After 9/11, and graduating high school, I ran off and joined the Army as an Explosive Ordnance Disposal Technician (bomb squad). In 2007, I lost both of my arms to an IED in Iraq. I went through a bit of an arduous recovery process; surgeries, divorce, cancer, losing friends and brothers, and ended up being somewhat motivational in veteran circles.
I had been asked to write a book about my life and experiences, and I even tried to do just that. I hated it. Every second of it. I even got a DVR and a buddy to ghostwrite it with me, and I can tell you, without a doubt, I despise writing about my life.
However, during that time, I unintentionally started writing a fictional series, set in a different world. It was just little bits at first; little scenarios with fictional characters that I used to work out my emotions when writing the autobiography. It eventually became this grand adventure, with characters that I could use to describe the emotions, struggles, successes and failures of myself and the people closest to me. At first none of it fit together, but I realized that it was helping me in ways that working out, drinking, therapy, or playing video games wasn’t. That story evolved from little snippets to what will be at least a trilogy.
As I was writing both works, I met Tim O’Donnell. He was documenting Not A War Story and I happened to be part of the project. After about a year of prodding, he convinced me to do a long-form documentary on my life. It’s something I never would have done, as I actually kind of hate being the center of attention. But, Tim, Jon, and Sam have all been wonderful about it, and have a way of making me more comfortable than uncomfortable in front of a camera. If it wasn’t their crew, this film would not exist today.
They’ve also seen more of the series than anyone else, and it was their idea to incorporate it into the film to demonstrate how I (and others) use writing (fictional or otherwise) as a safer cathartic outlet, to process and handle trauma or tragedy in a healthy way. It’s not a story where there are only happy endings and everyone lives. Because that’s not how my life has gone. But being able to divide my struggles and challenges into different characters has made them seem easier to contend with.
– Bikepacking.com
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“Not a War Story is, ultimately, the story of a dream coming true”
