Interview with Eric S Brown

Lyle
How did you get into the writing business?

Eric
Honestly, I was writing all the time anyhow because I had such a passion for comics and horror. My wonderful wife was the one who convinced me to try to get published. I placed my first story out of the gate to Burning Sky Magazine in 2001 and things just kind of rolled from there.

Lyle
What was your first short?

Eric
It was a zombie-ish tale called Night Shopping about three teenagers who’s night out to get wasted becomes a fight for their life as the Z virus hits. You can find it now in Unabridged, Unabashed, and Undead: The Best of Eric S Brown.

Lyle
Do you prefer writing short or full length stories?

Eric
I started out as short story writer and still love that form. To this day, I like to think I have a lot of Lovecraft in me (including his hatred of typing!) but I seldom have time to write short fiction anymore. I have become a novella/novel author because that's what the industry demands.

Lyle
Most writers have their “writing spot”. Where do you find yourself doing most of your writing?

Eric
My car, I wrote the first short story I ever sold in a dark parking lot outside a video store I managed years and years ago. Ever since then, my car has been my comfort zone.

Lyle
You can’t get in between a man and his car. How long did it take you to write your short?

Eric
Back then, I was a much slower writer I am sure but today I can crank through a short story of the 3,000 word range in about an hour, give or take. Of course, that's not including going back to type it up and try to proof it. The typing takes longer.

Lyle
Which one of your stories are you most proud of?

Eric
In terms of my short fiction, there's so much I couldn't begin to pick one. As to my books, the upcoming, BIGFOOT WAR from Coscom Entertainment was the most fun thing I have ever written in my life. It was a dream project for me that plays on a small town atmosphere as the people there are attacked by a bloody army of Sasquacths. In terms of zombie stuff, people who read my work tell me Season of Rot was my best work. I set out to top it with The Weaponer which will be released later this year. The Weaponer is freaky, gory, over the top, violent, twisted take on the zombie genre set in a world where humanity has already fallen and built somewhat back up again. To me, it's the climax of nine years of writing about rotting, walking corpses.

Lyle
Tony Faville aka Zombie Hunter Tony author of Kings of the Dead wanted me to tell you he enjoyed Season of Rot. Is there any “behind the scenes” stuff you can tell us about the book?

Eric
Well, tell him, I said thank you! Most folks really seemed to have liked Season of Rot. It was even nominated for a Dead Letter Award this year. As to behind the scenes stuff, I can tell you that Dead West was added to the book at the last minute and the book as whole spent around or over a year in editing so that it would be best it could humanly be. Many have claimed it is my masterpiece to date in my career. No worries though, I'm only 35 so Lord Willing there's still a lot bigger and better Z stuff to come from my pen. And I mentioned my goal with my upcoming book, The Weaponer, was to out do Season of Rot in terms of quality, violence, and gore.

Lyle
What can you tell us about your recent three book deal with Pill Hill Press?

Eric
I am very excited about it. My first book for them How the West Went to Hell should be out in a matter of months. It has a zombie feel to it though it's really a supernatural western. I can't really say anything about my next two books from them but one of them will be something very different for me in the horror world that I haven't really tried in the longer form before.

Lyle
What gave you the idea to add zombies to H.G. Wells’ War of the Worlds?

Eric
Actually, Coscom approached me for that. It was awesome. I mean humans vs. zombies vs. aliens in England, what's not to love? I tried to make it as true to my normal brand of zombie horror as I could while trying to match Wells' own style and preserve the beauty of his SF classic.

Lyle
What do you think of authors taking classics and adding zombies? Pride and Prejudice and Zombies is the first to come to mind.

Eric
I don't see anything outright wrong with it. It's fun and hopefully will encourage more young people to read the classics and more literary people to check out some genre fiction. I'll be honest and say the only one of these I have read is Emma and the Werewolves from Coscom. I really enjoyed it. It had a lot of action and some great knife fighting scenes.

Lyle
In your opinion, what characteristics need to be present in order to be considered a zombie?

Eric
That's a tough question, I come down hard on the Romero side of this and will say that if ain't trying to eat you, it ain't a zombie! Being dead is also required if you're going for the true definition of the term.

Lyle
Would you prefer slow shambling zombies over running ones? In you’re book World War of the Dead, which I have finished, you wrote about running zombies. I just want your take on that.

Eric
I think fast zombies are more deadly (duh!) and much more frightening. I prefer to write about them most of the time but I also still enjoy the shamblers and their endless hordes too. If it had to be one or the other for the rest of my life, I would take the runners.

Lyle
What was the first Romero film you saw? And what did you think?

Eric
Night of the Living Dead, I loved it and it gave me nightmares for two weeks. I raced out for Dawn of the Dead as soon as I recovered and was hooked for life. Romero is the man and the king of all zombies! I am highly looking forward to seeing the remake of The Crazies but haven't had a chance to yet.

