Author Spotlight: David S. MacKenzie

We are pleased to introduce David S. MacKenzie. David's new book, Let There Be Light, was short listed for our Braun Book Awards. It looks at the creation story in Genesis through the lens of science. We asked David about his writing and how his new book came to be. But first, a little bit about him.

About

David grew up in Calgary, Alberta. His banking career took him to several locations in Alberta and finally to Leduc, where he was a bank manager and later went into mortgage financing, holding a chartered financial planner designation. David was elected to Leduc city council in 2007 and served as a councillor for ten years. He was chairman of the food bank for many years and founded an organization that helps the homeless and victims of domestic abuse.

He previously wrote two books: Undertow in 1999 and Calypso in 2015, both mystery novels.

David became a Christian in 1976 in Amsterdam through Youth with a Mission.  He has always had an interest in both science and the Bible and is a student of prophecy. His conviction that the Bible is accurate and trustworthy led him to develop the thesis upon which Let There Be Light is based.

He and his wife, Bonni, have three adult children and six grandchildren. David loves sports of all kinds and still regularly plays tennis, golf, and hockey.  

Q&A

Q: What advice can you give to someone looking to write a book?
A: A few key things come to mind: First, consider this project in the context of all your relationships. Writing takes up a lot of time, energy, and focus. How is this going to affect your marriage or other relationships? Talk this through beforehand to establish limits and make sure you have all the necessary support structures in place. Second, write on something about which you are passionate. Do your best to nurture and sustain the inspiration you have and, finally, don’t count the time or effort you are making. The only thing that counts is the quality of the finished product, however long it takes!

Q: How did you come up with the idea for your "Week Within a Week" thesis?
A: I had been thinking, on and off, about how Genesis and science could be reconciled for a long time. Then I got into a bit of a zone, where it became a predominant challenge for me and I started to turn ideas over in my mind and on paper. Then came a moment when the lights turned on and a flood of ideas commenced.  It took a year to expand and perfect the thesis.  It really consumed my thoughts in very positive and exciting ways.

Q: What are your hopes for the book?
A: Three things, really. My hope is that the book will become a standard reference as to theories on how the Bible and science can be reconciled, and thus contribute to religious studies and further validate the reliability of scripture. Second, by hopefully demonstrating that scripture is reliable and trustworthy, I hope it helps to build faith in the Bible and Christ. Third, although I have made every effort to ensure the book is academically sound, the whole story of creation is a story of love, beauty, and wonder and I really hope this comes through to readers.

Q: What’s next for you?
A: My focus will be on trying to gain attention for my book and the Week Within a Week Thesis upon which it is based. My hope is that it will gain enough traction to garner interest from seminaries and Bible schools and ideally, with people all around the world.  I can see myself writing another book, but before I would even consider that, I want to focus on promoting this one. 

Q: Have you written any other books before Let There Be Light?
A: Yes. In 1999 I wrote a mystery fiction entitled Undertow and in 2015 I wrote a sequel called Calypso.  So Let There Be Light is my first non-fiction book. There are similarities between writing fiction and non-fiction but there are also differences. Fiction requires one hundred percent imagination. Non-fiction requires a bit less imagination but more attention to research, citations, precise language, and logic.  But both types of writing require 100% commitment to excellence. 

Connecting Points

Find and follow David online:

Facebook: @LettherebelightGenesis