Greene Co. Corrections Officer Writes Zombie Book Based in Ozarks

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. -- If you love zombies and Springfield, there's a new book just for you.

Doug Roberts wrote "Ragnarok Rising: The Awakening." It's a zombie novel dealing with a group of survivors trying to rescue other people around the Springfield area. 

Some locations are named specifically in the book; others take a little sleuthing.

"I'm a corrections officer with the Greene County Sheriff's Office, and a bunch of us, we're sitting around one night drinking coffee, and we we're talking about zombies, and suddenly the conversation inevitably turned to, 'What would we do if it happened here?'"

A man who works in a jail has another job that's anything but work to him.

"Writing has just always been an outlet for me, and corrections is more of a controlled environment, where you have to watch your surroundings and watch your back. To me it's just a way to unwind. It's an interesting transition to say the least!"

Roberts has always had a passion for writing, but he chose to write about zombies in Springfield because they're two of his favorite things.

"Zombies are a big thing right now. What would we do if we saw zombies at Bass Pro?"

Mike Mello is a co-worker and character in Robert's book.

"I'm a home brewer, and in the book my character provides a character with some home brewed beers after a stressful event."

Mello says the book really hits home to anyone who lives in the Ozarks.

"There's a familiarity, knowing this area, having grown up here, and seeing a story depicted in this area, I think most people will realize, 'I've been in this place, I've been there, I've seen that.'"

"For the most part you can take that book, page by page, and drive from the first encounter that starts out by Fair Grove, to where the last encounter ends out by the lake," says Roberts.

Besides being about zombies and Springfield, the book also has a bigger message: "It's a very every day man, kind of public servant, who just goes out there, and does what's best for other people without regard to himself," says Mello.

Sounds a bit like Roberts himself.

"I just wanted to bring something back to the community that's really given me a lot," he says.

More information: https://www.facebook.com/DARobertsAuthor?ref=hl