Lyle
What was the last zombie novel you read besides your own?

Eric
Sadly, I don't remember. Maybe Empire by David Dunwoody which is a great read. I really don't have much time to read real books and live mostly on comics. Robert Kirkman's The Walking Dead is awesome though I am really a superhero fan.

Lyle
I don’t mean to bash David Dunwoody but I would prefer The Walking Dead over Empire. Do you like the direction Robert Kirkman is taking his comic?

(SPOILER ALERT!)

Eric
I remain undecided at this point and just watching things play out. However, I love the bold chance he took around #50 with killing off so many of the cast. I highly respect him for that.

(SPOILER END)

Lyle
Are you now or have you ever been a zombie sympathizer?

Eric
I am going to plead the 5th on that one, LOL.

Lyle
Let’s say this question would endanger the public, so pleading the 5th can not be done. Where do you stand? Are you or have you ever harbored zombies in your basement!?!

Eric
To tell the truth, I am a wanna be (those are the key words!) "gun nut". If you gave me a sea of shamblers, I would be in heaven, as long as I had plenty of ammo. Remember Andy in the Dawn remake? I am the kind of sick guy who just wouldn't have left that roof until I was down to so few rounds that I was forced to keep them for my own defense. Sick, I know but what can I say? When it comes to zombies, I am a violent kind of guy.

Lyle
The undead infection is spreading through America. A good percentage of the population has already been infected. You’re sitting at home watching the final news broadcast. Through the windows in the living room you see human figures approaching your home. Banging begin to shake your front door. What do you do?

Eric
Run like Hades because I am a pseudo-intellectual geek not a fighter!

Lyle
Have you started preparing for the Zombie apocalypse?

Eric
Not really. I have no time in my life due to all the endless writing projects. However, I think I could always flee and move in with Dr. Pus who runs Library of the Living Dead Press if I had to. I am sure he has to be prepared.

Lyle
Thanks so much for taking the time to talk to me Eric, it has been fun. I will look forward to reviewing more of your work.

World War of the Dead By Eric S Brown

I was searching the titles on Amazon.com like I always do. I came across World War of the Dead by Eric S. Brown. The cover grabbed my attention and I read the book's description. I was interested so I sent it to my wish list. A few days later Eric S. Brown e-mailed me and asked if I would interview him for the website (undeadinthehead.com). I said yes, and he had the publisher email me a copy of World War of the Dead for me to review.

It is the 1940s the German army has spread through Europe like a wildfire. The Allied forces are meeting the army from Nazi-Germany head-on. Life in Europe is a living hell for the civilians. They are trying to survive while the two armies fight their war. In the middle of the battlefield lays a hidden terror from a time that has long ago been forgotten. An archaeological dig is underway to uncover a power the SS is hunting for.

The archaeologists are forced to flee the temple when an air battle erupts between the allies and the German army, a bomb explodes near the temple and strange blue lightning shoots up into the sky from the hole left behind from the blast, hitting units from both sides of the war.

Two days pass and the human race is no longer at war with each other. They are at war with the living dead. People that were hit by the blue lightning have strange new abilities that they cannot explain. The living dead are lead by a demon that has been released from his prison, and he has only two goals: to take back the powers stolen from him by the humans, and to destroy all life on earth. It is up to these new heroes to hunt and kill this demon before his army of the living dead wipes out all life on earth. He only has two goals and that is to take back the powers stolen from him by the humans and destroy all life on earth. It is up to these new heroes to hunt and kill this demon before his army of the living dead wipes out all life on earth.

I do not lie when it comes to reviewing books. I tell the truth even if I know the author. I try to be fair without bashing. This book is not something I would have read if I knew the plot. I am not big on comic book superheroes and that is what was going on in this book. The humans with super powers were nothing more then superheroes on their way to save the world. This book is also highly religious. It is easy to see all the Christian symbolism, Good vs. Evil type of writing. Christianity is clearly seen when a main character, Gabriel, is doing the “Jesus, please come into my heart to be my lord and savior” prayer. I could have done without reading the whole prayer Gabriel did and would have settled with, “Gabriel did his prayer and was saved by Jesus Christ.”

I shouldn't be critical; this book has well thought-out writing. The characters are easy to picture in your head, even though there are a lot of characters. I've never liked stories where all the min characters are separated throughout the book, and having to read each individual story until all characters meet at the end. I have trouble following those types of structures but Brown did a terrific job; I was never lost, all the characters were easy to follow and the flow was awesome. The plot wasn’t that bad it’s just a genre I’m not interested in. I will say this; the writing was well presented, and despite disliking the religion pushing and the super heroes, it held my attention enough to finish.

