December 30 2025
David W. DuBois’ debut novel, “Beholder Of The Eyes,” is a psychological thriller laced with the slow horror of the disease he’s battling: ALS
Today on the Elaine’s Literary Salon show: Meet author David W. DuBois, a retired U.S. Army soldier who served honorably for 21 years. He is a devoted husband and father of four. In 2022, David was diagnosed with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig’s Disease, a life-altering moment that led him to write his debut book.
David is a passionate advocate for ALS awareness and research. Through his weekly blog, mentoring, and active participation on various ALS organization committees, he offers support and inspiration to others living with the disease. With his background as a Military Policeman and his personal battle against a terminal illness, David brings a raw, firsthand perspective to themes of life, death, and justice.
His book, Beholder Of The Eyes: weaves together the stark realities of ALS, a disease that slowly paralyzes its victims, leaving only their eyes to communicate with a haunting fictional tale of a boy grappling with the traumatic loss of his mother to the same illness. Now completely paralyzed and able to communicate only through his eyes, David continues to share his story and fight for a cure, using the only voice ALS has left him.
About Beholder Of The Eyes:
This psychological thriller, laced with the slow horror of ALS and shocking twists, will leave you clawing at the edges of your sanity.
Clyde is haunted by the soft, fading memory of his mother’s eyes. Their warmth. Their silence. Their absence.
His obsession with finding that same gaze again consumes him. Every day, he searches. Studies. Collects.
So passionate was his quest to find eyes like his mother’s he couldn’t go a day without thinking about their details and expanding his collection. So much so that it drove him to do the unthinkable.
Find David’s blog here: My ALS Story (more below)
Special thanks to our friend Tony Easlick, owner of the traveling massage company Mobile Tranquility, who works with David and knew we needed to feature him. We are very grateful for the connection!
Meet the face behind the posts
Hello, I am David DuBois and “I AM LIVING WITH ALS” in Springfield, VA.
I’m not scared, I am on a mission. The circumstances I am in are meant to be for a greater good of others.
I want to share with you my story so we can laugh and cry together while fighting for an ALS cure.
People with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) can go from perfectly healthy to quickly being unable to move, swallow, or breathe. It can strike anyone at any time and there is no ALS cure.
The ALS Association is the only national nonprofit organization fighting ALS on every front. Through your gifts, you help us to continue providing hope and help to those in our community living with ALS (PALS) and their caregivers (CALS), while aggressively searching for new ALS Treatments and an ALS cure.
I am going to do WHATEVER IT TAKES to help The ALS Association make Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) a livable disease, and I’m asking for your help by donating to my Fundraising Page AND following along with my journey since diagnosis.
Lower right picture is from March 2021, before the first signs set in. Lower left is Nov 2021, upper right Feb 2022, upper left June 2022.
I have lost over 50lbs as well as muscle mass. I can no long curl 5lbs in my right arm once, compared to my left which I can curl 35 many times. In time, I will lose the strength in my left arm, my legs, and the rest of my body as well. Please help me share my story and fight ALS Causes, ALS Illness & ALS Disease.
Click here to read more of David’s posts on his blog.
About Elaine’s Literary Salon: Launched in 2023 with the opening of the Alexandria, VA restaurant Elaine’s, our founder is bestselling thriller novelist Jeffrey James Higgins. “I wanted to create a place where authors can come and showcase their work,” he says. In the years since, he has interviewed hundreds of writers — some who share their debut novels, others who have been on the bestseller list for decades. Learn more: ElainesLiterarySalon.com
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