a killer from over sixty years ago.

In 1961, Aunt Suzanne is a teenager whose best friend, Winnie, is murdered. Fast forward sixty years to find plenty of trouble in this neighborhood, including a robbery, a prank, arson, and possibly a related murder.

Vivid descriptions with sensory detail make this Victorian house and charming town come alive. Three friends follow clues to unravel the mystery. One is Liesl’s ex-boyfriend, Kyle, whose feelings for her complicate things. Liesl is also trying to decide what to do with the house she unexpectedly inherits.

The characters were interesting and authentic, the murder mystery intriguing. I had my suspicions about who did it—but then I was wrong. 

Questions about Show Me Betrayal

What was your inspiration for writing Show Me Betrayal? Considering that you’ve written in a variety of genres (Christmas novella, murder mystery, Western & fantasy in anthologies), how did you settle on writing a suspense series? What is your personal connection to the setting and situation?

I’ve always loved to read mystery and suspense above all other genres. When I started writing for contests, I entered contests sponsored by the conferences I attended, and these contests inspired me to stretch my writing. 

This is one reason I’ve written in various genres. You can learn so much by stepping out of the “comfortable, familiar box.” I recommend attending conferences and entering contests to anyone working their way to being published.

Once I felt I had enough experience with writing to attempt a full novel, my goal was to write a Christian mystery or suspense. My inspiration for the setting of my Show Me Mystery series came from my hometown of Mexico, Missouri. I wanted to feature a Victorian home in my novel and my thoughts kept returning to the Victorian in my hometown restored by friends of mine. 

While it was being refurbished, I lived across the street from them. It took about five years for the restoration. I feel it was a push from God to write about that house because I knew it inside and out, and I had a passion for the restoration of such a beautiful home.

Sounds like your trek into different genres serves you well in your writing journey. Did you consider writing this story as straight contemporary at first or did you decide on a dual timeline from the get-go? Was this your first time writing a dual timeline story? How did you plan and write your timelines—one at a time or back and forth?

I wrote Show Me Betrayal initially as a contemporary Christian mystery. It was my publisher who recommended a twist to my approach to the mystery from the past. She suggested I write it from the 1960s instead of referring to the murder in the past, and make the book a dual time mystery. 

I’d read dual time books, but had never tried to write one. I’m so glad I did. The characters in the 1960s came alive using this technique.

In my subsequent books in the series, I’ve continued with the dual time aspect. I’m a “pantser,” so I only have a rough outline of each section before I write. Each era is written separately, but I know what issues will cause the stories to intersect. 

Once I’ve completed both parts and edited them, I lace them together. I start with two or three contemporary chapters, then add two or three chapters of the historical section, then continue with this pattern until revealing the “connection” between the two. I always end with contemporary chapters.

What is your starting point when you begin a mystery? The setting, crime, protagonists, or something else?

I always start with the setting. In my Show Me Mysteries, I choose the structure in town and then write from that inspiration. The structure requirements are for it to have a rich history and that the same structure is currently a viable, useful structure. It can have a different purpose, but still in use. 

For example, the Victorian in Show Me Betrayal was built in 1893 and its most current use was as a B & B. The antebellum home, built in 1857, and featured in Show Me Deceit, is now the Audrain County Historical Society Museum. My third book features stables built in 1887. Following recent renovations, it is now the International Saddlebred Hall of Fame.

I love the concept of starting with a building with historical roots. How did you create your heroines, Liesl and Suzanne? How well did you know them and other key characters when you started out? Or do they make themselves known as you write?

Liesl came to me when I was in the drafting stage. I’ve always wanted to explore the motivations, the sustaining of faith, and the emotions of someone who has repeatedly experienced heartbreak. To be orphaned at a young age was her first tragedy. But being raised by her great uncle and great aunt gave her the confidence and love she needed to thrive. Show Me Betrayal begins with the anguish of the unexpected illness of Liesl’s great aunt.

Suzanne is a combination of the personality of my Aunt Juanita, my mother, and what I imagined were similar feelings of other intelligent woman who lived within the constraints of the period from the1930s until women had more of a voice, in the 1970s to 1980s. Suzanne “came alive” to me when I wrote her teenage years. Her strength at that age surprised me.

