interview

Q&A with John Melady, author of Korea: Canada’s Forgotten War

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Author John Melady gives us insights into his new book Korea: Canada’s Forgotten War and on some other future projects.

Tell us about your book.

Korea: Canada’s Forgotten War is actually an updating of a book I wrote almost 30 years ago. It was a Book-of-the-Month Club and Literary Guild selection at the time, and a best seller. Since then however, the brave men and women who fought for Canada in Korea are still being forgotten, and this book is another attempt to rectify that. I only hope that the remaining veterans understand that it is my tribute to them, and that those people born since Korea get some understanding of what that conflict was all about. Canada and Canadians have a proud past as far as Korea is concerned, and we should know that.

Did you have a specific readership in mind when you wrote your book?

I did not have a specific audience in mind when I wrote this book. Instead, I hoped anyone reading it would obtain a greater understanding of the Korean War – why we went there, and what we achieved. I also believe, as Canadians, that we know far too little about our past. Sometimes we seem to regard the history of other countries as much more interesting and exciting than our own. That is mainly because we do not know our own.

How did you research your book?

In order to properly research this account, I travelled widely in Canada, spent countless hours in our National Archives, and then walked the battlefields of Korea where so many lived and died in the cause of freedom. Being able to interview, not just our Service personnel, but to talk first hand to Koreans themselves was truly an honour for me. I met many men and women in that Asian country, and I was always struck by their praise for the young Canadians who went to that nation and gave of themselves to defend it.

What’s the best advice you’ve ever received as a writer?

Writing is often a discouraging profession. For that reason, I treasure Doug Gibson’s advice to anyone who gets a book published. Doug is a personal friend, and I first met him when he edited my books at Macmillan of Canada. At the time, he cautioned me and others in his stable of writers to take with a grain of salt the euphoria around getting a book published. In essence, he was telling us all that our work would be criticized, often unfairly; that ours was not the only book out there, and that a fickle reading public would somehow regard less worthy books as ones they should buy. To me, getting a book published is always bittersweet – for lots of reasons. Sooner or later, I’m going to write a book explaining why this is so. All those disappointed and rejected wannabe writers will surely snap it up.

Has a review or profile ever changed your perspective on your work?

As the author of several books, I am always interested in how reviewers and readers in general react to what I have written. After reading reviews of my books, I tend to take any praise with reserve, but a reviewer’s criticism as something I can learn from. Anyone who takes the time to read my material is someone I want to thank: no matter what they might have thought of my work. Reviewers and readers in general are not stupid. I know that. I also know they deserve my best, and I try to make sure they get it.

© 2011 Defining Canada.