MWSA Interview with John H Davis

Date of interview: 27 March 2020

Staff Sergeant John H. Davis is a decorated combat veteran with two tours in Afghanistan. He spends his time advocating for veteran causes and has received congressional and legislative recognition. John is a former VA employee, Student Veterans of America officer and is a youth coach for American Ninja Warrior classes. John also has experience teaching English in Thailand and History to incarcerated youth in New York. John enjoys whiskey, getting tattoos, riding motorcycles, volunteering and working out. John has BA from St. Joseph's College and is a graduate student at Harvard. John is America and you are too.

MWSA: How did you find out about MWSA?

John H Davis : I found out about MWSA when I was thinking about submitting my book for awards. I wanted to get my book out to the widest audience possible and when I looked for veteran book awards MWSA popped up! After reading about the organization, researching some of the benefits and reading about some of the authors I wanted to submit my book for a potential award.

MWSA: What made you want to write Combat To College?

John H Davis : I wanted to earn some extra money while I was in college and the VA had a work-study program for veterans at my school. My job was to help out other veterans in their educational goals and provide resources about benefits as well as mentorship. This led to me sitting down with veterans who were struggling with various college challenges and working through them. The book is a compilation of those lessons to give veterans strategies to be successful in college. I heard and listened to the problems veterans were having and I knew firsthand the problems I had to wrestle with.

MWSA: Why do you think veterans struggle in college? What are some of the reasons why this occurs?

John H Davis : Veteran students are often older and being older than traditional students often means more responsibilities. They have families, mortgages, jobs, life experiences. On another side, they also are more likely to have PTSD and other mental and physical problems. Another issue I want to emphasize is that veterans go to school usually right when they get out of the military so they are transitioning out of military lifestyle and it takes time to learn how to be a normal person again.

The military is such a rigid and structured environment and college is the total opposite. This drastic shift is difficult for veterans to deal with and a reason they drop out. There are many more reasons and the book lays out these challenges and strategies to navigate them.

MWSA: Why don’t more veterans go to college in the first place? Many don't even use the educational benefits they earned in service.

John H Davis: This is another reason this book needed to be written. To give veterans confidence that they can go to college AND be successful there. Some veterans use the escape by saying things like "I don't need to go to college, I went to Iraq" and because of fear of failure, fear of fitting in with other students and not knowing what they want to do after service. By not having a plan.

MWSA: How important is having a plan when you get out?

John H Davis: You wouldn't run a military mission without a plan. When I was in Afghanistan planning patrols, air assault missions and high-value target captures we had complex plans and backup plans and did everything we could to ensure the mission’s success.

The weird thing about getting out of the military is that you are usually more focused on getting out then what you are going to do once you get out. So you are looking backward and not forwards, then boom your in the world trying to figure your life out.

The bottom line is that your plan of action when you separate from the military is going to dictate whether you live out your dreams or your nightmares.

MWSA: The book says to use your "military mentality in the classroom." What does that mean?

John H Davis: The military mentality gives student veterans an advantage in college. Some of the simple things the military ingrained in you gives you an edge. Simple things like being on time, being disciplined and your military experiences are things you need to embrace in college. I learned in college that it isn't always the smartest people that get the highest grade or find the most success in life, it's the people who work the hardest. And in the military, you learned how to work hard. In the military you paid attention, showed up every day and put your best effort in because lives could depend on it. If you take that attitude and apply it to your education, you are going to find success.

MWSA: Thanks for talking to us, is there anything you want to add to your message?

John H Davis: I firmly believe that if veterans went to college at higher rates AND graduated at higher rates then PTSD, depression, alcohol and drug problems, homelessness and suicide would all decline in the military community. As soldiers, we learn to be on the same team and we shouldn't abandon that team mentality just because we aren't actively serving anymore. We all have a responsibility to help each other and just as importantly help ourselves.

What I mean by that is that veterans will run across a battlefield to save a friend but often won't pick up a phone to save themselves. So pick up my book, go to college and reach your potential.

MWSA Interview with Joshua Bowe

Date of interview: 28 February 2020

Joshua Bowe is the son of Vietnam Veteran, Wilbur Bowe. He is the author of “The Ground You Stand Upon: Life of a Skytrooper in Vietnam”, the true story of his dad and the men he served with. Joshua grew up in Cameron, Wisconsin and now lives with his family in Chaska, Minnesota. From 2007 to 2019, he served in the Minnesota National Guard. He continues to work for the National Guard as a civilian.

Website: www.thegroundyoustandupon.org
Amazon Author Page: www.amazon.com/Joshua-E-Bowe/e/B07FBNVVYF
Goodreads Author Page: www.goodreads.com/author/show/18109800.Joshua_Bowe
Facebook: www.facebook.com/thegroundyoustandupon.org
YouTube Channel: www.youtube.com/channel/UCqtTUv5i7WaW2gwnxSQmjKA

MWSA: How did you find out about MWSA?

Joshua Bowe: I heard about MWSA through a fellow who served in my dad’s company in Vietnam, Joe Sanchez. I can’t thank him enough for all the help and encouragement he gave me while working on the book. We had many long conversations about his time in Vietnam and his memories of the friends he made there. He had also written a book of his own, “True Blue: A Tale of the Enemy Within”, that included some of his memories of Vietnam, but was mostly about his experiences as a cop in New York City. He told me about MWSA and suggested that I join. I’m very glad that I took his advice and submitted our book for review. We had received many customer reviews on Amazon and elsewhere, but this was our first “Editorial Review” and I couldn’t have been happier with the results.

MWSA: Why did you write “The Ground You Stand Upon” and what sets it apart?

Joshua Bowe: When I was a kid, we would look at my dad’s photos from Vietnam on our Kodak Carousel slide projector. Clicking through each of them, he would point out which of his buddies got killed and which ones made it, but I never really knew that much about any of them or what they went through. All I could have told you is that they walked around in the jungle and got shot at. A few years ago, I started thinking about how my dad had taken part in something that was a really big deal, so to speak – something that virtually tore our country apart, and he was right there as an infantryman on the front lines. Initially, I just wanted to know more. Then I thought I should write something as a record or memoir that would be of interest to family and friends, perhaps. Before long, I realized that there could be a real story here. Eventually, I just got carried away and decided to publish a book.

I’ve read dozens of Vietnam biographies and found most of them to be very fascinating. I’ve given all of them a “five-star” rating, even if they were just okay. I know how hard it is to actually write a book, and I just can’t bear to give a fellow author anything less. What makes our book special, is that it is primarily written by someone who wasn’t there. It is because of this, out of necessity perhaps, that the story draws upon so many different sources and individuals. On the one hand, it represents a monumental challenge, telling the story of something I never experienced for myself. On the other hand, it actually makes the story better, in that the reader gets to see the war through the eyes of several different young men from within the same company.

What also makes this book unique, is that it features many letters sent home from the war zone. Most are from my dad, but there are also several from two other soldiers within the company. Two of them are written from one soldier to comfort the mother of another soldier, a friend of his who had been killed in action. They are special because they were written in the moment, rather than decades later. They are raw, unfiltered, and not tinted by hindsight. They are about as “first-hand” as you can get. I suppose it’s kind of funny for my dad to think of it, how all these words casually scribbled to his mother back then would someday become part of a book read by thousands of people.

MWSA: How did you research this project?

Joshua Bowe: I started with my dad’s personal memories, which were mostly bits and pieces, fragments, and images that had stuck in his mind over time. He recalled their training at Fort Carson, and how his platoon sergeant was too scared to jump off of the rappel tower. He also remembered how during one night in the jungle, that same platoon sergeant approached my dad while pulling guard duty, asking if he could teach him how to pray. He recalled how his platoon sergeant got shot shortly thereafter, and how their First Sergeant ran through the firefight, dragging him back. He remembered Thanksgiving Day 1966 as their worst day. Seven were killed in the rice paddies and he recalled helping to carry the body of one of their radio operators to the helicopter, and how part of his skull was missing. He remembered his best day, just after Christmas when he and his buddy went to see a Bob Hope show at base camp in An Khe – and how one day a blonde model came to visit them at their outpost, the first time he saw a girl in a miniskirt. There wasn’t a lot of detail to these memories, and exactly when and where they occurred remained a mystery until I did more research.

“The closest I will ever come to time travel” is how I described reading his letters in the book. I knew he had some of these letters, but he’d told me before that they were really quite boring and didn’t say much about their battles or what they were doing. Well, he gave me a cardboard box filled with over a hundred letters. The first was from his in-processing at Fort Leonard Wood, before flying to Fort Carson for basic training. The last was written just after they had made their final patrol in the jungle, on an outpost in the mountains while waiting to be flown out. They didn’t get into much detail regarding their battles, but they did portray who my dad really was during this time – a twenty-year-old kid mostly interested in cars, drinking beer, girls, and having a good time, in pursuit of which he wasn’t afraid to break the rules. In several letters, he talks about the Vietnamese villagers, how well he gets along with them, learning their language and joking around with them. He especially liked the kids, remarking how they were, “just like kids back home.” Many soldiers would have mixed feelings toward Vietnamese civilians, in a war zone where you could never tell friend from foe. And yet, my dad’s letters would always reflect an abiding respect for their humanity.

I searched the National Archives website, and generated a list of names of all of those killed in action from my dad’s company. Along with their date of death, it also provided each soldier’s rank, date of birth, hometown, and region or province where they were killed. The list quickly depicted which days were the worst for Alpha Company. Four killed on October 4th 1966, two on November 1st, five on the 19th, and seven on the 24th, Thanksgiving Day – then four on February 13th 1967, one on March 27th and another on the 31st, another on May 16th, and seven on the 19th. I knew their names, their ages, and the provinces in which they gave their lives, but that was about it. And so, I began looking up each of these names on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund Wall of Faces at vvmf.org, and this helped to gather background stories of Alpha Company’s killed in action. On this website, many family members, fellow soldiers, and hometown friends have posted their memories of the fallen. Some of them also provided their email address, and I attempted to contact each of them. Many of them provided further information about the friend or family member they had lost. Many were also interested in learning more about what their loved one had experienced in Vietnam. One was the daughter of the very first soldier in the company to be killed in action on October 4th 1966, their first major battle. Another was the niece of a soldier who was killed alongside the other in the same battle.

Eventually, I came into contact with the nephew of that radio operator who my dad recalled carrying to the helicopter on Thanksgiving Day 1966. He had become the “keeper” of sorts for all things related to his time in Vietnam. Among the things he’d kept over the years were all of the letters his uncle sent home from Vietnam. He shared them with me, and they became an important part of this book. Intertwined with my dad’s, his own letters offer another view on all of the things that Alpha Company’s soldiers were going through, from their training at Fort Carson to their first missions in the jungle. He expresses his hopes and ambitions of possibly becoming a helicopter pilot, going back to college, and a girl back home he wants to marry. They also tell of his concern for the poor villagers of rural Vietnam, and how he wants to come back when it’s all over to help them recover from this terrible war. It was particularly sad to read the last letter he sent home before he was killed.

The willingness of these people to share their letters, photos, newspaper clippings, and memories – some of them very personal and heartbreaking – contributed so much to the writing of this book. The most rewarding part was being able to share with them this story about their loved ones and the other young men they served with.

The last part of our research took place at the National Archives near Washington, D.C. where we found the 5/7th Cavalry’s situation reports and daily staff journals for each day of the battalion’s first year in Vietnam.


MWSA: Your Acknowledgements mention nearly twenty soldiers from your dad’s company who contributed to the book. How did you find them all and what was it like to speak to them?

Joshua Bowe: When I started this project, there was only one fellow soldier from my dad’s company that he was still in contact with. Fortunately, he resides close to where I live in Minnesota. We went to visit him one afternoon in June of 2017. They talked about their first patrol through the jungles along Highway 19, one miserable night spent trying to sleep in the middle of a rice paddy, and how they would go for months on end wearing the same fatigues, until they were coming apart at the seams and falling off of their bodies. I also looked up the veterans’ organization for my dad’s old battalion, the 5/7th Cavalry Association. My dad had been getting their newsletters for years, but never got involved. I emailed one of the group’s organizers and he called me back shortly thereafter. His first question for me was why hasn’t my dad been to any of their reunions. Well, he gave me contact information for someone who was in Alpha Company, and that got it started. Each time I talked to someone, they would usually give me the number for someone else in the company that I could talk to. It was a long process, but well worth it in the end – and both my dad and I made some good friends along the way.

Because this was going to be a book about my dad, many of them – at least at first – didn’t think that I’d be interested in their own personal experiences. I had already written a “rough draft” of the book, and so I sent a copy to some of them to get their feedback. Once they were able to see what I was trying to do, to really tell the story of the whole company, that’s when they started to tell me more about their own experiences. As the narrative evolved, it remained focused on my dad’s experience, but with the personal stories of many others interwoven throughout the chapters.

One soldier who contributed a lot of his personal accounts to the book mentioned to me that he had kept a journal of sorts while he was there, and that he had wanted to someday use that journal to write a book about his own time in Vietnam. He was in the Army for almost thirty years, stationed at various bases all over the country, and so he kept a lot of his stuff at his father’s house. Well, one day his dad got sick of storing all of his stuff and threw a bunch of it out, including his Vietnam journal, ending his hopes of ever writing that book. In lieu of that, I think he was happy to see this book published that includes many of his own personal memories along with those of his friends.

Speaking with these men was really amazing. When you endeavor to gather personal war-time accounts, it never goes quite the way you envision it. You start out with a list of questions but usually end up talking about a bunch of other stuff. Open-ended questions tend to be more useful than highly specific ones. This was hard for me to learn at first, because I had a lot of specific questions I was trying to answer. But questions about what exactly happened here on this particular day tend to generate a response of “yeah, I don’t remember anything about that.” I found that just listening to them talk and reminisce with each other is often better than asking questions at all. Even better if alcohol is involved. The conversations will go all over the place. You typically don’t get exactly what you’re looking for, but more often than not, you come away with something even better.

