About the Novel
I wanted to write about modern naval ships and the United States Navy, and the officers and men that their country produced to man them. In my opinion, this is overdue for the naval fiction genre which has remained stuck in the 19th century and in the Royal Navy.During the Napoleonic Wars the deeds of the Royal Navy were popularized by the historical novels of C.S. Forester and Patrick O'Brian. These are wonderful sea stories about ships, men and naval leadership, but their popularity has obscured the incipient success of the young American Navy, and its rise to supremacy a century and a half later. The War of 1812 began with three successful frigate victories by the Americans shocking the Royal Navy. The USN went on to win a majority of its single-ship engagements including sinking British fighting ships in the homewaters of the English Channel proving that it was a force to be reckoned with. American leadership was superb. The fact that the Royal Navy had three mutinies including one at Spithead and a second at The Nore which were virtually fleet-wide insurrections is an indirect comment on American naval morale. Within the limits of command at sea it seems that American officers incorporated the spirit of democracy in their style of leadership. US Navy officers have been taught for generations that their duty is, was, and always will be "to get the job done and to take care of the men." So with a small dose of admitted chauvinism this is a modern American story about modern ships, modern means of war, modern awareness of psych casualties, and modern American leadership. Taking care of the men includes modern military medicine and expectations for a fair system of naval justice.The rise of the US Navy to supremacy is in many ways the story of the emergence of the aircraft carrier as the primary capital ship of World War II. During the Cold War the USN extended its supremacy to the sub-surface seas by integrating technical excellence in passive acoustics, nuclear power plants, and missilery with education and training of human resources. Accordingly it is fitting that A Wound in the Mind is about men in USS Ticonderoga, Attack Carrier 14. But my war was the Vietnam War so this story is accurately set in the historical context of that war, Ticonderoga's log, and the battles fought by the United States Marine Corps at Khe Sanh, The Hill Fights, in 1967.Writing a novel forty years or so after a war is awkward timing and presents the writer with certain challenges. The Caine Mutiny and Mr. Roberts appeared within ten years of WW II and Forester and O'Brian enjoyed an interval of well over a century. But I found my story in the under-reporting and lack of appreciation for psychological casualties and, in particular, post traumatic stress disorder. My novel can also be catalogued as legal fiction. A court-martial is a natural story with exposition, development, conflict, tension, and characters who can speak pointed dialogue. We enjoy the predictable format of a trial, and it holds our attention because we want to know how the truth will be revealed, how the case will be proven, and if the jury will see it in the proper way.So, too, I have introduced young leaders of their times in Ltjg. Cannon and Ens. Chase. Cannon and Chase would have done very well aboard Surprise as undoubtedly Hornblower, Aubrey and Maturin would have successfully adapted to serving in Ticonderoga. I might facetiously add that Cannon and Chase are quite prepared to return in future stories.I think you will find this story to be exciting, informative and memorable.A Wound in the Mind.
