Frank Walker: on telling a bloody good yarn

So, just how did non-fiction military history author Frank Walker catapult himself to the top of the genre’s bestselling pile with his debut book in less than two months?

Not by sending his children to work in the coal mines to fund the purchase of excess stock, as he might have you believe.

No, in all seriousness, the key to his success lies in the art of storytelling. In other words, he tells a bloody good yarn!

“I found Barry’s story so thrilling," Frank says of the book’s central character, Australian officer Barry Petersen. “I knew the best way to write this was as if it was a thriller.

"My aim was to tell a ripping yarn, and to get a deeper message across in the story as well. In my case, it was the lies of government in sending young men to war, the skulduggery of getting involved with the CIA, and the mistakes of the Vietnam War being repeated in today's war in Iraq and Afghanistan.”

Frank admits that while this approach may incur the wrath of traditional historians, the proof that it is a successful formula is in the numbers.

“Often, there is a bit of resentment among historians towards journalists who write popular histories, (but) I think journalists go on their merry way because they write more readable books,” explains Frank, a former Fairfax reporter of 24 years.

“Certainly there is a place for the conventional, dry, academic history, but that is not me.”

The Tiger Man of Vietnam, released on October 1 this year, is one of the best selling books of the genre at present, with the publishers already putting it into its second print run. (First print run, 10,000).

The book tells the story of Petersen, who was sent into the hills of Vietnam in 1963 by the CIA on a covert mission to train Montagnard tribesmen as a paramilitary force.

Sympathetic to the Montagnard - who were at the mercy of both the Viet Cong and the South Vietnamese forces - Petersen developed a loyalty to them that would prove stronger than his loyalty to the CIA authorities.

By digging deep into Petersen’s life, Frank showcases a man who is prepared to buck authority for the good of humanity, and uncovers the truly shady nature in which the US and the allies ran the Vietnam War.

Integrity, professionalism and research

Digging deep in the name of research is a skill that Frank fine tuned over the past two decades as chief reporter covering defence and military for the Sun-Herald, and it is one that stood him in good stead as an author.

“Whenever I came up with a name or a document or a military program… I would write it down on a separate piece of paper and would chase that until I was satisfied I had all the information,” he says.

Frank also extended this tenacity to his dealings with Petersen and the many people he interviewed for the book.

This is the key, he believes, to writing a tactful, yet truthful account of another person’s life.

“Integrity is the main thing. You must maintain a professional distance. This is something we do as journalists when we are dealing with people. There is a certain element of trust and you have to earn that... by being as open about what you are doing as possible,” he says.

“I told Barry exactly what I was doing, that I may uncover things that he may not want uncovered. I sent him extracts - not everything though - and asked him to check any inaccuracies. The story would only succeed if it was accurate.”

When publishers come knocking

Whilst Petersen can credit Frank for producing an exciting and intriguing account of his life, it is Frank who can thank Petersen for kick-starting his career as an author.

ANZAC Day had been fast approaching last year when Frank went on the hunt for a good 1500-word military-themed feature. That hunt led to Petersen.

The day after the article about this 'man of mystery' ran, two publishers left phone messages offering Frank a book deal.

“It’s a journalist’s dream come true when the publisher comes knocking on your door,” he admits.

A few months later, Frank signed up for voluntary redundancy at the newspaper, finished the book and began his new career as a published author.

Now, with the sales of Tiger Man going strong in the lead-up to Christmas, Frank is already working on another book about the Vietnam War.

“I suspect this will be more gritty and less heroic than Barry’s book,” he says.

Revealing only a hint of what it is about – “there is suspicion of some very ugly things that happened, and the military cover-up of it" – Frank is already alluding to the promise of another tale full of intrigue, mystery, dirty tactics and action.

The Tiger Man of Vietnam
By Frank Walker
Published by Hachette Australia
October 2009

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