Darold came to Arizona after graduation from Central Missouri State College. In 1977, while on active duty with the U.S. Air Force, he began writing short stories for children and young adults after earning his master’s degree. After the military, he experimented with various genres. When his wife was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease, he finally settled on mystery fiction.

2020 saw the publication of his first novel, Dessert at the All Night Café. During the COVID pandemic, three more titles were published: Ghost at the Roadkill Café, The Crystal Skull, and Rock-A-Bye Baby. Also, during 2020 he finished the requirements for his doctorate in writing.

To date, another four titles were published for a total of eight in soft cover. Two of the eight are western mysteries written under the name Fanny Price. The pen name was selected on a whim as an experiment to determine if westerns written by a female author could sell. They do.

His other titles are written under the name of D.L. Roberts. Roberts was his birth surname until age five, when he was adopted by the Graves. He uses his birth name to pay respects to those who bore him.