I love history whereas most students in school hated it. I wanted to find a way to tell the story of Vietnam and Laos that wouldn’t put people to sleep. I developed a technique where I take actual history and tell a fictitious story around the facts. At the end, the reader has been entertained, and they get a history lesson as well. I focus my stories on combat, helicopters and the field of intelligence. I am most comfortable in these areas because of my past experience. I was initially commissioned as an Air Defense Artillery (HAWK) and was there for five years. I went to flight school and immediately went to Vietnam where I flew combat missions in the Delta. About sixty days I was reassigned to the HQ 7th Air Force. Unfortunately, I was not to stay in Saigon. I ended up based in Udorn, Thailand flying missions in Laos. Not a friendly place. After the tour ended, I heard a shadowy voice in the dark alley enticing me to come into the dark side. So, I spent almost five years in Army Intelligence. In 1975 I resigned my commission, which is another story, and went to work for my father in the Oil Patch. After about ten years that damned voice called me into the dark alley again. This time it was the first team, the CIA. I did contract work for them until 2015 when my last contract expired.
From ideal to story: My Writing Process
Oh my gosh, if I told you how I did it you would have me tucked away in the Rubber Room…and rightly so. An idea can come anywhere, at anytime or the strangest places. Black Bart came to me as I drove my wife to the doctor.