Thinking about all the pros and cons I would say it is worth the read. World War of the Dead is well written and flows like a work of art. The characters are left up to the imagination. It was easy to picture them in my head. This story may not be for everyone but if you’re in the religious comic book hero category then this story is for you. I will have to give World War of the Dead 3 Undead Heads out of 5. World War of the Dead is available at Amazon.com. You can follow the link below.

Dead City by Joe McKinney

I've had this book sitting on my shelf for a long time. I finally got around to reading it. I heard about this book on an online forum. There was only one post mentioning this book but it caught my eye. Eddie Hudson is a police officer in San Antonio , Texas .

One evening while in the middle of an argument with his wife, Officer Hudson receives a dispatch call. A fight breaks out causing a disturbance. Officer Hudson reports to the scene with his partner. They're met with a few men who do not respond to the officers' orders. Not wanting to, Officer Hudson opens fire on the crowd and has zero result. They begin to panic when they discover everyone around them is the living dead.

After escaping the crowd of living dead he realizes this is not an isolated incident. The living dead are taking over his town at an increasing rate. The image of his wife and six month old son flashes in his head. Now his goal is to find his family and protect them at all costs. Officer Hudson fights for his life against all the living dead around every corner. No where is safe when the Necrosis virus is on the loose and claims most of the population within a few hours.

Despite all the negative reviews I have seen about this book I'd have to, sort of, disagree. I can see where they all are coming from. Dead City doesn't have much of a story line to it. It's just blood and gore around every corner. That is true, there is a ridiculously amount of action scenes throughout the book. That's not necessarily a bad thing; I love action scenes as much as the next guy but it happens all the time. Literally around every corner Eddie is killing zombies and the uninfected are dying. This book would have been better if there was more down time. Another thing that bothered me about this was how fast every one turned into a zombie. It seemed within 30 minutes almost the whole population of over a million people turned in a zombie. That's not likely when other characters in the story are bitten and it takes them a long time to turn.

McKinney did write something that caught my eye. The living dead in this story aren't really dead. The infected are very much alive with beating hearts. They are just in a comatose state. I thought this was a surprising new twist to the story but it went no where. There were only a few mentions about it then it was lost in the pages. McKinney has received some negative responses about his racial topics in Dead City. To all of them I just have to say that they are reading way too much into it. There is a scene where Hispanic landscapers don't speak English. The story takes place in Texas! Of course a good percentage of the population won't speak English. I liked that Eddie ran into them, it gave the story realism.

To conclude on Dead City I'll have to say that it was a well done book. It has its pros and its cons. The book was well written and I could not find any misspellings. I did on the other hand notice a lot of run on sentences. It happens to everyone including myself. I'll give Dead City 3 Undead Heads out of 5. Dead City is available at most Borders Books stores and on Amazon. You can follow the link below.

The Breathing Dead by A. M. Esmonde

I came across The Breathing Dead by accident. I was on Audible.com looking for zombie audio books and they recommended I check out The Breathing Dead, at only four bucks with some change I was sold. Yeah it was only an hour long but that is fine, it is just the right time for my morning commute. After I listened to the audio book I understand why Audible.com reviewers gave it only one star.

From what I could gather; we, the readers or in this case the listeners are following a bunch of different people in their fight for survival. The undead have started taking over the world and I believe Sam holds up in a school. Later on Karen find her way to the school and they pair up. Sam for some reason wants to leave the safety of the school to see what is outside their haven. Karen doesn't want to leave so Sam leaves by himself and tells her he will be back.

Then we follow House and another character I couldn't keep track of or remember their name. They are military personal trying to survive as well. Eventually they run across Sam (I think) who has been meeting some crazy survivors. This other character Jane makes an appearance and everything just seems like a cluster.

I know my review sounds like I'm not sure of the story line, well because... it is the truth. I honestly have no idea what was going on in this audio book. Here's why. The person narrating, Paul Rees is a terrible reader. I couldn't tell when one person’s story ends and another begins. There we no pauses in between periods or even paragraphs. Maybe the story would have been better if I could find a book of this. I search and search but couldn't find a hard copy. Only the audio book was available. I honestly don't think if I had a hard copy my review would be different because from what I heard this was a terrible, terrible story.

This audio book offers nothing and neither does the story. I'll have to give The Breathing Dead 1 Undead Head out of 5. I usually put up a link to the story itself but because this is a 1 UdH review which means don't even bother.

This was a waste of a few good George Washington's.

I dislike giving books bad reviews. I will take a second look at The Breathing Dead in a few months.

The Zombie Zone by Ron Roy

I know this is a children’s mystery book. But when I said I’ll read any zombie book, I meant ANY zombie book. I figure when my two year old daughter grows up I could read this to her as a bed time story. I’ll hold on to this book until then. For those of you who haven’t heard of Ron Roy’s A to Z Mysteries Series this book is #26.

