Vietnam Veteran Poetry by Francisco Biscoriliza
The poetry and remembrances of Francisco Biscoriliza, a reluctant Viet Nam veteran, reflect his experiences during a mysterious tour of service that felt like a metaphorical shooting gallery.
ABOUT WARRIOR'S MANUSCRIPT
Warrior's Manuscript
It wasn't war or warriors that gave birth to Warrior's Manuscript; it was the Metaphorical Shooting Gallery Series that sparked the creation. I'm not exactly sure when or where the idea for this series of poems first ignited, but when it did, it hit me like a lightning bolt of laughter. To this day, I still revisit that first poem and find myself chuckling. It was the scammer poem that prompted me to finally publish a book instead of just toying around with magazines. I felt the need to share this thought with you, as I'm certain there are hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of us who wish this fate upon the irritating, evil bastards out there scamming people, particularly the elderly out of their savings. If you haven't yet read one of these poems, I don’t want to spoil it too much, but in the first poem, Something I Said (or The Metaphorical Scammer Shooting Gallery), a series of scammers get their comeuppances. The inspiration came from my work-from-home experience, where I received numerous unwelcome phone calls, especially leading up to the closing of Social Security enrollment day on December 7th. On one day alone, I fielded 53 calls; it could have been more, but I began to play with them in various ways, sometimes leading them on, and other times pretending to be drunk or obnoxious.
Anyway, I transformed these evil beings into characters that my seemingly innocent targets of their schemes would encounter on the street, crafting delightful outcomes for anyone who has ever fantasized about those creeps getting what they deserve. In Warrior’s Manuscript, there are four Metaphorical Shooting Gallery Poems that address scammers, lawyers, pharmacists, and doctors. By the way, if you find the pharmacist poem particularly hilarious, it truly happened much like I describe it in the poem, minus the ending, of course. In Warrior’s Allegory, I continue the series with another odd quartet: politicians, assassins, censors, and transgenders. It's worth noting that not all subjects meet the same fate; sometimes the tables turn, just as they do in life.
Warrior Poet
We're in the Army Now
My time in the Army was short but intense. It may be surprising, considering my rank and current dedication to the military, that I was drafted into the service. In 1965, I took an ill-advised break from my university studies in architecture and was immediately sent a greeting from Uncle Sam with an invitation as to how I could spend the next couple of years. At first, I was terrified, then angry, then determined to be a terrible soldier and finally, after coming to my senses and being told by the military that I had 'certain talents' that they were very interested in, I transformed into a freedom fighter. The result was that 18 months later, after a rather strange, classified trip, I reached the rank of E-5, a relatively unheard rank for a draftee. Oddly, I got along with that. There was the occasional gripe, but for the most part, the camaraderie of men in war zones lifts them above petty attitudes. The enlisted men I had shared my time in the trenches with not only accepted the change but looked to me as a conduit to the non-coms. The non-coms were gracious in their acceptance of a grunt rookie sharing their level of rank, God bless them. Officers showed me a surprising amount of respect and even friendship. This experience, much like navigating through a metaphorical shooting gallery, carried with me for a lifetime and colored my writing forever, hence Warrior's Manuscript, reflecting on my journey and the lessons learned from men like Francisco Biscoriliza.
keithsworld
Out there a bigger world waits for me...
That is Keith the Mouse, who dreams of a greater life than his existence in the Tall Grass of KeithsWorld. He finds this greater life through his adventures in a couple of children's books I wrote and illustrated in the twentieth century: "KeithsWorld" and "Keith Goes to Hollywood." Keith, who can be a bit slow, yearns for adventure and discovers it alongside a variety of animal friends in KeithsWorld, an otherworldly land illuminated by a binary star system, where two suns create a perfectly normal day. Someone once commented that the characters sounded like Douglas Adams for children, almost as if they were part of a metaphorical shooting gallery of whimsical ideas. Perhaps that's why my New York agent gave up on me before we could get published. I always thought maybe I should have been tailoring the adventures more toward college-aged children.
waRrior's manuscript
Warrior's Manuscript
Available at all online outlets and traditional bookstores in paperback and e-book formats:
$18.99 paperback at Amazon and most outlets
$2.99 e-book at Kindle and most outlets
No, it’s not just another war story; nothing gets blown up, but some scammers get shot.
This surprising collection of poetry, crafted by Francisco Biscoriliza, offers a unique perspective through the eyes of a Viet Nam era veteran. It reflects on the thoughts that the men and women who serve our country often ponder, along with a few unexpected musings. These poems, many of which are brief tales of adventures, imaginings, laughter, and calls for peace, ultimately share the Warrior’s goal of defending freedom to achieve harmony, and they are not solely focused on military themes.
If you are reading this as a Warrior, you might wish for more military-oriented poems, but I hope that my homage to you in the first poem 'Warrior' resonates. There are also pieces that address how our government treats both past and present soldiers, which I wish everyone in the country could engage with. The poignant 'Sonata for War' depicts two opposing soldiers who momentarily unite to play a beautiful song on an abandoned piano in a war zone, only to part ways silently, perhaps to confront each other in battle the following day, encapsulating the frustration of war.
The remainder of the book features the hilariously satirical 'Metaphorical Shooting Gallery' poems, a whimsical journey down Route 66, peculiar snippets of poetry that appear to leak from the poet’s demented brain, romantic poetry, and even a Christmas song titled 'Claptrap Roadshow.'
Warrior's Allegory
Warrior's Allegory
Will be available at all online outlets and traditional bookstores in paperback and e-book format in October 2025:
$18.99 paperback at Amazon and most outlets
$2.99 e-book at Kindle and most outlets
Warrior’s Allegory is the follow-up to Warrior’s Manuscript by Francisco Biscoriliza, continuing in the same vein. More of the ‘Metaphorical Shooting Gallery’ series of poems, including my favorite ‘Welcome Home,’ which again explores my displeasure with the way our soldiers were treated upon their return home and our protagonist’s response to their attitudes—a slight adjustment to the American Dream. This book is better than the first, as it should be. I know it's better because Wilma says it is. There’s the usual variety of military poetry thoughts and memories, along with my typical leanings toward finding peace, love poems, and adventures. In Manuscript, Route 66 was the ode. Here, ‘Jungle’ is an even longer ode that weaves a mysterious tale through an unknown jungle, fiction as close to the classified truth as I can get to my adventures in the Asian theater without resorting to, well… like sarge said, 'If I told ya, I’d hafta kill ya.'
Música congelada
Música Congelada
Will be available at all online outlets and traditional bookstores in paperback and e-book around Springtime 2026:
$18.99 paperback at Amazon and most outlets
$2.99 e-book at Kindle and most outlets
Música Congelada is a collection of poetry written by Francisco Biscoriliza and illustrated by world-famous artist Aldo Luongo. Francisco and Aldo have been friends and collaborators for over fifty years, sharing the same thoughts of romantic art. Their ability to express the same imagery through words and paint creates a beautiful synergy. The pair became friends when Francisco discovered Aldo's early black and white plates, inspiring him to write poetry that he felt matched the images. Aldo was a rising star then, and Francisco could only be described as a fan who sent a small collection of poems attached to reprints of Aldo's work as a gift. Upon receipt, Aldo was excited by the connection, realizing how Francisco Biscoriliza's words expressed exactly what he had been feeling when creating his works. A lifelong friendship was formed. Some of Aldo's superb art can be seen in Warrior's Manuscript and more will appear in Warrior's Allegory. Additionally, Música Congelada will be the largest collection of the artists' collaboration yet, including works inspired by the themes of the Metaphorical Shooting Gallery.