Military Veteran

Forty-one Australian soldiers died in action over 20 years of fighting in Afghanistan; in that time more than 1400 veterans have taken their own lives. Veterans today are chronically over-represented when it comes to PTSD, depression, homelessness and suicide. Australians rightfully pause on Anzac Day each year to solemnly remember fallen soldiers, but are we forgetting our returned veterans whose personal battles continue every single day, and how did we get to this point?

His friend is on life support. He’s about to be next. As an RV campground becomes a war zone, will he be the next victim in a body bag? Brady Sullivan won’t go down without a fight. Hours after retaliating against the savage gang that attacked him and his family, he struggles to stay one step ahead of a corrupt sheriff pushing for his arrest. But he’s forced to flee to another hideout when a vicious crime lord paints a target on his back… Going dark in a motel room, Brady vows to balance the scales as cruelly staged photos surface endangering his floundering marriage and career. But...

Israel Martinez was attracted to Tiffany the first time he saw her, so much so that when he gets out of the military, he decides to make Courage, Colorado, his home. But will she return his feelings, or will he be forced to look elsewhere? Tiffany's only desire has been to be a mother for as long as she can remember, but none of the men she's dated have supported her desire. When she meets Israel, she wonders if finally she's found the right man, but when she receives news that throws her world upside down, will she throw it all away?

PTSD: No Apologies is a powerful anthology of personal stories and poems. Many of the stories were by those whose lives have been affected by PTSD. Collectively, they demonstrate what happens when an individual has been exposed to horrifying situations that stick in the memory...refuse to leave...and are constantly relived, again and again.

Travis Ramsey is back in Hamilton, Montana, after 10 years serving as a Delta Force operator in Afghanistan. Now responsible for his dad's fishing guide business, Travis has to deal with his increasingly distant and difficult father, and guilt over his brother's death. His life takes a turn for the better when he meets Army vet Jesse Myers. Jesse is taken with his grandparent's quirky boxcar cabin and wants to rent it. Taken by her beauty - and the familiar haunted look in her eyes - he makes her a deal.

Warning: If you want to keep your heart, stay away from the devilishly handsome local police officer! Special Agent Toni Blake came to the tiny town of Oaks Pass to do a job and the local cop was nothing but a distraction. An annoying, attractive and charming distraction. Toni needed to steer clear of Officer Brett Rollins to keep her career and her life on course, but his damn handsome face kept popping up all over town. * * * Officer Brett Rollins was always the easy-going and friendly small-town cop. But Special Agent Toni Blake blew into town and made everything upside down. He would ...

An American Hero: One Man’s Legacy of Fatherhood and Faith is a poignant and inspiring journey through four generations, revealing how one World War II survivor’s resilience, integrity, and unwavering faith forged a life-giving legacy that transformed not only his family but also countless lives around him.

The experience of the Vietnam War is almost impossible to grasp - the fear, smell, pain, and camaraderie. Boys were turned into men, men were transformed into soldiers, and then from soldiers to warriors. These warriors had wives who shared in their transformations. Some marriages were strengthened, while for others men and their families were left emotionally and spiritually battered. Focusing in on a singular company’s experience of war and its eventual homecoming, Andrew Wiest discusses the shared experience of combat and both the darkness and resiliency of war’s aftermath.

Their second chance was the one that mattered most. When Chance Overstreet left love behind 10 years ago, he never thought it would grace his life again, but when an injury ends his military career, he finds himself back in his hometown of Courage, Colorado. Managing a ski resort comes with its own challenges especially when he finds out his high school sweetheart is his employee.

He went in as a military history buff, a virgin, and a teetotaler. He came out with a war bride, a taste for German beer, and intimate knowledge of one of the darkest parts of history. His name is Dean Joy, and this was his war. For two months in 1945, Joy endured and survived the everyday deprivations and dangers of being a frontline infantryman. His amazingly detailed memoir, self-illustrated with numerous scenes Joy remembers from his time in Europe, brings back the sights, sounds, and smells of the experience as few books ever have.

