Forgotten Heroes of World War II: Personal Accounts of Ordinary Soldiers Land, Sea and Air

Published by Taylor Trade/Rowman and Littlefield Publishing

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Forgotten Heroes Reviews   MWSA Dispatches Magazine Winter 2017

Military Writers Society of American Gold Medal winner 2016

This is a ‘must have’ book. Available everywhere books are sold.

Forgotten heroes, they truly are. Men of honor, integrity, and perseverance, love of God, country, and family who fought on many fronts and survived to tell their stories – stories of horrors seen which live on forever in their minds and hearts. These veterans are slowly “crossing to the other side” to be greeted by those who have long been there – welcomed with open arms. Men and women you share combat and service time with, you never forget, especially those you see take their last breath. These are the personal accounts that will live with you till the end of time.

 Author, Thomas E. Simmons and the last three remaining contributors to Forgotten Heroes of World War II: Personal Accounts of Ordinary Soldiers Land, Sea and Air

Harry Bell – “Present and Accounted For,” story #9 fought the Battle of the Bulge.  He was taken prisoner by the Germans and marched 60 miles without food in freezing weather to a rail junction. Men who fell out were shot.  When he was liberated by U. S. troops he weighed just 90 pounds, but had nursed his prison squad through the ordeal making sure meager rations were shared and blankets loaned to the sick.  Too weak to walk, Harry crawled out to the U.S. tank commander who knocked down the prison gate, was helped to his feet, saluted and proudly reported his entire prison squad, “All present and accounted for.”

Jerry O’Keefe – “A Long Way to Okinawa,” story #15 wanted to fly fighters. He enlisted in the Marines, was finally accepted for flight training only to be assigned to transports.  Risking courts-martial, he used every trick in the book to finally get assigned to fighters, first to Wild Cats for training and then worked his way into a new Corsair squadron.  He was sent to the Pacific in time to participate in the invasion of Okinawa. Nothing was easy on the long path to become a fighter pilot.  Jerry proved his worth becoming a Marine Fighter Ace.

Oscar Russell – “The Amphib Sailor,” story #7 was one of the very few who served in both the landings on D-day at Omaha Beach, Normandy, France and then in the Pacific for support of landings on Okinawa and anti-Kamikaze picket duty.   

Amanda Matti, author of A Foreign Affair, has been invited by The University of Phoenix in San Diego to participate in a panel discussion at their upcoming Creative Industry Expo March 25th. She will also have a singing/sales table at the event. So come and meet this brave and courageous woman and get an autographed copy of A Foreign Affair

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/creative-industry-expo-2017-tickets-30834588083

For those who do not yet have a copy of A Foreign Affair by  Amanda Matti, here are many opportunities to not only get a autographed copy of her true story of love and war, but also to hear live interviews on Blog Talk Radio!

2017

Matti Interview Monday, Jan. 9th at 11 a.m. by Michael Golden of The Golden Mean podcast. http://michaelgolden.me/podcast/

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Matti interview Thursday, Jan. 12th at 4 p.m.by Jim Campbell for his nationally syndicated Business Talk with Jim Campbell program on the BIZ Talk Radio Network Interview is tentatively scheduled to air Sunday, Jan. 15th at 10 p.m. EST but that may change – I’ll keep you posted. http://biztalkradio.com/NS-ListingDetail/NSEventID/31

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Thursday, Jan. 19^th, Matti will speak and sign/sell books at a local San Diego Rotary Club 33www.sandiegorotary.club meeting.

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Amanda Matti has been selected as one of three San Diego authors selected to present at the San Diego County Public Library’s Local Author Expo in January 2017!

Saturday, Jan. 21st at 2 p.m., Matti will be presenting and singing/selling books at the El Cajon branch of the San Diego County Public Library’s Local Author Expo. http://www.sdcl.org/author-visits.html

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Saturday, Jan. 28^th, Matti will be at the opening ceremony of the San Diego City Library’s Local Author Exhibit. The exhibit runs the entire month of February and will feature A Foreign Affair at the massive Central Library in downtown San Diego. https://www.sandiego.gov/public-library/news-events/localauthors

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Thursday, March 23^rd, Matti’s live LA Talk Radio interview with The Writer’s Block program 7 p.m. PST  http://latalkradio.com/content/writers-block

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Sunday, April 9th 12-2 pm, Matti’s book signing at Warwick’s bookstore in La Jolla, CA – this is the “it” bookstore of San Diego! http://www.warwicks.com/

Amanda Matti, author of A Foreign Affair, is featured on the cover of The Californian!

http://www.eccalifornian.com/article/east-county-author-shares-personal-love-story-some-stunning-twists

After being a literary agent for going on nine years, I have seen some great works with great authors, great works with shoddy authors, and not-so-great works with fantastic authors. Which would I prefer? The first, of course, although that is rare. Most writers must be molded and honed, creating people and works you can be proud of. Then there are exemplary writers whose quality wanes or good authors who learn from mistakes and create books like Monet paintings; timeless. The latter are much more appealing and shine.

As the publishing industry evolves, as it has exponentially in the past twenty years, so does the agenting role and model. It used to be that agents could work strictly for commission and actually put food on the table. That was when the quality and quantity of books were rationed, meaning you got more for the money. With self-publishing, a myriad of micro publishers, and small houses that are staying afloat while bailing, agents are no longer able to wait for the check that is six to eighteen months coming; no longer able to work tirelessly for a writer who expects everything for nothing. Who in this world works for free? Philanthropists and volunteers, neither of which are agents.

