Welcome! I’m Duke Southard, an author, retired educator, and lecturer.

I have published seven novels, a commissioned history, and an anthology of
award-winning short stories and essays.

Please check out my blog where I write about true crime and a wide ranging variety of literary and everyday subjects.

My Programs

My programs are offered free of charge to any schools, public libraries, and educational/community groups.

Free Book

Grab a free copy of my book, The Week from Heaven and Hell

My Books

View a list of my published books, including Tainted Justice.

Recent Posts

A Look Back . . .

Here is a suggestion for those who follow this blog because of its heavy concentration on the Stacey Burns murder case. There are five hundred and sixty-two posts since I began this blog. Most of them dealing with the Stacey Burns murder have comments from readers as...

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Apologies!

A few apologies are in order here: Sorry that a Father's Day trip to Indy threw my posting schedule off by about a week. Will try to do better in the future. Sorry that another month had passed since the anniversary of Stacey's murder with no apparent progress. Sorry...

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Another reprise . . .

My post ( A Reprise)  from June 1 did not receive wide distribution for some reason, so I'm repeating a bit of here along with some new observations. Since June, 2012, I posted over five hundred and sixty times on this blog with about 85 % devoted to the Stacey Burns...

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A reprise . . .

On December 12, 2012, I posted my first entry regarding the murder of Stacey Burns on this blog. Since then, there have been five hundred and sixty posts, of which about 85 % dealt with this murder. Add in uncountable comments and replies and the total number of...

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On track . . .

My fourth novel in the Detective Parker Havenot is on track for publication in mid-October, 2018. Watch for further details!

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“Afraid of her…”

 "I honestly think she may be afraid of (the suspect) . . ." It's been over a year since I sent the NH State Police my newest "hot tip" (at that time) about the Stacey Burns murder case.  Today, I checked with the source of that tip to see if any subsequent interviews...

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On Writing -Sorry, Mr. King

All right, I admit to stealing Stephen King's title from his outstanding book for writers. This will be brief. I'll also admit to being "old school" when it comes to writing. We subscribe to two newspapers on Sunday. Curious, after just completing a copy-editing...

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Never too old to be discouraged?

This will sound like a whiney old man's kind of post, but here it is! The topic is obvious. When do we lose the ability to be discouraged? Is it when we're twenty-two and don't get a job we applied for? Is it when we're thirty, and realize that we're two steps behind...

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After the Tournaments

I  truly appreciate the thoughtfulness and effort and heartfelt emotion that goes into all the events commemorating the anniversary of a brutal, heinous crime, the murder of Stacey Burns. So now, it is three days after the ninth anniversary. My only question? How much...

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The Ninth Anniversary!

At the risk of being chastised again, I still feel the need to make a few observations on the upcoming ninth anniversary of the murder of Stacey Burns.  I appreciate the support some of my readers have shown for this blog and its mission. For better or for worse, here...

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The Tipping Point

As of Thursday morning, the finished manuscript of The Tipping Point, my new novel, is in the hands of a manuscript evaluator. It is expected back in three weeks or less, after which the editing and copy-editing processes will begin. This is the fourth in the...

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A Missed Opportunity?

Within the last week, I was contacted by an NBC Cable News affiliate in Boston. They wanted to do an interview regarding the Stacey Burns murder case. I turned down the offer since it had to be a live interview (no Skype or similar thing) in studio. The trip was...

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