Past as Prologue

Mystery writer Barbara Seranella spins tales about Miranda “Munch” Mancini, an auto mechanic/limo driver with a shady past who gets involved in police investigations.

Not coincidentally, Seranella is a former auto mechanic who also has a shady past. You can hear her story at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday when she speaks to the Ventura County Writers Club at Borders in Thousand Oaks. Her latest book, “Unwanted Company” (HarperCollins), is a May selection of the Detective Book Club.

Her first book, “No Human Involved,’ debuted at No. 5 on the Los Angeles Times bestseller list, was on Amazon.com’s list of top 10 mysteries of 1997 and went into four printings.

Seranella’s past continually intrigues readers. Her writing teacher assured her that no one had a right to ask if anything in her books is true, but people ask anyway. Her first responses were more coy, but now she is more frank about her past, proud that she has been sober for 20 years.

“It’s so weird when I hear my bio. OK, let’s see--she was a runaway, a heroin addict, an auto mechanic and now she’s a writer. It doesn’t seem to fit,” Seranella said.

She wrote stories when she was growing up, but discovered that writers don’t get paid much and that you needed life experiences to be good at it. Judging from her bio, Seranella decided she was qualified. When she set out to write as an adult, she started with science fiction and World War II stories. But Seranella soon realized that she had a whole wealth of information that other people didn’t have. Now, she uses all of her experiences in her writing.

“My character has grown a lot from the starting place--she had a lot of room for growth,” she said, laughing.

Her first book was about redemption. Her second, “No Offense Intended,” moves her character along to where she is no longer comfortable in either mainstream society or the underworld. Seranella understood her character’s dilemma. She herself had lived the life of an addict, rode around with outlaw motorcycle clubs and lived in a Haight-Ashbury commune.

By the time she got sober, she had never opened a checking account, held a real job or leased an apartment under her own name. She never heard about health insurance until after she was five years into sobriety.

Determined to make a change, she found work as an auto mechanic at an Arco station in Sherman Oaks, worked there for five years and moved on to a Texaco station in Brentwood for another 12. She married her boss, went on to pursue a writing career in 1993 and now divides her time between La Quinta and Laguna Beach with her husband and three dogs.

“What writing did for me the most was that it satisfied a creative craving,” she said. “I tried to have kids for so many years that I thought I’d never be truly happy if I couldn’t have children. A nice side benefit of the writing is that creative outlet has satisfied an emptiness.”

When she isn’t writing, she might be touring crime labs and crime scenes, interviewing homicide detectives and criminals. She also goes out on ride-alongs--cruising with police as they cover a beat. People have suggested her own life could be made into a movie.

She’s intrigued but offers a caveat: “My dad said to wait until after he dies.”

HAPPENINGS

* Sunday: 10:30 a.m. Meaning of Life Book Club. Rabbi Dov Greenberg leads a discussion of “Small Miracles” by Yitta Halberstam. Thousand Oaks Barnes & Noble, 160 S. Westlake Blvd., 446-2820.

* Sunday: 2:30 p.m. Author Nancy Robinson will discuss and sign “Touched by Adoption.” Thousand Oaks Barnes & Noble, 446-2820.

* Sunday: 6 p.m. Poet Carol Doering reads and discusses her newest poetry collection, “Gift of Words.” Open mike at 8 p.m. Book signing to follow. Borders, 125 W. Thousand Oaks Blvd., Thousand Oaks, 497-8159.

* Monday: 12:30 p.m. Monday Afternoon Book Club. Selection for April is “Welcome to the World, Baby Girl!” by Fannie Flagg. Thousand Oaks Barnes & Noble, 446-2820.

* Monday: 7:30 p.m. Conversations with God. Discussion centered on Neale Donald Walsch’s best-selling series. Borders, 497-8159.

*Tuesday: 7:30 p.m. Ventura County Writers Club features Barbara Seranella, best-selling mystery writer. Her latest book is “Unwanted Company.” Contact Joanne Sehnem at 579-9414. Borders, 497-8159.

* Tuesday: 7 p.m. “Second Tuesday” Contemporary Book Group. “Spending” by Mary Gordon will be discussed. Borders, 497-8159.

* Wednesday: 9:30 a.m. Preschool Poetry Slam. Bring your own favorites to share. Ventura Barnes & Noble, 4360 E. Main St., 339-9170.

* Wednesday: 7 p.m. Local endocrinologist Calvin Ezrin, author of “The Type II Diabetes Diet Book,” will discuss and sign his new diet guide, “Your Fat Can Make You Thin.” Borders, 497-8159.

* Wednesday: 7 p.m. Reading group will discuss “Reason for Hope” by Jane Goodall. Ventura Barnes & Noble, 339-9170.

* Wednesday: 7 p.m. Shakespearean group will take an in-depth look at Shakespeare’s “The Tragedy of Richard III.’ Borders, 497-8159.

* Thursday: 4:30 p.m. Harry Potter book group for kids. Thousand Oaks Barnes & Noble, 446-2820.

* Thursday: 7 p.m. Sci-fi group will discuss “The Uplift War” by David Brin. Ventura Barnes & Noble, 339-9170.

* Friday: 7 p.m. Storytime. “Miss Frizzle” and The Magic School Bus will make a stop at Ventura Barnes & Noble, 339-9170.

* Saturday: 10:30 a.m. Storytime. Special guest “Curious George” will visit and his books will be read. Thousand Oaks Barnes & Noble, 446-2820.

* Saturday: 12:30 p.m. Author Earlene Fowler will discuss and sign “Seven Sisters.” Mysteries to Die For, 2940 Thousand Oaks Blvd., Thousand Oaks, 374-0084.

Information about book signings, writers groups and publishing events can be e-mailed to anns40@aol.com or faxed to 647-5649.