I have been very fortunate that so many of these men have shared their memories with me, someone they had never met before. Some of those memories were very painful, like that of kneeling in a stream to wash the blood from the radio of a friend who had just been killed. Recalling that same day, another fellow spoke of how their special “Thanksgiving Dinner” had arrived by helicopter that night, after the battle where seven of the company’s men had been killed. They were all starving after a long day of fighting, yet he couldn’t eat because his best friend was dead. He choked up a bit when he spoke of this with me on the phone, recalling the friend he lost over fifty years ago.

These men are now mostly in their seventies, some in their eighties. But through reading their letters and learning about their own experiences, I don’t see them as old men. To me, they are still the nineteen and twenty-year-old kids they were when they were sent to war.


MWSA: Was this an emotional experience for you?

Joshua Bowe: Yes, very much so. There were a lot of sad and poignant stories that I was trying to relate through the book, and it was sort of draining at times. It was kind of strange though, this one moment when I had just begun my research. It was the middle of the night in my office, and I had somehow come across a military-type map that depicted the first major battle my dad’s company fought in, at least the first where lives were lost. Amongst the military symbols, I managed to find the one that represented Alpha Company. A little red “explosion” symbol depicted where they had made contact with the enemy. I could see that it was near a village between two rivers that emptied into a lake near the South China Sea. I already knew something of what happened that day, how they were on a mission to rescue a downed helicopter pilot and his gunner. I also knew something of the backgrounds of the two Alpha Company soldiers who were killed in this battle. But there was something about seeing it on the map, the very spot in the world where my dad first watched dead fellow soldiers being flown away on helicopters. Whatever it was, everything just seemed to come out of me, and I just sat there and cried for a while.

MWSA: What was it like to read the documents you found at the Archives and what did you learn from them?

Joshua Bowe: Talk about “time travel”… these were the original documents from the war zone, daily staff journals and situation reports typed up by some military clerk sweating in a hot canvas tent over fifty years ago. Many of the pages held stains of both coffee and reddish-brown Vietnamese dirt. Some of these reports included hand-drawn maps of the battle sites. I had actually put off making the trip to the Archives while writing the book, because it involved a great investment of both time and money with no guarantee of what we would find there. All that we knew before traveling to Washington, was that there were some boxes there with material related to the 5/7th Cavalry. We had no idea what we would actually find in those boxes.

Basically, I learned what the company did, where they went, and how many of its troopers got wounded each day. The situation reports were a summary of each company’s daily actions, and the staff journals served as a “call log” for all the radio communication between the battalion command post and each of its companies during their missions in the jungle. The reports and journals included grid coordinates, which allowed me to plot the company’s movements on the map. The maps I used were topographical U.S. military maps from the era, so I could see the mountains they climbed, how tall and how steep they were, how far they marched on each patrol, and what the surrounding terrain was like. This allowed me to picture in my mind what each scene in the story looked like, then translate that scene into some kind of narrative. The reports also discussed the weather conditions each day. To say the least, it rained a lot.

The staff journals in particular, helped to illustrate which areas were heavily populated with civilians – with plenty of enemy fighters mixed in, of course. Whenever they patrolled in the region known as Bong Son, the journals would be filled with radio transmissions regarding villagers who were wounded or sick, or who were being evacuated, as well as those suspected of being Viet Cong who were being interrogated. They also recorded countless encounters with the enemy during the same time periods. It helped to paint a portrait of what it must have been like – one minute helping evacuate a wounded civilian from a village, the next minute getting shot at from another hut in the same village or being blown up by a hidden land mine. The journals also documented each time a medevac chopper was called in, and it was amazing to see how often they had to evacuate someone for heatstroke. One particular entry noted a soldier with a temperature of 103 who was heaving blood. They also noted several violent encounters with water buffalo and bamboo vipers, unique and inventive booby-traps, accidental weapon discharges, and all sorts of mishaps and misadventures.


MWSA: What did you learn from this experience?

Joshua Bowe: I’ve learned that those who have faced real combat rarely speak of their bravery as they are more likely to tell you about their own comical mishaps and misdeeds. Speaking of their battles and firefights, they are more likely to just tell you how scared they were, rather than speak of their own courage. If anyone I spoke to had been awarded a medal for valor, I would typically only find that out from someone else.

I’ve also learned that everyone is different, not just in what they remember, but how they relate those memories. Some guys are more reserved, careful not to exaggerate or to say anything untoward about their fellow soldiers. Others just lay it all out there and tell you exactly how they feel. In general, it seems that the guys from New York and New Jersey fall into the latter category, while those from the midwest, like my dad, are more reserved. I was talking about this with a co-worker of mine who is a Major in the Army and who grew up in New Jersey. She says, “yeah, if we don’t like you, we’ll just tell you to your face.”

Learning the stories of those who were killed, a couple of whom were good friends with my dad, made me think of how lucky I am to even exist. I realized how death in Vietnam was often random. I started thinking about how if this one thing would have happened a different way, or if this other thing wouldn’t have happened, how easily my dad’s name could have ended up on that big black wall in Washington, D.C.

MWSA: How many books have been distributed and how have the reviews been?

Joshua Bowe: Well over four thousand have been sold including the hardcover, paperback, and Kindle editions since it was published in May of 2018. That’s more than I ever thought possible, being a self-published author. It’s been very popular on Amazon. Every so often, I’ll check their rankings of books in the “Vietnam Biography” category. Most days our book is among the top fifty, and it even made it to #2 for a brief period. Many copies have also been sold in the U.K., Australia, and Europe.

Our book has received nearly two hundred ratings and reviews between Goodreads and Amazon, and they have been overwhelmingly positive. Seventy percent of our Amazon reviews have been “five-stars” and I’ve been very grateful for such a kind public response. We’ve also received three “Editorial” reviews, and I was really jazzed to read each of them. One was from the Military Writers Society of America, and they awarded our book the Silver Medal. Dad and I were especially honored by that. Honestly, I still get excited whenever I see another review posted on Amazon, especially if they mention how the book has touched their heart, or how they learned something about what it was like for a family member of theirs who fought in that war. Many Vietnam Veterans have posted reviews as well. For someone like me who has never been to Vietnam, an endorsement from someone who actually fought in that war is extra special.

MWSA: Did this project help your dad reconnect with any old Army buddies?

Joshua Bowe: Yes, and we’ve even attended a couple of reunions. The first was a 5/7th Cavalry reunion in Pittsburgh in 2018. Men from all four companies of the 5/7th Cav were there. Here we met up with an old friend from my dad’s hometown who served in Delta Company during the same time. They’d actually first met while standing in line to be inducted at the Chippewa Falls Post Office in 1965. During one evening in Pittsburgh, a guy known as “Krazy” Karl, one of the organizers, was speaking to the group as we sat at tables in one of the hotel’s large banquet rooms (I learned that Karl had earned his nickname by stealing the Charlie Company First Sergeant’s car and taking it for a joy ride while at Fort Carson). At one point he mentioned how he had finally met once again, someone he remembered from their training at Fort Carson, a fellow named Wilbur Bowe. I looked over at my dad and he looked nervous. In fact, I could see the tiniest of sweat beads beginning to form on his forehead. Karl asked him to come up on stage, and when he did, Karl gave him a big hug and everyone applauded. Dad returned to our table and said, “Man, I was scared there for a minute.” I asked why and he replied, “I was afraid he was going to ask me to speak!”

We went to another reunion in Albuquerque in 2019, a smaller affair that was just Alpha Company. A few months before this reunion, a good friend from my dad’s platoon, Martin Quinn, called to say he would meet us there. He was from New York City and had never attended one of these reunions before. He and my dad were really close buddies during their time in Vietnam, often sharing a foxhole together. They had kept in touch after the war, and dad visited him once while on vacation in New York in 1993. Since then they had lost touch with each other. At this reunion, they were finally reunited after twenty-seven years. After a few hours of reminiscing, we pulled out a copy of the book. Martin turned to the page that featured a letter he had written to my dad, telling of the deaths of three of their friends on May 19th 1967. My dad had never actually seen this letter until I had found it mixed in with his own letters home. You see, my dad was home for a few weeks on emergency leave when this battle happened, and was already on his way back to Vietnam when Martin sent the letter to my dad’s home address in Wisconsin. Of course, Martin hadn’t seen this letter since he wrote it in 1967. While at the reunion, Martin shared many memories of my dad during their time together. He talked about what a “character” he was, always goofing around and cracking jokes, and how he was more apt to use his helmet for cooking things, rather than for protecting his head. He also told me about what really happened on May 19th 1967, when their friends were killed. Before I met Martin, that day had always been shrouded in mystery for me. Those memories represented what I had felt was really missing from the original book that was published in 2018. And so, those memories have been incorporated into the latest revision, now making the story truly complete.

MWSA Interview with Tom Keating

Date of interview: 22 January 2020

Tom Keating , Author of Yesterday’s Soldier, A Passage From Prayer to the Vietnam War.

Tom Keating is a graduate of Stonehill College, where he studied for the priesthood at Holy Cross Seminary for five years before serving in the United States Army, including a tour of Vietnam from 1969 to 1970 as a conscientious objector. He served with the 47th Military History Detachment, then served with Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 1st Logistical Command, and Headquarters Company, US Army Vietnam, (USARV) also in Long Binh. His service earned him two Army Commendation Medal. His memoir of his military experiences in the US Army, Yesterday’s Soldier, A Passage From Prayer to the Vietnam War is the story of his journey from Infantry Officer Candidate to
conscientious objector.
After his military service, Tom attended Boston University and completed his Master’s degree in Education, and taught at the high school in Burlington, MA for eight years. A career in corporate communications and learning with companies like Wang Laboratories, Digital Equipment Corporation, IBM and EMC Corporation followed. He also produced news and public affairs broadcasts for local Boston television and national cable television programs.
Tom joined the AGAPE writing program for veterans at the Woods College of Advancing Studies at Boston College under the direction of Roxana Von Kraus. He attended the Joiner Institute Master Writing Program at the Joiner Institute Writers’ Workshop Festival held at the University of Massachusetts, Boston in 2017 and 2018.
Excerpts from his memoir have appeared in national anthologies. “Convoy for the Con Voi” was published in “War Stories 2017”, an anthology edited by Sean Davis, writer, artist and combat veteran of Iraq. . Another excerpt, “Shakedown” appears in Complacency Kills, an anthology published by Warrior Writers Boston in their book.

MWSA: How long have you been associated with MWSA?

Tom Keating: I have been a member since 2019.

MWSA: What was my inspiration for writing Yesterday's Soldier?

Tom Keating: i have been writing this book on and off for years. I was inspired to write after reading other Vietnam War Memoirs and felt my story was unique and should be added to the genre.

MWSA: How difficult was the process of writing ?

Tom Keating: Writing a memoir of something that you lived through 48 years ago is hard. Lucky for me I kept a journal of my war time, and my wife kept all my letters from the war zone. All were useful in creating and adding to my memory of people, events and the times

MWSA: Why did you publish through Amazon's KDP?

Tom Keating: On the advice of my editor, we went through Amazon's KDP because it was faster to get published. Amazon makes it easy to publish one's work.

MWSA: What are you working on now?

Tom Keating: I have a local story about three veterans, from different eras, who lived in my town and I want to weave their stories together and create their times and experiences from WW2, through Korea and Vietnam.

MWSA: What did you find out about yourself in writing this book?

Tom Keating: I found that my writing speaks to people directly, that I have a way of writing that is direct and clear. I also found out that I am a stickler for accuracy and it was useful during the proofing cycles.

MWSA Interview with Zita Fletcher

Date of interview: 19 January 2020

Zita Ballinger Fletcher (also known by the pen name Zita Steele) is a journalist, author and military history writer. She writes fiction and nonfiction books, and has published more than 10 works. With a background in art, she designs and illustrates her published work. She also produces videos and creates multimedia content.

Zita is the author of the first published collection of Field Marshal Erwin Rommel’s wartime photography, an ongoing book series. Her areas of interest include World War II British and Commonwealth history and German Resistance. In addition to MWSA, Zita is a member of the British Military Historical Society and the Friends of the Fusilier Museum Warwick (conserving the history of the Royal Warwickshire Regiment) in the UK. Zita is also a member of the National Society of the Washington Family Descendants and the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR).

Zita is fluent in German. She attended the Honors College at the University of South Florida and graduated Magna Cum Laude with an Honors Degree in Social Sciences.
Her writings have been published by: Military History magazine, World War II Quarterly journal, World War II History magazine, The National Rifle Association, The Max Kade Institute for German-American Studies, The Abraham Lincoln Association’s For the People Newsletter, North Irish Roots (UK), and the Journals of the Gloucestershire and Lincolnshire Family History Societies (UK). She is also a photographer.

Visit Zita’s website at: http://www.fletcherpublishers.com/
Visit Zita’s Amazon Author profile: https://www.amazon.com/Zita-Steele/e/B009W3L5H8

MWSA: Would you recommend MWSA membership to other authors?

Zita Fletcher: Definitely. MWSA provides so many resources for professional development and opportunities to learn from and connect with a wonderful community of fellow authors. I am happy to be part of the MWSA writing community and encourage all prospective authors to join. No matter what your experience level, you will find opportunities to learn, engage with others and share your story.

MWSA: Please tell us a little about your writing background and philosophy.

Zita Fletcher: I’ve been writing stories for as long as I can remember. I excelled at writing in school and loved storytelling. My earliest ambition was to write books.

Besides writing, history and social studies were my strongest subjects in school. They continue to be my strongest subjects.

In college, I majored in Social Sciences with concentrations in International Studies and Criminology. Within my discipline, I focused on criminal profiling and psychology. I earned many academic distinctions. After graduation, I strongly considered pursuing a career in Forensic Psychology. I ultimately decided to become a professional writer and am happy with my choice.

