Guest Post C. Chase Harwood Author Of Sudden Origin

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Our next guest post comes from C. Chase Harwood, author of the Of Sudden Origin Saga. In his apocalyptic book series C. Chase Harwood introduces us to his own action packed interpretation of the zombie apocalypse. Thank you C. Chase Harwood for giving us all some insight into your creation and for sharing your thoughts with us!

ofsuddenoriginI suspect that we all secretly wish for a zombie apocalypse–for a day. I also imagine we would all want the option to exit the moment we might get chomped.
It’s not as if we want our family, friends and neighbors to deal with such a horror. It’s the survival thing. We all fantasize about surviving the worst; being put into a situation of terrible odds, the thrill of facing the dead head on just around the bend. We don’t imagine that it just happens, that we’re walking down the sidewalk and a raving zombie suddenly charges us–we defenseless and without arms, no, we imagine ourselves well prepped for such an event. We’re ahead of the curve as the news of the building catastrophe grows into the day of reckoning. When it comes, we are ready to take on the end of civilization–for a day.
Zombie novels provide a window, a visit to such an event without having to actually get the hands dirty… or em… bloody or the face bitten off, guts used in a ropey tug-o-war. Zombie novels let us imagine blasting our deepest nightmares apart, fighting injustice and overcoming the worst of men. They place us in the raw undiluted space of me against the ruined world, perhaps with the help of some friends.
All of this is fine. All of this is fun. I’m as much a huge fan of The Walking Dead as the next guy or gal, but there’s one part that always leaves me frustrated: how in the hell do the dead walk–particularly the ones that are mostly skeleton? I know it’s best not to ask such things. Just go for the ride already. Don’t delve into how the cars stay on the track.
Of Sudden Origin solves this conundrum for me and I hope for others like me. It utilizes the conventions of Armageddon and zombies, but goes a bit further. The series makes an attempt at creating a scientific basis for a zombie apocalypse. The zombies aren’t dead. They can die any way that any other person can die, but they are fast, have a bit of brains left, and are just as relentless as their dead kinfolk. They also have a secret weapon: the novels explore a sudden leap in evolution, thus the title Of Sudden Origin. The offspring of the infected are the next iteration of man, and you don’t want to meet one. You’d much rather have the covers pulled up to your chest, book in hand, rather than cowering under the blanket as mad humans and their horrific offspring charge into your home.
As with most apocalypse tales, Of Sudden Origin explores our relationships and interactions with each other when faced with the very worst and asks, can the best in us survive?
C. Chase Harwood

Follow C. Chase Harwood on Facebook, Twitter and get his books Here or through the link below:

Guest Post Raymond Dean White Author of The Dying Time Impact

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Our first guest post comes from Raymond Dean White, author of The Dying Time: Impact. His apocalyptic book explores one of my favorite end of the world scenarios – a large asteroid impact! He offers us a brief synopsis of his novels and gives us some insight into what pulled him to the genre. Thanks Raymond!

 

dying-time“THE DYING TIME: IMPACT” reveals my take on how to survive the worst possible disaster that could befall humanity—a mountain-sized asteroid impact.

When the Impact destroyed civilization and re-sculpted the globe the only survivors were the hastily expanded crew of the ISS, who watched the devastation below with growing horror, while wondering if they would ever get to go home, a few Preppers, whose stores of food and other commodities made them irresistible targets and the desperate hordes who would do anything–eat anyone–to live.

“THE DYING TIME: IMPACT” is a stand alone novel that is also book one of a trilogy. It has almost 300 great reviews. You can find it here on Amazon.

 

http://amzn.to/29G9jRf

 

“AFTER THE DYING TIME” is also a stand alone novel and is book two in the trilogy. It details the fight to preserve liberty against a rising feudalism.

In a post-Impact world there are Kings, subjects, slaves and those desperately fighting to remain free. Twelve years after The Dying Time Impact, Joseph Scarlatti reigns as King of California, or at least that’s what he’s called to his face. Behind his back the words tyrant, butcher, monster and cannibal are spoken softly in fear of being overheard. His spies are everywhere. His empire spans the remains of the entire West Coast. But his need for power is all consuming so he invades the Colorado Freeholds and the Nation of Deseret (formerly Utah) and he hasn’t forgotten about gaining control of the top secret weapon that can assure him of world domination.

