Every writer has a story behind the stories, and Dick Denny’s journey to publication is as compelling as the novels he writes. A veteran of the 82nd Airborne and a graduate of Auburn University, Denny brings to his fiction a unique blend of adventure, discipline, irreverence, and hard-earned life experience. Whether scuba diving, hiking remote trails, camping under open skies, or summiting Mount Kilimanjaro, he has never been one to shy away from challenges—a quality that resonates throughout his work.
Denny is the author of the Nick Trilogy, a series known for its violent, sacrilegious humour and unconventional storytelling, as well as Matter of Honor, an off-kilter love story between professional killers with a revenge background. His path to becoming a published author began while serving overseas and later took shape through the support of the Delta Writers Group in Mississippi.
In a remarkable turn of events, Denny completed the first Nick novel in just fourteen days during NaNoWriMo and secured a publishing contract almost immediately after submitting it. In this interview, he reflects on his writing journey, creative influences, and the experiences that have shaped his distinctive voice.
So without further ado, let’s dive into the world, works, and mind of author Dick Denny.
Amisha: Tell me a story about your writing journey. When did you start? Why did you start? Were there bumps along the way? Where are you now and where are you going?
Dick: I’ve always written… though none of the early stuff was particularly good. When I was serving in Iraq I came up with some stories, one of which became The Nick Decker trilogy.
I wouldn’t say there have been bumps along the way because it was never something I ever expected to succeed at. The only audience I have ever written for was me. So if I like it, it’s successful… If other people like it, that’s just a bonus.
In all honesty, don’t really know where I am, don’t know where I’m going! But I’ll have a good time on the trip one way or another.
Amisha: That’s fabulous. If you think about it, it’s always better not to have a plan.
Describe your writing process. What is around you when you write? Is there a particular time of the day you like to write in?
Dick: My writing process is pretty simple. I don’t care about the story. In all honesty, I really think somebody’s story is irrelevant. For me it is first foremost and wholly about the characters. So I just make sure I have an understanding of my characters before I begin and then I just see where they take the story. If you understand the inherent logic of your characters, then the story writes itself.
I don’t write at home. There are too many cats there that demand attention! Either go to a university library or a university quiet study room or the coffee shop downtown. My best work is always accompanied by Dr Pepper. I must always have my earbuds in listening to whatever music is appropriate to what I’m working on.
But really the way it doesn’t matter. I wrote 12,000 words on an 18 hour flight to Afghanistan.
There are months where I will not write a word, but when I sit down to write, I treat it like Work. I set a specific word count that I’m going to hit, everyday. And I hit that word count everyday until I’m done.
For me, it doesn’t matter if anything I write is good or bad. I can keep what I want and toss the rest. But always set a goal. Because I’ve found I can write crap, then the good stuff will arrive. Deep down you know when you’re in the flow. When you are in the flow you ride it!
Amisha: You have lived a gutsy life. You served in the 82nd airborne and have climbed Mt. Kilimanjaro. How much do you think your life experiences have influenced your writing?
Dick: I think anyone who writes doesn’t do it in a vacuum. I don’t think Wilfred Owen could have written ‘Dulce Et Decorum Est’ had he not spent time in the trenches of WWI.
One of the reasons I’ve done some of the things I’ve done is because I wanted the experiences. I wanted the answers to questions I hadn’t even come up with yet.
I like to think the things I’ve done help make certain things in my writing ring true.
All of us are the sum of our experiences… writers or otherwise.
Amisha: Love this line. I am going to add it to my quote collection.
Who are your favourite authors? Is there anyone who inspired your style of writing?
Dick: Favorite authors… Ernest Hemingway… Robert Heinlein… Dashiell Hammett…Rudyard Kipling…
As for style. I hope I don’t have a style like anyone else. And I don’t want to read anyone who is like someone else.
But I will confess everything I’ve ever written in the 1st person was influenced by ‘Red Harvest’.
Amisha: What is the one motivational quote you follow in life?
Dick: “Life is a tragedy to those who feel and a comedy to those who think.” That was in the first fortune cookie I ever opened. I don’t know if it counts as motivational, but I’d rather laugh than cry.
Amisha: What are some of your favourite books to read? Can you give us some recommendations?
Dick: I read a lot of history. Ultimately there is nothing in fiction which can’t be topped by something that actually happened in history. The best histories cover character. B.H. Liddel-Hart wrote ‘Scipio Africanus: Greater Than Napoleon’ and ‘Sherman: Soldier, Realist, American’ both of which are amazing character studies.
Robert Gaudi wrote the book ‘African Kaiser; General Paul von Lettie-Vorbeck and the Great War in Africa 1914-1918’ which reads like a novel.
I don’t think anyone would be wasting their time reading Hemingway or Kipling. ‘The Nick Adams Stories,’ ‘A Farewell to Arms,’ and ‘For Whom the Bell Tolls’ are some of the best works of the 20th century. “If” by Kipling is the instruction manual to be a man.
Amisha: I have never actually been a lot interested in reading history because I think literature covers a lot of it. But I will definitely check these books out. And I completely agree with you about how the best histories cover character. It’s people who shape history. Their decisions, their personalities affect the destiny of the world. So histories should be about the people who have made them and their character.
So your book ‘Matter of Honor’ is about two assassins. What about you? Are you an assassin? Do you believe in the old advice ‘kill your darlings’? How many ‘darlings’ have you killed?
Dick: I’m not an assassin, but I’m not opposed to it for the right price! But, like the character Jim in ‘Matter of Honor’ I have worked as a contractor in high threat hostile environments. So, I’ve been shot at and blown up more than once… and it’s safe to say I’ve hurt some people’s feelings…
As for “killing your darlings” everything has to serve the narrative. Most important, is your characters. So if a character or subplot doesn’t serve the journey of your protagonist… pop it behind the ear with a subsonic .22 out of a suppressed Walter.
I have entire novels live left on the cutting room floor.
Amisha: What is your favourite and least favourite part about being a writer?
Dick: I hate the process of editing. Getting that first draft down is pure, insane, creation. They first draft is therapy and editing is work.
That said, I hate writing. Hemingway said something along the lines of “writing is easy, you just stand over a typewriter and bleed”
I hate writing, but I love having written.
Amisha: Yeah, that makes sense. Writing as a final product feels a lot less tedious than writing as a process. So what font do you write in? Do you actually care or just use the default setting?
Dick: On my laptop I work in American Typewriter
On my iPad I write in Times New Roman, because American Typewriter isn’t an option on Scrivener.
Something about American Typewriter feels real.
Amisha: Tell us about your future projects? Are there more books coming out? What are you working on right now and what have you planned for the future?
Dick: I have a trilogy of 1930’s Pulp novels that I call the “Punching Nazi’s trilogy.” That series is a lot of fun. Who doesn’t like to see Nazi’s punched? It’s in the editing phase. All three books have gone through the first pass. I’m just waiting on the second round of notes.
After that I have a fantasy novel I’m slowly working my way through the first round of edits.
The Nick Decker Trilogy is out and available. ‘Hell For The Company’. ‘Paved With Good Intentions’ and ‘Abandon All Hope’.
And people can still get ‘Matter of Honor’.
Amisha: So that was it from the author Dick Denny. I’d like to thank him for talking to us and sharing his marvelous journey from the 82nd Airborne to the world of publishing. Denny’s journey is a reminder that great stories often emerge from lives fully lived. We eagerly look forward to read whatever Denny has in store for us next.
You can find his books on Amazon and Kindle Unlimited . And if you want to see more of the author, you can find him on Facebook , Goodreads and Twitter.
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