As a journalist, I've enjoyed being able to share the stories and thoughts of many of our country’s veterans including a Marine medic who fought in the Battle of Guam, a Korean War veteran, wounded veterans who participated in the Warriors to Lourdes journey, a Medal of Honor recipient and others.

As an American, I’m a strong believer in intellectual freedom and the human right to question. Freely exchanging opinions and firsthand learning are opportunities for discovery and enlightenment. Throughout my life I have rejected attempts by others to control or dictate what I think or believe. I became a political independent in college and remain so. I reject labels. I use the term “free thinker” to emphasize my philosophy of independently determining my beliefs and values.

MWSA: Why do you write under a pen name as an author?

Zita Fletcher: As a creative person, I like to have the flexibility of writing under a creative name to express myself. I use the pen name Zita “Steele.” The name “Steele” is a wordplay on steel metal. According to the Chinese zodiac and Five Element system, my element is Metal. I do not believe in astrology or horoscopes; I simply find this very cool.

MWSA: When did you become interested in military matters?

Zita Fletcher: My interest in war, soldiers and generals dates from an early age. As a child, I liked to play with toy knights instead of dolls. Also growing up in a Catholic house, I had a strong attraction to muscular male saints (often depicted with weapons) including St. Michael, St. George, and St. Sebastian. When I was 10, people were astonished to learn that my favorite movie was Ridley Scott’s “Gladiator.” I also amazed others when I bought Sun Tzu’s “Art of War” during a bookstore trip at about age 12.

I was one of the only girls I knew who liked shooting games and war movies. On trips to museums, I was fascinated by guns, armor, swords and spears. In high school I was a voracious reader of ancient Roman war histories and keenly interested in samurai. One of my favorite TV shows was “Human Weapon.” I liked to watch the Military Channel, which is now called the American Heroes Channel.

I think my interests surprised people who did not expect a feminine young lady to have such a strong attraction to warriors and military science.

My genetic makeup is English, Irish, German, and Spanish—all ethnicities known for having great fighting spirit and strength of character.

I was also born in the Chinese zodiac Year of the Horse. While I do not believe in astrology, some traits associated with the Horse accurately describe my personality.

I was raised in a single-parent household; given my strong-willed nature, things could have been difficult. Thankfully my mom appreciated my free spirit and allowed me to be very independent growing up.

In addition to military history, I’ve also had a lifelong interest in martial arts and sports. My favorite sports include mixed martial arts and fencing (foil); I started foil fencing at age 17, and still love it.

MWSA: What do you like about military history?

Zita Fletcher: One of the main reasons I love military history is because it is filled with courage, leadership and self-sacrifice. I like to learn about feats of bravery and strength. There is also a lot of warmth and humor among soldiers. I admire stories of brotherhood and great commanders who bonded with their troops.

I’ve always been very curious about the international landscape—I love travel and foreign languages. This has led me to have keen interest in military history and theories from other countries.

MWSA: Do you come from a military family?

Zita Fletcher: My family history includes military tradition.

My great-grandfather Edward W. Arnold was a U.S. Marine Corps instructor during World War I. My grandfather Ray A. Fletcher Sr. served as a medic in the U.S. Army Air Forces during World War II and as a Lieutenant Colonel in the Civil Air Patrol during the Korean War.

My direct ancestor, Morris Gibbons, was a “bushwhacker” guerilla chief who led raids under Col. Joe Porter in Missouri during the Civil War. My other ancestors include a Southern cavalryman in Hampton’s Legion, several Revolutionary War-era militia captains, a British Royal Navy privateer, a Swiss-German mercenary who fought for the Duke of Marlborough and Spanish conquistadors.

MWSA: Why do you speak German?

Zita Fletcher: I studied German for many years as part of a personal journey to get in touch with my heritage. Aside from the rewarding experience of connecting with other people, this skill has also been priceless regarding military history. I’ve been able to do research at many German-language institutions in Europe, including the German Historical Museum in Berlin, the Jewish Museum of Berlin, the Nuremberg Trials Memorial, the Munich City Museum, the Museum of Military History in Vienna, and many other places.

I find there is a void when it comes to sharing German history and perspectives with English readers—things get lost in translation, or just simply lost. I use my German language skills to research and share knowledge through my writing.

MWSA: Where did your interest in British military history come from?

Zita Fletcher: The first time I encountered the British military was through research on World War II North Africa for a project that started when I was 15. The desert war has remained a major interest for me ever since.

I was impressed with the brave soldiers of the British Eighth Army. I learned so much from the compelling stories of these heroic men from England and the Commonwealth countries. I was also impressed with the Eighth Army’s leader, Field Marshal Bernard L. Montgomery. This led me to develop interests in other aspects of the British military and its rich history.

I also personally relate to and admire British people and culture given my strong British heritage (Northern Irish + English). British history is a great source of inspiration to me.

MWSA: Why did you decide to write a book series on Field Marshal Erwin Rommel?

Zita Fletcher: Rommel is a controversial figure—but that is why he is interesting. We cannot ignore controversy if we want to learn from the past. Studying Rommel gives insights into the experiences of a German soldier who began his career in an era of turmoil, rose in the ranks and was ultimately killed by the Nazi system. There are many aspects of his story that are worth examining.

What first got my attention regarding Rommel was his photography collection, which I found fascinating. I created my book series because I wanted to share my discoveries.

Rommel is not the only general I find interesting. Other military leaders I’ve enjoyed studying include Hannibal, Yi Sun Shin, George Washington and T.E. Lawrence—and of course my favorite commander, Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery.

MWSA Interview with RJ MacDonald

Date of interview: 6 November 2019

RJ MacDonald is an award-winning part-time author. He grew up in a small coastal fishing village on the east coast of Scotland. At fourteen he crossed the Atlantic to California and attended Cate School before studying both military history and social science at the University of California at Berkeley, where his visiting dissertation professor was Stephen Ambrose (Band of Brothers). After graduating with a double major, he enlisted in the US Marines as a reservist. Boot camp went well for the first five days until the drill instructors read his personnel file and discovered not only a, "Berkeley hippy freak infiltrating their Marine Corps," but also one with an accent, "You speak funny private, are you Russian?"

Meritoriously promoted to sergeant, he served in a helicopter support squadron at NAS Miramar and as an expert marksman and marksmanship instructor before returning to Scotland to complete two masters degrees and joining the Royal Air Force Reserves- "You speak funny sir, are you Canadian?" Parachute qualified with jump-wings from Holland, the Czech Republic and US Special Operations Command Europe, he deployed in as an operational intelligence officer with a RAF Puma helicopter detachment to Baghdad during the war in Iraq, and then again to Cyprus during the conflict in Libya.

Now a director within a small research company, he also serves on a Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) volunteer crew tasked with a 24/7 all-weather maritime search and rescue role in some of the world's roughest seas. He lives with his wife, three children and a very cute but equally stupid cocker spaniel, in the East Neuk of Fife, where he grew up. A member of the Historical Novel Society and Military Writers Society of America, he can often be found tapping away on his laptop while waiting for various after-school clubs to finish.

MWSA: Would you recommend MWSA membership to other authors?

RJ MacDonald: Absolutely. It not only gives authors, especially new authors, a platform to share their work, but it also gives them the opportunity to be reviewed and to win a respected award. Reviews and awards are gold dust to a new author. As I'm sure other writers can attest, once you've put the work into writing a book, and then being lucky enough to have it published, you sort of sit back and ask yourself 'now what?'. Having a friendly, approachable, resource like MWSA helps you focus your efforts in marketing your book, and in giving your work credibility- essential in today's crowded market.

MWSA: We don't often come across someone who has served in both the US Marines and the Royal Air Force, how did that happen?

RJ MacDonald: It is pretty rare, I've never met anyone who has joined the military on both sides of the Atlantic. I came from a military family, my mother's side of the family were from the Northwest Highlands, and had served in the Seaforth Highlanders, Cameron Highlanders and Scots Guards, I guess I just inherited that military service gene. I moved to California as a teenager, and after university I still wanted to serve, but had a full-time job, so I enlisted in the US Marines as a reservist. The DIs had a field day with me once they discovered my Berkeley background and Scottish accent. They made me 'music private' and I had to periodically march up and down the squadbay playing air bagpipes! The funny thing was, when we graduated, the Marine band droned into a Scottish bagpipe tune, I mean they really sounded like bagpipes. I stood there rock solid in my Dress Blues with the most gigantic lump in my throat and silent tears running down my cheeks. A coincidence? I'll never know, but I'll also never forget it.

I returned to Scotland 'just for a year' to do a master's degree, which somehow turned into staying forever. I was commissioned into the RAF Reserves in 2005 and although I obviously couldn't wear any US Marine insignia, I did have basic US jumpwings, which I was allowed to wear on my British camouflage uniform. That always raised a few eyebrows at inspections! Nowadays I serve on a volunteer lifeboat crew, and as we're not a military organisation, I can, and do wear, both my US Marines and RAF medals with pride during Remembrance Day services.

MWSA: Your debut novel, A Distant Field, is set during WWI. Did your prior service influence your storyline?

RJ MacDonald: To a degree, yes. WWI still resonates throughout Scotland. Not a single town escaped the death toll, and WWI memorials dot every village and glen. But my time and service in America had also made me aware of the service of Americans during the war, especially before America actually officially entered the war in 1917. American volunteers could be found in British, Canadian and French forces in large numbers, including those who volunteered to fight in the Scottish regiments (there was even a Scots-American Highlanders regiment- the 236th Maclean Kilties of America). I decided early on my main characters would be two Scots-American brothers who volunteer to serve in the Seaforth Highlanders, but I needed a reason for them to join, and to be in Britain, so I placed them on board the RMS Lusitania when it was torpedoed in 1915. The story just seemed to flow from that point onwards to the battlefield.

MWSA: What writing projects are you working on these days?

RJ MacDonald: I've got two projects I'm working on right now.

I'm finishing the sequel to A Distant Field, named The Chosen Heroes. It finds the main characters fighting alongside Australians and New Zealanders in the bloody battlefields of Gallipoli. It's classic backs-to-the-sea fighting. The allies had landed in Turkey trying to knock it out of the war, but instead found themselves hemmed into beachheads and being attacked by Jihad-sworn Turkish soldiers. It was a horrifying campaign, a real infantryman's fight against waves of attacking Turks with little support and truly dreadful leadership at the top. The allies eventually evacuated the remaining troops when their position became untenable. The campaign became a text-book study on how not to do amphibious landings, lessons that were studied not only by the US Marines prior to the WWII Pacific Campaigns, but also by the allies prior to D-Day and by the American forces in Korea prior to Inchon.

The second project I'm working on is a murder-mystery set against the backdrop of a lifeboat crew- The Brotherhood of the Sea. It's just something I've been toying with for awhile with a view to the British market. The volunteer lifeboat crews around the UK and Ireland are well known, respected and supported, and murder mysteries are always popular, so why not try to combine the two? It's very, very different from writing historical military fiction, so we'll just have to see how it goes.

MWSA: Do you have any top tips for fellow writers?

RJ MacDonald: Hey, I'm still trying to figure it all out myself! Probably the most obvious- just keep writing. I do it part-time, but I always try to write something each week, sometimes I manage chapters, sometimes only paragraphs, but just keep at it. Find yourself a good publisher. I was lucky and found one in Los Angeles that specialized in military novels- Warriors Publishing Group, headed up by Julia Dye and her husband, Dale Dye, who many might know as a Holywood military adviser and actor, but is also an award-winning writer. Julia's my editor and I can tell you now, if you've forgotten your English grammar (i.e. comma splices...), she'll remind you of it, frequently! And have fun with it. Writing leads you and your reader into another world for days on end, what an amazing gift.

MWSA: Any last advice?

RJ MacDonald: Network and embrace social media. I did the latter kicking and screaming, but now have a website (www.rjmacdonald.scot), Amazon and Goodreads profiles, a Facebook page (www.facebook.com/rjmacdonald.scot), have managed somehow to have gathered a dozen glowing reviews for A Distant Field, have published articles, and have even been lucky enough to have won a trio of awards, including a gold medal from MWSA.

MWSA Interview with Bill Riley

Date of interview: 27 October 2019

Bill Riley is a writer and retired US Air Force lieutenant colonel with interests in space exploration, coffee roasting, global communication, intelligence activities, and ancient ruins. Bill was an intelligence analyst during the Cold War. Later, he specialized in strategy and communications. During his career, he’s worked with intelligence and special operations professionals from every service, virtually every intelligence agency, and several friendly foreign governments.

Bill’s deployments took him through combat zones across the Middle East where he played significant roles in Kuwait and Iraq, supported joint coalition operations, and helped nations rebuild after wars. He was the first US electronic warfare officer in Iraq for Operation Iraqi Freedom, he led the air force’s largest network operations and security center, and he was the first cyberspace operations officer to receive the Air Force Combat Action Medal.

He holds degrees in literature, public administration, and strategic leadership, and he is a graduate of Air Command and Staff College and the Air Force Space Command VIGILANT LOOK program.

Bill lives in Idaho, just outside Boise, with his wife and two sons.

Find him at billrileyauthor.com
Look for him on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter at billrileyauthor

Interview

MWSA: How has MWSA helped your writing and/or marketing skills?

Bill Riley: I've been a member for less than a year, and MWSA has already directly helped me in two ways. The biggest is networking. In a short time, I've had the opportunity to meet many writers willing to answer my questions and discuss both the art of writing and the struggle to make writing a career. Very well established authors have been generous with their time and advice, and both new and experienced writers have shared valuable tools, perspectives, and approaches with me.

The second benefit has been feedback and recognition. These go hand-in-hand, and the review process MWSA offers is phenomenal. The volunteers who conduct book reviews are professional, constructively critical, and provide notes that provide feedback on what worked and didn't. This dovetails into the MWSA Awards program, which represents the genre of Military Writing in the United States. It judges each submission against professional literary criteria, not against the books submitted in a given year. This means we compete against the best standards of writing and storytelling, not each other.

