The Army Matrix Pool

Being something of a wargammer, I've designed three, you know.

[Why does it say 'Designer: Eric Harvey'-Ed]

Because Eric Harvey took the game the designed, made a few changes and called it his own.

 Anyhoo, I tend to look at world order of battle tables and think, now how can I get them into the fight.

The World War:1990 series has seen many temptations in that regard.

In Castro's Folly (this week people), we're throwing the interesting and complex South African Defense Force into the fight.

In Pacific Storm, the ANZACs are mobilizing, and what's the point of the Japanese having that fine navy if the author ain't gonna write about it. I mean just look at all those high tech (for 1990) destroyers and frigates, and don't get me started on that force of 200+ F-15Js.

Man, are there ever some orbat temptations in this universe.

I mean, here we have the South Korean Armed forces, the Israelis of Asia. What about Taiwan? There's another fine military. Why I bet their just begging to get into action.

Then there's the big cheese, the Sub-continent. India and Pakistan. I suppose I should call it 'the big samosa.  Both nations have large, well appointed armed forces (and nukes to boot).  And they hate one another. So we've got that going for us. Which is nice.

Why not fight?

Of course, in any Indo-Pak war taking place in 1990, the U.S. would be much more inclined to help Pakistan.

We learn from out mistakes people and I guess that was a big one. Of course, the Pakis were helping us supply the Afghan Muj....still looking for an upside on this one.

Oh the temptations. As the reader will see soon, we succumbed to them in Castro's Follyh.

Looking into the Cabinet...

....That's actually a line from 'Shelter' by the 80's hair metal band Cinderella. Very underrated by the way but that's a subject for another post. Frankly I have no idea what 'To look into the cabinet it takes more than a key' is supposed to mean.

Anywho I've noted before that once again I'm writing about furious cabinet sessions and the like. I've sworn that one day I'll write a novel that doesn't have exploding tanks (hasn't happened yet) but it might be more interesting if I wrote a novel that doesn't have cabinet meetings.

Actually Castro's Folly doesn't have many, that's for sure. It was originally conceived as ground level view of things, and it is for the most part. We see Cubans on the ground in Nicaragua and Africa, South African tankers, Contra commanders, Honduran Army captains, and the like

I dunno, I just think a cabinet meeting is a good way to show what's happening and move the action along.

Another problem of redundancy is the combat itself. There are only so many ways to describe an exploding T-72. Doesn't the reader say to himself , 'Oh look, another turret spiraling into the air...' Maybe the reader doesn't. Its not like I said, 'What more X-wings! Goddamn it!' when I saw Return of the Jedi the first time.

In fact, back in the 80's and 90's, before the internet and Amazon or even Borders, I'd scower the book shelves looking for mil-sci fi. The 20 such novels I had read wasn't enough. I needed twenty one.

So maybe my readers need more furious cabinet sessions where President Bush is torn between the Hawkes like Kristol and Wolfowitz and the doves like Baker, where Maggie Thatcher is berating her poor subordinates, where the Politburo sees events slipping out of their control.

Enjoy!

Castro's Folly Proof

Well the Castro's Folly proof is in.

I just love that cover, don't you?
I swear this is the worst part. That last reading, 265 pages just to weed out a typo here and there.

Actually I've already found that I spell a character's name 'Parades' and 'Paredes'. Its things like that one only catches on the proof. Don't ask me how the science works, but its real I tell you. With any luck this will be out in January, maybe even a little earlier.

Pressing on.

Stay clear of the Cabinet

One day I'll write a novel that doesn't have intense cabinet meetings.

That day is not today.

Ok, even I'm sick of them.

I guess the cabinet drama began with Israel Strikes where we had not only the Israeli cabinet but the American cabinet as well at lager-heads about the war. Heck, War of the Red Sea had cabinet meetings and Knesset intrigue as the leader of the opposition maneuvered against Prime Minister Eitan.

