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AS YOU WERE: THE MILITARY REVIEW, Vol. 17 Released

MEA is proud to announce the release of As You Were: The Military Review, Vol. 17. This issue features the work of more than thirty writers, poets, and artists from all over the world.

The wide range of backgrounds represented herein is indicative of the multilayered impact of military service at home and abroad. Alongside the veterans of combat and peactime are the sons, daughters, grandchildren, and spouses of servicemembers, those whose lives were forged by armed conflicts and the threat thereof whether they signed up for it or not.

These writers and artists share, too, a common sense of dedication. All of them engaged in difficult, challenging work, either on their own or with our editors, creating draft after draft until their messages were honed to a fine enough point to be heard – and felt – loud and clear. These works allow readers and viewers a deeper, more nuanced understanding of the human condition in military contexts.

Please take some time to read through the extraordinary works in As You Were: The Military Review, Vol. 17. We thank you!

AS YOU WERE: THE MILITARY REVIEW, Vol. 16 Released

MEA is proud to announce the release of As You Were: The Military Review, Vol. 16. This edition contains nearly thirty works in literary fiction, creative nonfiction, poetry, and artwork.

The writers, artists, and poets represented in this volume span the full spectrum of those impacted by military service – combat veterans, family members, or citizens who’ve felt the pull of history. They’ve all contributed fine additions to the literary and artistic canon surrounding military service.

Their work examines age-old questions and unravels new threads of thought. How have combat veterans of the Global War on Terror transitioned into parenting roles? What happens when romance is found while recovering from physical war wounds in a military hospital? What was it like for a little girl whose father returned from Vietnam a changed man? What was it like for a girl whose father did not come home from Vietnam at all? How did the US military’s policy of “Don’t Ask Don’t Tell” affect LGTBQ+ service members?

By exploring the works in this volume, readers will learn about some of these realities. Perhaps they will gain deeper understandings of the human condition generally, or as it pertains to military service specifically. Maybe a conversation will be struck up that wouldn’t have occurred before. And we can hope that it may inspire others to add their own voices to a robust conversation playing out in literature and the arts.

We’re glad to have the opportunity to share As You Were: The Military Review, Vol. 16 with you, whatever its impact may be.

AS YOU WERE: THE MILITARY REVIEW, Vol. 13 Released

Military Experience and the Arts is proud to announce the release of As You Were: The Military Review, Vol. 13. This edition contains over thirty works in literary fiction, creative nonfiction, and poetry.

As You Were, Vol. 13 brings diverse and illuminating perspectives to the canon of military-themed literature. Included in this volume are voices from veterans of the Army, Coast Guard, Navy, Air Force, and the Marine Corps, ranging from Vietnam to the Global War on Terror. There are also mothers grappling with their children’s decision to join the service, sisters saying goodbye to one another, a Russian linguist in Army intelligence translating chilling recordings, and a VA psychologist bridging the divide in counseling, among many others.

There are some seasoned writers included in this volume, and there are a great many who are publishing for the first time. Several have worked one-on-one with MEA editors to polish, revise, or rewrite their works in a process that builds skills in creative expression and brings readers excellent works. Through these stories and poems, readers can learn, empathize, and perhaps feel more connected with the greater military community.

This Veterans Day, honor veterans and their families and friends by taking a look at As You Were: The Military Review, Vol. 13. Thank you!

Release of BLUE NOSTALGIA, Vol. 4

MEA is proud to present a new edition of Blue Nostalgia: A Journal of Post-Traumatic Growth, our fourth installment of the title. Blue Nostalgia is a unique publication in that it contains stories of veterans’ and family members’ stories of how they face the challenges of post-traumatic stress as well has how they grow in spite it – or even because of it.

Volume 4 contains works from the perspective of family members of WWII veterans as well as from Vietnam and Cold War veterans. They have in common the bravery to share their deeply personal stories in order to educate the public and let other veterans and families know that they are not alone.

Read Blue Nostalgia: A Journal of Post-Traumatic Growth, Vol. 4 by clicking on the titles in this post or by navigating drop down menu under “Publications.”

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Cover image: “Where to Go From Here,” woodcut print by Brandie Dziegiel