On the moon, where the crew of the International Space Station relocated to survive, a mutiny is brewing. The population is growing, resources are getting scarce, their power supply is failing and people are getting sick of military rule.

There’s also a growing fear that if anyone on Earth gains control of The Weapon they’ll use it against Luna City and plans are hatched to destroy the space based laser.

Meanwhile, Havoc’s twin is hurtling toward Earth and that weapon is the only thing that can prevent another Dying Time.

“AFTER THE DYING TIME” has received more than one hundred great reviews. You can find it here.

 

http://amzn.to/29ozBtb

 

As a boy of ten I stumbled upon Andre Norton’s post-apocalyptic tale titled “Star Man’s Son” and thus began a life long love affair with apocalyptic fiction. I’ve been an avid reader for more than fifty years now, but the novels that finally pushed me over the edge from reader to writer were a pair of classics. Stephen King’s “The Stand” and Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle’s “Lucifer’s Hammer” did the trick. They captured my imagination and inspired me to begin writing about my own apocalyptic vision.

Please visit my author website at www.RaymondDeanWhite.com and check out my other books as well as my Dying Time Newsletter. Those signing up received a free copy of my non-fiction Prepper book, “BUGGING IN: WHAT TO DO WHEN TSHTF and YOU LIVE IN SUBURBIA.”

Follow Raymond Dean White On Twitter, Facebook and Pinterest!

October Surprise

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squirrelDoom is in the air this fall. Wait…wasn’t it in the air last year?…and the year before that?

It seems as though Autumn is the “doom” time of year. Perhaps humans have coexisted with the rise and fall of seasons for so long now that we sense the death and destruction that comes with winter on an almost instinctual level. Isn’t it possible that we transpose this sense of impending doom onto our world view. That is to say, our perception may have a built in doom filter this time of the year.

Going hand in hand with sense of impending doom is our nesting, preparation tendency that seems to come forth in the fall. Our harvest is in and it is time to secure and preserve our resources for the long winter. As much as we’d like to believe that we exist apart from nature, we are clearly “hardwired” to our environment in more ways than we realize.

Of course, this could all be learned behavior, instilled in us from our childhood. How many of us watched our mothers pickling, canning, freezing and preserving the bounty of the summer’s garden? My mother always likened fall preparation to squirrels burying nuts for the winter, hence the term “squirrelling away” in my family.

No doubt, these nesting behaviors have been passed down many generations and it is most likely the reason that we are alive today. It wasn’t that long ago when the seemingly simple task of eating involved a great deal of planning and effort. Dinner wasn’t a simple matter of going to the nearest grocery store or restaurant for our predecessors.

Once again this fall we are hearing the term “October Surprise” all over the mainstream media and through a lot of alternative sources as well. While the term has its roots in the idea that newly released information could influence a US November presidential election, it has taken on a broader meaning in recent years to include all types of devastating scenarios ranging from economic collapse to World War 3.

Not to understate this particularly chaotic and tumultuous time in history, but having witnessed a few periods of doom frenzy, I’m not convinced that this upcoming period is any different. My sense is that a large scale events occur when we least expect them. Then again, who knows? More than likely we will have some time left to enjoy our strange apocalyptic preoccupation. Speaking of which, I have a few guest posts coming up that I’m sure you will enjoy! 

t2fire

Calling All Apocalyptic Bloggers, Writers and Enthusiasts!

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helpwantedCalling all apocalyptic bloggers and writers!

Doomers unite!

Write a guest post for us about your favorite apocalyptic fiction and we will add you to our blogroll and you can post all of your contact and website information along with your article. That includes all of your social media links.

Ideally, your post would be about 500 words and would be related to some work of apocalyptic fiction that you are passionate about. It could also be some type of fiction that inspired you to be more “prepared” for large scale disasters, wars and that type of thing.

