Paul Doiron feels like he’s been writing a very long autobiography over the past 16 years.

But unlike most books in that genre, it’s not his. It’s the life story of a character he created, a Maine game warden named Mike Bowditch. Over the course of 16 novels set all over the state, Bowditch has hunted for murderers, poachers, missing hikers and violent vigilantes, among others. He was in his early 20s and a rookie warden when the first novel came out in 2010. He’s now in his mid-30s, married with a child on the way, facing disciplinary action for his rule-bending methods and being stalked by criminals.

“I didn’t know I was doing it until several books into the series, that the books collectively were his autobiography,” said Doiron, 61, of Camden. “I’m 16 novels in and he’s only 34, so I’m aging a lot faster than he is.”

Doiron’s latest installment of his Mike Bowditch biography, “Storm Tide,” goes on sale June 30. Like all of Bowditch’s adventures, it features locations inspired by real Maine places Doiron knows well. A Maine native, he was editor of Down East magazine before becoming a full-time novelist. He’s also a registered Maine Guide, loves fly fishing, and spends time on ride-alongs with real Maine game wardens to get the details right in his books.

In “Storm Tide,” Bowditch is living in the fictional Midcoast town of Ducktrap, based on Linconville. He arrives at a fatal fire at the home of a wealthy entrepreneur who lives in a fictional town west of Belfast. At some point he seeks out a suspect Down East, in Cutler.

Doiron has set his Bowditch books in just about every part of Maine, including Fryeburg, Rangeley and Flagstaff Lake in the western mountains, St. George, Machias and Frenchboro along the coast and Caribou and Fort Kent in the far north.

In recent weeks, he’s traveled around the state doing research for his books, to ensure the places not only feel real, but his depictions are as accurate as possible. For an upcoming novel, he went to The Forks so he could describe an area along the Kennebec River, including what grows there and how loud the rush of the water is. He also visited the Acadia National Park area and Monhegan Island on similar fact-finding trips.

“I want to be able to describe sights, sounds, smells, tastes and feel. How cold is something? How hot is it?” said Doiron. “When I’m on the ocean or in the woods I really pay attention to what I’m experiencing becuase that will be what Mike is experiencing.”

Doiron has several local events scheduled to promote his book. He’ll be at Left Bank Books in Belfast on June 30, Mechanics’ Hall in Portland on July 1, and The Music Hall in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, on July 2. He’ll also make stops at Barnes & Noble in South Portland on July 12, the Bangor Public Library on July 14 and Leaf & Anna in Brooklin on July 16.

In “Storm Tide,” Bowditch is on the scene when the luxurious home of entrepreneur Brian Malloy burns. He tries to pull Malloy’s body from the fire but is too late to save him. Malloy had been suspected of murdering his illegitimate son.

Later, miles away, another man accused of a brutal rape is cut in half. Bowditch gets a cryptic text telling him where to find the body. He begins to think the two killings are related and that they might be the work of vigilantes who thought the men would escape justice if they didn’t get involved. Bowditch soon finds his own name is on the vigilantes’ list.

“He doesn’t know why. But God knows over the course of the series he’s certainly killed people,” said Doiron of Bowditch. “He’s survived so many things that should have killed him and he’s made choices that would have ended other people’s careers. So this book is about when does the bill come due for him? ”

So how does a game warden, who most people think of as enforcing hunting and fishing laws, end up in the middle of so much nefarious stuff?

Game wardens have the same arrest powers as a deputy sheriff, Doiron says. They also are encouraged to live within the district they patrol, which means game wardens might be closer to some rural crime scenes than other law enforcement officers.

Doiron was at Down East magazine, which focused on Maine culture, people and news, from 1999 to 2013, the last eight years as editor-in-chief. His first Mike Bowditch novel, “The Poacher’s Son,” came out in 2010 while he was still at the magazine.

Working there was good training for such a Maine-centric novel series, about someone doing a job unique to Maine. He got to follow the state’s news, learn about its history and explore what makes Maine unique.

He’s been writing his Mike Bowditch series so long he’s starting to meet game wardens who grew up reading his books.

“I’m starting to meet young wardens who tell me they grew up reading Mike Bowditch and that contributed to them wanting to be wardens,” said Doiron. “It’s just mind-blowing.”