Baghdaddy won the 2019 MWSA Founders Medal and Gold Medal for Memoir, and I was blown away. It was exciting and humbling. As a writer, it was a moment I'll never forget. Now, being able to market Baghdaddy as an award-winning author has opened up speaking and media gigs that were difficult to get before. So please submit your work, the feedback is excellent, and you never know what'll happen.

MWSA: Baghdaddy is an intensely personal sharing of your life’s journey. At what point and how did you decide it needed to be written?

Bill Riley: I witnessed the effects of Saddam’s rape of Kuwait and his failure to honor the terms of his surrender. Later, I was stationed in Iraq and experienced the unique challenges of trying to rebuild that country while some of its people were trying to kill me.

My father tried to prepare me for the worst that life could throw at me. He taught me hard lessons that often hurt, and I resented them. After he passed away, I tried to put things in perspective. I realized that there wasn’t a lot of difference between the skills I needed to survive my childhood, be a father, and go to war. I met some amazing people along the way, and connecting those dots brought me to Baghdaddy.

MWSA: What attracted you to intelligence and national security?

Bill Riley: I wish I could say I had a noble purpose or a higher calling, but I didn’t. I was the stereotypical enlistee, in a bad situation without other good options, and the air force offered me a way out, an opportunity to prove myself, and a fresh start. Funny story: I entered the air force without a guaranteed job. I was an “open general” recruit, which is another name for “whatever the air force needs most.” A.k.a my recruiter Jedi mind tricked me into meeting his quota.

Halfway through Basic, our military training instructor lined us up and said, “I have to send five volunteers to the new special ops pre-qualification course. Who thinks they have what it takes?” You’d think everyone would want in, but no. He got four volunteers, and I was “voluntold” to be the fifth. I was annoyed. It was just one more thing I had to do. But I said, “YES, SERGEANT,” on cue. I figured it would be obvious I wasn’t into it, nature would take its course, and I’d be out. The thing was, it wasn’t bad. Yeah, it was chaotic and exhausting, but there was no yelling, I ran and swam, and avoided the most tedious aspects of basic training. Our ability to observe and improvise was tested, and we wrote short essays to answer unanswerable morality questions as our group got smaller and smaller.

When there were five of us left, we were given our final task. Dive in the water, reach the other side of the pool, pick up a mask from the bottom of the deep end, clear it, put it on, and swim back to where we started. All underwater, all in one breath. Problem was, when I’d almost gotten to my mask, some asshole with a padded stick hit me and knocked the mask away. I grabbed it, but another stick knocked me in the head, and I let go. I was running out of air, but surface and you lose, and I was pissed. I swam to the wall just above the mask, and the sticks came at me again. This time I grabbed both and kicked off the wall as hard as I could. One stick came free in my hand, and there was a big splash. I grabbed my mask, cleared and donned it, and swam to the finish line. When I broke the surface to gasp for air, a hand the size of a ham grabbed my head and hauled me out of the pool. It was a huge, unhappy sergeant in soaking wet fatigues. I figured I’d screwed up. I just hoped they’d let me finish Basic.

They congratulated me. I finished first in that class and was offered a spec ops class slot. But there were only two slots, and there were three of us. In the pit of my stomach I knew I wasn't the right man for the job. I didn't want it like the other candidates did, and I figured their passion had to mean something. I declined the Pararescue slot I was offered, got yelled at by a major, for what seemed like a long time, then the big sergeant I dunked in the pool came in. He told the major that while he questioned my decision-making skills for not going in the program, I had integrity and grit and he recommended me for an intelligence job that just felt right. No one had ever told me I had grit or integrity before.

I stayed because there’s a sense of community in the military that, for me, was like family.

MWSA: Your book’s cover art elicits strong reactions. What were your thoughts behind it?

Bill Riley: The Baghdaddy cover is polarizing, and I love it. I wanted it to cut to the heart of my story, and with one glance it does. I wish we lived in a world where there weren’t child soldiers, but we do, and they’re a part of this story. The art also captures the warlike aspects of my upbringing, and it feels personal. My father once said, “One definition of adult is surviving your childhood,” and I never forgot it. Each story element meets on this cover. You know the moment you pick it up.

MWSA: Baghdaddy provides a firsthand view of war; what are the most common misconceptions held by many Americans?

Bill Riley: We see war mostly in snapshots, and not everything gets the coverage or the attention or focus it deserves. There’s been a terrible war in Yemen for years, but the media
barely covers it. The same was true of the atrocities of Saddam’s occupation of Kuwait and the campaign of rape and terror employed by Slobodan Milošević during the Bosnian War. Few were interested in investigating and reporting until the world couldn’t look away anymore.

The first time I was in Iraq was just after President Bush declared victory. We absolutely met and exceeded the first phase objectives of the war, but even at the highest levels of power, there were misconceptions over what “victory” meant, and unfortunately, an agenda often drives what gets reported and what the public sees.

I was with an army signals unit on the outskirts of Karbala, about fifty-five miles southwest of Baghdad. There was a friendly village just off the major supply route, and we encountered a news crew at the burnt and twisted remains of a blown-up semi-tractor-trailer. People from the village were rummaging through the blast field, looking for salvageable spoils. We waved, the Iraqis waved back, and the reporters were busy setting up their shot.

We pulled over, and I went to touch base with the news crew just as they were assembling a group of men and boys with slung Kalashnikov rifles in front of the still-smoking vehicle for a picture. Back then, if a supply truck fell out of a convoy along the route, the driver detonated the vehicle and cargo so it wouldn’t fall into enemy hands. The vehicle in front of me, and the reporters was one of those. We knew it, they knew it.

The title that ran on the picture in a scathing news story was, 'Insurgents Destroy Military Supplies.' It was a good picture, and insurgents did destroy military supplies, just not that time. If you look closely at the picture, you can see all the boys smiling for the camera.

Don't get me wrong, there is still great reporting. Unfortunately, we've also reached a point of manufactured and skewed news saturation. The difficulty in separating the truth from the lies has, more than anything, led to misconceptions.

MWSA: You're currently writing a YA series. What can you share about the series, and does it have a connection at all to Baghdaddy?

Bill Riley: Absolutely, it does. Thank's for asking about this, I just finished the first book in my new Cypher series. In it, I draw on my military background and time in secret organizations, and while I was raising boys when I was often away doing things I couldn’t talk about. I’ll take readers to places they haven’t seen before in Young Adult Fiction, and it will be a wild and surprisingly moving ride.

The first book is called Ashur’s Tears. In it, near-future technology collides with magic in a vibrant world where the government has a lot to hide. An apocalypse-class artifact has been stolen, powerful factions have emerged, and demons are poised to invade the world if a disgraced temple guardian and the three Cypher children can’t find their father and stop it.

I love this story, and I can't wait to share it, probably late 2020/early 2021. You can check out billrileyauthor.com for updates and events.

MWSA Interview with Chad Rickard

Click to purchase copy

Date of interview: 23 October 2019

Chad Rickard was born and raised in Central Pennsylvania. While attending college in 1991 he was inspired to join the military at the onset of the first Gulf War, opting to follow a family history of veterans from both World Wars and Vietnam. He spent the majority of the first 27 years of his adult life in service to his Nation dispensing freedom at a rate of 3,260 feet per second in 55 grain doses. As with many Americans his life was profoundly changed following the attacks on 9/11 and he opted to continue to devote his life to the military in lieu of other careers that would have kept him closer to home. Chad proudly served as an infantryman throughout his time in the Army and has been decorated several times for actions in combat including several awards for Valor and a few Purple Hearts for wounds received in combat. Chad is a Life Member of the Military Order of the Purple Heart, the Veteran's of Foreign Wars and the National Infantry Association. He is currently retired and spending time with his family on the central coast of California.

MWSA: How long have you been associated with MWSA?

Chad Rickard: I am a brand new member of MWSA! I found the organization as I was looking for ways to market my new release, a Memoir about my time in Afghanistan as a combat advisor.

MWSA: What did you learn while writing your book?

Chad Rickard: My book was a Memoir about my time embedded into the Afghan Army as a senior infantry advisor. It was my 3rd combat tour and I saw a lot of heavy fighting. What I learned writing the book was I had a lot of healing to do and writing became the absolute best therapy for me. I learned that no amount of doctor visits or medication could come close to the healing that writing provided.

MWSA: How long did it take you to write your book?

Chad Rickard: It took me nearly a year to complete my book, "Mayhem 337: Memoir of a Combat Advisor in Afghanistan." I wrote the book completely on my own, then I scrapped most of it and rewrote it again. After a few Beta readers I made several more changes and decided to remove nearly all of the acronyms and military jargon to make it easy to read for anyone. What I liked most about the final product was it's ease of reading and the fact that you do not need to have spent a single day in the military to understand and follow the story.

MWSA: What writing quirks do you have?

Chad Rickard: After years in the military I found that I was a perfectionist and I wanted everything to be absolutely perfect and error free on the first try. This slowed my progress considerably and it took me quite some time to be able to write a "rough draft" and not a perfect copy. Once I was able to free myself from the expectation of perfection on the first try the story flowed a lot easier and I made progress. I would say it took about two months of struggling and writing before I let go and just wrote a very rough draft.

MWSA: Where do you do most of your writing?

Chad Rickard: I do all of my writing in my office within my own home. I recently retired after 27 years in the US Army. I have surrounded myself with 27 years of memorabilia, pictures and reminders of my service. It provided the best inspiration for my first book.

MWSA: Will you write another book?

Chad Rickard: My initial answer is yes. I am working on the framework of another non-fiction book about my second tour in Iraq with the Army's 3rd Infantry Division. It was quite a tour with heavy combat and lots of loss. I think the book would focus on the men who made the ultimate sacrifice in an effort to ensure they are never forgotten. I did something similar in "Mayhem 337..." because they are the true heroes and we need to remember them.

MWSA Interview with Kathleen M. Rodgers

Click to visit Kathleen’s website

Date of interview: 17 September 2019

Born and raised in Clovis, NM, Kathleen M. Rodgers is a novelist whose stories and essays have appeared in Family Circle Magazine, Military Times, and in several anthologies. In 2014, Rodgers was named a Distinguished Alumna from Tarrant County College/NE Campus. Three of her aviation poems from the book Because I Fly (McGraw-Hill) were featured in an exhibit at the Cradle of Aviation Museum on Long Island, NY. In 2017, the Clovis Municipal School Foundation in Clovis, NM awarded her the Purple Pride Hall of Honor Award under the "Sports and Entertainment" category.

Seven Wings to Glory, Rodgers’ third novel, deals with racism and war and won an Honorable Mention for War & Military in the 2017 Foreword Indies Book of the Year Awards and was shortlisted for the 2017 Somerset Awards. Her second novel, Johnnie Come Lately, has garnered multiple awards, including the 2015 Gold Medal for literary fiction from Military Writers Society of America. The novel has been featured in Family Magazine, Stars & Stripes, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Southern Writers Magazine, and on "The Author's Corner" on Public Radio. The audio edition is narrated by Grammy® Award-winning vocalist and Broadway actress Leslie Ellis. Thorndike Press, the leading large print publisher in the United States, released Johnnie Come Lately and Seven Wings to Glory in hardcover large print editions in early 2018.

Rodgers is also the author of the award-winning novel, The Final Salute, featured in USA Today, The Associated Press, and Military Times.

She and her husband, Tom, a retired USAF fighter pilot/commercial airline pilot, reside in North Texas with their two rescue dogs, Denton and Jav. The mother of two grown sons, Thomas and J.P., and grandmother to Reader and Colton, she has recently completed her fourth novel and is at work on her fifth. She is represented by Diane Nine, President of Nine Speakers, Inc.

Click image to learn more

MWSA: How long have you been associated with MWSA?

Kathleen M. Rodgers: I've been an active member since 2008. In 2009, I attended my first conference in Orlando, FL. Although I've benefited professionally from the organization, more importantly I've made long-lasting friendships with other writers.

MWSA: What writing projects are you working on these days?

Kathleen M. Rodgers: I'm four chapters into my fifth novel, set in eastern New Mexico where I grew up. On my way to the 2019 MWSA/SWW joint conference in Albuquerque, NM, I stopped by an abandoned church I've been passing by my whole life. Until a few months ago, I had no idea this old building would find its way into one of my novels. Let's just say it was a magical moment.

MWSA: Why did you become a writer?

Kathleen M. Rodgers: I grew up in a large family with six kids. I'm the third one down. I became a writer to "have a voice."

MWSA: Why do you incorporate military themes into your contemporary fiction?

Kathleen M. Rodgers: Back when I was a young military spouse, I was hungry to read articles and books about other service member spouses and families. It didn't matter what branch as long as I was reading about other people who were living the service member family lifestyle. This was before the days of the internet. In my work as a writer, my mission is to shine the spotlight on service member families and bring them into the mainstream.

MWSA: You attended the 2019 MWSA/SWW Joint Conference. What are the benefits of attending a MWSA conference?

Kathleen M. Rodgers: I'm a people person. I love to see old friends and form new bonds with other kindred spirits. We each bring something unique to the organization, regardless of our backgrounds. I believe we can learn from each other. Every time I attend a national conference, I meet new people and my perspective about the world expands. I do not want to live in a vacuum.

MWSA: What do you hope for the future of MWSA?

Kathleen M. Rodgers: I hope more people join and get involved. We writers are stronger together. Writing and marketing is hard work and can leave a writer feeling depleted. But when we come together, we can create magic and a place where we have a chance to celebrate each other's achievements and victories.

MWSA Interview with Dave Anderson

Date of interview: 28 August 2019

I enlisted into the Navy's Nuclear Power Program in August of 1987 and completed the nuclear power program pipeline before receiving orders to USS PARCHE SSN 683, a special projects platform in June of 1989. I spent 4 years on board obtaining the rank of EM1(SS), qualifying Silver Dolphins on Sept 04, 1990. This duty station provided the foundation and building blocks for a 23 year successful career.

