I was a public affairs officer. I worked with the media, but I didn't just stay at my desk. I assisted in military duties, travelled around Anbar province, hung out with a wide variety of Marines. Phil Klay affairanbarassist Change image and share on social
I suppose it is the lot of soldiers and Marines to be objectified according to the politics of the day and the mood of the American people about their war. Phil Klay americandaylot Change image and share on social
I went straight from the Marine Corps to the MFA. The way that you would express things among Marines is somewhat different than the way you're supposed to express things in a creative-writing workshop. Phil Klay corpscreativeexpress share on social
Sometimes macho language is to mask things people are not ready to deal with. Phil Klay deallanguagemacho Change image and share on social
If you write a novel where war is nothing but hell and no one experiences excitement or cracks a dark joke, then you're not actually admitting the full experience. Phil Klay admitcrackdark Change image and share on social
I never thought anyone would pity me because of my time in the Marine Corps. Phil Klay corpsmarinepity Change image and share on social
There's something odd about working 24/7, being consumed with everything that's happening in Iraq, and then coming back to the country that ordered you over there only to realize that a lot of Americans are not really paying attention. Phil Klay americanattentionback share on social
There's a tradition in war writing that the veteran goes over and sees the truth of war and comes back. And I'm skeptical of that. Phil Klay backseeskeptical Change image and share on social
I don't want to act as though my deployment was particularly rough, because it wasn't. I had a very mild deployment; I was a staff officer. Phil Klay actdeploymentmild Change image and share on social
When I tell stories about Iraq, the ones people react to are always the stories of violence. This is strange for me. Phil Klay iraqpeoplereact Change image and share on social
