I am a thriller/suspense author who got her start a little later in life. I think that I needed to experience the breathtaking highs and the soul crushing lows on my life's journey before I was able to really give the reader the emotional journey that I aimed to give. My style is to pull back the curtains on the ordinary person, the cookie cutter neighbor and the family that looks like they have it all together. The truth is, we all have secrets to hide.
I have four books currently in production, Fraidy Hole, Lake Laps, Beneath Her Lies and Ghosts in the Glades. (Fraidy Hole and Ghosts in the Glades are also available in audio format.)
My fifth book, Missing in Lincoln Park, is a gritty psychological crime thriller that ventures into the Chicago underworld and is scheduled to release July 24th, 2026 in all formats.
I am thankful that many libraries and bookstores have supported this wild journey!
Along the way, I have been blessed to have been part of some pretty cool awards. I have placed as a finalist in the Killer Nashville Claymore awards in 2022 and 2023, the shortlist on the Hawthorne Awards in 2023, London's Page Turner Awards Longlist for two of my books in 2023 and 2025, Honorable Mention at the Hollywood Book Festival in 2023 , the Gold Five Star Award through Literary Titan, a quarter finalist in the Screen Craft Cinematic Book Competition, a finalist in the Literary Global Book Awards, and placements in the 2024 Book Fest Awards. In 2024, Ghosts in the Glades took home a win from the Killer Nashville Awards for Best Southern Gothic, as well as a Maxy Award for Best Thriller of 2024.
I am also honored to be a member of the International Thriller Writer's Association, and a member of their Debut Class of 2023/2024.
This has been a wild ride, and I can't wait to see what's next!
I am a thriller/suspense author who got her start a little later in life. I think that I needed to experience the breathtaking highs and the soul crushing lows on my life's journey before I was able to really give the reader the emotional journey that I aimed to give. My style is to pull back the curtains on the ordinary person, the cookie cutter neighbor and the family that looks like they have it all together. The truth is, we all have...
In the shadow of Chicago’s elite Lincoln Park neighborhood, seventeen-year-old Bennett Stone has always lived between two worlds-the legitimate facade of his mother’s prestigious law firm and the dark reality of the criminal empire that funds their lifestyle. Raised by Ms. Berta, a maternal figure who runs an upscale strip club, Bennett believes...
“An unparalleled mystery genre masterpiece!” - Thomas Anderson, Editor in Chief of Literary Titan. Beneath Her Lies is a beautifully twisted thriller that weaves together the dark past of a 32-year-old recovered drug addict, Ruby, with the delicate new life that she is trying to obtain. It has been said that you can’t go home again. You can’t go...
While attending NIACC, Staci took a few writing courses. Her professors took the time to encourage her to continue writing and go after what she really wanted to do with her life—become a successful, published novelist.
Staci’s first novel, Lake Laps, will be released by Pegasus Publishers in December of this year. Lake Laps is a 2022 Killer Nashville Claymore Award Finalist in the Suspense Category and 2023 Literary Titan Silver Award Winner. The novel also made the...
Lake Laps follows a woman trapped in a jail cell whose harrowing tale of familial bonds, mystery, and resilience unfolds as she confronts the shadowy figure known as ‘He’ that plunged her life into despair. What were some sources that informed this novels development?
I wrote this novel when I was at a very low point in my own life. Through commiserating with other families around the bonfire and helping to heal each other’s wounds, we bonded over our own issues that we all were trying to...
Fraidy Hole follows a grandfather and his granddaughter who must navigate their shared grief and the uncertainties of life while unraveling a series of mysterious clues in a world that challenges their preconceived notions. What was one goal you set for yourself as a writer with this book?
My goal was to make the reader feel like they were right there, in the middle of the nightmare. Too many times, I read a book and just don’t feel connected in any way to the main characters. These are very...
I have been waiting for over a year to share the gritty tale of Bennett Stone with the world. (It even made it to the finals in London's Page Turner Awards for...
What an update I have to share! My latest psychological thriller, Ghosts in the Glades, won for the Best Southern Gothic in August at the Killer Nashville Awards that took place...
My heartbreaking suspense, Lake Laps, also secured another award, third place in Thriller/Suspense and The BookFest conference this weekend. To say I am excited and stunned is...