After a tour as an instructor in Orlando Fl, I was accepted into the Enlisted Commissioning Program and received my commission in December of 1997. Another stint in the nuclear power pipeline led to my Junior Officer tour on USS WYOMING SSBN 742 (B), the platform for my first book KEEP SILENT SERVICE, where I completed my Gold Dolphin qualifications on December 07, 2000. A Department Head tour on USS GREENEVILLE SSN 772 as Navigator and Operations Officer culminated my sea time in the Navy and brought me experience with the SEAL ASDS platform and its operations. GREENEVILLE is the main platform for book 2, LETHAL INTENTIONS.

I retired in 2010 as a LCDR, leaving with a FM MBA from Naval Postgraduate School and the vast experience used to write Sub Surface Volumes 1 and 2. The gadgets are fictional, the action is mainly driven from real life experience on a US Navy Submarine.

MWSA: How did you find out about MWSA?

Dave Anderson: A reader of my books recommended I check out the link he provided to possibly gain exposure for my books.

Click for Amazon page

MWSA: What was the inspiration for Keep Silent Service?

Dave Anderson: KSS is based on a growing personal belief that the Presidential call to launch nuclear weapons would be questioned. The movie Crimson Tide delves into that thought process also. The main character is an embedded psychologist hired to join the Navy and work her way through the nuclear power pipeline because any active member knows test results would be skewed if the crew thought they were being monitored by a "rider."

MWSA: Why did you use a female main character?

Dave Anderson: I was an enlisted instructor in Orlando Fl when females were allowed back into the nuclear power program. I battled the misconception then that women couldn't perform the same job and believe completely that the inclusion into the submarine fleet is the right answer. Jillian Steel is a strong character. I used that last name to foreshadow her strength and resolve to carry out the mission she accepted.

MWSA: Where did you get the ideas for the new fictional equipment used in your books?

Dave Anderson: I spent the last 2 years of my active duty time as the N81 Budget Officer at COMSUBPAC and worked with funding new programs. Those real programs involved many things that were cutting edge developmental tools. I used that background to devise my own fictional "gadgets" to enhance the books I've written.

MWSA: Lethal Intentions, Sub Surface Vol 2, utilizes SEAL Teams and a submersible platform. What's the background on that concept?

Dave Anderson: My Department Head tour on USS GREENEVILLE involved operations with the now cancelled Advanced SEAL Delivery System. We trained for real world operations with the team and the ASDS unit and had hoped to receive a real mission while on deployment. Operational considerations did not allow that to happen and ASDS went back to Pearl Harbor. That platform experiences a battery explosion that breached the hull and effectively cancelled the program. The book is an extension to that program and the potential missions it would have received.

MWSA: What's on the horizon for Volume 3?

Dave Anderson: I will begin the initial stages of writing book 3 in the fall of 2019. Life considerations have lead to me holding off the writing process. As of this interview, volume 3 will involve South American drug interdiction operations using SEAL Teams, submarine operations, and combined surface and air assets to weave a tale that will keep the pages turning.

MWSA Interview with Coley Tyler

Date of interview: 25 March 2019

LTC Coley D. Tyler is an Active Duty US Army Officer and former member of the Second Battalion, Seventh Cavalry Regiment (2-7 CAV). He was the Battalion Fire Support Officer during the Second Battle of Fallujah. LTC Tyler has served in many capacities during his service as an Artillery Officer in the First Cavalry Division, Physical Education Instructor at the United States Military Academy, Space Operations Officer in Korea, and Space Integration Officer to the Maneuver Center of Excellence at Fort Benning, GA. He is married with four children.

MWSA: How did you find out about MWSA?

Coley Tyler: Deeds Publishing as a primary publisher of military books recommended joining the organization for the benefits of a welcoming writing community, an honest review process, and help spreading the word about my book.

MWSA: What was your inspiration for your book Ghosts of Fallujah?

Coley Tyler: I was a participant in the Second Battle of Fallujah in Iraq 2004. I felt the historical significance of the battle, our unit (2nd Battalion, 7th US Cavalry), and connections with previous conflicts and leaders [World War II, Vietnam, and LTG (R) Hal Moore, etc.] was a story that deserved to be told. Writing Ghosts of Fallujah was also a cathartic process for me personally to help me deal with my time in Iraq and Afghanistan.

MWSA: How long did it take you to write Ghosts of Fallujah?

Coley Tyler: I started researching, outlining, and putting the Ghosts of Fallujah story together in 2009. It was finally published in 2018, so the process spanned almost a decade. The whole last year alone was for completing the Department of Defense review and approval process. Good things come to those who wait!

MWSA: What do you hope to accomplish with the publishing of Ghosts of Fallujah?

Click to purchase a copy

Coley Tyler: Very simply, to tell the story of some of the finest soldiers I have every served with and to encourage other combat veterans to share their story also. It is also a legacy piece for my family. Ghosts of Fallujah puts into words thoughts and feelings I have a hard time sharing verbally in hopes I may be better understood.

MWSA: What advice would you give others contemplating writing a book?

Coley Tyler: Go for it! Put your fears of rejection, someone not liking your work, or your ability to communicate in written form aside. I struggled with this kind of apprehension for many years, constantly trying to perfect what I had written. I finally took a leap of faith and only good things have come from doing so. It is not an easy process and it does take perseverance to the utmost, but nothing worth doing is easy.

MWSA: What has been the number one criticism Ghosts of Fallujah has received to date and what would you say about that?

Coley Tyler: The biggest criticism so far has been that there are details of the battle missing from my recount and this is true. Ghosts of Fallujah is my personal experience of the Second Battle of Fallujah, the intricate delicacies of destiny and fate in my life that brought me to that battlefield, and how it has impacted my life. I was not and could not be everywhere, but that was not my purpose for writing the book remember. I want others to fill in those holes with their personal experience. I think much more good will come from that for both the writer and the reader.

MWSA Interview with Mark Mayerstein

Date of interview: 9 March 2019

Colonel Mayerstein attended Washington and Jefferson College where he played football and hockey. He then attended the Jewish Theological Seminary of America’s Cantorial School and served for a year in a pulpit in a synagogue in New Jersey. After a tour in Vietnam attached to the Army’s 5th Special Forces at Kontum, RVN, which was shortened by injury, he finished college graduating with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Education. In 1974 he joined the USAF and, after flight training, was assigned to the Strategic Air Command. At various bases, he was a B-52 bomber crewmember, instructor, and Flight Commander, served in a number of staff positions, was a Squadron Officer School instructor, and was a B-52/KC-135 Aircraft Maintenance Squadron Commander twice.

Colonel Mayerstein finished his 24-year Air Force career at the USAF Operational Test and Evaluation Center, Kirtland AFB, Albuquerque, NM as the Operational Test Logistics Officer for the B-2 Program, and then the Operational Test Manager for the Predator Unmanned Aerial Vehicle program, and two highly classified, multi-service, cruise missile acquisition programs. Ordained to the Gospel Ministry after retirement, he earned his Master of Divinity Degree. After a 1-year hospital chaplaincy residency, he was a Hospice Chaplain for many years. He is currently writing the dissertation for his Doctor of Theology Degree.

Pastor Mark now serves at the First Baptist Church of Rio Rancho, NM where he was the Director of the church’s 7-year mission to Belgorod, Russia. He teaches a Bible Study class, and leads the annual Messianic Passover Seder. Pastor Mark was a volunteer Chaplain for 5 years with the Albuquerque Police Department. Also, he hosts a weekly Christian commentary radio show. He has written and published four books and is currently writing a commentary on the Book of Ezekiel.

MWSA: How long have you been associated with MWSA?

Mark Mayerstein: For about 6 months.

MWSA: What was your inspiration for your book?

Mark Mayerstein: Because of the impact writing it had on my PTSD, it took 38 years to complete the task. It was actually part of my therapy, but my prime motivation was to enable my family to better understand why I had acted the way I did for so many years.

MWSA: What do you expect to get from your MWSA membership?

Mark Mayerstein: I anticipate that through interaction with other authors and by participating in the competitions, my writing will improve.

MWSA: If someone were to ask you if they should join MWSA, what would you tell them?

Mark Mayerstein: I would reply that if they only joined one writing organization it should be this one, because the potential for improvement and networking are many and varied.

MWSA: How many other books have you written and published?

Mark Mayerstein: Three: Two Bible Commentaries (Esther and Galatians) from a Jewish perspective, and a book entitled Eyes of the Viper that details my personal experiences with PTSD, the therapies I underwent, what precisely I was required to do during that therapy, how I felt, what I thought, and what were my greatest stressors. I was as transparent as I could possibly be, even though some things were fairly embarrassing. It was the cost I was willing to pay for a completely honest rendition.

MWSA: Are you working on another book now?

Mark Mayerstein: Yes. I'm writing a commentary on the Book of Ezekiel, which will be followed by commentaries on the Books of Isaiah and Jeremiah. My goal is ultimately complete a series covering the Old Testament Prophets.

MWSA Interview with Robert Jacob

MWSA Interview January 2019

With a lifelong passion for history, Robert Jacob has been heavily involved in living history interpretation and reenacting for over 40 years. He has participated in activities covering a wide range of time periods including numerous French and Indian War and Revolutionary War reenactment groups, Western Gun Fighter groups, regularly attending Mountain Man Rendezvous and Renaissance Fairs.  During the past 12 years he has focused on the golden age of piracy with a concentration on Blackbeard. 

Originally from Pittsburgh, PA, Robert graduated from Duquesne University with a Bachelor’s Degree in education in 1978.  He taught in the West Point public school district, West Point, VA for five years while completing his Master’s Degree from Virginia Commonwealth University in 1983.

In 1982, Robert entered the United States Marine Corps reserve and augmented to active duty in 1983.  During his service, he became a military occupational specialty instructor and earned the designation of Master Training Specialist.  Later in his career, he became the Commanding Officer of the Marine Detachment at the same school where he had earlier instructed.  He achieved the rank of Chief Warrant Officer 5 and retired after 31 years of service in 2013.

While researching information on the golden age of piracy, Robert realized that most of the publications on the subject were contradictory and even incorrect.  This motivated him to write his current publication, “A Pirate’s Life in the Golden Age of Piracy.”

MWSA  Why did you become an author in the first place?

 Jacobs I am a living history historian and re-enactor.  In 2006, I became interested in pirates and began to do research.  I was continually disappointed as I read literally every book on pirates that I could find.  Over time, I began to realize that I could do a better job.  That was the start of this book.  After ten years of research and literary composition, my book was published.

MWSA When and why did you join MWSA?

Jacobs Back in August of 2018 just after my book was published, I began looking for organizations to join in order to connect socially with experienced authors and publishers, to learn about the strange and confusing world of marketing literary works, and to network within the publishing world.  In googling organizations, I found the MWSA and immediately joined.

MWSA  Why did you choose to work in this genre?

Jacobs I have always loved history.  It is the only genre I regularly read.   

MWSA Will you briefly list your other books for us?

Jacobs This is my first one.

MWSA  Tell us a little bit about this book.

Jacobs In researching the historical record of pirates in the golden age of piracy, I quickly realized that many of those books were contradictory, non-factual, or downright wrong.  Even the good ones didn’t tell the entire story.  I have gotten to the truth about all the most famous and important privateers and pirates between 1625 and 1722 and tell their stories in a chronological order, tying in the politics of the day.  I also delve into their daily lifestyles, even describing what they ate and how they dressed. 

MWSA What made you interested in writing a book on this particular topic?

Jacobs As mentioned above, I am a living historian and re-enactor who became interested in pirates.  As I researched the topic, I quickly realized that most of the books on the market were inaccurate, poorly written, narrowly focused, or just rehashes of earlier publications.  There needed to be one book that told the entire true story of pirates in the golden age.  What began as a small historical document I intended to share with my fellow re-enactors, eventually developed into my book, “A Pirate’s Life in the Golden Age of Piracy.”

MWSA  What makes this particular book special to you?

Jacobs In addition to being my first book, it is definitely a produce of intense research over a ten-year period.  Beyond that, it is precisely the book I wanted to read when back in 2006.  It is a work that I am very proud of. 

A Conversation with MWSA Author Julia Dye

From the Fall 2018 edition of Dispatches

Julia Dye tells stories because she loves to entertain and see a certain secret smile from her readers when she strikes a chord. Julia writes about anything in the human condition that interests her, but she has an affinity for stories with a military flavor. Dr. Dye works as the Vice President and CFO of Warriors, Inc., the entertainment business’s premiere military advising company. She began with Warriors on the film Starship Troopers. Projects since then include Rough Riders, Terminator 2:3D, Star Trek: The Adventure, Wag the Dog, the Medal of Honor series for Electronic Arts, and was Weapons Master on Alexander with Oliver Stone. She served as Adjutant on the maxi-series The Pacific for HBO, and is currently directing a documentary about Marine Corps Combat Correspondents. Her book Backbone: History, Traditions, and Leadership Lessons of Marine Corps NCOs has received critical acclaim and a gold medal from the Military Writers Society of America. She currently lives between Los Angeles, close to the entertainment business, and Lockhart, Texas, close to her heart.

MWSA: Why did you become an author in the first place?

Dye: When I was young, I loved to read anything I could get my hands on. I was fortunate to come from a family of readers, and a huge variety of books were available to me, and no one said I shouldn’t read something because of my age. I remember reading I, Claudius in grade school and being swept away. I didn’t realize that book wasn’t meant for children until I was in high school. Books are magic. Readers can see and experience things we could never do in real life. It starts for me the minute I open the cover. I get so involved I don’t even notice that I’m turning the page. I wanted to create that kind of magic.

MWSA: When and why did you join MWSA?

Dye: I joined MWSA many years ago; I think it was in 2010, while I was writing Backbone. I wanted to be a part of a community of military writers, and I found the idea of a group of writers with similar goals and ideals very attractive.

