A QUIET APOCALYPSE BY DAVE JEFFERY
EXCERPT ONE
Sometimes
I struggle to remember what it is like to have hope.
These
days it's an elusive entity, like a day free from Crowley’s scowl. The
weather
doesn't help. Thunderheads wheel in from the west, bringing with
them
dreary light as fat raindrops fall, hitting my poncho like the bodies
of
dead birds splattering the asphalt. Beneath my poncho, my arms are in
sleeves
that are stitched to a belt harness giving my limbs limited
movement.
I
lean forward, giving my hands a chance to pull my baseball
cap
down to protect my face from the rain. A trickle of water exploits a
small
gap in the collar of the poncho and begins a slow, icy descent,
causing
an involuntary shudder. I shuffle on the camping chair, rubbing
my
back in the upright until the raindrop is wiped dry against my shirt,
though
my eyes remain fixed on the road running past the village, making
sure
it is clear, safe. I chew on my gum shield, the thick plastic sticking to
my
mouth. To keep it in place, a leather thong wraps about my mouth
and
cheeks. I have to breathe through my nose or the gaps left available
to my
lips.
Crowley
is beside me, sat in his own chair, wearing his own
poncho,
holding the leash of twine and strips of leather, braided and
tethering
us together. He, too, is scanning the featureless countryside,
yet I
know it is fear that keeps him alert, fear of losing me to the
Samaritans.
A QUIET APOCALYPSE BY DAVE JEFFERY
EXCERPT TWO
The
heavy breathing continues behind us and I turn to the
Samaritan
I’ve blasted and who is now lying supine on the stairs. Paul
joins
me as we look down at the boy gasping for air. Where the bullet has
struck
his neck, bubbles fizz as though he has a strawberry soda pouring
through
the wound.
“Can’t
be older than sixteen,” I whisper. “What have I done?”
The
weapon in my hand drops to the floor, a statement of my
contempt
for what I’ve become, what I am.
Kid-killer.
“What
you’ve done is stay alive and that’s all we have now.”
Paul
steps up to the boy and places the muzzle of the rifle against
his
brow. There is no acknowledgement in the kid’s eyes, just the faraway
look
of the dying.
The
rifle quickens the boy’s passing with a report that is as loud as
any
I have heard in the past half an hour. It is an act of mercy and an
execution
blended together until it becomes one and the same.
Paul
turns to me, his face grim. “We’ll drag them all out into the
street.
I guess the dogs will be eating well for the next few days.”
I
bow my head, not seeing anything good in his statement.
EXCERPT
ONE
I wake with my
heart thumping and my nightwear damp with
sweat. As I throw
back the sheets, the cool air puts goose bumps on the
exposed flesh of
my arms and legs. I clamber to the edge of the bed,
sitting up and
hugging myself. I can shut away the past during the day,
busy myself with
the banal, but when sleep takes me, the edges of selfdeception
fray like old
carpets.
The dreams are
always the same, the last days of civilisation
coming, not as
fire and flame, but as empty streets and great clouds of
flies that rise
like smoke from the dead and infected. I take a breath and
hold onto it
until my eyes blur and my lungs ache, forcing my mind back
into the here and
now, where I am alive and moving on.
These moments are
a reality reboot that slow the heart and, when I
allow my breath
to escape, my pursed lips tingle and tickle, and I know
that I have
released a soft hiss into the world that I will never hear.
Each of us can
lay claim to a great loss. Suffering is a subjective
experience, after
all. I shall say, without guilt of narcissism, the disease
took all of my
greatest loves. So it is that I am the Child of the
Apocalypse, an
orphan of the old world. This used to seem bleating, even
to me. But the
end of the world makes people not give a shit about selfpity.
Because these
days, it’s a trait owned by all.
CATHEDRAL
BY DAVE JEFFERY
EXCERPT
TWO
We turn a corner,
there is another half a mile of High Street until
we reach the city
gates, another run of storehouses. As soon as we have
walked twenty
paces, we see the group of four people sitting on the
concrete ramp
leading up to a warehouse.
There are three
men and one woman, of mixed ages, but united by
their shaven
heads and malformed hands. The fingers appear twisted, the
palms convoluted
like panels of corrugated metal. One man has support
splints on his
wrists, bulky leather straps keep the haphazard bracelets in
place. The four
vagabonds sit and, at our approach, hold out their ruined
hands whilst the
woman types slowly on her tell-pad with a zig-zagged
finger.
Good
peOple! HAv meErcy at our timme of neeDD.
Alice intercedes.
Her comment is brief, and I can guess it’s not
welcoming.