Ruth Rose is visiting her grandmother, she lives in Louisiana. Her two friends Dink and Josh come along to visit. Ruth Rose, Dink and Josh are always getting into adventures. This book is no different. Jack, a friend of Ruth Rose’s grandmother, takes the kids on a hiking trip. He is an active hiker and knows all the hiking routes. They all lead to a small village in the middle of nowhere. The day Jack takes the kids on a hike they come across a sign that reads “Beware of Zombies”. Jack assures the kids there is nothing to worry about. The small village is big on Voodoo and they believe in zombies. Jack shrugs the sign off as a joke an outsider is playing on the villagers. Or is it?

A zombie with silver hair has been seen around the village late at night. Two graves have already been dug up in the cemetery. The villagers are scared and are thinking of leaving their homes. It’s up to Ruth Rose, Dink and Josh to solve this zombie mystery. Is it all a joke? Could there truly be a silver haired zombie digging up graves? You’ll have to read the book to find out.

I actually had fun reading this book. The reading level is ages 5 to 8 which made it a fast read. The kid inside of me loved it but the adult in me knew what was going on. It’s not hard to figure out that there are no flesh eating zombies in the story. The only zombie related topic is that the villagers are big on Voodoo. If I was reading this book as a kid I would actually love it. The writing is well done and the story line was good. There were no spelling mistakes which is a plus.

Even though half way through the story I solved the mystery, it was still fun to finish. I’ll have to give The Zombie Zone 4 Undead Heads out of 5. The Zombie Zone is available at your local children’s book store. To make it easier please follow the link below to Amazon.

Interview with TW Brown author of Zomblog

Lyle:
Why did you write about zombies instead of any other fictional monster?

Todd:
I have been hooked on zombies since about 1979 when I saw Dawn of the Dead for my 14th birthday. Back then I didn’t see any messages or symbolism…I just saw the most awesome monster movie ever. I still remember the exact moment that hooked me. That scene in the apartment building when the woman rushed out to her husband “at least I assumed that was who he was” and he took a bite out of her. Absolutely brilliant!!

Lyle:
I'll be honest. The first Romero film I saw was Day of the Dead. I saw Dawn around the same time in the late 90's. Being in my early teens, I didn't catch any symbolism as well. I will say that most interesting part or those films is the beginning. Day with its opening deserted city scene and Dawn with the opening news cast scene. What was your favorite scene in Dawn?

Todd:
My favorite scene in Dawn of the Dead is the one in the basement where Roger and Peter off all the zombies after the dire prophecy of the one-legged priest.

Lyle:
In Zomblog you wrote about the traditional Romero “zombie”. Why did you decide to go with these zombies instead of any other “next generation” zombies?

Todd:
Without getting into physiology – we are talking about speculative fiction, and if you look too close you will dispel the magic – I have a problem with sprinting zombies. I enjoyed the remake of Dawn, but it basically hijacked the ‘infected’ of 28 Days Later. What is scarier? Being hit by a train or being buried up to the neck and having to watch death creep towards you with agonizing slowness? Besides if zombies can sprint I wouldn’t give humanity 28 hours.

Lyle:
What do you think would be scarier in real life, vampires or zombies?

Todd:
That’s tough. If we are talking about those candy-ass Twilight vampires, or even Laurel K Hamilton’s kiss of pretty boy-vamps…then zombies win hands down. But if you look at the pure evil on display in 30 Days of Night or even the 1987 gem Near Dark vampires are nasty. What’s more, they are smart. Only Hollywood can kill a vampire with such ease. The ridiculous notion that there needs to be a happy ending is what has taken the bite “pun intended” out of vampires. I am actually working on a collaboration…my daughter Jenifer is a talented artist when she is not being a lazy teenager…I am producing a graphic novel, Vampyrates with all of the true evil seen in real pirates (i.e. the anti-Johnny Depp version) combined with the soulless evil of vampires. I promise no ‘warm fuzzy’ feeling or bodice ripping sexy vampires.

Lyle:
Who do you think would win in a war zombies or vampires?

Todd:
Well, if the vamps have super human strength, they win easily, especially since zombies won’t see them as food.

Lyle:
What are your views on other zombie fiction?

