Announcing the new Sgt. Dunn Novel, #20 – New Enemies, is now available on Amazon!

Hi Sgt. Dunn readers!

I'm thrilled to announce the release of Sgt. Dunn Novel #20, New Enemies. The description is below. It's now available on Amazon!

I hope you’ll join us on the continuing story of Tom Dunn in Korea.

Thanks for your support and happy reading!

Ronn 

New Enemies

Right after World War II, the United States Army deactivated the Rangers. When the Korean War ignited in late June 1950, the army decided they were needed again. And fast.

New Enemies begins in September 1950, just three months after the World War II Series finale, Nazi Plunder, ended. Tom Dunn, currently working as a police detective in Kansas City, Missouri, feels a call of duty and volunteers to rejoin the new Rangers.

Traveling to Ft. Benning, Georgia, Lieutenant Dunn joins a Ranger company as a platoon leader as they go through the grueling Ranger Training Center’s eight-week training program. Not everything goes smoothly, but after the company graduates, they are finally the way to Japan, and their final destination, South Korea. They arrive in late January 1951, and are going to be in the throes of the Korean Peninsula’s bitter, brutal winter.

Assigned to the Eight Army’s 24^th Infantry Division headquarters about fifty miles southeast of Seoul, South Korea, the new Ranger company is tasked with three missions, taken from history. They are thrust immediately into action. Starting with a long incursion combat patrol into enemy territory, they encounter the enemy. Can Dunn solve the challenging tactical problems that lay in front of him?

Another mission takes them in to the Saje-ri Twin Tunnels, two mile-long railroad tunnels west of Wonju, South Korea, they are to clear the tunnels with the help of a platoon of five Patton tanks, but naturally, things don’t go according to plan. Can they eliminate the Chinese Communist Forces surrounding them and return to the American front line safely?

In New Enemies, Munsterman introduces us to the men who fought in what was for a time called The Forgotten War. Once again he masterfully blends historical fact and fiction to create a compelling story of Tom Dunn and the U.S. Army Rangers. Their courage and dedication to each other exemplify the Rangers. In his usual page-turning action style, Munsterman carries us along in a gripping story illustrating the importance of why we were in South Korea: to save the people of an overwhelmed country from the hell of communist control.

Cover reveal for Sgt. Dunn Novel #20, New Enemies

I'm thrilled to reveal the cover for the newest Sgt. Dunn Novel, New Enemies.

Cover by Anya Jones and her dad, my great friend, David M. Jones (Jonesy).

The book is coming soon!

Remembering Pearl Harbor December 7, 1941

FDR called the date "Day of infamy" 83 years ago.

As of this year, there are only 16 more survivors alive. It's up to us to always remember that day.

2,403

The number of people killed in the attack.

The U.S.S. Arizona

The U.S.S. Arizona Memorial

Sgt. Dunn Novel #20 coming soon!

I'm thrilled to announce that the new Sgt. Dunn Novel, New Enemies, is coming soon. This story picks up a few months after the finale of Nazi Plunder. We first see Dunn in action as a Kansas City Missouri Police Department Detective. From that point Dunn decides to sign up for the Korean War. We'll follow him and his new crew through the newly established Ranger Training Center in Georgia, and on to Korea.

I'm working on the edits (starting #5 of 6 tomorrow) and you can track my progress in the upper left of this blog.

Veterans Day 2024

A heartfelt thank you to all who have served our nation.

History of Veterans Day

Happy Birthday, U.S. Marines!

 Wishing a Happy Birthday to all U.S. Marines!

10 Nov 1775

249 years old today.

Third oldest U.S. Armed Force (after the U.S. Army - 14 June 1775, and the U.S. Navy - 13 Oct 1775).

The Marines' Hymn

Sgt. Dunn Novel #19, Nazi Plunder, is now available on Amazon!

I'm pleased to announce the publication of Sgt. Dunn Novel #19, Nazi Plunder!  

The book is now available on Amazon. This is the WWII finale of the Sgt. Dunn Novels, however . . . more to come in the Korean War.

Nazi Plunder

In the Sgt. Dunn World War II Novels finale, Lieutenant Tom Dunn leads two final missions. Bletchley Park analyst Reggie Shepston grows sick to his stomach when he discovers that the Sarin gas threat irradicated by Dunn’s and Malcolm Saunders’ men in Rogue Nazis, has reared its devilish head again. Unknown at the time, the Nazi in charge of the Sarin gas had hidden away a dozen of the deadly cannisters in an Austrian castle, one the Rangers and Commandos already know well, the Hohenstein Castle from Castle Breach. Can Dunn and Saunders pull off the destruction of the last remaining Sarin gas cannisters?

