Creating a WWII novel

Writers have a daunting task ahead of them when you think about it. First, there's the IDEA. The "what-if" this happened? Think about some books you've read or movies you've seen. What if an impenetrable dome settled onto a small town? The Dome, by Stephen King. What if a computer became self-aware and decided to kill humans? The Terminator movies. What if the Nazis were about to finish their atomic bomb AND had a jet bomber capable of transatlantic flight? Operation Devil's Fire, my first book.

Next, we pick the setting, the time and the place. Then we populate that framework with characters. We decide what viewpoint(s) to use to tell our story. Some stories require multiple viewpoints and others follow one character around and only see the story as it unfolds for him or her.

For my Sgt. Dunn books, the setting, time and place are determined somewhat by what actually happened during World War II. I create challenging events for my characters to overcome either by extrapolating from historic fact or from my imagination.

I use multiple viewpoints, and the third person omniscient, which means I and the reader can be anywhere and see anything including things the characters don't see. For example. I can have Dunn and his men preparing to attack a German outpost. By using the omniscient viewpoint, I can show the reader that there's a Tiger tank around the bend in the road, but Dunn and his squad don't know this. This creates tension, or suspense, for the reader, another word is worry. I want to make my reader worry that something bad could happen!

By using more than one viewpoint, I and the reader can follow the bad guys, see what the hell they're up to, and this creates the thriller aspect. Again we know something the good guys might not know yet. Then, if the good guys uncover the evil plot, I add the ticking bomb part by giving the good guys a deadline to meet or else.

I published the second Sgt. Dunn novel ten days ago. Two days ago, I wrote the first paragraph of the third novel. I'm a believer in writing a first sentence that conveys the essence of what follows. So far, I'm two for two, meaning that the first sentence for each of the books remained unchanged for the entire duration of the writing of the book. Here they are:

Neil Marston feared for his nation’s survival. (Operation Devil's Fire)

Tank battles are mankind’s reply to God’s thunder and lightning. (Behind German Lines)

I learned this from the author Dick Francis who wrote outstanding first sentences. 

As for the plot of the third book, I have the beginning in my head, perhaps as far as the middle, but not the end yet. My next step is to begin writing the bullet point chapter descriptions and create some of the new characters to populate the setting, time and place.

Thanks for sharing your time with me.

Veterans Day is in 8 days. 

"Veterans Day continues to be observed on November 11, regardless of what day of the week on which it falls. The restoration of the observance of Veterans Day to November 11 not only preserves the historical significance of the date, but helps focus attention on the important purpose of Veterans Day: A celebration to honor America's veterans for their patriotism, love of country, and willingness to serve and sacrifice for the common good."

~ http://www.va.gov/opa/vetsday/vetdayhistory.asp