Mystery Writers to Appear at Thousand Oaks Store : Charlotte Macleod will sign her latest Peter Shandy mystery. First-time author Ron Ely also pays a visit.

Dorothy Sayers, creator of the Lord Peter Wimsey mysteries, once suggested that “the detective story will come to an end, simply because the public will have learnt all the tricks.” She was wrong.

Everyone is writing mysteries and conjuring up new tricks. And readers continue to be fascinated by books featuring professional or amateur crime-solvers who bring perpetrators of murderous acts to justice.

Mysteries to Die For, 2940 Thousand Oaks Blvd., Thousand Oaks, will play host to authors of two different interpretations of this popular genre.

Charlotte Macleod, who is said to be the model for the Jessica Fletcher character in “Murder She Wrote,” will sign her latest Peter Shandy mystery, “Something in the Water,” published by Mysterious Press.

The Shandy series is considered a “softy, cozy” style of mystery writing. Macleod’s 1 p.m. Friday appearance is considered rare because she lives in rural Maine. She is the author of more than 20 murder mysteries.

On the other hand, author Ron Ely, also a film and television actor known for his Tarzan role on NBC, has penned his first book, “Night Shadows,” published by Simon & Schuster.

Ely lives in Santa Barbara, as does his ‘hard-boiled” protagonist, Jake Sands. The city becomes a dangerous paradise for Sands, who is being compared to classical suspense heroes Travis McGee, Lew Archer and Phillip Marlowe.

Ely has been commissioned to write two more Jake Sands novels, and he says they will be published shortly. Ely will be at Mysteries to Die For at 1 p.m. Saturday.

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The big white tent will be erected once again to house the Camarillo Friends of the Library semiannual used book sale, which, along with the October sale, is the major source of funds for the library. The event is scheduled from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday and Sunday in Las Posas Shopping Center at Las Posas Road and Daily Drive in Camarillo.

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The Arcade Poetry Project presents Joyce La Mers of Oxnard and Meg Fraser, author of “In Her Own Voice,” who will read from their work at 7:30 p.m. Saturday in the Performance Studio, 34 N. Palm St., Ventura.

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Fans of psychologist Laura Schlessinger, KFI talk-radio host and author of “Ten Stupid Things Women Do to Mess Up Their Lives,” can meet and talk with her from 2 to 3:30 p.m. Sunday at Chaucer’s Books, 3321 State St., Santa Barbara.

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Tom Eubanks, a 20-year veteran of the private eye business who heads Probe Investigations of Camarillo, will address the Ventura County Writers’ Club at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday. Eubanks is the author of “How to Protect Your Life and Property” and a P. I. novel, “The Plunge.” His talk will provide valuable insights for writers who want to create believable private detectives and learn how they operate. The meeting is scheduled at Ottavio’s Banquet Facilities, 340 Mobil Ave., Camarillo. There is a $5 charge to non-members. Call 482-5648.

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Richard Senate is working on a book about mystery writer Erle Stanley Gardner, who lived in Ventura from 1921 to 1933. He is seeking stories and anecdotes about Gardner’s Ventura years from anyone who knew him. Contact Senate at 422 Staunton St., Camarillo 93010.