Gold, silver, precious gems, and masterpiece artwork plundered by the Nazis for years across Europe. Rumors. Whispers. Reggie Shepston and Eileen Lansford determine the rumors are factual. They come across a strange Enigma message from an SS colonel in southeastern Germany to, of all people, the Führer himself, Adolf Hitler. The message contains crucial evidence about a Nazi Plunder train and its location. Lieutenant Tom Dunn’s and Lieutenant Malcolm Saunders’ platoons parachute into Germany, hopefully for the last time. Can they fight off the SS unit there, find and secure the Nazi Plunder train, and turn its rich contents over to the Monuments Men unit, which is attached to General Patton’s Third Army just five miles to the north?

In Nazi Plunder, Munsterman shows us the courage and strength of our favorite characters, and the love they have for each other. In his typical page-turning style, he leads us through the end of the war and beyond. With surprises in store for the reader, this wonderful and satisfying WWII finale treats us with the final missions, postwar lives, and futures only dreamed of during the most horrible war in human history. More novels to come when Tom Dunn enters the Korean War in the next Sgt. Dunn Novel.

Cover reveal - Nazi Plunder, Sgt. Dunn novel #19

I'm delighted to reveal the cover for my upcoming new book, Nazi Plunder, Sgt. Dunn Novel #19. My longtime friend, David M. Jones, Jonesy, created this fantastic cover. This is his 18th cover for the Sgt. Dunn Novels. The book description is below.

I plan to publish the book soon, possibly tomorrow. I'll let you know when it's available.

Nazi Plunder Description

In the Sgt. Dunn World War II Novels finale, Lieutenant Tom Dunn leads two final missions. Bletchley Park analyst Reggie Shepston grows sick to his stomach when he discovers that the Sarin gas threat irradicated by Dunn’s and Malcolm Saunders’ men in Rogue Nazis, has reared its devilish head again. Unknown at the time, the Nazi in charge of the Sarin gas had hidden away a dozen of the deadly cannisters in an Austrian castle, one the Rangers and Commandos already know well, the Hohenstein Castle from Castle Breach. Can Dunn and Saunders pull off the destruction of the last remaining Sarin gas cannisters? 

Gold, silver, precious gems, and masterpiece artwork plundered by the Nazis for years across Europe. Rumors. Whispers. Reggie Shepston and Eileen Lansford determine the rumors are factual. They come across a strange Enigma message from an SS colonel in southeastern Germany to, of all people, the Führer himself, Adolf Hitler. The message contains crucial evidence about a Nazi Plunder train and its location. Lieutenant Tom Dunn’s and Lieutenant Malcolm Saunders’ platoons parachute into Germany, hopefully for the last time. Can they fight off the SS unit there, find and secure the Nazi Plunder train, and turn its rich contents over to the Monuments Men unit, which is attached to General Patton’s Third Army just five miles to the north?

In Nazi Plunder, Munsterman shows us the courage and strength of our favorite characters, and the love they have for each other. In his typical page-turning style, he leads us through the end of the war and beyond. With surprises in store for the reader, this wonderful and satisfying WWII finale treats us with the final missions, postwar lives, and futures only dreamed of during the most horrible war in human history. More novels to come when Tom Dunn enters the Korean War in the next Sgt. Dunn Novel.

6 June 1944 - D-Day

Remembering those who stormed the beaches in Normandy on this day, 80 years ago today. The war was over in Europe 11 months later.

There are only about 120,000 WWII veterans still living. Please take a moment to honor them, those who have passed away, and especially those who died that day in 1944.

Memorial Day 2024

 Remembering those who gave their lives for our country.

Our poppy garden bloomed just in time.

Sgt. Dunn Novel #19 title reveal and description

Hello Sgt. Dunn readers!

I'm pleased to reveal the title to Sgt. Dunn Novels WWII finale. I'm in the process of editing the book, and I just sent it to my valued FIRST READERS. You can follow my editng progress in the upper left of this blog.

I'm hoping to publish the book around June 10th.

