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Interview with Daniel Durrant Author of Climate Change and Preta Pathogen Coming Soon!

8/3/2014

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Bio: 
Daniel Durrant is a new author writing mainly in the horror and science fiction genres. His short stories have been published in several anthologies in the UK and USA. Daniel lives on the Norfolk coast in England, where he enjoys reading, dog walking, and planning the apocalypse. This is his first novel.The  Steampunk novella “Climate Change” has also recently gone into print.


Links: 


Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/danieldurrant.theauthor

Twitter: http://twitter.com/DanielDurrant6





1. Where did the idea for the story come from?


There are so many influences it would be tough to list them here! After some success with short stories and a novella, I knew I wanted to write a novel, but had no idea what the subject should be. Around that time I was reading some great zombie fiction, and realised I’d love to try that. Since the genre looked pretty busy, I wanted to write something that would (hopefully) stand out. With that in mind, I gave myself two rules. First, I would try fresh ideas and settings that would break away from the norm. Second, I would work hard to make the concept as realistic as possible. Every aspect of the novel, from the structure to the plot and the virus itself, stems from those two rules.  

2. What made me chose North Korea – was the research hard?

The setting was actually one of the first things I decided on. Since no viruses in nature possess the characteristics I required, the “Preta” virus had to be an engineered creation. So the question became: who would have the means and motive to be conducting such dangerous research? I was pondering that when North Korea hit the news for conducting missile tests. It seemed perfect.

I found the research fascinating, so much so that I got distracted by it. As ever, Wikipedia was an important resource. Beyond that, military and international security websites were invaluable. Some of the best information came from sites detailing human rights atrocities – sadly, some aspects of the story are close to factual. I ended up reading far more than I needed to, but hopefully I have done the setting justice.


3. Why is it called the Preta Pathogen – what makes it different from other viruses?

“Preta” is the most common name for the “hungry ghost” of Asian folklore. Traditionally, Eastern religions assert that after death, the spirit of a greedy or selfish person is condemned to wander the Earth, forever hungry. In some versions, the ghost craves human flesh. It seemed a good fit - superstitious North Koreans might blame zombie-style attacks on the supernatural. So the folklore named both my creatures and the virus – which of course, gives the novel it’s title.

The nature of the “Preta” virus itself lies right at the heart of the novel. Whilst the virus does spread via bites, it is not your classic zombie pathogen. Those infected can survive for some time before succumbing to the effects. Even worse, the virus can spread via other means, meaning asymptomatic carriers are constantly spreading the infection (I won’t spoil the plot by revealing how). In the world of the “Preta Pathogen” checking your fellow survivors for bites is not enough – they might be carriers anyway.


4. Two – sides – why write about Ji Tae and Ben?

Strangely, it wasn’t the original plan – Ji Tae’s point of view was meant to last only until the two main arcs of the story converged.  However, once Ji Tae was established, I felt she was too strong a character to side-line. You would expect someone that has lived under a military dictatorship to have a very different view of the world; perhaps even a different sense of right and wrong. I found the contrasting perspectives of Ben and Ji Tae a useful way to explore certain ideas. The setting is an important part of the novel, and I found that was best illustrated from Ji Tae’s point of view. Also, there is room for Ji Tae to be a bit of an anti-hero; she has done some very bad things. That made her particularly enjoyable to write.

5. Was it difficult to match up the intrigue, setting etc?

I’d aimed to make the novel more expansive than is perhaps normal in the genre, so having chosen an interesting setting, it seemed rather wasteful not to make use of it. I felt the paranoid nature of the North Korean state made for a marvellous backdrop. So whilst the novel is certainly horror, it’s told in more of a thriller style, and incorporates a story line that reflects the real tensions on the Korean peninsula. As an extension of that, I wanted to anchor the story in the real world, which is illustrated via the regular BBC World News excerpts. That element also created a contrast I really liked - the main characters know exactly what is happening locally, but remain unaware of the greater effects. Conversely, the outside world is seeing all of the effects, but is completely unaware of the cause.

