David Carlson was born in Oak Park, Illinois, and grew up in various cities in Illinois. His grade school years were spent in Springfield, Illinois, where the numerous Lincoln sites initiated his lifelong love of history. He graduated from Wheaton College (Illinois) with a degree in political science. Not sure how to respond to the Vietnam War, he enrolled in seminary to weigh his options. To his surprise, he fell in love with theological thinking-especially theological questioning-and his career plan shifted from law school to theological studies. He earned a doctorate at University of Aberdeen, Scotland, where he learned that research is a process of digging and then digging deeper. He believes the same process has helped him in his nonfiction and mystery writing. David lives with his wife, Kathy, in Franklin, Indiana. He has taught at Franklin College, a gem of a liberal arts college, for forty years. David has written and spoken frequently on the topics of faith development, Catholic-Orthodox relations, and Muslim-Christian dialogue.