Nazi Plunder description

In the Sgt. Dunn World War II Novels finale, Lieutenant Tom Dunn leads two final missions. Bletchley Park analyst Reggie Shepston grows sick to his stomach when he discovers that the Sarin gas threat irradicated by Dunn’s and Malcolm Saunders’ men in Rogue Nazis, has reared its devilish head again. Unknown at the time, the Nazi in charge of the Sarin gas had hidden away a dozen of the deadly cannisters in an Austrian castle, one the Rangers and Commandos already know well, the Hohenstein Castle from Castle Breach. Can Dunn and Saunders pull off the destruction of the last remaining Sarin gas cannisters?

Gold, silver, precious gems, and masterpiece artwork plundered by the Nazis for years across Europe. Rumors. Whispers. Reggie Shepston and Eileen Lansford determine the rumors are factual. They come across a strange Enigma message from an SS colonel in southeastern Germany to, of all people, the Führer himself, Adolf Hitler. The message contains crucial evidence about a Nazi Plunder train and its location. Lieutenants Tom Dunn’s and Malcolm Saunders’ platoons parachute into Germany, hopefully for the last time. Can they fight off the SS unit there, find and secure the Nazi Plunder train, and turn its rich contents over to the Monuments Men unit, which is attached to General Patton’s Third Army just five mile to the north? 

After the war ends, Dunn calls in some favors. He travels back to Germany with Colonel Mark Kenton, MP commander Colonel Chester Walton from Hunting Sgt. Dunn, Lieutenant Fred Tanner, Master Sergeant Dave Cross, and Technical Sergeant Bob Schneider. There he settles the score with a high-ranking Nazi a few weeks before the man is to be sent to Nuremburg for the war crimes trials.

In Nazi Plunder, Munsterman shows us the courage and strength of our favorite characters, and the love they have for each other. In his typical page-turning style, he leads us through the end of the war and beyond. With surprises in store for the reader, this wonderful and satisfying finale treats us with the final missions, postwar lives, and futures only dreamed of during the most horrible war in human history.

More novels to come when Tom Dunn enters the Korean War in the next Sgt. Dunn Novel.

A little bit about my path to writing and publishing – Part 5 (conclusion)

Chess Book Published!

I finished the book and used Amazon’s CreateSpace to publish the paperback in early August, 2010. I had done it! I had published a book. Whoo hoo! I published my first book at age 58!

I really didn’t do any marketing and I sold a few books a month for some time. I contacted the United States Chess Federation (USCF), which has a great online store (www.uscfsales.com) for all things chess, and they agreed to buy six books on consignment. If they sold, then they would reorder. I’m happy to say I get orders from them every year.

Operation Devil’s Fire Published!

Meanwhile back at the ranch . . . I figured if I couldn’t land an agent for Operation Devil’s Fire, why not publish it myself? I finally did that for the paperback in July the next year, on 7/11/11. Again I sold a few a month, sometimes only one. Sometimes only zero. I also figured out how to publish for Kindle and did that a few weeks later (7/23/11). I did absolutely no research on Kindle pricing for WWII books, so I just picked $4.95, thinking that was an okay price. It sold just as many as the paperback, sometimes zero.

This disheartening lack of sales continued into January, 2012, when it finally occurred to me that maybe I should see how much other Kindle WWII novels were actually selling for. Well, that turned out to be both a smart thing to do and an embarrassing thing (that I hadn’t done it back in July!). Almost all of the WWII novels were selling for $0.99. Less than a dollar. I didn’t even have to think about it, I mean what did I have to lose? Zero x $4.95 was still zero. So I changed the price and let it go.

It sold a few in February and March, and a few more in April (remember, this is 2012). Then in May it sold more than a few. I got excited, but figured it was due to Memorial Day coming up. But sales kept climbing into June. Then July shot through the roof. Then August through November all doubled July. The book was in two categories. All the series’ books are in the same ones including War and Military. Operation Devil’s Fire’s ranking peaked at #7 in the War category, and somewhere around #1,300 in Paid in Kindle Store! (Note: book number 18, Grim Measures, hit #18 in War Fiction this past December.)

I could hardly believe my good fortune. A book turned down by 50 agents was selling! I was getting good reviews and very kind emails from readers, some of whom shared their personal stories about their family members who served during WWII.

During June 2012, when the numbers per day were really climbing, my wife and I started a nightly tradition: just before bedtime, I would check the total sales for the day (and yes, I used Excel, and still do, to track these numbers) and give her the number. We’d stare at each other in disbelief and then grin. I felt then, and still do now, very humbled by the success of the books and am so grateful for readers’ support.

Charged up!

