A conversation with ‘Shroud of Evidence’ author Glen Davis

WILLIAMS, Ariz., - While Glen Davis worked for a number of years on his novella, “A Shroud of Evidence,” he did not complete the futuristic tale of faith and chaos until recently. Davis, who works as a Web designer, an author, blogger and photographer, took some time out of his busy schedule to talk about his new book, published through LULU, and spoke about writing in general.

He said the genesis for “Shroud” came to him four years ago in 2005.

“Bill Mize, author of ‘Resurrection Angel’ and ‘Everlasting Life,’ told me about LULU,” Davis said. “I had a friend who asked me to do some research on gun control, which I used to practice making covers and moving around the LULU Web site. The result is ‘Concerning the Militia,’ which can be found on LULU.com. I picked up on ‘A Shroud of Evidence,’ again, at the end of 2008. It started flowing, so I just went with it. I thought it turned out pretty good, so I went ahead and published it with an ISBN. The cover came together very well and I even had a compliment from an artist friend. I mean, everything just seemed to fall into place with this one, so I went with it. And just so people know; it is a fictional account of events that could occur according to the book of Revelation. I was asked if I thought God wanted me to write this book. My answer is that God certainly did not tell me to write this book. I had no vision or anything like that. It is mainly a character generated story. But then again, he didn't tell me that I couldn't write it.”

“Shroud” tells the story of exiled police lieutenant Dustin Conrad as he attempts to unravel a deep-seeded conspiracy that reaches to all levels of the American government. The story follows the apocalyptic adventures of the hard-boiled main character as he is chased by the evil Dr. Cornelius Devlin and runs the gamut from action-packed car chases in San Francisco to a bloody battlefield in Israel, adding in a few super-powered miracles as icing on the cake. Filled with biblical verses and Christian ruminations, “Shroud” may not be everyone’s cup of tea - especially those tired of religious actioners such as “The Da Vinci Code” and the “Left Behind” series. As much as it tells an action-packed, futuristic tale of religious faith (and Conrad’s own personal faith), so also does it serve as a no-nonsense commentary on freedom and the American way.

“Shroud” can be found through most online booksellers, such as Barnes and Noble and Amazon.com, as well as through the lulu.com Web site. More information on “Shroud” can be found at http://shroud.glencdavis.com. Davis is also the “Web Sensei” for http://grandcanyonrvparks.com. He said he began the latter in order to help cover events in the Williams area, located roughly 50 miles from the Grand Canyon and a hot spot for northern Arizona tourists. When it comes to his writing, blogs included, Davis said he writes whatever is “flowing at the moment.

“I've got several projects that I am working on. A few years ago, I finished an X-Files book and haven't been able to locate a decent agent,” Davis said. “So I've got that in my unpublished works file. That's one reason that I went to self-publishing is all of the hassle of finding agents and dealing with publishers. I didn't realize that I was stepping into a mire of different hassles.”

Davis is no stranger to the self-publishing industry, or to writing in general. His first book was self-published at the age of 10. He said he’s been writing, on and off, for most of his life. His first book, like “Shroud,” delved into the realm of science fiction.

“It was an action-packed, science fiction that a friend of mine illustrated. I wrapped it in an orange cover and donated it to the school librarian, who tucked it under the counter never to be seen again. Talk about a tough review. When I started learning about computers about twenty years ago, I picked up writing again, mainly for Star Trek and science fiction fanzines. I pretty much gave up until I started up on LULU about a year ago.”