Thanks guys! As usually you all offer a wide range of perspectives to the same Q! I will refer to my copy of A MEMORY OF MURDER. In his 20's, his distain for the imagery and devastation of the conflicts is understandable. RB's Civil War allusions are melancholy, but the era had far enough distance to, perhaps, lend themselves to a hint of romantacism even though still emphasizing the horror or war.

The Old Colonel's recitation to the boys is filled with emotion (revisit the passage, about 85 pgs. in, and try reading it aloud - powerful!. Also, the words of the general to the drummer boy. Haunting!)
RE:
"There's never been a year in my life I haven't thought, what a lovely name (Shiloh) and what a shame to see it only on the battle records." --DWine

I just love his triology, if that term might be used, of "Graveyard For Lunatics", "Death Is A Lonely Business", and "Let's All Kill Constance". What fun imagery!

But when I asked Ray about writing a sequel to the series he said that he didn't wish to do any more. So sad, but he knows best as to what he wishes to do.

[This message has been edited by biplane1 (edited 10-13-2004).]

Too, bad! I was really getting to like some of the characters, especially Blind Henry (I think that's his name)!

I wouldn't even say trilogy, I'd say quadrology (if that's a word) or series: don't forget "Green Shadows, White Whale."

Sounds as if Ray's take on WWII was just about identical to mine (except for the part about ending life or career, as I wasn't born yet. The honor of those horrors went in my life to the Reagan Administration. If Ray was really a reincarnated WWI soldier, or at least believed himself to be, he must have been experiencing some nasty deja vu.)

For years I shuddered at the mention of WWII. I could barely stand to hear ANYTHING about ANY of it. I couldn't see how anyone could enjoy talking about such horrible things or anything that reminded them of that era. Not until about the 50th anniversary of the war did it have enough "distance" for me to really develop an interest. I now "understand" the affection of certain people for the era. It must have actually looked good, at least in some ways, to people who had lived through the Depression, and even if good isn't the word, the Depression gave those who were teenaged or older a chance to get used to horrible things while those who were younger didn't know any different. They also had the pride of having survived when so many didn't. It wasn't like those of us raised in the "idyllic" (heh) postwar era.

(I never forget my sixth grade teacher repeatedly stressing, "If there were a Depression now, you kids would kill yourselves! You don't know what hardship is, let alone how to deal with it!" I still call my mom a "Depression baby" when she does things like clean her plate at the table.)

I can respect and sympathize with Ray not wanting to write about the war, and can still (brace yourself, here it comes) REALLY admire Rod Serling's not only need, but ABILITY to write about it!

It seems that a lot has been written on the various wars, none of it really heart warming as most relates to the horrors of war.

I always wanted to write a book about my year in Viet Nam, but wanted it to have a different slant. Richard Bach, before I headed out to Viet Nam, told me to write things down on whatever, so that I would remember salient points, incidents, etc. He would use matchbook covers, napkins, or whatever was at hand to make notes.

To me my references are the letters I wrote home, which I was able to recover from my relatives. I have written one chapter which I titled "Have You Ever Taken A Bucket To The Bathroom?" The title refers to the toilets not being constructed the way we are used to having here in the good old USA.

To flush, you had to take a bucket of water with you to the bathroom. My slant was on the more humorous side of the war. I was an advisor to the Vietnamese and gained a lot of respect for them as a result. I have a couple of post cards from Ray that he wrote me while I was there, but we did not discuss anything pertaining to the war, mainly he was telling me what he was up to at the time.

Richard Bach,then later Ray, have both said to write every day. It doesn't matter what you are writing--just write. "Two thousands words a day to get the driftwood out" as Richard would say. I am getting a new computer this week (my wife and I gave ours to our daughter when she moved out on her own) and now might be the time that I can do just that.

But writing something and then getting something published are two different things. I remmember the thrill I received when I was paid a whopping $20.00 for a feature story I wrote for the Ottumwa Daily Courier (front page with a photo) when I returned from Viet Nam regarding my experience as an advisor to the Vietnamese and my involvement in the Phoenix Program
which I found outlater was funded and backed by the CIA. (Sorry! I guess I got carried a little carried away.)


[This message has been edited by biplane1 (edited 10-14-2004).]