Just for fun—what would Liesl and Suzanne have to say about you?

More than likely, they would say I need to stop meddling with their lives. Both of them are strong women in their own way. They tolerate my interference because it is necessary to put their story on the page.

I’m glad they tolerate you! How did you develop a suspenseful plot with complicating factors that need to fit like puzzle pieces and remain believable? How do you keep everything straight?

Reading Agatha Christie and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle throughout my life were wonderful teaching tools for plotting a mystery. I’ve always been intrigued by solving the puzzle of a death or a criminal caper. I pursued a twenty-four-year career investigating possible insurance fraud. 

As an insurance fraud investigator, I learned some things thought to be a crime turned out to be perfectly legitimate. Others needed enough facts gathered together to complete the picture of fraud.

It helps me to keep all the clues, plot twists, and red herrings aligned in outline form. I add to the outline as I go, because I only have a rough idea of the plot when I start a mystery. 

Then, I always have a character spreadsheet for every book or novella I write. This helps me keep track of all their physical characteristics and their personality traits. 

Another helpful tool is a timeline for the story, which includes a historical timeline, if needed. It’s obvious that I keep many lists and brief outlines in my writing.

Thank goodness for spreadsheets! What did you have to research to make this story authentic? What’s the strangest thing you had to do or look up to create this story? (Or any story.)

Even though I was born and raised in Mexico, Missouri, I always have to verify the location of the streets. My memory is not as accurate as an actual map. I also ensure my historical timeline is as accurate as possible.

In writing the second book in the series, Show Me Deceit, the logistics of delivering the materials for building the antebellum home was fascinating. Raw materials had to be brought up the Mississippi River by barge. They were off loaded in Hannibal, Missouri, and placed in oxen-pulled wagons to be driven fifty-seven miles to Mexico, Missouri.

Questions about writing

Which books or authors have been most influential for you as a writer? Was there a book that sparked or confirmed your desire to be a novelist?

I want to read books that make me hunger to turn the pages and see what happens. I find I do this more with mystery and suspense. Agatha Christie, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Michael Connelly, Dick Francis, and Sue Grafton.

Christian and clean authors I love include James Harriot, Janette Oke, Melanie Dobson, and Jan Karon.

How long have you wanted to be a novelist? Share a bit of your road to publication. 

Since I was a child reading cardboard picture books, I always wanted to tell a story in book form. I’m a verbal storyteller, too, and have to monitor myself. My mother saved the “books” created, which prove my desire to write began at a young age. But as I grew, practicality overtook my dreams, and I majored in a subject in college that would guarantee employment.

Because it was God’s plan, or my destiny, or simply meant to be, words and creative writing became a part of my life by a path through nonfiction. My career employment included writing technical reports. After several years of technical writing, I added creative writing to my resume.

My employer’s monthly magazine provided me with my first publication credentials. They wanted human interest stories involving employees and customers. There was no official payment involved, but it was a wonderful chance to craft nonfiction articles. Since I could use my work time to write them, you might say I was “paid” for my time.

Once armed with several published articles in that magazine, I approached my local newspaper. I sent clips of my employee magazine articles with my query about possible freelance work. They liked what I’d written and gave me the opportunity to write for the advertising section of that paper, doing a type of “meet your neighbor” column. They paid me $75 for each article. Occasionally, I wrote for a special addition, such as a holiday insert.

From there, I reached out to local magazines as a freelance writer. It didn’t take long to find a high-end subdivision magazine that was expanding from a quarterly to a monthly publication. They hired me to write their monthly resident feature. I received a payment for each and answered to delightful bosses. I’ve been a writer for their magazine for over twenty years and I’m still there. Now I write a quarterly book review.

I sowed the first seeds of my opportunity to become a published novelist at a writing conference. I’d been attending conferences for years. Then one year, I met the owner of a small press. She witnessed my name being called several times as they announced contest placements. I don’t remember what my placements were that day, but doubt if more than one award collected was first place. The publisher recognized that receiving multiple awards was a good sign I knew how to write.

She approached me and told me about her company sponsoring two types of contests. One was for full length completed works called “Get Pubbed” and one was called “Novel Starts.” I realized I had pieces that would fit the “Novel Starts” contests. After the conference, I took a chance and entered both of them in her “Novel Starts” contest, each in a different genre.

