“For Them, By Us” is the first published collection of writing from the Veterans’ Voices writing workshops, a program of El Dorado Arts Council.

This workshop series established in 2014 provides a setting for vets to explore the creative process through writing on any subject, in any form – fiction, memoir, poetry, drama.

Workshop participants who contributed to this anthology came with a range of writing experience. Some had little to no experience with composition, some had professional writing experience, and others had a longstanding interest in writing or had works in progress. What they shared at the outset was having served the country in the military and an interest in developing their own writing skills. What they have gained over the last year is confidence in their ability to communicate, and a camaraderie in a mutually supportive atmosphere. Some even found a voice after decades of silence.

Investigative writer Weston DeWalt leads the Veterans’ Voices workshops. DeWalt is coauthor of the New York Times bestseller “The Climb,” a nonfiction book about a 1996 disaster on Mount Everest. A former acquisitions editor for New York publisher John Wiley & Sons, DeWalt has also worked as a documentary filmmaker, a cold case investigator and as a university teacher of writing and publishing.

The stories collected reflect many experiences and points of view. There are personal reflections on the events of Sept. 11, a return to a family home after a long absence, and a childhood memory of an introduction to coffee. A former cop describes a haunting experience with a traffic accident. A Vietnam vet describes a firefight and its disarming aftermath. There is humor as well, including an imagined scenario of an encounter between a sitting U.S. president and his successor.

The anthologies will be available in December. To obtain a copy, go online.