Todd:
I will probably sound like a bit of a snob or a jerk here, but I believe there are a few problems in the genre. Quantities do not mean quantity, and the dearth of two-dimensional, flat, formula-driven stuff out there can be tough to stomach at times. There needs to be more books like Eden, Monster Island, the Rising, As I lay dying, or the first two books in the Rhiannon Frater trilogy. Those books were all about the characters. The people had depth and a vivid realness that made you care about their well being. I liked World War Z but I can’t really explain why. I enjoyed S.G. Browne’s A Zombies Lament because it was different and so well written. While very un-traditional, it was a extremely fun read. That said, for each of those, there are a hundred generic stories that you can predict the ending upon starting the book. The characters are stereotyped and you can usually tell who lives or dies just as soon as they are introduced. If anyone actually I could soapbox on this for hours. What it comes down to is that if zombies are going to go main stream…if they are the new vampire…then Kim Paffenroth, David Wellington, Brian Keene (if he’ll come back to zombies) and Rhiannon Frater will be the flag bearers. My hope is to join the Tony’s Monchinski’s, David Dunwoody’s, and a hand full of others who are ready to take this to the next level.

Lyle:
You mentioned Brian Keene writing about zombies again. He announced today that he is working on Entombed, his next zombie novel. Are you as excited as I am?

Todd:
Probably second to the upcoming Romero books, due to release in summer 2010. I liked Keene’s take on the genre. It was unique. He’d built his own mythology…and that is why he is so awesome.

Lyle:
What characteristics does a reanimated corpse have to have to be considered a zombie?

Todd:
For me it is simple: you’re bitten (or infected through blood contagion), you die, and you come back hungry for living flesh. You don’t talk, or run, or reason beyond the most basic instinct. The zombie in the opening scene of Night of the Living Dead picked up a rock to bash in a window. That was about the end of the learning curve.

Lyle:
What did you think of Land of the Dead?

Todd:
I enjoyed Land of the Dead. The zombies really made the film. After watching it, I had as much fun trying to figure out their ‘back stories’ as I did watching the film.

Lyle:
What is your favorite zombie novel, short story or movie?

Todd:
My favorite novel is a tossup. Critiques have picked open the editing for Eden, but I don’t think that they are seeing the story on its merit. That said, if Permuted edits and reissues Eden, it becomes a top 10 of all time. Then there is As the World Dies by Rhiannon Frater. While I personally think she got too soft in her third book of the trilogy, she gave some great character depth. I absolutely loved the first two books. Short Story would have to go to The Yellow Wind by Michael James McFarland. It really got inside me and made me feel something. As for movie…no contest… George Romero’s original Dawn of the Dead. I should say that as an honorable mention, one of the most engrossing stories out there right now is The Walking Dead graphic novel series by Robert Kirkman.

Lyle:
How did you come up with the idea for Zomblog?

Todd:
Zomblog was actually a warm-up exercise/ when I wrote it, it was a way to get myself back into writing every day. I had actually come up with an idea that would evolve into Dead: the Ugly Beginnings, but I knew I wasn’t ready to write it. I had just finished Monster Island and was inspired by the idea that David Wellington initially wrote the book as a serial on the web. He gained his audience online and was eventually picked up. I figured I would do something similar but different. When I began posting Zomblog, I gained a lot of support and I\encouragement at fictionpress.net and fanfiction.net. I actually got an offer from a small publisher that eventually fell through. By then, my wife wouldn’t let me just shelve the project.

Lyle:
Who did you model the main character Sam after?

Todd:
I just wanted Sam to be real. The last thing I wanted to do was to create a hero. Sam is scared, and a little bit wishy-washy. He represents every normal, non-zombie obsessed never-saw-a-Romero-film citizen who doesn’t get our obsession.

Lyle:
Do you feel Sam played his role well?

Todd:
Sam was a great setup man. He never had all the answers. I enjoyed making him squirm.

Lyle:
I know you’re working on the sequel to Zomblog. Can you give the fans a teaser on what’s to come?

Todd:
The fate of all the folks that Sam left behind in the warehouse complex will be revealed, and an unlikely villain will come into play.

Lyle:
Any idea when we could be expecting it?

Todd:
My plan is to drop Zomblog 2 in December. As long as I release under my own May December label, I intend to put out non-anthology titles that I write in those months. My Dead franchise will be in May…and as long as Zomblog has someone left to tell the story, it will own December.

Lyle:
Where can your fans reach you? Where can your fans find Zomblog?

Todd:
You can find Zomblog on Amazon at http://tiny.cc/Zomblog You can also see me at www.maydecemberpublications.com or reach me at any time at twbrown@maydecemberpublications.com or you can follow me on twitter @maydecpub

Lyle:
Have you prepared yourself for if/when the zombie outbreak begins?

Todd:
What good zombie writer hasn’t?

Lyle:
Thanks for taking the time to talk to me Mr. Brown . I look forward to reviewing more of your work.

Todd:
Thanks for the interview Lyle, I enjoyed spending time with you

Zomblog by TW Brown

TW Brown is a new and upcoming author. He has taken the journal/narrative style of writing to the next level. With his first book, Zomblog (which I'm reviewing), Brown paints a wonderful picture on how life would be during the zombie apocalypse. This book had me on my toes throughout most of the story.

