I've read this thread and it seems there's been much confusion about this process, but there is a simple solution: use Rufus to create the boot USB stick under Windows.  Rufus has always worked under Windows for me to make bootable Linux sticks for many distros: Debian, Devuan, Linux Mint, Slackware, CentOS, et cetera.  Rufus is "intelligent" when creating USB boot sticks and you do not have to install Rufus if you use its "portable" edition.  It has great support if you need it also.  Best part: it's free.   I hope this helps.