Q&A With Ed Macy

We recently had the chance to ask Ed Macy, author of Apache and Hellfire, some questions about himself and his writing. His latest book, Hellfire tells the story of how Ed came to be the first person to fire the fearesome Hellfire missile in combat. Published by HarperPress, Hellfire is released on September 3rd.

Tell us a little bit about yourself.
I was an average boy, in an average place, doing average things. Then I fell in with the wrong crowd. I spent a short while as a bad lad, in a bad place, doing bad things. I quickly grew up and after a few failed relationships and 23 years serving in the Army I settled down. I now spend my spare time doing good things, all over the country (world recently) for those less fortunate. My time is spent mainly on children, and more recently, on those left behind after WW2 that have been forgotten by our government.

What books have had a lasting impact on you?
I’m a firm believer of Karma in this life. I believe my actions today will have a profound effect on what happens in the future. Those actions do not only affect me but often others and Mitch Albom’s the five people you meet in heaven is as close to what I believe as I have ever read.

I never thought I would find an aviation book that could encompass every facet of aviation to aspire to. Hugh L Mills Jr wrote about being a Little Bird pilot in Vietnam and in my eyes Low Level Hell is the epitome of what I hoped to achieve in my career. It’s not gung-ho, has no political slant and does not exaggerate though sensationalisation. It changed the way I saw my roll as a pilot and as a commander and became the bible on aviation to me. Honesty, integrity and always do you your best for every soldier no matter who they are, even if the risk is death.

As a boy I had reading difficulties. I did not get on with my English teacher and knowing I struggled to pronounce words she forced me to stand in front of the whole class and read an extract from J.R.R Tolkien’s, The Hobbit. To the raucous laughter of the rest of the class, she mocked my poor attempt. I walked out, never to attend another English lesson again leaving school without any English qualifications. As an adult I spent an inordinate amount of time learning what I had missed at school and thoroughly enjoyed reading the Hobbit to my children at home.

Why do you write?
My family were fed up and bored listening to my war stories and wouldn’t entertain anything that began with, “When I was in…” So I wrote them down.

As an author, what are you most proud (or embarrassed) of writing?
I’m not embarrassed by anything I’ve written and given my lack of formal education I couldn’t have been more proud when Apache was published.

What is your biggest failure?
Apache sold enough books in its first week to have been a number one bestseller for an entire month. I chose the week Sir Cliff Richard published his and had to settle for second. Cliff is an institution in our family and failure to be Number One turned out to be hilarious.

When you were a kid, what did you think were you going to be when you grew up?
I wanted to be a professional BMX’r but my dad made my bike from broken bikes at the scrappy and it never cut the mustard.

If you could travel anywhere in time, for one day, where would you go and why?
I would travel to my own time party. I would dine and drink with leaders before taking a call outside!

Do you like reading e-books?
I’ve never had the chance yet but I’m hoping Father Christmas is reading this.

What are you working on at the moment?
I have just returned from a jungle expedition in Malaysia where I led a team looking for the bodies of a lost WW2 RAF bomber. Working on behalf of the relatives we found and exhumed the remains of the 8 man crew because the British government refused to. I am now writing up my report in which to have the men DNA tested so the relatives can give them a proper burial after 64 years.

Who are the five people, living or dead, you’d invite to a party?
To my Time Party I would invite Adolf Hitler 89, Robert Mugabe, Saloth Sar (Pol Pot), Osama bin Laden and the guy who stole my HanWag mountain boots from my back garden. I’d sit them down and take my call outside. “Ugly Five One this is Ed Macy. Your target is…”