MWSA: Why did you choose to work in this genre?

Dye: There’s so much going on right now in the world of Young Adult fiction. All the old rules have been thrown out and almost any topic is fair game. And I wanted to feel back to the child I was, who read everything and wanted more…I wanted to provide something for that kid. And I wanted a chance to write from a young girl’s perspective, to give insight to adults about what it’s like to grow up in a military family, especially when a parent is deployed.

MWSA: Will you briefly list your other books for us?

Dye: Backbone: History, Traditions, and Leadership Lessons of Marine Corps NCOs: Noncommissioned officers stand as the backbone of the United States Marine Corps. In this insightful and thoroughly researched book, Julia Dye explores the cadre of noncommissioned officers that make up the Marine Corps’ system of small-unit leadership. To help us better understand what makes these extraordinary men and women such effective leaders, Dye examines the 14 leadership traits embraced by every NCO. These qualities— including judgment, enthusiasm, determination, bearing, and unselfishness—are exemplified by men like Terry Anderson, the former Marine sergeant who spent nearly seven years as a hostage in Beirut, John Basilone, the hero of the Pacific, and many others. To assemble this extraordinary chronicle, Julia Dye interviewed Anderson and dozens of other Marines, mining a rich trove of historical and modern NCO heroes that comprise the Marine Corps’ astonishing legacy, from its founding in 1775 to the present day. Gold medal winner from MWSA, 2014 I also co-wrote with my husband, Captain Dale Dye, the graphic novel Code Word: Geronimo: The leader of SEAL Team 6 uttered, “Geronimo,” and the world let out a sigh of relief. The symbol of ultimate evil was no more. Code Word: Geronimo is the amazing, moment-by-moment story of the clandestine raid on Osama bin Laden’s compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan. Bronze medal winner from MWSA, 2013

MWSA: Tell us a little bit about this book.

Dye: Through My Daughter’s Eyes is a one-of-a-kind, much-needed look at what it means to come of age in a military family today. Our middle school heroine Abbie is wiser than her years—and most of the adults in her life, for that matter. Equal parts Flavia de Luce and Harriet the Spy, Abbie describes her life this way: “My best friend and fellow Army-brat Megan and I had a plan to get through Dessau Middle School (Go Diamondbacks!) by being just good enough to not get noticed and not so good we’d be picked out for any attention. And it worked—for a while.

“Then my dad got deployed—again—and mom fell apart, leaving me in charge of my own life and, it seemed, everyone else’s. When Dad came home after about a hundred-million years, he wasn’t much help, either. I know war is terrible, but it’s not like he talks to me about it, so how was I supposed to know what to do? He’s not even the same dad that left. “I turned to my grandpa for help, but in the end, I had to let go of being the glue that kept everything together. I had to learn to give my parents room to save themselves—and our family.”

MWSA: What made you interested in writing a book on this particular topic?

Dye: War shows human beings both at their very best and very worst. What war gives any given society, or social group, or economic structure, or religious base, or an individual, is an unequivocal stress-test. The true conviction behind the ideals and beliefs of a society is only revealed during and after the stress of something like war. That does not mean that war is a good or positive thing, just that it is a conduit for revealing elements of a society that are otherwise hidden to us. It’s a way to look beyond what a culture says it believes in to what that culture actually does.

MWSA: What makes this particular book special to you?

Dye: About 2 million American children have at least one parent serving in the military, and that number climbs exponentially when you add in other first-responder parents. And that doesn’t include children of veterans, like me. Military children tend to be healthy, well-adjusted, culturally savvy members of our communities. They’re citizens of the world. Remember, these kids belong to other cultural groups, too, and are not just defined by the military. There’s blended families, various religions, all of the possible kinds of families are also military families.

MWSA Interview with Nancy Panko

Date of interview: 19 January 2019

Based on actual events, Nancy Panko’s award winning novel, Guiding Missal, is narrated by a small Catholic prayer book carried in the pockets of three generations of servicemen, beginning in 1942 during WWII and ending in 1993 with the Battle of Mogadishu during Blackhawk Down. It is a tale of faith, family, patriotism, and miracles both on and off the battlefield. The book began as a result of efforts to re-create her father-in-law’s military history as a birthday present for her husband, Butch, on the 50th anniversary of the Battle of the Bulge. As she held the Military Missal in her hands, Nancy thought, “If only this little book could talk.” In her novel, she gives the prayer book a voice.

The making of Guiding Missal was a May 2017 segment on WRAL-TV’s The Tar Heel Traveler. Nancy and her book participated on Robby Dilmore’s WTRU radio show, Kingdom Pursuits. The Military Writers’ Society of America presented Guiding Missal with the 2017 Silver Award-for Historical Fiction. Guiding Missal has over two dozen five-star reviews on Amazon and has been lauded in the Raleigh News & Observer in Cindy Shaffer’s Book Beat column.

Nancy is a retired pediatric nurse and a twelve-time contributor to Chicken Soup for the Soul and Guidepost magazines. She is a member of the Cary Senior Writing Circle, The Light of Carolina Christian Writers’ Group, and The Military Writers’ Society of America.

She and her husband migrated from Lock Haven, Pennsylvania to North Carolina in 2009. They have two children and four grandchildren. They love being in, on, or near the water of Lake Gaston with their family.

MWSA: How did you find out about MWSA?

Nancy Panko: My Publisher, Wally Turnbull of Light Messages in Durham, NC, sent me an email saying he thought I ought to enter my novel, Guiding Missal, in the 2017 contest as a Historical Fiction contender. He continued, ""I think it could win a medal."" I joined MWSA, entered the contest, and won a Silver Medal for Historical Fiction.

MWSA: What was your inspiration for your book?

Nancy Panko: A pocket-sized Catholic Military Missal was returned to my husband in 1994 after having been carried in the pockets of three generations of service members over a 50-year span. It had given guidance and solace to the men who carried it in their pockets during The Battle of the Bulge in World War II, the cold war and building of the Berlin Wall in the 1960s, and during fighting in the dusty streets of Mogadishu, Somalia during what became known as ""Blackhawk Down."" As I held the fifty-year old military missal in my hands, I thought, ""If only this prayer book could talk. I think it was then that the seed was planted to write about it’s journey.

MWSA: What writing projects are you working on these days?

Nancy Panko: I had my tenth submission to Chicken Soup for the Soul published in a January 9, 2019 release, Messages From Heaven. Presently, I'm working on a second novel about a guardian angel who comes into the human realm with a newborn baby and stays to protect the child until her days are done. It is a generational story beginning during the World War II era on a dairy farm in central New York State. I continue to submit short stories to Chicken Soup based on my personal experiences in hopes of reaching the magic number of 20 contributions.

MWSA: Now that you've finished writing and publishing Guiding Missal, what do you know now that you wish you had known before you started?

Nancy Panko: I wish I had had more education in the writing process. When I started Guiding Missal I had only taken a Creative Writing class in my Senior year of high school. I learned that I had some talent to write but life took some twists and turns. As a Registered Nurse, we had training on how to write clear, concise nursing care plans. Twenty-three years of care plans and charting gave me a backgroud of proper grammar and use of the English language, the rest was desire to tell a story. I learned as I went along with the help of great editors, through participating in webinars, and taking advantage of free writing classes at our local colleges and universities. It was a process but I had a lot to learn. The payoff was that I was first published with Chicken Soup for the Soul at age 71 and published my first novel at age 74!

MWSA: How did becoming a Silver Medal Winner help promote your book?

Nancy Panko: The prestige and honor of being recognized by MWSA was respected by folks who looked at my book and made it more likely that they would buy it. The Silver Medal sticker on the book was always an attention getter. I believe being an award-winner has resulted in more speaking engagements. We live in an area populated by military and former military families and the book is very popular with them. I have affiliated myself with a local organization, Military Missions in Action, attending events selling books with a portion of my proceeds going to this worthy cause of helping vets and their families. Everyone always wants to know about the Military Writers' Society of America.

MWSA: How did you get started writing?

Nancy Panko: I loved English, literature, reading and wrote stories and poems for special occasions for my family from the time I was a school aged child. I tried my hand at submission to Reader's Digest Humor In Uniform in the mid 1990s and was accepted. It was only a 400 word count submission but they paid $400! I thought I was ""hot stuff."" The next evening our water heater exploded and it cost us $475 to replace it. I learned quickly not to get too ""puffed up"" because the deflation isn't worth it. Years later, after my nursing career of twenty-three years, I was relating a story of a patient who changed my life. My friend encouraged me to write the story in the hopes that it could help someone reading it. I did. It was published in a magazine in California then in Chicken Soup for the Soul, and finally under a different title in Guidepost Magazine. I had the writing bug from that point on.

MWSA: What was the most interesting part of your writing journey?

Nancy Panko: In order to begin Guiding Missal I had to re-created my father-in-law's military history. Everything he'd brought home from his Tour of Duty, including citations and medals, was gone. A fire in the Army records center in St. Louis, Missouri had destroyed his section of records. After unsuccessfully trying the court house and other leads, I felt defeated.

A week later, a phone call changed everything. My brother-in-law, Pete remembered Dad receiving a yearly newsletter from the secretary of the 289th Cannon Company. He had kept it! It had names, addresses and phone numbers. I felt like I’d won the lottery.

I contacted the gentleman who sent the newsletter. He encouraged me to call others on the list, giving me names. These men had served with Dad and knew stories no one in our family had ever heard. I began personal interviews and received letters from members of the company, men in their eighty’s, who were eager to tell their stories, as well as Dad’s. They gave life to Dad as a soldier. One man sent a booklet of the history of the 289th Cannon Company. Others sent actual war maps detailing their trek across Europe, driving the Germans out of France, the liberation of concentration camps and the surrender of the Germans.

A long letter from Uncle Joe, Dad's brother, gave me much more information and some very funny stories. Both Dad and Joe were serving in the ETO (European Theater of Operations.) It was 1945 in France, and the brothers had not seen each other for two years. As fate would have it, they were reunited when they literally ran into each other in a tent. Both were marking time while waiting to be shipped back to the States. Uncle Joe added humor and laughter with page after page of stories of their antics.

Without the volume of material these men provided, it would have been impossible to tell Dad’s story. I began to compile the information in a notebook. That single notebook grew to three notebooks.

MWSA: What would like us to know about you and/or Guiding Missal?

Nancy Panko: Guiding Missal - Fifty Years. Three Generations of Military Men. One Spirited Prayer Book was an honor for me to research and write. I spoke to many heros and listened to their stories. In tribute to all who served, I needed to get this story right because men died serving our great country. The story is historically correct but the human element also had to be authentic. The men I interviewed made it all possible. Receiving validation from MWSA was a great honor. I am happy to say that through this validation, Guiding Missal has been recently approved by the U.S. Army to be featured in a book signing event at the 82nd Airborne Museum in Fayetteville, NC to be announced.

MWSA: How is your book, Guiding Missal available?

Nancy Panko: It is available in print, digital and audio formats. Through Amazon, Audible.com, and iTunes."

A Conversation with MWSA Member & Author J E Stanton

J E Stanton Bio
J E Stanton writes under the pen name of M H Burton

Born 1945 in Freeport IL son of a cheesemaker for Kraft Foods. Kraft closed plant in 1950 and we moved to Chicago. Closed that plant in 1958 and we moved to New Ulm, MN. Amazingly the NU plant is still operating. Graduated from NUHS in 1963. Went off to University of Minnesota in Minneapolis. Five-year course in Engineering. Was midway through Year Four when my friendly Brown County Draft Board informed me that there would be no Year Five. 1967 was a banner year for the Vietnam War. Great need for “warm bodies and human sandbags”.  Considered going to Canada. It wasn’t all that far away.

Took Army’s language aptitude test and scored high. Enlisted for 4 years with Army Security Agency as translator/interpreter. My choice of languages according to recruiter. Asked for Russian and Chinese. Got Laotian.  Basic at Ft. Leonard Wood. Then to the US State Department’s Foreign Service Institute in Arlington VA.  Forty hours a week full immersion, 49 weeks, no English spoken in class, native Lao teachers. The only way to learn one of the toughest foreign languages in the world. Finished at the top of my class of five.

Stationed at Student Detachment barracks next to Pentagon-now beneath Visitors Center of Arlington National Cemetery. Watched 100 blocks of DC burn during 1968 riots. War protest March on Pentagon passed 50 yards from my barracks window. Resurrection City sprang up next to Lincoln Memorial reflecting pool. 24/7 Protests in Lafayette Park across from White House. Interesting times as in the Chinese curse “May you live in interesting times”.

Then off to Thailand. Top Secret Signal Intelligence base called Ramasun Station. Two plus years there monitoring events in Laos. Married a Thai woman. So did many other Lao “Lingies” as we were called. Still married to her. Back to States and unemployment in 1971. Stumbled into computers and stayed there for the next 30 years as Systems Analyst and Software Developer. Retired and began second career as market gardener, stamp dealer, and eventually-writer.

Why did you become an author in the first place?

Wife and I were in her home in “impoverished NE Thailand” during the winter of 2009-10. Small rural village, not a great lot to do. Got tired of reading so I decided to write something. Wrote a short story I called “Decker and the Dragon” about the spook and spy biz at Ramasun. Liked it so I wrote more. “Decker” got published in an anthology of stories by writers over the age of 50 so I decided to combine a bunch of my stories into a book titled “Tales of Ramasun”. Couldn’t find a publisher for it so I published it myself using Amazon’s self-publishing software. Their software was bug-infested crap, but I figured out how to make it work. It’s much better now than it was in 2012. “Tales” was a modest success. Is still selling seven years later and I’m still writing.

When and why did you join MWSA?

2011. Looked at the stories MWSA was putting out and they seemed to be right up my alley. Still read many of them. Sent my “Tales” off from a review and was pleased with the professionalism of the review and the fact that the reviewer had obviously read my book.

Why did you choose to work in this genre?

