Director Promises Film on U.S. Embedded Trainers

The director of a documentary that tells the story of a U.S. Army National Guard Embedded Training Team (E.T.T.) in Southern Afghanistan 2006-2007, as well as a parallel story regarding Canadian security forces operating in the same area, Scott Kesterson says he is throwing out previous versions of the film and going back to scratch.

Kesterson recently updated listeners to the "Top Talk" podcast regarding the project, now in post-production under the working title "Bards of War." For an mp3 of the 53-minute podcast, click here.

In that interview, Kesterson says he now plans to separate the two story lines into two smaller, 40- to 60-minute documentaries. The first, regarding the "Red Devils" of 2nd Platoon, Alpha Company, 1st Battalion, Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry (P.P.C.L.I.), would be released in early December 2013 via digital download or rental services such as iTunes or Netflix. The other, regarding an Oregon Army National Guard team of embedded trainers, would follow approximately one year later.

"These films are kind of putting [Afghanistan] to bed in very critical sense," Kesterson says. "What we're talking about is two versions of the war. That's why the two stories go together. One is a very kinetic version of the war, and the other is this embedded training, indigenous-type, mentor-advisor combat advisor role, which is a completely different lens on the war. You put those two side-by-side, and you start to, arguably, get a glimpse into what we didn't do right and could do better, and, arguably, is a direction in the future."

Originally shot as "At War" and slated for release in 2008 or 2009, music-rights acquisition and other other production challenges put the film project on the shelf for a few years. (A handful trailers and excerpts from that film is available on YouTube here.) After shooting the film as embedded media, Kesterson subsequently worked in Afghanistan as an information operations consultant. He also occasionally wrote at the Huffington Post.

"['At War'] was an attractive and alluring product, but a lot of that was because of the music," Kesterson says, "When you strip away the music, you don't have much of a film." In the new film, he says, contemporary follow-up interviews with veterans will help place the experiences of boots and bullets on the ground into a larger context.

"There's a very rich amount of material there, of telling just that story," Kesterson says. "That's a story of National Guard citizen-soldiers doing something that historically has never happened before: That's training, equipping, and fielding through combat, a nation's military, a national police force, and a nation's border police force."

July 15 Deadline for 2nd 'So It Goes' Vonnegut Journal

The editors of the second annual edition of the Kurt Vonnegut Memorial Library's literary journal, "So It Goes," are soliciting new and previously published work on a central theme of "humor." Poetry, prose, photography, and artwork may all be submitted.

Deadline for submissions is July 15, 2013. The printed publication will be released Nov. 9, 2013.

The library's inaugural edition, organized on a theme of "War and Peace," was previously reviewed on the Red Bull Rising blog.

According to press materials:

This year’s theme is humor. The library wants your whimsy, levity, dark satire, political parody, topical tomfoolery, sarcastic spoofs, and wit. Keep in mind that we are looking for your unique voice and not just an imitation of Vonnegut’s trademark humorous humanism.

Submission guidelines include:

• Both new and previously published works are acceptable.
• Simultaneous submissions are allowed with notification.
• Submissions are limited to one work of prose (maximum 1,500 words) or up to five poems, photographs and/or works of art.
• Submitted materials will not be returned.

Read the complete submission rules and submit electronically here.

Send paper submissions, along with a self-addressed, stamped envelope (S.A.S.E.) with sufficient postage for response, to:

Vonnegut Library
So It Goes Submissions
340 N. Senate Ave.
Indianapolis, Ind. 46204.

Questions may be directed via e-mail to: soitgoes@vonnegutlibrary.org.

The library organization maintains a Facebook page here, and a website here.

'War Stories' Online Writing Course Starts July 29

Jason S. Ridler, an historian and former punk rock musician who now writes mixed-martial arts, professional wrestling, and other genre fiction, once taught at the Royal Military College of Canada. He has a doctorate in war studies from the same institution.

Now, via Writers on the Net, Ridler is teaching an eight-week online literature and writing course titled "War Stories: Writing about the Human Dimension of Warfare." The course begins July 29, 2013.

A second course, "Kick Out the Words! A Punk Rock Guide to Writing Fiction," begins June 24.

Cost for each is $295.

"I've worked and lived with soldiers for a good part of my life, and spent a decade teaching them," Ridler says via e-mail interview. "I've found military affairs compelling and important since I was a teenager, but knew very well that I was too strange and anti-authoritarian to join any military service. And yet, I'm compelled by their work! I'm a walking contradiction!"

Ridler is also a contributing editor to the "Journal of Military Experience."

According to the "War Stories" course description, veterans of all ages are welcome, as are spouses, journalists, and all those interested in understanding how best to write about the human dimension of military affairs. By the end of the course, participants in Ridler's online workshop will:

• Demonstrate an appreciation for the unique nature of war writing through exercises based on readings and/or experiences.
• Apply theories, tools, and concepts about war writing to their own written work.
• Develop a voice as an author of war stories through the creation of a final essay.

"[War stories] are important to me because they offer others the chance to recreate experience and examine it. This can be done in fiction or memoir," Ridler says. "In either case, that re-creation allows for not just the value of expression for the writer, but a point of connection to the reader. There's a belief in some circles that reading the perspectives of those different than creates empathy and understanding, critical elements in reducing violence. I believe that for most people, reading and writing war stories also accomplishes that goal. "

Ridler takes pains, however, to ensure students regard the course as a literary or academic opportunity, rather than one for healing wounds. The course outline, for example, contains the disclaimer that he is an historian and writer, not a therapist:

While the course may be cathartic for many students, it is, in no way shape or form, a substitute for therapeutic aid for those suffering from trauma or any other illness. Those with such concerns should find help through medical professionals, veterans organizations, and other aid services.

For more information on how to enroll in either of Ridler's online courses, click here.

For more information on Ridler's work and writing, visit his "Ridlerville" Facebook page or blog.