It was a dream come true when my entries won both of the genre categories I entered. Those wins allowed me to submit the first 25 pages of a manuscript based on the short stories I entered. They critiqued my pages, and they encouraged me to complete either entry to a full novel length for consideration of publication. Then I was offered a three book mystery series contract. My dream had come true, and it only took over twenty years of work.

Twenty years of perseverance! I’m glad you stuck to it. Please share something about a current project or the direction you want to go as an author.

Spa City Mysteries is my new Christian mystery series set in Hot Springs, Arkansas. The series will also encompass dual timelines and include interesting and important pieces of history. I’m working on the initial draft right now and still don’t have a title figured out. Eventually, I’ll get there.

Sounds like a fascinating setting. Is there any writing advice you wish you’d known 10 or 15 years ago?

I would have attended even more writing conferences. Conferences bring writers together. If you have established writer friends in attendance, they can help you feel welcome at a conference. 

Not only do you make friends, you can have those odd conversations about writing techniques with people who truly understand. You pick up tricks of the trade, share laughs over mistakes made, and recharge your batteries for another span of solitary writing.

Being open to learning and reading as much as possible are two secrets to success in this crazy business of professional writing.

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Back to Laura . . . On a similar note . . . 

Though my books aren’t technically mysteries, they do have a bit of mystery woven in. And one is a dual timeline.

If you like historical fiction, you might enjoy my newest novel A Hundred Magical Reasons  (launched January 2025). This story spotlights L. Frank Baum, author of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, his friendship with a young girl, and his impact through the decades. Set in Holland, Michigan, this split-time novel alternates between 1980 and the early 1900s. Read more and watch the book trailer here. 

A Hundred Magical Reasons awards:

• First Place in AmericanBookFest~American Fiction Award (AFA) for Literary Fiction (June 17, 2025)
• Hawthorne Prize Winner for Fiction (May 25, 2025)
• First Place in The BookFest for Literary Historical Fiction (April 2025)
• First Place in the Firebird Book Awards for Biographical Fiction (April 2025)
• Literary Titan Gold Book Award for Fiction (March 2025) 
• Bronze Medal for the Illumination Book Awards for General Fiction (February 2025)
• 3 five-star Readers’ Favorite reviews

If you like Southern fiction and small town/rural stories about family dynamics and secrets, you might enjoy my novel All That Is Hidden. Set near North Carolina’s Smoky Mountains in 1968, the story spotlights the bond of family and the connections of a tight-knit community. Northern exploitation threatens as a father’s hidden past catches up to him and tests family ties. Learn more and watch the trailer here.

All That Is Hidden awards:

• Pacific Book Review finalist for fiction (May 20, 2025)
• American Legacy Book Awards finalist for Coming of Age (May 2025)
• Three 5-star Readers’ Favorite Reviews (May 2025)
• First Place in the Firebird Book Awards for Southern Fiction (April 2025)
• First Place in the Firebird Book Awards for Literary Fiction (April 2025)
• Winner of the Artisan Book Reviews Book Excellence Award
• Semifinalist in Serious Writer’s Book of the Decade contest

I invite you to join my monthly newsletter for writing updates, freebies, and giveaways. Sign up and I’ll send you 7 Oz-inspired recipes:  A-Taste-Of-Oz-Cookbook-Sampler.com

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Ellen Withers bio:

Ellen E. Withers is an award-winning fiction writer, freelance writer, and retired insurance fraud investigator. Her award-winning mystery dual-time series, Show Me Mysteries, published by Scrivenings Press, is set in her picturesque hometown of Mexico, Missouri. The third book in the series, Show Me Skulduggery, comes out May 2025.

Her nonfiction book about winning writing contests is Magic Words: How to Enchant Judges & Conjure Contest Wins, inspired by her writing contest column in the digital writing magazine Writers Monthly PDF.

Look for her new dual-time mystery series set in Hot Springs, Arkansas, in 2026, called Spa City Mysteries. Contact her on her website.

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Join me next time for a visit with author Melanie Dobson.

Meanwhile, which mysteries have you enjoyed? Any favorite settings or authors? Answer in the comments below.

Ever reading,

Laura

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