In July 2012, I decided to shelve a modern-day thriller I’d been working on because of what was happening with Operation Devil’s Fire. I still really like that story, and may someday finish and publish it. Anyway, I started writing Behind German Lines in August 2012, which I finished on June 23, 2013, so a little less than a year. It was published on October 25th.

So that’s my writing story. Not all glorious, but I learned what to do, when to do it, became a disciplined writer, and wrote books that I loved writing for readers who enjoyed them. I had perhaps tripped and fallen into my niche, WWII novels. And I was thrilled because I love WWII history and I’ve shown you how that came to be in earlier posts in this five-part series.

I’ll be forever grateful to my wife for suggesting I write the chess book. With that one idea, she is responsible for everything that came to pass with the Sgt. Dunn Novels. She also provides me with encouragement for each book, as well as being an editor.

Summary

I hope you enjoyed a little peek into my writing life. If you’re a reader of the Sgt. Dunn Novels, please accept my heartfelt thanks for your support! If you’re a writer, I hope you can draw some inspiration to persevere, and learn from some of the things I did.

The main thing is be disciplined. This means writing every day. This means writing when you don’t feel like it. This means write what you love. Waiting for the muse to show up doesn’t work for most real writers. It’s a grind some days and an exciting trip other days. But you’re making progress and that’s what matters. No need for “perfection” in the first draft. That’s what editing is for. Clarify. Expand. Cut. All of that.

Find a method that works for you, whether it’s plotting like me, or as a pantser (seat of your pants). Pick something you love and write that story.  By the way, you may have heard people say, “Write what you know.” Well, I disagree. Yes, if you’re writing non-fiction and you’re an expert on the topic, you are writing what you know. But for novels, no way is it necessary. How would we have science fiction? How would we have the Lord of the Rings? (Yes, I know Tolkien had WWI in mind along the way.) Research is how writers can write about what they love. You can get most answers on your device. I use Google Earth like crazy for locations. So, please, write what you love.

Wishing you all the best.

A little bit about my path to writing and publishing – Part 4 of 5

Chess as the trigger

When we lived in northeast Kansas, I coached scholastic chess from 1993 to 2000. My son was the reason for that. We lived in a small town of about 1,100 people, yet we had a Saturday chess club of about 8 to 10 players. The players eventually became strong enough that the team won 2nd place at the Kansas State Championship tournament . . . twice. They beat out teams from much larger schools from cities like Kansas City, KS, Wichita, Topeka, and Lawrence. When we moved to Iowa in 2000 due to the Quaker Oats plant in St. Joseph, MO closing, and I transferred to Cedar Rapids, my son was going into the 10th grade. We didn’t continue with chess because at that time, there were very few scholastic tournaments in Iowa. I began coaching again in 2009 having been inspired to return to it by writing the chess book (below). I coached thirteen years for a school, eleven for a scholastic club at the local library, and still am coaching private lessons for scholastic players (12 years so far).

In early 2009, my wife told me I should write a book about coaching chess so people could learn from my successful coaching experiences. That was very exciting and I started writing it on February 1, 2009. My original intent was to write a book about how to coach a scholastic chess club, but not to get mired down in having a section on how to teach players the game. It wasn’t long before I realized you couldn’t have one without the other.

I used the same Excel spreadsheet template I’d used for the two novels, with some changes, of course, since this was nonfiction. Worked great, though. While working on the book, I was also researching how you “pitch” a non-fiction book to an agent. The process is quite different from a novel. For a novel, it’s a gigantic no-no to try to land an agent without first finishing the book. For non-fiction, the reverse is the norm. You pitch the book with a three chapter sample, plus a completed outline, and where the book will fit in the market. Sort of like what makes your book so special?

Somewhere along the line, I’d also started researching self-publishing. At that time, self-publishing, also known these days as indie (independent) publishing, was still carrying a stigma that the writer was “not good enough” for the traditional publishers. I think a large part of this was due to two things: 1) people thought it was the same thing as “vanity” publishing, which it most certainly is NOT. More on this in a second. And 2) Few people believed the quality of self-published books was very good. Back to vanity publishing: this is where YOU pay a company to publish your book. They offer “services” like editing and book covers, but you pay them for each service including the actual printing. You typically have to order quite a few copies of the book. As a general rule, self-published writers take the position that we should never pay someone to publish our books. Paying someone to edit our books and / or to create our covers is okay and is considered a cost of our publishing the book.

