(Very) Slow The Shadow Creeps and non-fiction

[davidc]

Well, when I last posted on here, about a year ago, I was supposed to be pushing on with my next novel, Slow The Shadow Creeps, and I did start to do that, but then I got distracted doing some technical writing as work and then continued into the survival non-fiction market. I've now published a co-authored book called Streetcraft, which is an urban survival guide, and within the past day or two the first of two new books under my own name, this one called Bugging Out. I've also published a second edition of There Falls No Shadow in print format, this time on Lulu. The next, which I am now well into writing and hope to have finished by the end of March, will of course be called Bugging In. After that I am determined I will finish STSC!

Being retired from going away doing consultancy has its advantages when it comes to writing

I've used Lulu for print books and Kindle for ebooks and both seem to work OK.

www.lulu.com/shop/david-e-crossley/bugging-out/paperback/product-20695531.html
www.amazon.co.uk/-/e/B00BFQXVWM

Has anyone else published recently. if so what and where and how did it go?

[edwin]

How much of a revision for the new edition of TFNS? My copy of the first is falling apart.

[davidc]

No major changes, Edwin. Based on feedback, I've cut back on some of the detail about guns and added a section showing Sean Applegarth's activites between leaving Edinburgh and turning up at Knockside but otherwise most people seemed to enjoy the original version.

There is one very negative review on Amazon but I know who wrote that and it is actually a dig from someone with a grudge against my wife, and me by association; her views on writing are about as informed as her personality is balanced, which isn't saying much, though I must admit I'd never thought of a conflict with Sunny (the Vegan) milking a cow or making cheese.

I considered a suggestion that I start the book much earlier, to show affected aspects of life due to previous terrorist attacks and particularly the EMP but decided that would be too much of a change and I preferred to get into the meat of the story early on.

I'm planning another novel after I have done STSC and Fast the Shadows Fall. This one will be post-disaster but not actually post-apocalyptic in that the population will have been hit but not to the extent in TFNS, which in some ways makes things almost too easy. Financial collapse, disease, technical failures, political shift, reflected in a desperately struggling society, holds some challenges and opportunities for a dark and realistic storyline I think, especially because much more of it will be in urban settings.

[edwin]

Very odd, when I posted the pic my actual words vanished.

Intriguing idea that a full on PA makes things to easy. Reminds me of Michael Beadley's speech in the University in Day of the Triffids. Mind you it is possible to "enjoy" the PA experience without the Survivors' Guilt with bushcrafting, living history and getting out on the water, at least I do. Funny thing that I always though of the weather in Day of the Triffids as being sunny and had to adjust to the mainly overcast weather in the BBC Survivors let alone the deliberately depressing War Game and that final speech by the sad policeman.

[davidc]

Quick ideas for that future novel:

No effing electricity again this morning and it’s bloody cold! Doesn’t help that those morons rioting kept me awake half the night. I see next door’s car is burnt out, poor sods, and I can still smell the tear gas. Some of those bangs sounded like rifle shots though. The police are responding harder every day.

Right, what’s for breakfast? Half a tin of sausage and beans left; best not think too much about what sort of meat might be in the sausage, or what the bones it was blasted off with high pressure hoses once held up.

Stop it!

Got some powdered egg. I wonder if I’ll ever see a real egg again. I’ve got ration coupons but nobody has had any for weeks. I need to get friendly with Drez at the corner shop. I bet the wily bugger sells them all under the counter.

If I take the label off the bean tin, I can heat it up in a pan of water on the camping stove, and then use some of the hot water for a brew and the rest to make up some egg. Save gas and water. If I leave the label on the tin, the paper might even give the ‘coffee’ some flavour. You’re a bloody cynic, Dan, what are you?

I’m talking to myself again. At least I’m not doing it out loud now.

“I miss you, Jen!”

Stop crying, you prat. There’s nothing you could do about it, and they say they’re going to plant grass over the mass graves and put up a memorial with all the names they know of the people who are buried there. Maybe, one day. What about the ones whose names they don’t know? Not my problem.

Putting her body out on the pavement wrapped in bin bags was hard though. At least they came in an open truck, not a bin lorry like they’re using in some places. Bastards should have handled her with more respect, though. I know there were at least twenty on the street that morning but they should have more respect than that.

I better get a move on, don’t want to be late for voluntary service. Voluntary? Yeah, volunteer or you don’t get any ration tokens. Still, there’s no work and they give us soup and bread at midday. Wonder what we’ll be doing today. Cleaning up after the riots, again, probably.

‘These are dark times but if we all pull together then the future is bright!’ That’s what the PM said. Maybe, if they ever get the lights back on!


…

Got to stop that NOW! I've got Bugging Out and STSC to finish and FTSF to write before I start on that.

[edwin]

read that review so I got a 1p plus 2.80 copy of After the Fire. Very slow so far and masses of unwanted detail on television news production.

[davidc]

Well, STSC got delayed again because I got sidetracked writing non-fiction. I published Bugging In a few days ago. I guess most of the information is applicable to anywhere but Bugging In and Bugging Out were particularly intended to be useful for readers in the UK, so no talk of assault rifles or discussion of whether to choose a revolver or semi-auto pistol for example and equipment voltages in 240v 50hz. The research gave me some good info and ideas for use in the fiction books though. I've published on Lulu for print copies and Kindle for ebooks. I did try Amazon's CreateSpace for print copies but their templates and formatting are horrible to use, though it looks as if text only won't be too bad so I might do a version of TFNS through them to see how it comes out. I've created projects in both Lulu and Kindle for STSC and have finally resumed writing on it again, so hopefully, now I don't have any inconvenient distractions like work, I'll actually get it done! Id say 'fingers crossed' but it's difficult to type that way!