My first books were all memoirs and short stories. Easy to write. Little or no research involved. Wanted to do a book about the CIA’s Secret War in Laos. I knew quite a bit about it because I’d “covered” it for more than two years. Also knew that I didn’t know anywhere near all there was to know about it so I decided Historical Fiction would be my best bet. Still did a great deal of research. Much harder than writing memoirs but I enjoyed it and learned a lot.

Will you briefly list your other books for us?

In addition to the already mentioned “Tales of Ramasun” two follow-up collections: “Tales of Ramasun II” and “The Ramasun Files”. A borderline pornographic novel about a golf pro “Sherlock” and his sexy Thai Princess “Watson” called “Mixed Foursome”.   And an historical fiction novel set during the Dakota War of 1862 in Minnesota titled “Dacotah Blood”.

Tell us a little bit about this book.

 In June of 1960 Mike Bauer is a naïve idealistic 22-year-old Minnesota farm boy with a freshly-minted Agronomy Degree who wants to do good in the world and have some adventures while doing it.  “Those faraway places with the strange sounding names” are calling him.  He signs on for two years at $75 a month as an agricultural advisor with a missionary society supported by his church and hits the jackpot.  Laos is almost exactly half way around the world from New Germania, Minnesota, can’t get farther away than that.  Xiengkhouang and Naxaithong and Lhat Houang sound exotic enough for you?  Those are just some of the places.  How about the people?  Is Prince-General Phongphasansak Inxixiengmai enough of a mouthful?  Mike gets what he signed up for, and a lot more. Finds himself posted to a mission at Lhat Houang which is in middle of a war his superiors hadn’t told him about-possibly because they didn’t know about it themselves. That’s just beginning of the craziness, danger and adventure.  He soon begins to call Laos “Alice in Wonderland”.  Things just keep getting “curiouser and curiouser” for sixteen years.

But long before those sixteen years are up in 1976 and Mike returns to his native Minnesota he has become “Mysterious Mike”.  A CIA master spy?  An international drug Lord?  The “Lawrence of Laos”?  A bloody-handed war criminal?  An unsung hero?  Or is he just what he says he is, an agricultural advisor to the Hmong mountain people. The brave men and women (and children) who fought so long and hard and skillfully against the Communist takeover of Laos.  They needed much more than advice on how to improve their crops.  They needed help surviving…and in the end they needed help escaping the Communists and finding a new home…in Minnesota.  Mike Bauer did what he could to help them.  With all of that! 

What made you interested in writing a book on this particular topic?

My military background. What I learned about life in rural Thailand and Laos when I was stationed there 1968-71 and in the many extended visits I’ve made there since. What my Thai wife has taught me over the years. What I’ve learned from the many Hmong and Tai Dam and lowland Lao refugees I’m met in Minnesota.

What makes this particular book special to you?

I have always wanted to write something about what I consider to be my “home town” of New Ulm, Minnesota, but had never done it. I was able to put a lot of New Ulm into this book thinly disguised as “New Germania”.

MWSA Interview with Jim Tritten

Date of interview: 14 January 2019

Jim retired after a forty-four year career with the Department of Defense including duty as a carrier-based naval aviator. He holds advanced degrees from the University of Southern California and formerly served as a faculty member and National Security Affairs department chair at the Naval Postgraduate School. Dr. Tritten’s publications have won him thirty-three writing awards, including the Alfred Thayer Mahan Award from the Navy League of the U.S. He has published six books and over three hundred chapters, short stories, essays, articles, and government technical reports. Jim was a frequent speaker at many military, arms control, and international conferences and has seen his work translated into Russian, French, Spanish, and Portuguese.

MWSA: How long have you been associated with MWSA?

Jim Tritten: I first went to the MWSA conference in Phoenix, AZ in 2014

MWSA: What motivates you to write and how did you get started?

Jim Tritten: My first writing for publication was for the high school newspaper. Can’t remember what motivated me, but I suspect it was that I would have a venue for being funny. Or just getting attention. Or perhaps being with the good-looking girls on the newspaper staff. Once I was at work and I learned I could write in an environment where very few had that skill, writing was a way to stand out and make contributions that were frequently recognized. I used every opportunity to write at work and soon found this a good way to get paid to do what I liked to do. When I retired, more than a few people suggested that I should break free of the non-fiction I used to get paid to write and move into other genres. Then I realized it was an excellent way to process trauma and PTSD. That is now my primary motivation to write.

MWSA: What’s most rewarding about writing?

Jim Tritten: When I wrote non-fiction, I would say when I won a prize or my work was singled out for some official recognition. These often led to requests to collaborate, to contribute, or to speak. Now that I have shifted from work-related writing to what I want to write, I feel rewarded when I see that I have caused a reaction on the part of someone who has read my words or heard me say them out loud. For example, if I can make someone cry by just putting some ink on paper, then I feel I’ve mastered the craft. Of course seeing your work in print in a book, magazine, or journal are still good rewards.

MWSA: What has writing taught you about yourself?

Jim Tritten: When I worked and wrote non-fiction, I learned discipline and how to complete tasks. This was a leg up when I stopped working and shifted to totally different types of writing. Since then, I have used my writing to help process PTSD. Learning about emotion and then being able to describe it were integral steps in the recovery process taught by the VA. The next step was to be able to write words on paper that would make the reader feel, see, etc. exactly what was going on inside an individual when faced with a variety of circumstances. When I learned I could do that, I felt good.

MWSA: How has your life experience influenced your writing?

Jim Tritten: Again it depends upon what part of my life. As an academic, your writing is totally influenced by work. As a pilot, I was able to write down what happened so that others might learn. Most of that was telling and not showing. When I switched to fiction and post-work memoir, I used all of my life experiences, my diagnosis of PTSD, flying, etc. and blended that knowledge with what I had to learn about writing in new genres for different audiences. I have learned that writing about what you know does not just mean about things that you did. More importantly it means feelings that you have experienced and can describe so that someone else can experience them as well.

MWSA: What encouraging advice can you offer new writers?

Jim Tritten: Take every opportunity to write, even if it is not an article or book or something that can be published. Be a recording secretary for a volunteer organization – it will teach you good skills about summarizing what happened. Write experimental pieces that stretch your skills and abilities – my recent experiment in horror was an eye opener. And above all, don’t stop writing until someone pries the pen from your cold, dead hands.

A Conversation with MWSA Member & Author E. Franklin Evans

E. Franklin Evans is a decorated, retired U.S. Army Lieutenant Colonel who fought as an infantry platoon leader in Vietnam and served in the United States Army for over twenty-six years. Following a tour with the Ranger Department at Fort Benning, Georgia, he departed for Vietnam in 1968.

He also served as a Special Agent of Counter-Intelligence for the US Army. Frank has a Bachelor of Science degree in Criminal Justice from Columbus State University, a Master of Arts in Management and a Master of Arts in Computer Resources Management from Webster University in Saint Louis.

As an adjunct college professor, he taught college courses in Microcomputer Applications for eleven years. 

His first book, Stand To... A Journey to Manhood, was published in January 2008. It won MWSA’s Founder’s Award. He has published two additional books in 2017: Read My Shorts and The Lost Estate: Insurgency in Alabama.

He is married to Pamela Evans and is the father of three grown children, two sons and a daughter.

MWSA: Why did you become an author in the first place? E. Franklin Evans: I’ve always been interested in writing. My desire began in high school where my English and Drama teachers encouraged me to pursue writing. I wrote many contract offers and training manuals while in the army.  Upon my entry into college, my English teacher, who was a successful published author, Dr. Virginia Spencer Carr; The Lonely Hunter: A Biography of Carson McCullers encouraged me to write, and thus began my writing career. My membership with the MWSA jump-started my desire and off I went.

MWSA: When and why did you join MWSA?

EFE: Looking for a respected organization to market my first book in 2008, I discovered The MWSA through a friend. Once I joined, I was thoroughly impressed with the wide range of writers; some were published authors and others were beginning to write. I felt at home.

I have developed many friendships within the membership. In the MWSA, I found professional editors, reviewers, and seasoned assistance in reaching my goal to become a better writer. By reviewing other’s works, I developed a sense of what worked and what did not. I learned what a necessity a professional editor is. My first published book won the distinguished Founder’s Award in 2009.

MWSA: Why did you choose to work in this genre?

EFE: Through my contributions to several MWSA anthologies, I began to develop my own style. Fiction will be my future. I will publish an historical fiction next. Several ideas keep asking me to write about them. My stories seem to write themselves as the words flow.

MWSA: Will you briefly list your other books for us?

EFE: Stand To…A Journey to Manhood (2009); Read My Shorts, several short stories in Dispatches and MWSA Anthologies.

MWSA: Tell us a little bit about your new book, The Lost Estate.

EFE: This is the story of a man trying to fight his demons while personal tragedies keep pummeling him. The onetwo punch of horrifying news nearly devastated New York City detective lieutenant, Mark Saunders. Under investigation by internal affairs for his recent shooting

of a would-be assassin intensified his troubles. The jealous asshole, Decker, passed over for the coveted promotion that he felt Saunders stole from him, was trying hard to incriminate Mark of using excessive force. Alcohol only contributed to Mark’s depression, initially brought on by his two-timing wife of six years. Now, burdened with coping with the grief of family deaths and the estate settlement of the Southern plantation of his childhood, Mark was beginning to allow his stressors to exceed his coping abilities: to put it bluntly, Mark was at the end of his rope. What awaited him in his old hometown was almost too much for this hardened cop.

MWSA: What made you interested in writing a book on this particular topic?

EFE: I wanted to write in this genre and, perhaps, continue this story as a series.

MWSA: What makes this particular book special to you?

EFE: I believe this is my best work yet.

A Conversation with MWSA Member & Author, Dennis Maulsby

Dennis Maulsby is a retired bank president living in Ames, Iowa. His poems and short stories have appeared in The North American Review, Mainstreet Rag, The Hawaii Pacific Review, The Briarcliff Review (Pushcart nomination), on National Public Radio’s Themes & Variations, and many other journals. Some of his poems have been set to music and may be heard at his website: www.dennismaulsby.com.

As of November 2017, sixty-seven of his poems have been individually published in various journals, forty percent of which have won awards, ranging from honorable mentions to first place. Out of ten separate short stories published, five have won awards. Of his six books published, four have won awards. Maulsby is a past president (2012 – 2014) of the Iowa Poetry Association.

Six weeks before my 1964 graduation at Grinnell College, Grinnell, Iowa, I received a letter from my hometown Draft Board in Marshalltown, Iowa. They wanted to know what I would be doing after my student deferment expired.

Having no money to continue on to Grad school, and being prime draft material, they told me I should cut a deal with a recruiter. Therefore, I went the way of many of my hometown schoolmates and enlisted in Army Military Intelligence. They liked the fact that Iowa schools required language training.

I took basic training at Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri. Then, true to their word, they send me to Monterey, California for language school. In spite of having a background in French, Spanish, and Latin, they assigned me to Russian. A year and a half later and twenty-two undergraduate credit hours in that language (credited through Berkley) I was in Washington, D.C. taking Russian voice intercept on a modified court stenography machine. After making the rank of Specialist fifth class, I applied for Officer Candidate School and graduated a one hundred and eighty day wonder. After additional cryptographic training, I was sent to Vietnam, being present in that country for the Tet Offensive. We worked under cover as Radio Research units — first with the 25th Infantry at Cu Chi.

For the first six months, I led small units scattered over the countryside intercepting radio traffic and direction-finding enemy units. Our platoon base was centered in the village of Trang Bang. The few of us rapidly became part of village life. The seconds six months was spent with the 175th Radio Research Company at Bien Hoa, A company in name only, it soon swelled to over three times the size of a normal unit.

The real excitement started when we notified General Westmoreland’s folks that the North Vietnamese were swarming down out of their Laotian and Cambodian camps to surround South Vietnamese cities. As frequently happens, we were not believed (see Custer’s last stand, Pearl Harbor, the Battle of the Bulge, the Chinese army secret entry into North Korea, etc.).

MWSA Dispatches: Why did you become an author in the first place?

Dennis Maulsby: A Vietnam vet and a member of the MWSA once told me: “When we returned from Nam, we dealt with our problems with women, drugs, or creativity.” Finding the first two items too dangerous, I choose creativity. Tried many outlets: sculpture, painting, quilting, hooking rugs, and furniture design. They helped, but didn’t last. Finally, I turned to writing, beginning that path almost twenty years ago. It has been very effective in releasing emotions and in creating worlds that you control. American English has over a million words — don’t believe I will run out of them in my remaining lifetime.

MWSA: When and why did you join MWSA?

DM: Can’t remember the exact date I joined MWSA, but it must have been around the turn of the century. It was wonderful to find a writing home, people who appreciated the experience I had gone through, and accepted me unconditionally. This was especially welcome after experiencing the prejudice and hate prevalent at the time against Vietnam veterans. Thank you MWSA for providing a safe place for us.

MWSA: Why did you choose to work in this genre?

DM: My plan was to develop my writing ability by beginning with poetry. Once comfortable with that medium, I would advance to short stories and then to novels. If I could only take the imagery, sensuality, and passion of poetry and bring it into prose… in effect creating a lyrical prose style.

My poetry concentrated initially on themes of war (any war) and after five years, of peace. My first full book of poetry published by Prolific Press entitled Near Death/Near Life takes the reader on the roller coaster ride of war and peace. My prose is ninety per cent science fiction/fantasy and ten percent literary. I was the boy who read all the fifties pulp magazines and sci-fi books late into the night with a flashlight under the covers. Your imagination is the only limitation to the creation and fulfillment of these worlds.

MWSA: Will you briefly list your other books for us?

DM: A. Remembering Willie, and all the others, (war poetry chapbook), NSL Publishing, Second edition: 2005 Military Writers Society of America Silver Medal Award for Poetry; Silver Medal Award 2009 Branson Stars & Flags Award for Poetry.

