JAMESTOWN — Siblings from Jamestown have authored multiple books but they differ on why they became authors and the types of books they have published.
Dorothy Carlson, of North Lemmon, South Dakota, had a placental abruption while she was pregnant about four years ago.
“It was pretty miraculous that I survived,” she said. “It had to be God because I live close to a very small hospital and they definitely don’t take emergency cases but they couldn’t transport me so they tried to fix it and I survived.”
Carlson said she always loved to write but never finished anything. But after the placental abruption, she decided to write and publish a book.
“It just made me remember that life is really short,” she said. “You don’t know when it’s going to end and there was a lot I still want to do. The writing and publishing was very high on that list.”
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For Carlson’s brother, Stephen Nyberg, who resides in Jamestown, writing and drawing graphic novels has always been one of his ambitions. Nyberg said he’s been writing and drawing since he was 8 years old.
He published his first graphic novel, “Chet Chetterson’s Adventures Book 1: Diets Are Doom,” when he was 15 years old in 2015. He said doing that taught him more about publishing books.
Carlson and Nyberg were at Alfred Dickey Public Library in Jamestown on Saturday, Oct. 28, to meet with local residents and sign copies of their books.
Carlson, whose author name is D.E. Carlson, recently published the first of the five-part “Empire of Ash & Song” series, “To Bind Fire.” She said the second book of the series is expected to be published this spring while the third is planned for Christmas 2024.
“I will try to keep turning them out every six months or so,” she said.
Carlson said “To Bind Fire” is about a fire elemental who is sent away to safety by her father because of the trouble going on in their empire. An elemental is a mythical supernatural creature that usually correspond to elements of earth, water, air and fire.
“Her dad never comes back so she has to embark on a journey to try to figure out what happened and try to discover which side is true and which side is evil,” she said.
The series was named “Empire of Ash & Song” because the books are full of people who can interact with various elements in a unique way, Carlson said.
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“They interact with them through songs,” she said.
Carlson’s goal is to write about fantasy, including fantastical events, creatures, relationships and struggles between good and evil and love, according to her website.
“I feel that fantasy is the most dynamic way to portray the fight between good and evil in our real world,” she said. “I think fantasy provides an escape for people who instinctively know and everyone I feel instinctively knows that they are meant for more than this world and I think fantasy provides a portal to that.”
Carlson has also published a novella — “Cassandra’s Dragon” — that is available for free at
by signing up for her newsletter. She said “Cassandra’s Dragon” is not in print but will be someday due to high demand.
“It’s a free novella set in the same universe as my primary series,” she said.
Nyberg has published 10 graphic novels since he was 15 years old. His works include the series “Chet Chetterson’s Adventures” and “The Randy Allan Mystery Series.”
“They were more humor focused with a funnier story and funnier situations,” he said.
“I think you write them because your mind is full of jokes,” Carlson added. “At home … he’s got us laughing every five minutes or so.”
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Nyberg said he’s working on book collections of daily comic strips that he’s writing for the series he is working on now. He said each one will be a little less than 150 pages.
“That’s one year worth of the comic strips which are almost every day,” he said.
Even though he enjoys writing more humorous stories, Nyberg said he’s planning on writing more serious graphic novels in the future. With that, he will also work on developing a more serious drawing style and writing with more emotion.
Carlson said she plans on writing more mini novellas for her newsletter subscribers.
“To Bind Fire” is available as a hardcover, paperback or an e-book. Carlson said the book can be purchased on Amazon or on Etsy by searching for “Empire of Ash and Song.”
Nyberg said most of his books are available on eBay.
Masaki Ova joined The Jamestown Sun in August 2021 as a reporter. He grew up on a farm near Pingree, N.D. He majored in communications at the University of Jamestown, N.D.