Hal Arnold, a professor of English, returns to the Philippines after forty years yearning for the unity, spirit and optimism he knew as a 19- year-old member of a Seabee battalion in the South Pacific theater during World War II. Trying to recapture that experience, he writes this story, vividly portraying members of the battalion who impacted his life. Searching for his own identity, he finds it in the warm, rich culture of a small Filipino village where love and dignity thrive among a people who have suffered under the Japanese yoke.
This is the exciting premise of Hugh Aaron’s new novel, When Wars Were Won. We asked Hugh about his book and his publishing journey.
Thank you for his interview, Hugh. The inspiration for your book derived from the men you served with as well as natives you came to know. Can you tell us more?
I also depicted the ignorance of the higher ups who were not familiar with the conditions that we faced. As a result they added to our difficulties by insisting that we carry out their unreasonable orders.
You concentrate on relationships, fate, and both successes and failures with your writing. Is there a theme you have not written about that you would like to pursue in the future?
I have written essays about my publishing and marketing difficulties from both publishers and while self-publishing.
You have been noted to say that while you have been published by small press publishers, you prefer to self-publish. Can you tell us why?
I found that those small publishers who took me on failed to market successfully my titles.
How interesting that you were a Seabee in the South Pacific during World War II. I can’t imagine the experience. Can you reflect back and give us one of your most candid stories about serving in the war? Did any of those experiences end up in your book?
Some of the stories that occurred ended up in When Wars Were Won, but most ended up in collections of short stories with other authors. Currently, I am rounding up over 60 short stories that I had written, some published, others not, over the years to be included in a single collection.
What’s next for you, Hugh?
Since I’m now in my 90s but in good health, I'm planning to publish a collection of my essays on running a business successfully. Many were published in The Wall Street Journal. I was the CEO of a most successful manufacturing business that I had sold in order to write full time.
When Wars Were Won can be purchased at Amazon.