He has been a banjo player since he was in high school. From the following NY Times article, it appears he put the band together sometime in 2007 or 2008. If you are interested, the article is an interview with Steve Martin discussing his banjo interests.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/02/arts/music/02banjo.html?_r=2&pagewanted=print.
Steve Martin learned the banjo as a high-schooler working at Disneyland around 1960. The band was put together for his recent album.
I cant really gove you an answer,but what I can give you is a way to a solution, that is you have to find the anglde that you relate to or peaks your interest. A good paper is one that people get drawn into because it reaches them ln some way.As for me WW11 to me, I think of the holocaust and the effect it had on the survivors, their families and those who stood by and did nothing until it was too late.