DAVID DEAN MENZIES

The 2022 Annual Impact Report is a comprehensive, 21-page document that answers who CastleBranch is, why the company does what it does, and what makes it special.  The publication shines a spotlight on the work CastleBranch is doing to help millions of individuals transition from education to and through professional life -- with a special focus on improving the pathways from healthcare education to healthcare employment, to reduce the nationwide nursing shortage, and to improve the healthcare experience for all. The Report was a multi-month project requiring work from initial concept to final publication, utilizing skills such as research, interviewing, writing, editing and proofing. Click here to view a copy on the CastleBranch website, or click here for a version hosted on Google Docs .

Heather Bell Adams, Nina de Gramont, J.G. Hetherton, Donna Everhart, Leah Weiss Complete Lineup at Sold-Out Event HAMPSTEAD, N.C. – Local Author David Dean joined five fellow southern writers Saturday, March 11 at the 2023 Feast of Authors Luncheon sponsored by Quarter Moon Bookstore of Topsail Beach. The sold-out event held at Nineteen Restaurant featured presentations, Q&A, and book signings by Dean and Leah Weiss, Donna Everhart, J.G. Hetherton, Heather Bell Adams, and Nina de Gramont. "The camaraderie and networking with such a great group of authors was amazing, as were the many conversations with the wonderful readers who we got the opportunity to visit with," Dean said. During his presentation, Dean discussed the genesis behind writing OBX, his action-packed murder/mystery novel set in the Outer Banks of North Carolina, and the inspiration behind the strong female lead character Michael Francis. The State Bureau of Investigation agent and mother of three navigates

OUTER BANKS, N.C. – OBX , David Dean’s new suspense thriller set in North Carolina’s Outer Banks, has made its way onto shelves of local bookstores and gift shops from Duck to Ocracoke as sales soar for the engaging summer read.  The 300-page novel is also available for purchase online as a paperback via IndieBound.org, Amazon.com and BarnesandNoble.com. Additionally, it is published as an eBook for the Amazon Kindle on Amazon.com. OBX (ISBN: 979-8-218-00862-8) is the first in a series of books featuring Michael Francis, an agent with the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation. Agent Francis is sent from Raleigh to the vacation mecca of the Outer Banks to investigate the murder of an influential politician’s staffer. The struggling mother of three finds herself in a gathering storm of cover-ups, crooked cops, drug trafficking, and attempts on her life while she deals with a difficult separation from her police detective husband. In the midst of unexpected and confusing romantic o

TOPSAIL ISLAND, N.C. – Just in time for summer, David Dean’s new suspense thriller OBX is now available in paperback to independent booksellers on IngramSpark. OBX (ISBN: 979-8-218-00862-8) is set in the popular beach destination of North Carolina’s Outer Banks and introduces readers to NC State Bureau of Investigation Agent Michael Francis as she investigates the murder of an influential politician’s staffer, right in the middle of a campaign. The struggling mother of three finds herself in a gathering storm of cover-ups, crooked cops, drug trafficking, and attempts on her life while she deals with a difficult separation from her police detective husband. In the midst of unexpected and confusing romantic overtures from a prime suspect, an approaching hurricane threatens to sabotage her investigation as Michael chases down a serial killer who's been operating in the shadows for years, facing human threats more dangerous than mother nature herself in a climactic ending with an unexp

By David Dean Menzies It seems like there are a lot of people shouting nowadays. Shouting about diseases, societal issues, politics; sometimes directed at one another, other times at nobody in particular. It’s funny to me how conversation seems to have become a lost art, a beneficial element of society that we have for some reason chosen to forfeit. I’m reminded of this both when I engage in it -- resulting in a natural high and craving my next hit -- and when I see people mistake posting on social media for having a conversation.  Yeah, I said it: posting on social media is NOT conversation. Let’s take Facebook for example. It is defined as an online social networking website where people can share opinions and information (like this article) and respond or link to the information posted by others. Similarly, Twitter is defined as a place to exchange ideas and information instantaneously. In both cases, people post info, others absorb it, and in some cases post their viewpoints in res

By David Dean Menzies This past weekend my wife and I were enjoying a lazy Sunday afternoon, watching an ABC News 20/20 program. The story was about a young man incarcerated for shooting someone, and by all accounts he certainly seemed railroaded. Toward the end of the program, a few seconds of video showed a high-ranking state official going on the record at a highly visible press conference about the case, doubling-down on the jury’s guilty verdict, claiming that celebrities and other individuals advocating for the young man’s innocence were being fed inaccurate information. Soon after, the program wrapped-up, with the young man still in prison and his case gaining notoriety. For some reason, the press conference shown toward the end of the program – for lack of a better term – bothered me. It just seemed out of place for a high-ranking official to take the extreme measure of holding a press conference and putting forth such a bold statement, in the face of the information I had abso