I look upon these
poor souls, victims of a momentary lapse of
reason, and the
long-term penalty it has incurred. It is pity that has me
pulling a wax
wrapping from the folds of my gift bag and tossing it to the
woman. She has no
chance of catching the alms but tries regardless, and
it hits the
street, the wax paper keeping the sandwich inside it contained.
The men sit back
as the woman scoops it from the concrete with the
combined mangled
digits of both hands.
I feel Alice
place her palm in the small of my back and urge me
along.
You
shouldn’t encourage them, Sarah. They get their daily rations,
even
though they contribute nothing.
I watch as the
woman opens the wrappings in her lap, the white
paper stark
against the grey rags of her skirt. The men sit patiently, their
eagerness
betrayed by their twitching, twisted fingers, and she portions
out the sandwich,
distributing each piece like a mother feeding her young.
Once this is
done, she looks up at me, a crown of stubble on her
head, face etched
with the deep lines of chronic pain, and she lifts her
parody of a hand
to give a wave of thanks.
Alice nods as if
her worst fears have come true.
See?
Now they’ll expect it every time. You’re just a big softy. It’s
my
new name for you, Sarah Soft!
I smile and turn
away from the group as they take comfort from
their meagre
meal. The laws of Cathedral can be harsh.
But as Chapter 9
reminds us, a life without them is worse.
What are your top 10 favorite books/authors?
Cannery Row/Grapes of Wrath/Of
Mice and Men by John Steinbeck
Walking on Glass by Iain Banks
1984/Animal Farm by George Orwell
The Road by Cormac McCarthy
The Dregs Trilogy by Chris Kelso
I Am Legend by Richard Matheson
Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury
Lord of the Rings by JRR Tolkien
The Dead Zone by Stephen King
Pontypool Changes Everything by
Tony Burgess
What book do you think everyone should read?
The Road by Cormac McCarthy – Its
bleakness is a backdrop against which the tiniest glimmer of humanity shines
like a star. As a book it is written in a deliberately provocative manner,
without formatting. From narrative to characters, everything is stripped down
and laid bare. But, oh, my – the narrative is just breathtakingly beautiful. A
true master of his craft, for sure.
How long have you been writing?
I’ve always been a storyteller of
sorts. When I was 7-8 years old, I used to write and illustrate my own comic
books, usually science fiction and fantasy tales. At the age of 11 I’d
discovered horror through British writers such as James Herbert and Guy N
Smith. By my early teens I had written two horror novellas, THE BOX and STAG BEETLE,
and a science fiction adventure called BADLANDS. They’re all stowed in the loft
and they’re all pretty terrible!
Do the characters all come to you at the same time or do some
of them come to you as you write?
I have an idea of most characters
from the get-go, but sometimes others appear as the story progresses. The
important thing is to make these emergent characters as relevant as those
integral to the plot, otherwise they become disposable, one-dimensional
entities that exist only to serve the storyline.
What kind of research do you do before you begin writing a
book?
Research is extremely important
as it allows you to get things right. When you do this, it makes your imaginary
world more authentic. When you get it wrong, readers feel frustrated and
short-changed that you have not put as much time into the background material –
especially if they have affinity with the topic you are including in the story.
There does need to be some suspension of belief in, say, something like my
FROSTBITE series, where yetis and aliens battle it out on the slopes of the
Himalayas, but the geography has to be accurate in order to foster this
mindset. People tend to be comfortable allowing for poetic license if they know
you’ve taken the time and care to make the rest of the story as believable as
possible.
My research process tends to
align with my story development. As I outline the plot, I tend to highlight
areas of research needed. I have a background in health science (I have a BSc
(Hons) in Mental Health Studies, and an MSc in Health Studies) so I’m familiar
with the research process and apply this wherever possible.
Do you see writing as a career?
For me, writing in itself is not
about making money, it is about the innate desire to create and tell stories. I
am a better person when I can fulfill this need and it is therefore part of who
I am. To get paid for it is the icing on the cake but I can just as easily eat
cake without the icing, if you see what I mean?
Do you read yourself and if so what is your favorite genre?
I read two hours a day, every
day. I struggle to see how a writer can write without reading. By osmosis, this
is how you learn your craft, so reading is a significant part of the writing
process. I tend to read a lot of independent horror, supernatural and science
fiction, and classical literature, but I’m easily at home in a good crime
novel, for example LEE CHILD, or an adventure book such as DAN BROWN. I don’t
get bogged down with trends that dismiss some writers over others, a good story
is a good story as far as I’m concerned.