We start by following the life of a man named Samuel Todd. With the New Year in place, Sam decides he will start keeping a blog of his somewhat hectic life. He writes about his failed marriage, his daughter, his paper delivery job and his band. Even though Sam's blog is interesting in itself, but the most interesting blog posts happen once a plague that turns the infected into ravenous flesh eating zombies. Slowly and very tragically Sam's life turns upside-down when he realizes the world around him is dying.

With his ex-wife and daughter dead Sam goes out on a quest of survival. Not knowing 100% what is going on in the world, he still tries to band together with other survivor for answers. Sam bounces from place to place trying to make sense of everything going on in the world. He records his travels in his ex-blog-turned-journal everyday. Each day becomes less terrifying then the next as he is met with both friendly and un-friendly survivors. As much as he wants to find a nice place to live the rest of his life, he can't. Most of the world has died and have come back to life hungry for Sam's human flesh. How does Sam survive in a world ruled by the undead? What does the world look like with trouble from both horrible human survivors and the undead? How does the beginning of Sam's blog make it to the beginning of his journal? Some of these questions will not have answers, but others can be found when reading the book.

So, it didn't take me long to read this book as it does other books. This was a well thought out story that I couldn't put down. Brown does a real spectacular job telling this story in the characters perspective. The crazy people and tragedies that Sam falls into are believable if the world did turn into chaos. I can honestly say that I enjoyed the story line very much and can't wait to read what happens next. Since I’ve started this blog the only series of books I’ve read and reviewed together were Brian Keene’s The Rising and City of the Dead. If I had the sequel to Zomblog, I would be reading that next. The book abruptly ends but Brown is working on the sequel. There is no need to start an uproar.

The book, despite its many flaws, has positive qualities that make it worth reading. First there are a few miss spelled words, nothing major just the usual “of” instead of “off” type of errors. It happens to everyone. Another flaw is the inconsistencies the story has. I read books to review them I can instantly spot something when it doesn't go along with the story. Someone who is reading it for fun may not spot the inconsistencies. Here's an example, in one blog post he says he doesn't wear a watch. A few posts further down he say that he looked at his watch. There is no mention in between those posts that states he finds a watch. Another flaw I noticed about the writing is that Brown adds too many characters too quickly. It's hard to keep track of who is who. Character descriptions are vague, "short bald man, who is 5'3" and 150 pounds." Those types of descriptions can kill the imagination.

(SPOILER START, DON'T READ IF YOU DON'T WANT TO)
The last thing that I notice is once Meredith takes over the journal for Sam the writing still looks like Sam’s. This is a whole different person writing but it looks the same as if Sam was writing it. Character descriptions don't change; they are described the same way. It doesn't feel like it is a new person writing.
(END SPOILER)

I know this is Brown's first book and the writing will be a bit hazy. But that doesn’t take away from the fact that the story in itself is awesome. I love the direction Brown takes the story in every way. The new creepy noise the undead make is a great touch. I will have to give Zomblog a well earned 3 Undead Head's out of 5. Zomblog is available through Amazon; to make it easier please follow the link below.





Follow TW Brown on Twitter
https://twitter.com/maydecpub

Interview with Iain Mckinnon

Lyle:
What sparked your interest in writing about zombies?

Iain:
Romero. The first zombie film I ever saw was Day of the Dead. I’ve never been into horror films they just bored me. I mean I would jump at all the scary bits but I never found them satisfying or clever. Day of the Dead gave me nightmares for 20 years. It was the creeping terror that was relentless, the collapse of civilization and the homicidal tension between the factions of surviving humans. All of that combined terrified me.
That’s one of my motivations to write a zombie novel, face your fear. Then one day I was out for a hike. I just got to the top of hill and I was knackered. I was only five miles from home but I was seriously considering calling for a taxi that’s how tired I was. Then it hit me. I thought shambling zombies are easy to evade. You can just run pasted them. But how long could you keep that up for? Minutes? Hours? Days? Because eventually you’ll get tired and have to rest or sleep or eat or go to the toilet. But a slow plodding zombie… it just keeps following you until it can take a chunk out of you! That thought was the kernel for The Dead Walk a short film about a lone man walking through the zombie apocalypse.
The film was a great success and I was asked when would I be making a feature film. I sat down and penned a rough screen play but when I got the end I realized I would never get the funds to film it. So instead I re-wrote it as novel.

Lyle:
Day of the Dead was the first zombie film I watched as well. Have you seen Romero's latest "of the Dead" films? Land, Diary and yet to be released Survival... Do you like the direction Romero is taking his zombies?