Loiacono Literary Agency has changed its company model/policy in step with the times. LLA is a comprehensive agency that takes writers and turns them into published authors; sometimes upwards of four months to take a manuscript from raw to well-done, then years to sell it. The competition is vast, so it must stand out as a sunny banner in a sea of gray.

It all begins in the mind of the author; their concept and ability to put into words, articulately and with flare, a story that draws you into the rabbit hole and does not allow you to escape until the final word, leaving you breathless and wanting more. The manuscript must be formatted, polished, and proofed by the writer and hopefully someone with skills in content, grammar, and punctuation. By the time it is submitted to an agency, it should be glowing. Yet, this is not always the case. If it was, our job would be so much easier.

That is where having an agent who is passionate about the job is essential. I have read of agents who reject great manuscripts because they are not formatted right, in the wrong font, or don’t have a title page. Poof! Gone! Deleted! Not at LLA. We review submissions on every level, beginning with the query. Is it the genre we are interested in? How many words? Is the subject unique? If not, is the story? Is the writing top-notch? Is the writer professional in presentation? Have they done their homework? Have they submitted per the LLA Submission Guidelines? Have they submitted in a blast email? How seasoned is the writer? How long has it been since they have had anything published, if ever? So much relevancy! So much to take into consideration.!

With endless energy, resources, time, and unwavering diligence, the agents at LLA—Johnnie Bernhard, Linda Kasten, and myself—spend countless hours on manuscripts in hopes of landing a contract for the writer. Then when a publisher makes an offer, we go over the contract in finite detail, negotiating if it is negotiable, always asking for the highest percentage possible, with the best benefits we can get. We work closely with the author and the publisher to ensure a seamless editing and publishing process. When it is time for launch, we crack that bottle of champagne on the bow of that book and start the marketing and promoting. As long as the book is in print, we keep moving forward, striving for bigger sales. It is never ending. One of my authors once said it was akin to spinning plates; you keep adding and adding and spinning and spinning.

There isn’t a step that we do not take alongside the author. The last three words are so important: alongside the author. Without an author’s positive attitude, cooperation, faith, work ethic, resourcefulness, motivation, and persistence, the book will not go far, even with one of the top five publishers. It is a joint effort on all fronts—author, agent, and publisher.

So when you submit to LLA, know you are getting so much more than an agent. You are entering a relationship with someone who has your best interest at heart. Your success is our success. We don’t contract a manuscript and say, “Next!” We do take on more, but we keep your plate(s) spinning as a member of the LLA family of authors.

I hope everyone has a joyous and prosperous New Year!

• Jeanie Loiacono, President, Loiacono Literary Agency

Wally Avett, author of FOUR novel based on TRUE stories!

Today is the Day!

I recently received a book from Eva Steortz, owner of Vita Creativa and a twenty-year veteran of entertainment marketing for Walt Disney. ​​Where Will You Be Five Years From Today? ​by Dan Zadra is a colorful gem of inspirational quotations and advice on jump starting your life. The opening page states the theme, “The purpose of this book is to stir your creative juices and to inspire you to really get in touch with your dreams. The goal is not to provide a list of what should be done with the next five years, but to stir up some exciting possibilities of what could be one.”

I’ve always been confused as to why people will make a grocery list of what they want, but will not take the time to list what they need. I am guilty of expecting time to simply deliver the goals I set in my mind that I clearly failed to actualize on a piece of paper with a plan. When I was young, I thought I had all the time in the world to check things off my mental list. Turning fifty made me realize time is measured in how I spend each hour, day, and year of my life. Life is a gift many never know completely. It is fleeting and precious.

Zadra invites us to stop being busy with the things we think we have to do and get busy with what we really want to do. I choose to write more, pray more, and love more. Where will this get me in five years? I’ll be living and not just existing.

• Johnnie Bernhard, agent Loiacono Literary Agency, and author or A Good Girl (Texas Review Press, 2017)

In Sickness and in Health by Caroline Giammanco, author of Bank Notes: The True Story of the Boonie Hat Bandit http://www.booniehatbandit.com/in-sickness-and-in-health/

Loiacono Literary Agency takes on JJ White’s novel A Promise to Lena

In 1945, Sgt. Frank Daley promised Lena, a fifteen-year-old German girl, safe passage from the Soviet sector to the American sector of war-torn Berlin. Three years later, in a rundown, three-story apartment in Brooklyn, he finds out that a soldier he had ordered to evacuate the girl instead raped her and left her for the Soviets. Now, as a form of atonement, Frank decides he’ll risk everything he has, including his life, to go back to Berlin and keep his vow. Berlin 1945

From New York, Italian mob hits to fantastic boxing, harrowing escapes, and unexpected love affairs—one quite deadly—this fast-paced novel has everything any man or woman could want in a story.

JJ White is the author of Prodigious Savant (2015), Deviant Acts (2015), and Nisei (2016); all published by Black Opal Books. He has written over two hundred short stories, had articles and stories published in several anthologies and magazines including, Wordsmith, The Homestead Review, The Seven Hills Review and The Grey Sparrow Journal. “The Nine Hole League” was published in the Sherlock Holmes Mystery Magazine, Volume 14. He has won awards and honors from the Alabama Writers Conclave, Writers-Editors International, Maryland Writers Association, The Royal Palm Literary Awards, Professional Writers of Prescott, and Writer’s Digest. He was recently nominated for the Pushcart Prize for his short piece in The Grey Sparrow Journal.

Congratulations to the 2016 MWSA Book Awards Winners!

Nonfiction

History

Stay the Rising Sun – Phil Keith – BRONZE

Forgotten Heroes of World War II: Personal Accounts of Ordinary Soldiers Land, Sea and Air – Tom Simmons – GOLD

MWSA Dispatches Magazine Winter 2017