Interview With The Author Jack Ratliff

1. What inspired you to write this book? I didn’t sit down with the idea of writing a “Navy SEAL book.” I wanted to capture a life lived in a very particular time before everything was professionalized, sanitized, or explained away. The stories had been told and retold among friends and family for years, and eventually I realized they weren’t just personal anecdotes; they were windows into a vanished world. Writing the book was a way of preserving that world and making sense of how those experiences shaped who I became. I wanted to share the experiences that changed my life and also to acknowledge the role of tenacity in my survival in UDT SEAL training. And a lot of funny things happened in the Navy. I wanted to share the kind of humor that got me through some tough scrapes.  

2. What exactly is the book about—and who is it written for? Riding the White Bull is a memoir about coming of age through risk, responsibility, and choice. It follows my path from college in the 1950s through rodeos, forest fires, naval service, and UDT-SEAL training. It’s written for readers who enjoy true adventure, military history, and honest memoirs, especially those interested in how character is formed long before the uniform goes on.  

3. What do you hope readers will get out of reading your book? I hope readers come away with a sense that courage isn’t always heroic or planned, it’s often accidental, messy, and uncomfortable. I also hope they see that the most formative moments in life don’t announce themselves in advance. You only recognize them later, when you realize you survived something that quietly changed you. 

4. How did you decide on the book’s title and cover design? The title comes from a pivotal rodeo episode involving a striking white Brahma bull, an experience that distilled fear, resolve, and consequence into eight unforgettable seconds. It became a metaphor for much of what followed in my life. The cover reflects that same idea: stark, physical, and symbolic rather than flashy—true to the book’s tone.  

5. What advice or words of wisdom do you have for fellow writers—other than “run”? Tell the truth, even when it makes you uncomfortable. Especially then. And don’t write to impress write to remember. If a story still has emotional weight decades later, it probably belongs on the page  

6. What trends in the book world do you see—and where do you think publishing is heading? There’s a lot of noise right now, but readers still recognize authenticity. I think memoirs rooted in lived experience not branding or ideology will endure. Publishing may change formats and platforms, but good storytelling remains stubbornly old-fashioned.  

7. Were there experiences in your personal life or career that came in handy when writing this book? Absolutely. Naval service teaches you clarity and restraint both useful on the page. My years as a lawyer and teacher taught me structure, pacing, and the discipline to revise without sentimentality. And growing up in West Texas gave me a sense of observation and understatement that shaped the voice of the book.  

8. How would you describe your writing style? Which writers or books is it similar to? I’d describe it as direct, reflective, and unsentimental with room for humor. I admire writers like Hampton Sides along with Tobias Wolff, who respect the reader enough not to explain everything. If the writing works, it’s because the experiences carry their own weight.  

9. What challenges did you overcome in the writing of this book? The hardest part was deciding what not to include. Memory is generous but undisciplined. I had to choose the stories that mattered, not just the ones that entertained me. There’s also the challenge of writing honestly about younger versions of yourself without either apologizing or glorifying.  

10. If people can buy or read one book this week or month, why should it be yours? Because it’s a true story that doesn’t posture. It’s about a time when consequences were real, paths weren’t scripted, and failure was instructive. If you’re interested in how ordinary people are shaped by extraordinary moments and how those moments echo long after, they’ll find something familiar here.

 

About Jack Ratliff: Raised in the remote West Texas town of Sonora, Jack Ratliff took undergraduate and law degrees from the University of Texas. He spent four years in the Navy, first as a deck officer on a destroyer and then as a Navy SEAL. He practiced law in El Paso for twenty years, then taught at the UT Law School for twenty years. He and his wife live in Santa Fe. For more info, please see:  https://jackratliff.net/

 

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Brian Feinblum can be reached at brianfeinblum@gmail.com  He is available to help authors like you to promote your story, sell your book, and grow your brand. He has over 30 years of experience in successfully helping thousands of authors in all genres. Let him be your advocate, teacher, and motivator! 

 

About Brian Feinblum

This award-winning blog has generated over 5,400,000 page views. With 5,500+ posts over the past 14 years, it was named one of the best book marketing blogs  by BookBaby  http://blog.bookbaby.com/2013/09/the-best-book-marketing-blogs  and recognized by Feedspot in 2021 and 2018 as one of the top book marketing blogs. It was also named by www.WinningWriters.com as a "best resource.”  Copyright 2026.

 

For the past three decades, Brian Feinblum has helped thousands of authors. He formed his own book publicity firm in 2020. Prior to that, for 21 years as the head of marketing for the nation’s largest book publicity firm, and as the director of publicity at two independent presses, Brian has worked with many first-time, self-published, authors of all genres, right along with best-selling authors and celebrities such as: Dr. Ruth, Mark Victor Hansen, Joseph Finder, Katherine Spurway, Neil Rackham, Harvey Mackay, Ken Blanchard, Stephen Covey, Warren Adler, Cindy Adams, Todd Duncan, Susan RoAne, John C. Maxwell, Jeff Foxworthy, Seth Godin, and Henry Winkler.

 

His writings are often featured in The Writer and IBPA’s The Independent (https://pubspot.ibpa-online.org/article/whats-needed-to-promote-a-book-successfully). He was recently interviewed by the IBPA: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F0BhO9m8jbs

 

He hosted a panel on book publicity for Book Expo America several years ago, and has spoken at ASJA, BookCAMP, Independent Book Publishers Association Sarah Lawrence College, Nonfiction Writers Association, Cape Cod Writers Association, Willamette (Portland) Writers Association, APEX, Morgan James Publishing, and Connecticut Authors and Publishers Association. He served as a judge for the 2024 IBPA Book Awards.

 

His letters-to-the-editor have been published in The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, New York Post, NY Daily News, Newsday, The Journal News (Westchester) and The Washington Post. His first published book was The Florida Homeowner, Condo, & Co-Op Association Handbook.  It was featured in The Sun Sentinel and Miami Herald.

 

Born and raised in Brooklyn, he now resides in Westchester with his wife, two kids, and Ferris, a black lab rescue dog, and El Chapo, a pug rescue dog.

 

You can connect with him at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brianfeinblum/ or https://www.facebook.com/brian.feinblum