‘BLACK HAWK DOWN’ VETERAN MATT EVERSMANN IS ON A MISSION TO HIGHLIGHT THE TOUGH REALITIES OF THOSE WHOE SERVE
October 20, 2022 ·Mac Caltrider
Matt Eversmann served in the US Army for 20 years, and he continues to serve today by telling the stories of America’s first responders. Composite by Coffee or Die Magazine.
Matt Eversmann didn’t always plan to become a writer. Growing up, his dream was to pursue a life of military service. At 18, he joined the Army and soon found himself a member of the elite 75th Ranger Regiment. While serving with 3rd Ranger Battalion in 1993, he was deployed to Somalia, where he led a squad of Rangers through Operation Gothic Serpent, better known as the Battle of Mogadishu or the “Black Hawk Down” incident. He survived the 18-hour firefight that cost 18 American lives and went on to serve another 15 years in the Army.
In 2004, Eversmann published his first book, titled The Battle of Mogadishu: Firsthand Accounts From the Men of Task Force Ranger. Despite the book’s success, Eversmann remained devoted to his military career. In 2007, he was deployed overseas again, this time to Iraq for a grueling 15-month tour with the 10th Mountain Division. That was his last big mission as a soldier, but after leaving the Army in 2008, he felt compelled to continue supporting those still serving and found that the best way for him to do that was through writing.
Eversmann is now the author of four books, three of which he co-authored with bestselling writer James Patterson. Last year, Eversmann published Walk in My Combat Boots, a collection of interviews with service members that paints a broad and comprehensive picture of life in the military. That book was also a big success, and he followed it with E.R. Nurses, a similar collection of interviews that examines the world of emergency medical care workers. His latest book, Walk the Blue Line, hitting shelves in January of 2023, uses the same format to explore the current state of law enforcement in America. Coffee or Die sat down with Eversmann to discuss his military career, his collaborations with Patterson, and why he considers nurses to be angels among us.
https://www.coffeeordie.com/matt-eversmann-blue-line
