Serhii Tymofiiko is a historian and lecturer in civilian life, a writer under the literary name Taras Melnyk, and in the military — a defender with the callsign

His story was told on the air of Suspilne. News.

The serviceman of the 63rd Separate Mechanized Brigade from Bukovyna took up arms, leaving his postgraduate studies and academic work. Between combat missions, he writes thrillers inspired by Stephen King’s works.

“King” went from soldier to officer and now commands a company of UAV operators. During the full-scale war, he published three thrillers.

He said he began writing about ten years ago, when he returned from the Anti-Terrorist Operation.

“I was on sedatives, went to a neurologist for check-ups because my head hurt very badly, I couldn’t sleep. And to keep myself busy, I tried writing. Mainly, I wrote for myself. The first time I published something electronically was in 2020. Before that, for five years, I didn’t even admit it to anyone”, — he recalled.

With the royalties from a novel published in 2022, “King” bought himself a rifle. Between combat tasks he continues writing.

“Killed … , then sat down with the phone and edited the text. Got sent up for the next sortie, hit something there — good. On an active day like that, 17–20 sorties, of course you don’t get anything done. The next day — things calm down. Two or three sorties a day, and all the other time you’re still in the dugout, you’re not going anywhere”, — the soldier said.