In Why Veterans Run, Jeremy Teigen explains the tendency of parties to elevate those with armed forces experience to run for high office. He describes the veteran candidate phenomenon by examining the related factors and patterns, showing why different eras have more former generals running and why the number of veterans in election cycles varies. With both quantitative and qualitative analysis, Why Veterans Run investigates each postwar era in US electoral history and elaborates why so many veterans run for office.

We were a task force of 60 soldiers who were sent to an area of the Mekong Delta of Vietnam to build schools in poor rural villages. Their schools had been destroyed in WWII and these poor farmers were desperate to educate their children. There was great appreciation for our work. However, as you can imagine, the Viet Cong were determined to stop us. The Viet Cong launched attacks to stop us. It became clear that we were going to die. It was Vietnam 1968. My soldiers and I fought back. We improvised. We adjusted. We quickly learned what we needed to learn. We survived. The Viet Cong’s ...

This is an excerpt from the Military Veterans in Creative Careers book. It includes only the sections on writing books and screenwriting.

Author Jeff Spevak was confronted with a dilemma: How do you tell the story of a man who can’t bring himself to talk about the most epic moment of his life? A clever fellow who’d scrapped to survive in a fashion that seems quaint today, Coleman tested himself as a teenager by swimming across lakes, building homes from foraged lumber, and running a navy carpentry shop as though he were a member of the scamming crew of McHale’s Navy. He was a self-taught sailor who’d become a legend on Lake Ontario. At age 96, Ernie was still sailing.

Formed at Camp Breckenridge, the 95th Evac arrived in Casablanca in April 1943, with 7,000 troops, 30 doctors, and 40 nurses. Hospital at War is the story of the 95th Evac Hospital as told by Zachary Friedenberg, a young surgeon at the time, fresh out of his internship. He tells the story of how the men and women of the 95th survived the war. He describes how they solved problems and learned to treat the war-wounded in the extreme heat of North Africa and during the frigid winters of the Rhineland.

The men of the 46th Canadian Infantry Battalion were some of the most effective shock troops of the Allied forces in the Great War. They drove back German forces wherever they met and refused ever to surrender. Such tactics struck fear in their enemies, yet it came at a tremendous cost. Of the 5374 officers and men who passed through the unit, a total of 4917, or 91 percent, were either killed or wounded.

A boy of just six years old, Austin Roberts found himself perpetually in the way at the post-funeral gathering of his great uncle Jack. Frustrated and alone, he wandered out onto the front porch to find his great uncle Cat, Jack's brother, sitting alone, an old album on his lap. Oblivious to the world around them, the two begin an unlikely conversation and together embark on a journey that stretches almost seven decades in length.

From the desert sands to the stage, achieving dreams takes time, effort, and hard work. Each of us defines success differently. Whether we come from humble beginnings or not, the uphill climb into becoming ourselves is a unique journey. Renrick Palmer discovered his truths in some of the tensest situations known to man as he worked his way to the place he always knew would be home: performing on stage.

In The Sailor’s Compass, listeners are invited to chart the remarkable journey of Michael Moore—a dedicated hospital corpsman whose life reflects courage, sacrifice, and resilience. From his modest beginnings in a small-town community where hard work and family values were paramount, to his transformative years serving in the Navy during the Vietnam War, Michael’s story is one of unwavering dedication and grit.

After being captured in Singapore and transported to the infamous Burma railway, Colonel Owtram was appointed the British Camp Commandant at Chungkai, one of the largest POW camps. Many ex-prisoners testified to the mental and physical courage that he showed protecting POWs from the worst excesses of their captors. Of course his account does not admit to this, but what is clear is that in addition to the deprivation and hardship suffered by all POWs, the author bore heavy responsibility for those under his charge and the daily trauma of dealing with the unpredictable Japanese.