Do you prefer to write in silence or with noise? Why?
I always write in silence as I
don’t want to get yanked out of the world I’m creating. In a houseful of
people, you’re going to get background noise, that’s all part of being in a
family home. But I make the choice not to put music on, mainly because someone
has dedicated time and energy into creating that piece of music and it is made
to be heard, not slip into the background where it becomes redundant. To me,
this is the greatest form of disrespect you can give to a musician.
Do you write one book at a time or do you have several going
at a time?
I tend to have multiple writing
projects on the go at any one time. At the moment I’m working on two novels and
a series of magazine articles. I think this helps keep everything fresh and
when you hit a wall in one project, you move to another and return later. So,
the process continues and the concept of ‘writer’s block’ is a term I
understand but have never particularly experienced.
If you could have been the author of any book ever written,
which book would you choose?
Anything by Steinbeck. His
writing is sparse yet poetic, and he has an ability to place a scene or a
character in a reader’s mind with so few words, it’s a sign of someone in total
control of what they do. Cannery row is my all-time favorite book so, if you
were to insist that I chose one, it would be that book.
Pen or typewriter or computer?
These days I use my iPhone to
make notes and transfer these to my MacBook. This is for convenience as I can
now write anywhere at any time. Sometimes the story won’t wait for you to get
home and dig out your notebook!
What makes a good story?
Memorable characters. I say this
because without them, the story is merely a clinical process of getting from
point A to point B. The story only becomes memorable because of how it affects
the characters, those we care about and want to succeed, or those devilish
villains who we want to see get their comeuppance. Imagine The Handmaid’s Tale
without Ofred or the malignant Aunt Lydia.
What are common traps
for aspiring writers?
Thinking it is easy to write and
sell a book. First of all, writers who think it is easy don’t tend to be good
writers! The ability to tell a story is something that takes time, the skills
need to be honed so that your reader stays engaged, caring for the characters
enough to want to know what happens to them on their journey from the first
page to the last. Not even the greatest writers think writing is easy, and
aspiring writers would do well to dispel that myth from the outset.
Despite being a solitary pursuit,
the whole process of creating a book actually involves collaborative working,
if you want it to succeed, that is. It starts with the beta-readers and, if
you’re VERY lucky, a publisher and editor. You need to have a thick skin
because beta-readers will tell you if what you’ve written makes sense and is
good enough to fix and continue with, and editors pull no punches when it comes
to getting the best out of you and your work.
Then you have to promote your
book. Don’t think people will help you, writing is competitive, and the
marketplace crammed with existing material. Don’t allow your frustrations to
overspill on to social media, readers and publishers judge you on behavior and
on what you write in posts. Do not, under any circumstances and despite what
you may have read online, be tempted to friend people on various platforms for
the sole purpose of sending them a link to your book. This is not only very
rude and disrespectful, but also ineffective as a marketing strategy. You need
to engage with people about writing and reading, see them as kindred not
customers. In terms of social media, NEVER suggest your own book if people in a
thread as for recommendations. I see this happen all the time and it comes
across as both cynical and desperate. People will simply not buy it and fail to
engage with you from that point on. Bottom line is - write as though your book
is never going to be published. That will give you a good indicator as to the
fundamental reason you want to write. It’s not a get rich quick scheme. Even
successful writers have had to balance writing with a day job for most of their
careers.
What is your writing Kryptonite?
Tiredness, which is why I make
sure I get plenty of rest if I have a major project on the go.
Do you try more to be original or to deliver to readers what
they want?
I always try to be original, and
sometimes this has been to my own detriment. I wanted to write books in popular
genres but not at the risk of covering old ground. This is a good way of
sucking the life out of a project and this will ultimately show in the final
draft. My yeti books have a science-fiction premise, my werewolf and zombie
books have a crime slant. I would rather be criticized for being different than
being bland or predictable.
If you could tell your younger writing self anything, what
would it be?
Believe in yourself.
What’s the most difficult thing about writing characters from
the opposite sex?
Not to write in cliché. One of
the things I found out very early on is the importance of beta-readers. I have
several and they will give instant feedback on whether a character rings true
or not. The same can be said for other gender issues, it is vital that you
garner a good pool of beta-readers representative of society.
How long on average does it take you to write a book?
When I was working full time, it
tended to be around six months for a first draft, depending on book length.
These days it averages out at about three months from start to a good third
draft. I’m very lucky to be in this position.
Do you believe in writer’s block?
No, but I understand the concept
of hitting a wall on a work in progress. This is why I always have several
projects on the go at any one time, so that I can move between them.
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