Back to the chess book, which ended up having the rather lengthy title of Chess Handbook for Parents and Coaches. Those were the two target audiences. The first half of the book helps a person teach a student (or child) how to play the game. It’s based on how I taught many kids to play. It includes the benefits of playing chess. The second half of the book is about the world of chess: the United States Chess Federation (USCF), famous players, world champions, how to start and run a scholastic chess club, how to prepare for a tournament, and what actually happens at a tournament. How to help players during a tournament, but not during a game, which is expressly forbidden by the rules of chess.

Coming next: Chess book published! Operation Devil’s Fire Published! Charged up! Summary.

A little bit about my path to writing and publishing - Part 3 of 5

Why Operation Devil's Fire was NOT the first novel I finished writing and becoming a disciplined writer

My wife came up with an idea for a modern day thriller (about a serial killer), which I really liked and fleshed out by early June, 2005, a month later. This was why I had stopped working on ODF. I finished the first draft of that book, called Border Gap, on February 3, 2006, just under 8 months later. The difference? I made myself stick to a daily word count of 600 (about 2 book pages) that I had to hit. If I missed it, I had to make it sometime before the writing week (Sunday – Saturday) was over. My average daily word count was 676 over that period. I had learned writing discipline! By the way, at the time, I was working 50 hours a week and traveling back and forth to Chicago for another 9 hours a week.

The pain (not kidding) of trying to find an agent

From late April, 2006 through March, 2007 I sent 70 query letters to agents for Border Gap. A query letter is one page and briefly introduces you and the book for which you’re asking representation. You specifically ask the agent if you may send them a partial manuscript (about 50 pages). I received exactly one request for the partial. The rest were either rejections or I received no answer whatsoever from the agent. Grr.

I sent the partial on and hoped. The agency in question was a husband-wife team. My hopes were eventually dashed when they wrote back declining further interest. However, they had both read it and they finished their rejection email to me with:

“We agree that you have good, strong talent. Keep writing. Keep polishing your work. Best of luck.”

Well, okay, cool. Something’s not quite right with my writing, but it shows promise.

Ah, man, really?

I knew I had a choice: I could be angry with them for rejecting my masterpiece, or I could take to heart what they’d said. So I re-read the opening pages of my manuscript. It had been perhaps a month since I last did that. I finished the first page, which introduced the victim, a young woman. It was great! Then I got to the exciting part of the opening where the killer strikes for the first time. My eyeballs practically popped out of my head. In the paragraph describing the killing, I had started 6 (six!) consecutive sentences with the word “He.” Palm plant. Ah, man, really? How did I miss that? Now I saw what they saw. Raw, but unpolished, talent.

Back to Operation Devil’s Fire

While working on all the damn query letters, I started writing on ODF again. From May 29, 2006 through October 7, 2006 (132 days, 4 ½ months) I wrote an average of 675 words a day, almost identical to my work on Border Gap! By the way, both books were in the 100,000 word range. My discipline was holding up. I had written 2/3 of the book in 25% of the time it had taken for the first 1/3.

From January 2, 2007 to October 19, 2007, I sent out 50 query letters and, again, received exactly one request for the partial manuscript. I heard back from the agent the very next day. “I'm afraid this didn't come across as something that would work for us commercially.”

Well, hell. Now what?

Three years.

Two novels.

And nothing to show for it.

Then comes another idea from my brilliant wife. Which led us directly to the Sgt. Dunn novels.

Coming next: A little bit about my path to writing and publishing – Part 4, Chess as the trigger. Published! Operation Devil’s Fire Published! Charged up!

A little bit about my path to writing and publishing - Part 2 of 5

Why I decided on WWII novels

I grew up watching all the WWII movies I could find on TV on our old black and white, we never had a color TV. The TV shows Combat (1962 – 67), 12 O’clock High (1964 – 67), and The Rat Patrol (1966 – 68) were a weekly staple. Some of my relatives served during WWII. My mom had a box of various brass, patches, and coast guard stripes that I examined endlessly. I memorized the navy’s ranks, both enlisted and officers. She had been in the Coast Guard from 1944-46. She gave me a copy of the navy’s nearly 600 page training manual published in 1944, The Bluejackets’ Manual – 1944, Twelfth Edition. I actually read the entire thing! I still have it in my book collection. The inside of the front cover is inscribed by mom in her beautiful cursive:

Oct. 20, 1944

Billet 614 Co. 272

U.S.C.G. Training

Palm Beach, Florida

U.S.S. Biltmore

(The Biltmore Hotel was used by the Coast Guard for SPARS training in 1943 & 44)

Below her inscription, I printed in my 8th grade hand:

Ronald Munsterman

JE-1-4810

1215 E. 36th Street

K.C. Missouri

In the 5th grade, through the Scholastic Books program at school, I bought Robb White’s excellent Up Periscope, which was later made into a movie starring James Garner. A couple of years ago, I bought another copy of it and read it all over again. Great story.

