The Making of WHERE EAGLES FLY…Remember Me
When I first met Red Campbell, back in November of 1990, I was introduced to him by his daughter Kerry. He must have been extremely impressed meeting this guy, who was about to marry his daughter; a guy from another country and unemployed. I quit my job in British Columbia, in order to settle down in San Diego, where the Campbell’s lived.
When I first heard about Red’s experience as a fighter pilot with the R.A.F. and being captured by the Japanese, I was intrigued. After all, I was former Royal Canadian Air Force myself and was awed by the fact that this guy had survived his ordeal. Kerry was actually surprised that her dad was willing to talk to me about his South Pacific adventure. He had been closed down, when talking about it with his family, for as long as they could remember. Somehow, he saw in me a person who would listen and understand. That was a blessing.
Red would never freely offer information and when he did open up it was simply tiny glimpses into his past, avoiding lengthy conversations all together. But as the years passed, I was able to draw from him enough tidbits of information to have a pretty good idea of how the entire story played out. I constantly suggested that he writes a book about his experiences, but he wasn’t interested. He always said that there were plenty of books already written about the Eagle Squadron and their antics, most of which exaggerated his abilities or accomplishments and by writing a book of his own he would only undermine the reputation already established.
When I was laid off in March of 2008, my wife suggested that I use my free time to get the details of her father’s story and put them to paper. I took the offer to Red and he seemed excited to undertake the project with me. The first thing I did was to play back in my mind, the story, as I had imagined it, and scheduled regular sit down interviews with Red to fill in the blanks. Towards the end of March 2008 I started my first interview with John Acy Campbell III, RAF, DFC.
Since Red and his wife Christine have dinner with us at our home every Wednesday evening and we have dinner at their house every Sunday evening, the interview schedule would be a simple one. I would interview him on Sundays, for an hour or so before dinner, then I would write on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. When he would arrive at our house for dinner on Wednesdays I would sit him down and read what was written since our last interview. The schedule actually worked out very well and I would average one complete chapter per week, with a few exceptions along the way. Some chapters were longer than others and would take me two weeks of interviewing before being pieced together.
Now, as I had the vision of the story in my mind before starting this project, I guess Red had a vision as well as to what the books format should look like. I remember the Wednesday when I was proofing the first chapter to him. He didn’t seem very excited. He laughed at the concept of having the story told with my sort of “sexy, fluffy” writing style. He imagined it being more like a history book, presenting nothing but the facts. I was able to convince him that my method of writing would generate much more interest. I wanted the book to be read by everyone, not just aging WWII vets who like to reminisce about the good old days. But still week after week, he would make subtle comments about my writing. Hey, if I knew he was home birthed on November 3rd, 1921 I was going to research the weather on that day and write about it.
I think saying;
The weather in Southern California was normal for November. Clouds were high in the sky, showing off their majestic grandeur, yet the temperature was rather mild. There was a slight cool breeze working its way from the ocean, through an opened window in the kitchen. It seemed like just another perfect day in paradise.
Sounds a lot better compared to;
John Campbell was born at home on November 3rd, 1921.
Don’t you agree?
As time passed, Red started looking forward to our sit down sessions. He relished the interviews and would offer details that suddenly surfaced; details he had forgotten for over 60 years. Was I becoming Red’s therapist? Maybe so! He was sharing with me details that would sometimes make him laugh and other times, cry. Red had experienced some events that he told me in strict confidence, details that were left out of the book, at his request; things that should remain buried, along with his friends. I will take those memories of his, with me, to my grave.
It was somewhat irritating when I would read a passage to him and he would suddenly interrupt me and bark “That’s not how it happened.” “Well that‘s what my notes say,” I would try to justify. Then he would retell the story and I would make the changes where needed. Sometimes when he would retell the story, I would show him that what he just said was exactly how it was written. He would laugh and then add, “Well maybe I should just shut up and let you continue.” I would smile, deep down inside agreeing.
My wife and I travelled to Oklahoma City for our grandsons first birthday. Seeing our son and his family made the trip a special one. To make it even more memorable, our other son and his family drove down from Idaho to join in. Each night, after all of the grandkids were tucked in, all of the adults, including my wife’s ex, would be sitting on the living room floor, bundled in blankets, with the lights dimmed, waiting for me to read to them. I brought a rough copy of the unfinished manuscript and was reading previews to them each night. Based on their reaction and the reaction of others, it was obvious to me that this book had something; something special. But then again, I think everything I write is perfect.