Iain:
I’ve been disappointed by Romero in recent years. If you’ve read the original script to Day of the Dead there’s nothing new in what he’s writing it just seems regurgitated from that original script.
Don’t get me wrong he’s still the granddaddy I still have a lot of respect for him, he was a pioneer and on the one occasion I met him he was really genuine and nice. I’ll be honest I’m dreading Survival of the Dead, I don’t want my admiration for the guy to be ruined.

Lyle:
Everyone has their own views on what is considered a zombie, what are yours?

Iain:
Me I’m a purest (mainly). Romero’s were the first zombie films I saw so it has to be the gray skinned shambling cannibalistic horrors he introduced. In a way much of my book is an explanation of how zombies could actually exist. I mean the modern running zombies I find impossible, and also nowhere near as scary as the relentless shambles. So in my zombie lore I’m kind of true to Romero’s vision, there are a couple of small differences but on the whole Romeroesk is a good description of my style.

Lyle:
I myself don't like the idea of running zombies or as I like to call "zoom-bies". What do you think of the idea that a freshly a reanimated corpse is able to run before deposition kicks in?

Iain:
I loved Z.A. Retch’s take on the running zombies. If you don’t know his work he has the freshly infected how are still alive driven into a 28 days like frenzy. This is how he plausibly explains running zombies. Once the infection spreads it finally kills its host only to have them resurrected as shambling zombies. An utterly brilliant explanation for the running “zombie”.
A side note, Zee was a great support to me in my move to Permuted Press and he will be sadly missed.
I can see why the film industry has had to up the ante and bring in running zombies to increase the quick scare, but I feel they’d alienate the reader if they were the only kind.
If you’re going to associate with a character you have to be able to put yourself in their place. If there were a plague of running zombies how long could anyone last? Unless you’re an Olympic athlete or all ready have your own well stocked nuclear bunker I just don’t think you could hold the audiences suspension of disbelief.
I also don’t think you don’t need running zombies for the story to be frightening. In fact I think the pernicious creeping zombie is more of a terror than the running ones.

Lyle:
How long have you been writing?

Iain:
I started writing when I got my first computer back in 1994. Domain of the Dead was the first novel I got a publishing deal for but it only took me two years to write it. I know a lot of authors who write far quicker than me but I’m happy with the two years it took to write Domain of the Dead, especially when you know I’m dyslexic.

Lyle:
In that time have you developed a form of system for writing? I also deal with a learning disorder, I'm glad you didn't let that stop you from writing your book.

Iain:
I know I must have developed a system but it an unconscious competence thing now. I don’t know how I do it because I do it with out thinking.
The one thing I know I do a lot of is re-writes. I don’t so much as change things, the story plays out in my head like a film and I just write it down. But what I have to do is go back time and time again, first clarifying what’s happening, I mean it’s real easy to forget to tell the reader that a character has dropped their gun. I know it’s happened but I miss the fact that I didn’t write it down. Then I have to come back and make the sentences flow. I have a degree in psychology and I’m a qualified Neural Linguistic Programming practitioner so I know the impact of language, how one word can completely change the emotion in a sentence.
The hardest part though is trying not to use the word Zombie all the time. You may not have notice this but only one character ever uses the word zombie in Domain of the Dead and they only say it once.

Lyle:
What scene in “Domain of the Dead” are you most proud of?

Iain:
There’s lots I love, and lots I’ve re-read and cringed at. I’m very proud of the family up the pylon; it strikes at people the same way zombie films used to strike at me. I was very pleased with the sex scene in the book. It’s always hard to write a sex scene and I think using the zombies perspective was a nice way to portray it without it becoming graphic and cringe worthy (for the wrong reasons). But then twisting the sense of danger away from the zombie, I thing that worked well because of it subtlety.
I’m also pleased with the way the book ends the way it begins. Some people have said that it makes the story predictable but I think that’s just hindsight. Over all I’m very happy with the smooth flow of the plot and the development of the heroine, Sarah.
The thing I’m most proud of though is the response from zombie fans. I’ve had a couple of bad reviews but the people who like the book seem to love what I’ve written. It’s great to hear from folk who’ve enjoyed my writing.
It may be the dyslexia but my writing has a very fast very visual style that flows well and is easy to read. I’ve had people tell me they’ve read the book cover to cover in just a few hours.
I don’t think reading should be a chore so I was proud of what I’ve achieved.

Lyle:
Will you continue writing about zombie fiction or will you take your skills to another genre?

Iain:
I’m a Sci-Fi author by my own admission. Domain of the Dead is marketed as a horror but really it’s a Sci-Fi because I use the existence of the zombie contagion as my springboard. I have a space opera finished and waiting for a publisher and I’m currently writing an occult thriller and of course you’ll be happy to hear I’ve also just started on my second zombie novel.

Lyle:
I can't wait to see what else you have up your sleeves.