I once saved my weekly allowance (35 cents!) long enough to buy a toy kit that included an army helmet and a Thompson .45 submachine gun (caps) complete with a charging handle. I think I shot up every car in the neighborhood (Armour Blvd. and Forest Ave., Kansas City, MO.)

So, yes, I was fascinated by everything to do with WWII.

How I picked Sgt. Tom Dunn as my main character

In the fall of 2003, when I was working on coming up with an idea for a novel, I already knew it would be set in WWII. That was never a question. At first, I considered making the main character a member of the OSS (Office of Strategic Services), who would, after the war, become a member of the newly formed CIA. I discarded that idea pretty fast because I wasn’t that interested in writing a “spy” book. The very next idea took roots and stuck. A soldier. Not an officer – there are lots of books on officers. A sergeant. Hm, a Ranger! A Ranger who went on secret missions! A whole squad of them. As for the sergeant, he became our beloved Tom Dunn.

I began searching for a plot. I watched an episode on the History channel that introduced me to the Horten Brothers, the brilliant German aeronautical engineers. They had developed a jet plane and were working on a bomber that would have the range to reach the United States. In the span of about ten seconds I had the plot for Operation Devil’s Fire: the Nazis had a jet bomber and an atomic bomb.

Being an undisciplined writer

I started writing the book in January, 2004. However, because I was an undisciplined writer I made sporadic progress. I wrote exactly 2,569 words in 6 days. Yay me! Then I went 2 months without writing at all. This became my pattern. I stopped writing the book on May 8, 2005, a year and 2 months later and was only 38% done. Not very earth shattering.

Part 2 coming soon: Why Operation Devil's Fire was NOT the first novel I finished writing. Becoming a disciplined writer. The pain of trying to find an agent.

A little bit about my path to writing and publishing - Part 1 of 5

I’m working on Sgt. Dunn Novel #19 today. I reflected on my path to writing and publishing eighteen novels and a non-fiction book and decided I would share it with you.

Very early stuff

I wrote my first short story in the 9th grade for a Literary Club contest. It was a horrible story about a teenager winning an auto drag race (which was some of the books I was reading at the time). It did NOT win anything. I might actually have a copy somewhere. Maybe I should frame it and entitle it "What not to do!"

I didn't write another one until I was 25. I submitted my first one at age 28 to a science fiction magazine - it was rejected.

The wrong genre

From 1991 to 2003, I had written about 30 science fiction short stories. I had submitted five and all were rejected. I had started a nice short story about a grandfather and his grandson, initially as a fun time travel story. Part way through I suddenly realized the story was really about their relationship. I stripped out the science fiction portions and retooled it. That story, “He Wasn't Always Old” was purchased for $250. At last, I had sold a story. I was age 51.

The disappointing, but honest, realization that I was not a science fiction writer finally hit me, and I moved on rather than trying squeeze the square peg into a round hole.

So how did I end up with 18 novels and one non-fiction book?

In the fall of 2003, just before HWAO sold, I had already decided to write a novel. I had no idea how to do that, so I bought The Marshall Plan for Novel Writing, written by Evan Marshall, and read both the book and the workbook.

I felt I was almost ready. I read Ken Follet's excellent WWII book, Hornet Flight. I wanted to see how Follet handled point of view, so I charted the entire book noting which character was the POV for each chapter. Then I counted how many and what percentage of the total each character had. This knowledge, combined with Marshall's nice plotting “plan,” gave me my personalized framework I used to plot (in Excel) my first novel, Operation Devil's Fire, which by the way had a terrible working title of The Threat Of Horten 18. Yikes!

I still use the same version of the plot plan I devised in 2003 because it works for me. I expanded the uses for that Excel file to include worksheets for:

• Writing schedule
• Plot
• Time-distance calculations
• A 32 point compass diagram
• Characters
• Home states used
• Ranks comparisons (American, British, German)

Part 2 coming soon: Why I decided on WWII novels, how I picked Sgt. Tom Dunn as my main character. Being an undisciplined writer.