Gary Vaughan never set out to become a private investigator—he just had stories no one else would believe. A military veteran, former chemical tech, and now a PI in southern West Virginia, Gary is best known for writing two jaw-dropping collections of real-life cases: There’s a Methhead in Your Dryer and Stop Throwing Crack Babies at Me. The titles may seem outrageous, but the stories inside are very real.
Each short account is drawn from Gary’s time working fugitive recovery, handling domestic cases, and navigating the shadows of addiction, poverty, and corruption in rural Appalachia. From the meth addict found curled up inside a woman’s dryer to social workers dodging flying infants, his books toe the line between dark comedy and gut-punch reality.
“These aren’t ghost stories or legends,” Gary says. “These are my Tuesday afternoons.”
And while he’s seen his fair share of wild moments, Gary is just as interested in the human side of it all—the broken families, the quiet despair, and the rare moments of redemption.
Telling the Stories Others Won’t
Gary’s work is not sanitized. He doesn’t clean it up for easy reading. Instead, he offers unfiltered Appalachia—where the line between victim and villain isn’t always clear, and absurdity and tragedy often walk hand in hand.
That raw honesty is what sets him apart—not just as a writer or a PI, but as someone who sees his region for what it is: bruised, complex, and deeply human. And through all the chaos, Gary remains humble.
“I’m just a guy who wrote some books,” he insists. “That’s it.”
Want to check out his books for yourself? Purchase them here!
Want more? Watch our full interview with Gary Vaughan below—and if you’ve got a story that sounds too crazy to be true, we want to hear it. Submit your wild Appalachian tales to Creepalachia and help us keep shining a light on the strangest corners of the mountains.