Iain:
You’ll just have to wait. From The Torment Of Dreams my Sci-Fi novel is ready to go into print if I can get a publisher to buy it. Permuted have an option on it but it’s not their genre so they might not take it.
I’ve struggled this passed year with researching and writing my occult thriller but I’ve pushed through that now and I just have to get the words on the page. I know I need to get this on paper as soon as possible. Just to tease you I took the basic premise for the book to a police firearms instructor and told him I was looking for details so that I could make my unbelievable story a bit more believable. I told him my idea and he went white. Apparently the scenario I start my story with is the worst nightmare for firearms officers. I was told (off the record) that it was only a matter of time before it happens and that the authorities are not prepared for it.
For the follow up to Domain of the Dead I’m only on chapter one so you’ll just need to wait a while to find out what happens to Cahz and the rest.

Lyle:
Any chance “Domain of the Dead” would become available in audio format?

Iain:
I’d love to hear an audio book version of Domain of the Dead. Being dyslexic it takes me ages to read a book so I often get the audio versions. The rights for an audio version are in the hands of Permuted Press so if you’d like to hear a spoke word or radio play of Domain of the Dead they’re the people to pester.

Lyle:
I’ll start a petition.

Iain:
Good, the question is will it be a British production, an American production or both? I tried not to place Domain of the Dead in any nameable location. I wanted to tell as story, not write a travel guide to the apocalypse. I guess the biggest market is the U.S. but I’d like to see it done in both. If I’m honest though I’d much rather film it and get on the big screen.

Lyle:
Some of your fans may not know about the sequel to “Domain of the Dead”. Can you give us a little teaser on what’s to come?

Iain:
In the last few weeks I’ve just started writing my second zombie novel. It’s not so much a sequel to Domain of the Dead. It’s a concurrent story where we follow Cahz and the others who were left on the mainland at the end of chapter one.
But remember it took me two years to write Domain of the Dead so don’t expect the follow-up to out any time soon.
Unfortunately, I have other pressures on my time, one of which is a very exciting collaboration with another famous British zombie writer. At the moment I can’t say exactly what but it should be on line in April.

Lyle:
Every writer at some point gets a form of writers block, maybe while you were writing your ten minute short “The Dead Walk” and “Domain of the Dead” you came across it. How did you go about dealing with that?

Iain:
I don’t believe in writers block, maybe because it’s never happened to me. It may be being dyslexic I don’t have that problem. Even though dyslexia is a handicap when writing it has been shown that we have better special acuity, creativity and problem solving skills so maybe in that respect being dyslexic helps my writing.
I do meet the odd impasse when writing usually where I need to stop and mull over the action. I do get frustrated with the volume of work I produce. I guess like most writers I occasionally get into the flow and can write for hours but then I get frustrated at myself for not being able to achieve that level of concentration all the time.
I also do get distracted, little side projects, family life, checking Facebook or just playing Birth of the Federation on my PC.

Lyle:
Have you considered being an inspirational speaker to children with learning disorders? Maybe talk about how you over came your handicap to write your amazing novel.

Iain:
I have. I even contacted my old High School but I guess I’m not big enough to invite in. I would be happy to talk to young people about my achievement. Writing a novel is a hard thing to do, getting it published is even harder, but doing all that with dyslexia is harder still. I wasn’t diagnosed as being dyslexic at school and my academic record from then is atrocious. I wasn’t allowed to sit my English exams as I was deemed to be too thick. In my early 30s I decided to test my learning abilities mainly because I was working with some people who were far better educated than me but where thick as mince (good Scottish term there).
I enrolled in a university and in my first class my tutor asked if I need any extra help with my dyslexia. In just a week my tutor spotted something all my high school teachers had missed. I was tested for and diagnosed with dyslexic. The university gave me access to lots of support and I went on to successfully complete my Psychology degree.
I feel sorry for my editor Travis Adkin, again another writer from Permuted I owe a lot to. He has to wade through my homophones and try and catch them all.

Lyle:
Now for the fun question, have you prepared for the inevitable zombie outbreak?

Iain:
I am better prepared than most. I have a months worth of caned food in the house to get me and my family through the opening civil unrest. I have an escape and evade kit packed with all the survival gear you would ever need and I have a safe destination to aim for should the worst happen.
My wife and I have even been on wilderness survival courses so we actually know how to use the kit we have – that’s a very important point in preparedness. Not just having the tools but knowing how to use them.

Lyle:
You sound better prepared then I am. I'll make sure to meet up with you when the first attacks are recorded.

Iain:
Take your loved ones and those you can trust but stay away from strangers that’s my advice.

Lyle:
Thanks so much for taking the time to chat with me Iain. I look forward to more of your work.

Iain:
I look forward to getting more of my work out there, thanks Lyle.