B. Frissons, first edition 2011 (haiku/senryu chapbook), NSL Publishing.

C. Near Death/Near Life, Prolific Press, May 2015. (Full-size poetry book commercially published). 2016 Finalist Best Book Award sponsored by USA Book News and i310 Media Group in the Poetry category; 2016 Gold medal winner, Military Writers Society of America; Finalist for the da Vinci Eye cover art award, 2017 Eric Hoffman Contest; Finalist International Book Awards 2017 in the poetry category.

D. Free Fire Zone, Prolific Press, December 2016 (Seventeen linked Sci-fi short stories, commercially published). Finalist International Book Awards 2017 in the Sci-fi category; 2017 Silver medal winner by The Military Writers Society of America.

E. Heptadecagon, November 2017, (haiku/senryu with a bonus tanka chapbook), NSL Publishing.

F. Other manuscripts in various stages of completion include another book of linked short stories and five novels.

MWSA: Tell us a little bit about the latest book.

DM: Welcome to Free Fire Zone. In Vietnam, anyone found in such an area was considered hostile, a legitimate target that could be killed on sight. Each of the seventeen stories in this book originate from this zone, any subject, any genre fair game.

Free Fire Zone is a book of linked short stories, each introduced by a mood poem. The stories follow the life of Lieutenant Rod Teigler, from his combat experience in Vietnam through a civilian life plagued with a re-wired brain. A mind now shared with an alternate berserker personality struggling to become dominant. The protagonist, Lieutenant Teigler, links each story but they also cross genres. There is a murder mystery, Gothic horror, war, crime, western, romance, psychological thriller, H.P. Lovecroft monster, kidnapping, and more. I think Mike Mullins, bless him, summed it up best in his review:

Maulsby addresses the demons created by PTSD, but he brings his demon to life, imbuing it with personality and power beyond any description I’ve read before.  One does what one must in war in order to survive and support his warrior brothers. There is heart-rending, heart-changing danger in doing that. Maulsby tackles the topic head on, breathes life into it, even if it makes a reader uncomfortable. By Mike Mullins, MWSA Reviewer

MWSA: What made you interested in writing a book on this particular topic?

DM: Short stories were the next step in my writing career. Their use as a collection allowed me to experience and learn about the various genres of popular literature.

MWSA: What makes this particular book special to you?

DM: This book allowed me to cut my literary teeth on prose. It took seven years to write and three years after to be published. Also, a dominant theme peppered throughout the book deals with veterans and how they adapted both to war and the society, loved ones, and friends to which they returned afterwards. War rewired our brains. I wanted to tell our story from the different angles multiple genres allow.

First appeared in the Winter 2018 Dispatches magazine.

A Conversation with MWSA Member & Author Peter Margaritis

MWSA: Will you give us a short biography and please send us your photo? Peter Margaritis: I was born in the steel city of Gary, Indiana, but I have lived in Central Ohio nearly all my life. I graduated from The Ohio State University in 1978 with a Bachelor’s Degree in Business. I am married, with four children. I served in the U.S. Navy during Vietnam, and later, served another 18 years in the Naval Reserve in intelligence, retiring as a chief petty officer.

MWSA: Why did you become an author in the first place?

PM: I have enjoyed writing ever since the sixth grade. I loved reading all sorts of stories, and began writing short stories that were sequels to some of my favorite movies, projecting me into the story. In my twenties, I became a manager in a firm specializing in aerial lift devices. There, I began writing inspection manuals. I eventually progressed into becoming a

technical writer, deriving a certain sense of satisfaction creating a document that others used in the course of their jobs.

MWSA: When and why did you join MWSA?

PM: I joined MWSA in the fall of 2017, when I first became aware of the organization.

MWSA: Why did you choose to work in this genre?

PM: Ever since junior high school, military history has always had some appeal to me. As a teenager interested in military history, I became fascinated with board war games. Small cardboard counters represented military units that moved through these squares. I became enthralled with the mechanics of warfare, the art of conflict realistically in a game, portraying a large scale of battle over so compact a board. Interest in military history just intensified with my love for this hobby. One day, I read a book that changed my life: Cornelius Ryan’s classic The Longest Day. His account of D-Day brought the characters in the book alive through individual personal recollections, and suddenly a history book became a sort of novel for me. I found that the myriad of human elements in historical events gave the turn of events a sort of unpredictability that had to be dealt with in writing history. I later found out that his works were based on exhaustive research, which I appreciated. Although I worked as a tech writer, my first love was always military history, and after retiring, I began to actively pursue that endeavor. I have ever since.

MWSA: Will you briefly list your other books for us?

PM: PUBLISHED:

Rommel’s Fateful Trip Home: June 4th to June 6th, 1944 (Published June, 2014)

Crossroads at Margival: Hitler’s Last Conference in France: June 17, 1944 (Published July, 2014)

90 Years of History: The American Legion In Central Ohio (Published November, 2010)

COMING SOON: Dissecting a Pyrrhic Victory: The First Marine Division at Peleliu

IN PROGRESS:

The Night the Sky Blew Up: Clan Fraser and the Destruction of Piraeus, 1941

D-Day Countdown: The German Perspective, Vol 1: Der Atlantikwall

D-Day Countdown: The German Perspective, Vol 2: Les Sanglots Longs

Reichsfibel: A Lexicon Containing Military & Political Acronyms and Terms of The Third Reich

MWSA: Tell us a little bit about this book.

PM: Twenty-Two on Peleliu: Four Pacific Campaigns With the Corps (Published July, 2017, Casemate Publishing) is the exciting, true story of George Peto, an “Old Breed” Marine. Growing up during the Depression, this happy-go-lucky kid’s life, like an early day Forrest Gump, touched on so many unique facets of American 20th Century history: From watching dirigibles sail over Akron, Ohio, to fishing and trapping on the Erie Canal near a gangster’s hideout, to working in the CCC out West (where he started a riot on his 16th birthday). And his World War II experiences are even more memorable, fighting in four famous Pacific campaigns with the élite 1st Marines. Even after the war, George seldom lived a dull moment, once fighting for what he believed right up to the Supreme Court. Yes, this was an extraordinary man who lived a life more exciting than four normal individuals. This is the story of George Peto.

MWSA: What made you interested in writing a book on this particular topic?

PM: In the spring of 2015, I entered a U.S. Naval Institute 3,000-word essay contest. The theme was some significant event that occurred in U.S. Marine Corps history. I finally decided on the controversial 1944 Peleliu invasion. A friend suggested that I consult with a local expert, a 93-year old Mr. George Peto, one of the “Old Breed.” George had actually landed at Peleliu, as well as three other major Pacific campaigns. Mr. Peto and I immediately struck up a friendship, and I invited him to co-write the essay with me. We made a good team since I am an experienced researcher and George not only had actually been there, but still retained an amazing memory about his experiences and enjoyed retelling them. During our research though, as I shared lengthy conversations with this charismatic, charming, genial old man, I realized that not only were his wartime experiences remarkable, but there also were quite a number of unusual events that had taken place in the other times of his life. As he told me tales of his youth (again, I marveled at his consistent, detailed memory of things that happened over seven decades before), I realized that a much better book to write would be about his life. He good-naturedly agreed, and so we were off. Unfortunately, after finishing our first draft, Mr. Peto died in his sleep on the 4th of July, 2016. I had vowed to him that if necessary, I would finish the book on his behalf.

MWSA: What makes this particular book special to you?

PM: I am proud of this book because not only did I enjoy writing it with George, but it combines my in depth research in these historical battles with the extraordinarily detailed daily memories of someone who actually fought in them. The icing on the cake though, is in the exciting fine points of his experiences. I had as much fun listening to them as I did writing about them. Hearing him recall many near-death experiences (most serious, some not), I jokingly once remarked that with all the close calls he had faced in his life, he had absolutely no business being alive. And yet, amazingly, he had survived it all with little or no injuries.

I knew that this was a story I had to write, and I wanted the readers, especially those who had known him, to see his life through his eyes. To that purpose, we tried to put the narrative in his own style. I threw in the detailed historical perspective so that readers unfamiliar with this time could follow along. The idea of doing the book just to document his stories (he never gave a hang about money) really appealed to him, and as the project continued, his enthusiasm increased. Sometimes he would muse on who would play him in the movie (as if), and once in a while talk about going onto talk shows (which unnerved me).

George Peto, like so many of us, was just a simple happy guy forced to go to war, an ordinary man who was thrust into an extraordinary life of combat. He not only saw first-hand the horrors of battle, but had to inflict it on others to survive as he watched so many of his comrades perish at his side. He typified the American fighting man. Yet, he also lived an astonishing life.

For instance, George’s daughter Nancy once told me a story about how he had driven his wife Juanita and her out West to Yellowstone National Park to camp and sightsee (he was always wanting to go SOMEWHERE). They had at the time a Ford station wagon. They stopped in the park on a beautiful day for a picnic. George got out, went around to the back of the station wagon, and flipped down the tailgate to set up the food. He started laying out the food on the open door. His wife had gone off into the woods with a roll of toilet paper.

His daughter, about eight years old, standing next to him, saw a big old brown bear approach the car behind them. She called out, “Dad! There’s a BEAR behind you!”

Now George had been teasing his daughter for days about seeing mountain lions and snakes and bears in the park, so he of course assumed that she now was razzing him back (as they so often did). So he commented with a grin, “Yeah, sure.”

The bear came closer. Nancy said it was huge in size. Again she warned her dad. He just smiled at her disbelievingly and shook his head.

Terrified, she took a couple steps back and opened the back door on the passenger’s side. “Dad!” she yelled.

She recalled that he finally got a look on his face as if; hmmm... she can’t be serious, can she? He sighed, straightened up and turned around.

And there it was, reared up on its hind legs, only about ten feet away. George whirled around, his eyes now popped open, yelled at Nancy to get in the car, tossed the food containers into the back end, and slammed the tailgate door shut, propelling the food all over the place. He jumped into the car, they roared over to where his wife was. He rushed her into the Ford, and took off like a bat out of hell.

Nancy ended the story with a smile. “It was always like that with dad,” she said. “We never had a vacation. It was always an adventure.” THAT’S the guy I want the readers to get to know.

First appeared in Winter 2018 edition of Dispatches magazine

MWSA Interview with Richard Marcott

Date of interview: 23 September 2017

Captain Richard Marcott finished his Coast Guard career in 1986 as the commanding officer of a major training center where 2000 young enlisted men and women a year learned technical petty officer skills. Previously, he had designed the leadership training program for the entire Coast Guard and was the first Coast Guardsman to teach at the National Defense University. Like many in the service, his career was launched by the desire to get an education and see the world beyond his small hometown in Western Pennsylvania.
    His military career began when he accepted an appointment to the Coast Guard Academy in 1953. In his first book, “A View from the Rigging: Memoirs of a Coast Guard Career,” Marcott details his indoctrination at the academy, sailing the tall ship Eagle to Europe, Panama, the Caribbean, and pre-Castro Cuba, where cadets attended a swank party at the home of the American ambassador and had a run-in with Ernest Hemingway. His early career included harrowing sea rescues, boarding Jacques Cousteau’s exploration vessel Calypso and wry stories of training missions gone slightly amiss. A year as the commanding officer of an electronic navigation station in Okinawa, Japan, left him with charming stories of cultural differences.
    In mid-career, he served as the executive officer on the cutter Resolute, which patrolled the Bering Sea to enforce fishing treaties. Marcott learned of the moon landing from Russians while boarding their vessel and survived vodka-laden meetings with his communist counterparts. He later was commanding officer of the cutter Chilula.
    Marcott capitalized on his extensive service experience in training assignments as he transitioned into the civilian world at the Bank of America and the University of Pittsburgh at Bradford. He returned to his hometown of Bradford, Pa., where he lives with his wife of 59 years, Carol, and enjoys time with his daughter, Kimberly, and her family. He published “A View from the Rigging” when he was 81.

MWSA: What do you think are the main benefits of being an MWSA member?

Richard Marcott: I feel validated as an writer/author. Excellent feedback from relatives and friends, while nice, is not the same as being selected for an award by a national organization of professional writers. I am absolutely encouraged to continue writing.

MWSA: What prompted you to write your memoirs?

Richard Marcott: I had been fortunate to have a number if interesting assignments that lent themselves to great stories. I admit I love telling stories. After hearing them many times, my daughter kept prodding me to ""write those stories down for the grandchildren."" I suspect many memoirists start that way.

MWSA: What was your process?

Richard Marcott: I worked at this for nearly six years. Of course, that included considerable time to learn how to write. I took a writing course at the University of Pittsburgh at Bradford that introduced me to creative nonfiction. The campus literary magazine published my first story, which was about a sea rescue. I was hooked. I did not start to write a book, but wrote one story at a time. After a few years, I began to see how they could evolve into a book.

MWSA: How have people reacted to your book?

Richard Marcott: I am surprised at the number of readers who have written me a letter or sent an e-mail to comment on my stories. Complete strangers, and members of all branches of services have had experiences similar to mine. When they tell me that my book prompted them to sit as a family and share their stories--I have to feel good about that. There were quite a few people, too, who had no connection to the military world who said they were fascinated by it. That surprised me.

MWSA: Were any stories harder to write than others?

Richard Marcott: Most of them were lighthearted and fun to write, but there were specific scenes that writing made me relive a moment that was painful. One was about a day trip my dad took with me when I commanded a rescue cutter, and  I could see how proud he was of me. It made me miss him again. Another was when we nearly lost our infant daughter in surgery. That was a tough day to remember.

MWSA: Did you do much research?

Richard Marcott: Yes. A lot of people ask me, How did you remember that?"" Sometimes I didn't. I wanted to be accurate and researched a lot of details. Train schedules, history of commercial jet flights, routes and mileage between cities, historical dates, that sort of thing. Also old post card photos of our honeymoon motel, and yearbook photos. I made every effort to be accurate. Research enabled me to be more descriptive.