Additionally, if you are an author, you could write an article about your book, what inspired you, that sort of thing. Naturally, you could link to your book, interviews, whatever is pertinent. 

Please reply to this post or contact me at apocalypticfiction@gmail.com or through Twitter @apocalypticfict . Thanks!

Divide and Conquer

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Divide and conquer. An organization of any type is greatly weakened when it is divided. When a group of people, whatever size, does not share a common goal, cohesiveness is lost. Logically, an enemy seeks to further divide such a group by emphasizing differences and minimizing similarities.divide_conquer-228x228

Consider the simple concept of divide and conquer when applied to the current situation in the US. With so many so called “leaks” emerging during this presidential election, it seems likely that the public is under the spell of a massive manipulation effort on a scope that has never been seen before in history. 

This is truly a “can’t see the forest for the trees” moment in history. While the identity of the attacker is unclear (at least to most of us), it seems obvious that an ongoing effort of some type is underway. A divide and conquer strategy has been implemented. Using the tools of this “networked” age, a steady stream of manipulative information is sent to our smart devices for consumption.

Perhaps this is a strange post for an apocalyptic fiction web site but it occurred to me that the early stages of World War 3 might be a bit more subtle than we anticipated.

 

Fear the Walking Dead

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Some Walking Dead fans have been slow to warm up to the spin off Fear the Walking Dead that is now approaching the end of its second season. After all, how many countless hours have we logged following Rick and his crew of survivors. I must admit though, approaching the end of Season 2, the show has grown on me.fearthewalkingdead

Initially, I was drawn to the show to discover the details about how the zombie apocalypse started, supposedly in Los Angeles. That aspect was somewhat disappointing since it basically happened the same way everywhere else (one zombie…two zombies…million zombies). We don’t get much in the way of details, except we see how the military attempted to create “safe zones” then was forced to bomb most of the cities in a last ditch effort to stem the tide of zombies.

Fear the Walking Dead (FTWD) has a sort of dreamlike quality that has kept me watching. Though it is hard to pinpoint, the characters seem to float through the scenery as if they are a part of your own zombie apocalypse nightmare.

Taking place mostly in Mexico, Season 2 has unique cultural and religious aspects that create a certain tone and atmosphere that set it apart from its southern US counterpart and main franchise, The Walking Dead. Actually, we find a completely different perspective in Mexico as we see a more religious/biblical interpretation of the zombies. A type of superstitious attitude prevails where the survivors see the zombies as a way for god to cleanse the Earth.

It takes more time to become engrossed in FTWD compared to the original. I remember how I was hooked after I watched the first episode where Rick wakes up from a coma in the hospital to find the zombie apocalypse. The impact of that first episode in the original series was awesome in a way that I think would be impossible to duplicate.

FTWD may have a ways to go before it could come close to replacing the original, but it certainly is a fun show to watch while we are awaiting the main event.

 

Reminders

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“The Fire is coming! Get to the shelter!” The basement shelter vaguely resembles some places where I have lived but always expands into a much larger and more complex space. Looking through a small window, just above ground level, I can see the fire rolling over land, engulfing everything in its path. More vivid and detailed than the best Hollywood cgi effects, the image is etched into my mind. I can hear someone yelling, telling me to get back from the window but I am transfixed. Just as I begin to wake up to leave this place I begin to consider the implications of ‘radiation’ in some type of ‘mental’ image.

Dreams of the apocalypse have haunted me for as long as I can remember. After a fairly significant hiatus from apocalyptic type fiction (as is reflected in the obvious neglect of this site), I’m back here pondering the significance of my horribly vivid dreamworld. The dreams serve as reminders of some type. 

Rationally, who would want to willingly fuel a dark preoccupation with the end of civilization and death with fictional depictions of such? It is as if I am seeking out some meaning in the expressive imaginations of other people.

Certainly, one could argue that the apocalyptic entertainment that I have fed my brain over the years rattles around up there and is occasionally expressed in dreams. But how did I have these types of dreams before I was ever even exposed to the concept? 

Collective subconscious, archetypal imprints? I really don’t know. I suppose I’ll just throw it to the internet wasteland, the pyramids of our age that will disappear into thin air leaving no trace for archeologists of the next great civilization. How many different incarnations on Earth alone? Unknowable, at least at my pitiful level of awareness.