Lets see, so far in the World War series we've had intense cabinet sessions in Washington and London, of course, Bonn and now Canberra and Tokyo. Don't even get me started on the Politburo.

In Castro's Folly I've managed to limit these sessions to secondary working groups chaired by Vice President Quayle.

I don't know if the reader is sick of these. I guess I'm not, even if they get redundant after a while.

Hey, I feel like the reader has to understand how and why evens are taking place otherwise we're just landing troops at Matanzas for no damn reason.

Of course, the final novel in the World War Series will be nothing but political intrigue and all about the election of 1992 in the new world.

Not much room their for tanks and aircraft carriers there eh?

Of course one day I'll write a novel that doesn't have exploding tanks but that day....

High Fidelity

Well, timing is everything.

Castro dies, World War 1990: Castro's Folly is at the printer.

Ironically, in Castro's Folly, most of the sympathetic characters are Cuban the brothers Caridad, one in Honduras, one in Angola, one at sea and another managing the defense of Guanajay Ridge. Don't worry, you'll see. Then there is the young political officer, Flavio, who is ore interested in baseball than Marxism, and the grim commander of Guanajay Ridge's air defenses, Major Evora.

This one was a lot of fun to write. No one has every done WWIII the way I have in Castro's Folly. New ground for sure.

I am going to be optimistic and anticipate release in early Jan.

Will's Good Idea for the week of 10-16-16

Hell with it, we're putting World War 1990: Castro's Folly into production.

Of course, Castro's Folly was originally intended to be a collection of short stories dealing with other aspects of the war. Instead it ballooned into a 75,000 word novel covering action in Honduras, Nicaragua, Angola and Cuba.

This one will have lots of Angolan Communists, South African Defense Forces, Contras (Nicaraguan Freedom Fighters), Sandinistas, the American National Guard, and M-48 tanks, god help them.

Castro's Folly also sets the stage for my little Pacific love letter to ANZAC forces. 

Updates and Chronology

Reader Willy C asks where Castro's Folly fits in the chronology of events of the World War 1990 universe.

Good question.

Readers will recall that toward the end of Eastern Storm, Iraq invaded Kuwait at the behest of the Politburo. Seeing the success of this strategy, the Politburo will set more of its allies lose upon the world. This will involve two nations, the first being Cuba.

The Soviet Union will encourage, cajole, and prod the Cubans into making trouble in Africa via Angola, a move which leads to a major battle with the South Africans. The Cubans will in turn help the Nicaraguans mount an incursion into Honduras to destroy Contra forces there.

These are the events of World War 1990: Castro's Folly.

Castro's Folly opens with the Soviet ambassador meeting with Castro, it ends with the Soviet ambassador in Hanoi meeting with the Vietnamese premier. This will lead to trouble throughout the South China Sea and will see an ANZAC Force engage the Vietnamese. These will be the events in another novel, yet to be titled, for now lets call it Operation Pacific, actually that's not bad.

Now, Eastern Storm ends with the NATO victory in Czechoslovakia. This sets the stage for the final battle in The Final Storm. This will see fighting in Poland, in the Barents Sea and the Black Sea as NATO makes a move to force an end to the war.

The Final Storm, Castro's Folly, and Operation Pacific are happening at the same time. There are illusions to both novels in The Final Storm.

Now, as to Castro's Folly, its done, fin, finis, complete. It just needs to go into production which involves one more round of editing.

So why isn't it in production?

I just figured Castro's Folly and Operation Pacific were side theaters and it made more sense to rap up the big show first and then publish the other two. I mean, one is reading about massive tank battles in Europe and then in volume three all of the sudden your in the Honduran jungle? Mind....blown...

Maybe I'm wrong, lemme know.

By the way, I'm planning to other novels in the series. First, the IRA is going to make Maggie, really, really mad. Second, I thought it be fun to do a political novel about the election of 1992. Just think of the presidential debate, Dan Quayle vs ...probably still Bill Clinton, right?