The most difficult period to interview was during his POW years. There was so much detail to cover. Some of the events were told out of sequence and I would have to go on line to research the chronological order. I loved the research part of the project and with the use of the World Wide Web, finding these details became very simplified. Between the internet, Red’s stories and his archive of pictures, letters and memorabilia, the story was slowly coming together.
Weeks turned into months and chapters were stacking up. We were now through the war years and completing the documentation of Red’s post war era. It was now time to interview Red about the here and now; what were his regrets; what was his vision for whatever future he had left. During this period, everybody reflected about life and what was really important. We talked about a near death experience he had while hospitalized with congestive heart failure. We discussed the aches and pains of aging as well as all of the other things worth writing about.
The day finally arrived when my rough draft chapters were complete. Now I got into the fun part; page layouts, table of contents, inserting data sheets, bio summary’s, forwards, etc. I even created an “About the Author” page. I was sitting in a coffee shop with a friend of mine telling her about the book. She asked if I had a publisher yet and I told her that I didn’t and that within the next month I was going to start down that path. She told be about a friend of hers who once tried to have some books published and after seeing for herself how complex and time consuming it was, she opened her own publishing company called Amethyst Moon. My friend asked me if she could pass my name on and I said, “Sure.”
Within a couple of days a lot of things started happening, really fast. Kerry and I met a couple from church and when the wife heard about my project, she asked me if I had an editor yet. When she heard that I didn’t she offered to do the editing for me, gratis. Since she is a professional bible translator, I accepted her generous offer without hesitation. God was Blessing me and I was going to accept these gifts, in His glory. The very next day I received an e-mail from the publisher my other friend knew and she asked me to provide her with a synopsis. It was in her in box with 30 minutes (I had to write one first). She came to my house the very next day and a contract was signed. Praise God and praise friends.
When I told Red about these events, he still had his doubts that a book would ever evolve from all of my notes and Microsoft word files. It was now the end of September and I had an editor reading my draft, making changes or corrections where needed. Her suggestions were also greatly appreciated. My publisher was also holding my hand along the way, guiding me through the various stages of page headings, graphics, font size and cover design. After providing my publisher with all of the jpeg images I wanted to use and my concept for the cover, it was down to figuring out the final details such as font size and page layout. We both agreed that using a larger font would make reading a lot easier for those folks out there, with poor eye sight. To date everyone who has browsed through the pages of “Where Eagles Fly…Remember Me” has made a positive comment about the font size.
Of course, I was updating Red along the way, but still, he never thought it was going to happen. He was happy to just have his story in a database so copies could be left for his kids, grandkids and great grandkids. I took it a step further; I filed for copyright protection and now a copy of the book is in the Library of Congress in Washington, DC.
My publisher finally sent me her soft copy of my book, with all of the edits made. This was my last chance to catch any typos, spacing issues etc before it went to press. That copy went back and forth about 5 times before I signed off on it. It was now in the hands of the printer. Any changes now would be costly. In November, my publisher arrived at my home and handed me a hard copy of “Where Eagles Fly…Remember Me.” I held it in my hands, not wanting to open it for fear of it not being just perfect. I felt like a father seeing his new born son for the very first time. I held my emotions in as I didn’t want to celebrate what could still be a failure. I sat down, said a quick prayer, inhaled deeply, and read “Where Eagles Fly…Remember Me.”
That day happened to be a Wednesday, the day that Red and his wife joined us for dinner. He started believing in the eventual release of the book when he had seen the cover design proof a few weeks earlier. This evening, he would hold the book in his hands. He would be able to flip through the pages and scan the images. He would be able to smell the sweet smell of a project successfully completed, ahead of schedule, thanks to the generosity of friends. As he finally held the book and pondered the last 8 or 9 months of work, he asked’ “Will it be available by Christmas?” Great question and my answer was, “Yes.” Pre orders were already coming in at a slightly discounted price and the official release would be in early December. This made Christmas shopping very easy for Red. We shared a box of 50 and gave them away as gifts to family and also handed some out for promotional reasons. Even the San Diego Air and Space museum has a copy in their library.
A lot has happened over that past year. Red's story has finally been told. His heirs will remember him. His legacy will be his sacrifice during WWII and surviving to talk about it. I also started my own company during the process. Hunter Ink, doing business as From Cover to Cover, is my way to market myself as a Freelance Biographer. I have also joined a Writers Group; we meet monthly to talk about our passion of telling a good story. Hopefully, I will learn to feed the writing hunger that burns within me. If I can make a living doing it, great, but if it only becomes a hobby, then I still give thanks to God for the gift He gave me. I also give praise to my wife Kerry for putting up with me. She is my rock from which my foundation rests.
Now, to focus on more writing . . .
Please share this story, and my blogs, with all of your friends . . . thanks
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