Linda Maye Adams's Blog, page 76

Civilians try out the MRE (Meals Ready to Eat)

MRE, or Meals Ready to Eat is a common meal given to the soldiers in the field or at war.  In the field, it was a lunch meal.  During Desert Storm, there was a point where we at three MREs a day, mainly because the mess hall was so far away and the food was horrible.

Even during Desert Storm, the MREs pretty much looked the same.  The heater was very new technology then; we started seeing them in January 1990, though they weren’t included with the meals.  Desert Storm was a wake up call though.  It was apparent the military hadn’t thought that people would be eating more than a few of these, and most didn’t taste that good.  Though some of the people in the video complained, trust me–it used to be a lot worse.  We called them Meals Rejected by Everyone.

 

Filed under: Food, Military Tagged: Desert Storm, MRE

Women of Pearl Harbor – 75 years

When I was growing up, I remember headlines on December 7, honoring the loss of lives at Pearl Harbor.  Now it largely feels like an afterthought, getting a passing mention if it’s a slow news day.  I got to see the memorial back in the early 80s, when I visited Hawaii.  I could see the very top of the wreck just under the surface and oil bubbling up.

And we always heard the stories about the men who were there.

Not the women.

I didn’t know there were women, until I saw this article.

“The women had to be single. The minute they were married, they were out the door,” Woll said, noting that the need for more nurses eventually led to a rule change. “In 1943, that was the first time you could marry and still legally be in the military — until you had your first child. Then you’re out again.”

Times really have changed!

Filed under: History, Military Tagged: hawaii, Pearl Harbor, Pearl Harbor Memorial, Service Women, WAVES

5 Fantasy Heroines

Five of Linda Maye Adams’ fantasy stories. The collection includes Writers of the Future honorable mention “A Quartet of Clowns,” the action story “River Flight,” the flash fiction “Healer’s Tent,” the action story “Booby-Trap at Beaver River,” and reader favorite “Words of Rain and Shadows.”

Available from your favorite booksellers for $4.99, including Amazon and Smashwords.

Filed under: Books Tagged: action-adventure, clowns, fantasy, Flash Fiction, Short Stories, Writers of the Future

Theater Ship

Actress Catherine Mason is old enough that Hollywood no longer wants her, so she performs theater in space for the soldiers.  But it’s dangerous duty for the actors.  As they land on a military post, Catherine discovers the aliens are watching.  She’s about to give the performance of her life, if not her life.

Available from your favorite bookseller for $2.99, including Amazon and Smashwords.

Filed under: Books Tagged: Actors, Planet, science fiction, Short Stories, Spaceships, Theater

Baby Dolls & Aliens

 

 

It’s the summer of 1976, when California is hot and dry, and Jenny is watching her mother wither away with the heat. Jenny tries to retreat to her backyard on a imaginary safari or a journey on the prairie.  But even dolls on adventures aren’t enough when the world is unraveling around her.

Available from your favorite booksellers for .99 including Amazon and Smashwords.

Filed under: Books Tagged: California, Coming of age, Flash Fiction, General Fiction

Rejected by Aliens

First contact missions with new alien races are always dangerous.

But Private Gaynelle never thought that the aliens would eat her officer, and she’d be the one in charge.

Now she has to figure out how to communicate with the aliens.  But why they rejected her as a meal will terrify her.

Available on Smashwords and Amazon for $1.99.

Filed under: Books, Thoughts Tagged: Military Women, science fiction, Short Stories

The Effects of War (A Christmas and Hollywood story)

I always like to read the behind the scenes of movies and TV series.  I’m not interested in back biting or childish antics of actors, but the personal side of working in a creative environment.

Sometimes even war affects that, like in one of the best known Christmas movies, “It’s a Wonderful Life,” which starred Jimmy Stewart.  Mr. Stewart had just come back from World War II, after serving as a pilot and suffering from PTSD (probably called shell shock then).

When he came back, he struggled to find roles and couldn’t figure out where he fit. I think that’s the case for a lot of veterans, because we come back and everyone’s a stranger to us.  Even the world we lived it looks very different.

And there’s anger.  I remember that when I came back.  It was a weird, unfocused anger.  That turns up in the movie, too:

There’s a scene in the movie where he questions his sanity and he’s got this wild look about him. That’s one scene that really struck me, watching it on the big screen. And the other scene that always made me uncomfortable, but now means so much more to me, is when he’s in his living room and he’s throwing things and screaming at his kids — and his wife and children look at him like, “Who is this man? Who is this monster?” And that is so reflective of what millions of families faced, looking at these strangers who came back from the war with this rage. Stewart played it beautifully. He just lets it out.

Read the article and then watch the movie again.  I know I will.

Filed under: Culture, Entertainment, Military Tagged: Hollywood, It's a Wonderful LIfe, Jimmy Stewart, Movies, PTSD, World War II

Layers: A Desert Storm Veteran and September 11

On September 11, 2001, the world changed forever when four planes crashed, including one that struck the Pentagon in Washington, DC.

Linda Maye Adams describes the events of the day in Washington DC from a Desert Storm veteran’s perspective.  This story moves chronologically through what happened and how it impacted the people who lived in that area, capturing the emotion of an unforgettable day.

Available from your favorite booksellers for $1.99, including Amazon and Smashwords.

 

Filed under: Books, History Tagged: Desert Storm, Pentagon, September 11, Washington DC

Writer’s Guide to Military Culture

Former soldier and Desert Storm veteran Linda Maye Adams walks you step-by-step to help the civilian fiction writer understand how military culture works.  From enlistment to war, this book takes you on a tour of what it’s like to be a soldier.  Do soldiers curse non-stop?  Do they always yell, “Yes, Drill Sergeant!” after every sentence?  What is the difference between an officer and an enlisted soldier?  If you don’t know anything about the military, this book will tell you where you can research information without having to go through basic training yourself.

 

Available from your favorite booksellers for $3.99, including Amazon and Smashwords.

 

Filed under: Books, Writing Tagged: Military Culture, writing fiction, writing tips

Pantser’s Guide to Writing: You Are Not Broken!

For writers who don’t outline—called pantsers—it’s hard finding anything on how to write that doesn’t involve outlining.

Author Linda Maye Adams, a pantser writer, cuts through some of the myths and may save you wasted time looking for solutions.

In this guide, Linda Maye Adams addresses the issues that derail pantsers and also provides tips to make the writing process easier.

Available on from your favorite booksellers for $3.99, including Amazon and Smashwords.

 

Filed under: Books, Writing Tagged: outlines, Outlining, Pantsers, writing fiction