It’s Not the End of the World Yet…

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Well, it’s been a busy year and I wanted to write a quick post regarding my intention to resume activity on this site. I’ve been preoccupied with a couple of other projects and just ‘staying afloat’, in general, but I am going to make an effort to get caught up on my reading list and reviews. I apologize to those of you that have been waiting for me to review your books and will pick up where I left off. 

Fortunately, it’s not the end of the world yet, so we likely have more time to enjoy this twisted apocalyptic preoccupation. From the recent ebola scare to the ‘saber rattling’ that is reminiscent of the Cold War era, we’ve seen plenty of ‘real world’ activity that will continue to fuel a strong demand for apocalypse related fiction. Keep the review requests coming!

All Roads Lead to Terminus

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The Walking Dead

Follow the yellow…err…corpse littered railroad tracks to Terminus. Our ragtag group of exhausted survivors carry on down the tracks in the final episodes of Season 4 of The Walking Dead. Is Terminus real? Is it a trap? We get some answers but other questions arise as we follow these apocalyptic hobos. In a dead, haunted world, are the living really the ghosts? It’s going to be a long wait until next October. Check out the Season 4 now:

The Walking Dead Season 4 Episode 12 Still

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In The Walking Dead Season 4 Episode 12 titled ‘Still’ we are reminded of the terror and hopelessness that is the zombie apocalypse as Daryl and Beth hide in the trunk of a car for days while a herd of zombies passes. Sure, we knew that there were hordes of zombies on the loose but with the prison fences keeping most of them out its easy to forget. You know things are bad when you are safer inside a prison. Anyway, if you’re like me and really enjoy the fictional exploration of a post-apocalyptic world, you’ll love this episode. How about a post-apocalyptic, zombie infested country club with overgrown fairways, ransacked clubhouse and elite members turned zombies hanging from the ceiling! Ha! Entertainment just doesn’t get much better than that. Watch this episode on AMC’s website Here or on Amazon through the link below:

The Walking Dead Season 4 Claimed

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We are briefly introduced to two new groups of survivors in The Walking Dead Season 4 Episode 11 titled Claimed. Unfortunately, none of the new characters are among the most civilized or intelligent human beings. With no fence for protection, survivors are never safe from the endless zombie onslaught. Not to mention the threat of encountering other people that are more ruthless and violent. Those that have survived over a year into the zombie apocalypse ought to be hardened killers by now. We get some interesting pieces of information in this episode and some hints as to where our friends in The Walking Dead may be heading. Watch this episode through AMC’s website here or on Amazon through the link below.

The Walking Dead Season 4 Episodes 9 and 10

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Forced to abandon the relative safety of their prison home and separated during the chaos and destruction following the Governor’s attack, small, fragmented groups of survivors struggle to find hope and safety in the second half of the 4th season of the post apocalyptic tv series The Walking Dead. A complete and utter destruction of one’s home, the illusion of safety, a careful, delicate construct of the mind created to comfort and shelter us from the harsh reality of our often short, brutal lives. The word apocalypse itself, translated from its Greek origin meaning ‘the disclosure of something hidden’, points to this truth and was only later incorporated into english taking on its current, more religious, end of the world context. Isn’t the apocalypse indeed the destruction of our carefully constructed sense of reality, revealing the often cold, hard reality of our situation that we survive on a small speck of life within the vast, empty void of space.

A profound lesson is encoded into apocalyptic fiction that is easily missed. On a surface level, end of the world fiction highlights the necessity to prepare for disaster by storing food, water and having the ability to protect your family which are certainly worthy goals. Going a little deeper though, the real gem concealed within apocalyptic fiction relates to the transient and fragile nature of life itself. While we aren’t forced to face the illusory nature of safety and ‘home’ on a daily basis like the survivors in The Walking Dead, inevitably, even if it isn’t until our time of death, we must face these illusions. Perhaps if we can incorporate and cultivate an awareness of the fantasy nature of true safety, we will be more liberated and able to live more fully in the moment.

