About Keith:
Keith Steinbaum is an award winning novelist and screenwriter whose work bridges supernatural suspense with profound explorations of humanity. A former song lyricist, he transitioned from music to fiction with a storytelling voice that blends emotional intensity, social consciousness, and cinematic pacing.
His supernatural thriller In Lieu of Flowers exemplifies this signature approach. While its premise may suggest horror, Steinbaum crafts something far deeper a layered literary experience that examines humanity through the enduring tension between good and evil. Through supernatural elements, he confronts urgent contemporary realities including racism, homelessness, moral accountability, and the question of divine influence over human choice. Rather than being confined to genre, his work expands it using the supernatural as a lens to explore the real world struggles of the past, present, and future.
Steinbaum first gained wide recognition with The Poe Consequence, winner of the Book Excellence Awards, Maincrest Media Awards, and American Fiction Awards. The novel was praised for intelligently addressing issues of race and violence while weaving in otherworldly elements with restraint and purpose. His second novel, You Say Goodbye, a character driven whodunit murder mystery, further established his reputation for emotionally resonant and thought provoking storytelling.
With In Lieu of Flowers, winner of multiple national and international honors including the American Fiction Awards, the Chanticleer Shelly Awards for Paranormal Fiction, and the Rising Readers Choice Award, Steinbaum delivers what reviewers describe as an engrossing horror saga reminiscent of the emotional pull of classic gothic literature. Yet at its core, the novel is not simply about the supernatural it is about humanity itself.
Beyond novels, Steinbaum has completed screenplays for his supernatural thrillers, extending his storytelling vision into the cinematic space with the goal of bringing these layered narratives to the screen.
He is an author who refuses one dimensional storytelling. Instead, he combines supernatural tension with real world relevance, crafting fiction designed not only to entertain but to challenge, move, and engage readers on a deeper emotional level.From years as a song lyricist, he moved on, eventually writing the supernatural thriller, THE POE CONSEQUENCE. The book was selected as a winner in the 2021 Book Excellence Awards competition, a Winner in the 2022 Maincrest Media Awards competition, and a Winner in the 2024 American Fiction Awards competition.
"Steinbaum tells a story that intelligently and respectfully addresses issues of race and violence. A grounded urban tale that's enhanced but not dominated by other worldliness."- Kirkus Reviews - The Best Books of 2015 special issue.
"Explicit, fast-paced action, evocative prose, and relentless, nail-biting scenes show Steinbaum at the top of his game. Steinbaum is an author to watch for."
-The Prairies Book Review
His second novel, a whodunit murder mystery titled, YOU SAY GOODBYE, was selected as a winner in TopShelf Magazine's 2020 Book of the Year Contest, a Winner in the 2022 Maincrest Media Awards competition, a Finalist in the 2022 Book Excellence competition, and a Winner in the 2024 American Fiction Awards competition.
"One of the most touching and inspiring crime thrillers you'll ever read."
- Donald Richard, TopShelf Reviews
Steinbaum's third novel, IN LIEU OF FLOWERS, was released on March 26, 2024. In July, the book was selected as the winner of the Horror: Supernatural/Paranormal category in the American Fiction Awards competition, a Winner in the Chanticleer Shelly Awards for Paranormal Fiction, and a Bronze Medalist in the Global Book Awards. He describes the novel as a time-traveling cemetery story that offers a supernatural horror story explanation about the real life horrors of the past, present, and, unfortunately and undoubtedly, the future.
'"Keith Steinbaum crafts a thoroughly engrossing horror saga that moves...to draw readers into darkness similar to what classics such as Dracula achieved."
- D. Donovan, Sr. Reviewer, Midwest Book Reviews
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