PHOTO: Rick DeStefanis pictured in his Mississippi home, surrounded by books and reminders of a life dedicated to his craft.
Exploring Humanity Through Historical And Military Fiction
Rick DeStefanis discusses the themes of sacrifice, redemption, and authenticity in his military and historical fiction, offering insights into crafting compelling narratives and capturing the complexities of human emotion.
Rick DeStefanis has an uncanny ability to narrate stories of ordinary men thrust into extraordinary circumstances. His works delve into the dualities of human strength and frailty, chiselling away at the veneer of heroism to reveal raw, poignant truths. A former paratrooper, his life experiences infuse his writing with an authenticity that reverberates beyond plotlines, elevating his narratives to emotive explorations of resilience and redemption. Through his meticulously crafted characters, DeStefanis often asks us: how does one reconcile bravery and fear, camaraderie and solitude, love and loss?
In his novel Raeford’s MVP, DeStefanis turns his lens towards the aftermath of war and the quieter battles veterans face back home. This historical military fiction book stretches wide across spectrums of tragedy and humour, as it follows its protagonist on his journey through both physical and emotional landscapes shaped by trauma. What is remarkable is the book’s ability to balance darkness with glimpses of hope, and cynicism with love—not an artificial or grandiose kind of love, but one that is iridescent in its humanity. An echo felt in reviews like Steven H.’s reminds us how stories such as this can challenge us to look deeper, beyond plot mechanics, for the glaring truths about life that DeStefanis reveals.
DeStefanis’s writing transports readers to vivid settings, rich with detail and emotive echoes of history. But what anchors his stories is always the people he brings to life—the misunderstood, the brave, the flawed, the gruff. His characters are bridges connecting us to the complex realities of the human condition, forcing us to sit in uncomfortable silences or laugh unexpectedly through pain. Therein lies the gift of Raeford’s MVP: like the best literature, it leaves a mark, a quiet imprint on the heart, and challenges us to question what we bring to the world around us. And perhaps, that is its deepest triumph.
In Specter of Betrayal, you delve into themes of guilt and redemption. What inspired you to explore these particular aspects of the human condition?
Only the most afflicted narcissists live without some degree of remorse or regret for something in life where they failed a family member, a friend, or even a stranger. They had the ability to do something, say something, or otherwise make a difference and didn’t. This is often true of military veterans. Whether it was fear, ignorance, or perhaps something beyond their control, Veterans often live with such regrets and self-guilt. Martin Shadows saw the plight of the Montagnards in Vietnam and was determined to return there and do anything within his power to help them. And though he fails, he eventually finds redemption doesn’t necessarily come from victory.
The Birdhouse Man intertwines a Vietnam Veteran’s story with that of a young history student. What motivated you to structure the narrative with these parallel perspective?
This novel came from a desire to give younger generations a better understanding of that old veteran in their family. Often seen as a grumpy old man wearing a veteran’s ball cap, or as an old codger who refuses to talk about his past, a military veteran can be overlooked as the character Sam Walker who sits at a table at a craft fair, selling his homemade birdhouses. Only when senior college student Claire Cunningham recognizes the 82nd Airborne patch on Sam’s cap, does she become curious. The story becomes parallel perspectives when Sam realizes Claire’s motivation is driven by something more than the senior thesis she hopes to write.
Your Rawlins Saga has drawn comparisons to the Yellowstone Series. How do you perceive these similarities, and were they intentional?
The similarities between Taylor Sheridan’s 1883 Yellowstone Series and The Rawlins Saga are indeed uncanny. The Confederate veteran and his wife leading a wagon train of immigrants westward are characters and a basic plotline in the Yellowstone Series that seem to almost mirror The Rawlins Saga. As for the question “were they intentional?” that would have to be answered by the producers of Yellowstone 1883, because while that series first appeared in 2021, the first two books of The Rawlins Saga were published in 2018 and 2019.
Tallahatchie has been praised for its vivid depiction of the Mississippi Delta. How does your Southern heritage influence your portrayal of this setting?
I suppose you could say I lived it. I have known the people who became my characters and experienced or witnessed many of the situations as portrayed in Tallahatchie. As for the vivid depiction of the Mississippi Delta: When I first began writing this story, I sought to portray the Delta in the same manner as James Lee Burke describes the bayou country of southern Louisiana. Burke masterfully weaves a scene without the reader realizing he hasn’t stopped the plot narrative. That has been my goal. I want readers to hear the Barred Owls calling from somewhere far down in the swamps, to smell the odor of creosoted railroad crossties baking in the hot sun, and to see a fat yellow moon rising from the mist across a cotton field at night. I want my readers to feel they have been there.
What advice would you offer to aspiring authors aiming to write compelling military or historical fiction?
That old adage “tell a story” is paramount. Populate it with well developed characters that readers can see clearly and come to know. As for writing compelling military or historical fiction: a writer must be mindful that author credibility is critical. Even a minute error or oversight can cause a reader to question everything else you have written. An author must research with maddening detail every aspect of a historical setting, events, terminology of the time, equipment, and the manner in which a story and its plot blend with the historical facts. One of the most often repeated mistakes I see with military fiction authors is when a character such as a front-line soldier suddenly begins talking of grand strategy and tactics that only a high-level officer or diplomat could know. An author must put his/herself inside that character and see only what is visible through those eyes.