To assist you in your contemplation of reality and your own mortality [ 😉 ], follow the links below to watch the latest episodes of The Walking Dead titled ‘After’ and ‘Inmates’.

These episodes are also available for free through the AMC website through this link: http://www.amctv.com/full-episodes/the-walking-dead but there is some way you need to login using your cable company account that I find both annoying and confusing and they are only available there for a limited period of time.

Voyage of the Dead

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If you had unlimited money and resources to prepare for the zombie apocalypse you might be lucky enough to have a setup like the protagonist does in the apocalyptic book Voyage of the Dead, book one in the Sovereign Spirit Saga, written by David Forsyth. As fortune would have it, Scott Allen, who won hundreds of millions of dollars in a lottery, is on a worldwide cruise on his massive ship with all of his family and friends when the zombie pandemic begins. His resources are formidable: a completely modernized and retrofitted cruise ship with enough weapons and ammo for a small army, a helicopter, amphibious vehicles, a cigarette boat, a seaplane, a ships hold full of cars and trucks (and later an armored personnel carrier), months worth of food and enough fuel to travel half way around the world. On their voyage up to the California from the Mexican coast on an official government mission to rescue a CDC scientist, they encounter many obstacles and develop quite a following of other vessels that join them in their journey, the best of which is a Coast Guard cutter, complete with its own helicopters, specialized equipment and weapons.

In stark contrast to life on the Sovereign Spirit, we get a glimpse of what life is like ashore in the “Interlude in Hell” segments as we follow Carl Stiller as he struggles to survive in post zombie apocalypse Los Angeles. Carl was one of the unlucky ones as he was about to board a plane with his wife when the zombie virus strikes. He is swept up in the chaos surviving only through his own ingenuity and sheer luck.

Voyage of the Dead is a very fun book to read. It’s easy to get caught up in this apocalyptic fantasy like a kid in a candy store. If one had to experience the zombie apocalypse, surviving with the best equipment and resources on a fully contained floating city would surely be the way to do it. Oh, and this book is free on Amazon as of this writing. Check it out and leave a review so other zombie fans will know it’s a good one!

The Walking Dead Season 4 Dead Weight

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Apparently redemption is not in store for The Governor In the seventh episode of The Walking Dead Season 4. These last 2 episodes have been interesting and enjoyable as we take a break from the prison scene and give Rick and the gang some time to wallow in the muck while they clean up after the flu outbreak. Any hope garnered from last week’s show that The Governor has changed is shattered in this episode. Yes, that’s right he is still a homicidal sociopath, willing to do whatever it takes to ensure his own survival and the survival of those people that he deems worthy. Unfortunately, time and time again, in a variety of apocalyptic movies and books, we see how a sociopath could be well suited for surviving the apocalypse. Survival, by any means necessary, unburdened by any morally questionable choices. Following such a person might seem like a good option to someone scared, hungry and tired. However, plant a seed in your memory, in case such a situation arises for you someday: RUN (just as soon as you get a chance). If running/getting away isn’t an option or your inclination, do the world a favor and STOP them before they hurt anyone else (think rabid animal or zombie for that matter). Such a person cannot be trusted and will eventually lose favor with you. You will most likely end up dead, or worse. Just one more thing to look out for if the world ends – guys like The Governor will rise to the top.

The Walking Dead Season 4

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Our ragtag group of survivors aren’t doing well so far in The Walking Dead Season 4. A flu-type virus is wreaking havoc on the prison community, killing off people in droves. Talk about bad luck. Survive over a year into the zombie apocalypse only to die from a bad flu virus. Actually, this is an unfortunate but realistic outcome. In a world without vaccines, a complete absence of health care, poor hygiene and malnutrition, people would be dropping like flies from all types of previously treatable illnesses. Diseases like cholera would once again plague a post apocalyptic North America. At this point, judging purely from the condition and morale of the remaining humans, survival into a fifth season appears doubtful. Those that do survive will be existing merely on animal level. If you are looking for a spark of hope you will need to look elsewhere. The zombies aren’t the only walking dead in the best apocalyptic television series ever made.