6. What makes it different?

If I’ve done my job properly, “The Preta Pathogen” should feel different from the genre norm for several reasons, but I would say realism is the most important one. All the way through the research and writing, my mantra was, “is this credible?” Although my virus is (thankfully) fictional, the key elements are grounded in real science. Likewise, I wanted there to be a solid reason for everything that happens – a key aim was that the events of the novel should feel like something you might see unfolding on the news. Before writing “The Preta Pathogen” I read (and loved) many zombie novels, but often wondered why most shied away from really explaining the virus, or detailing precisely how it has spread across the globe. Having now done so, I know why - it is extremely hard to write a believable scenario! But I got immense satisfaction from the process, and I hope readers will really enjoy that aspect.

7.  Could it really happen?

Sorry to disappoint any zombie preppers out there, but no, it couldn’t. I did a huge amount of research on the medical / genetic / viral aspects of the novel in order to ma As a result, I’m confident that I’ve pushed a zombie-esque virus closer to plausibility than ever, but no, it still requires a considerable amount of scientific and mathematical “adjustment” in order to work. I would say let’s be happy to suspend disbelief and enjoy it for what I hope it is: a good story. On the other hand, any good zombie story should make you want to keep a blunt instrument handy; it’s part of the appeal. So if a reader feels compelled to stock up on MRE’s and .223 NATO rounds, that’s up to them.

8. What’s in the works?

I am currently writing the sequel, which picks up the story a few months after the events of “The Preta Pathogen” (although the novel can be read on a standalone basis, it was always intended as the first part of a trilogy). In the sequel, “Preta” outbreaks have hit several countries, and governments across the globe are struggling to contain the virus. Even worse, Ben and his fellow survivors find that not everyone wants to stop it.


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Under  Twisted Moon Will be Free January 18th!!!!!

1/16/2014

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On of my favorite authors is having a free day for her novel Under a Twisted Moon this Saturday  January 18th! It's a really great PNR/Urban Fantasy novel and I hope you'll take a look! Here's my review of it if you want an idea of what it's about: 


Under a Twisted Moon by Susan Simone
4 of 5 stars
Recommended for: fans of Rose Madder, werewolves, drama and romance
Read from May 17 to 26, 2013 — I own a copy, read count: 1

Amelie is trapped in more ways than one. 

A long time ago when she was a young girl she was forced to hide away a part of herself that she did not yet understand. She changed to make her parents happy and for a time things stopped being so hard. Eventually she grew up and now she's the wife of Rick McConnell a soldier in a secret branch of the military. It's a life she knows and understands, she loves being a teacher and while things aren't always the best she thinks she's got a handle on her life.

Nothing is out of the ordinary until the day that one of her students gets lost in the woods and the part of herself she thought she'd left in her past comes back. 

Hounded by the police, reporters and her abusive husband Amelie feels like everything is falling apart. She never wanted for the monster inside her to ever get out again and now all of the things she thought were so simple are becoming far more complex. What will she do to adapt?

Amelie is a heroine that grows over the course of her ordeal. After years of abuse she's learned a rhythm that can help her avoid her husband's wrath and when it can't the ways that she can deal with the least amount of punishment. When her past is revealed however, it becomes harder and harder to hide from what she is and what she must do to have a life. She must begin to see her inner strengths and accept that she can change the place where she's been held prisoner all these years. While she's aided by some unexpected allies it is SHE who must make the changes she needs in her life. 

Under a Twisted Moon is my favorite book by Simone so far because it manages to do so much with it's 490 pages. Amelie could easily have been another PNR heroine or hallmark lady of tragedy. Instead she's a real person dealing with very real problems and not all of them were generated by her husband.This sense of realism offers you a chance to see into an abusive relationship and how it destroys both people from the inside out, especially when the root of that relationship is founded in two different pasts. We never know if Rick's abusive personality comes from his top secret military service but it does seem to have increased as the violence of that role has escalated. Amelie is in a relationship with Rick because he was an escape from her abusive parents but we often seek out that same sort of relationship when we try to set out on our own. 

Amelie is confronted by the monster within. A part of herself that was villianized by her parents and hidden away by Amelie to stop their abuse. This inner monster then becomes Amelie's salvation when she finds that it's one of the many things that could have offered her strength if she had held on to it instead of locking it away. The monster then is really her freedom, her sense of independence and confidence. Her parents push this side of her away and effectively neuter her spirit, making her a victim who can then be victimized by her spouse when he comes along. The cycle of abuse not only makes people into victims of the abuser it sets the scene for other abusers to take on that same role for the victim and later the potential children born of that relationship.

Amelie's inner monster is at first broken and flawed, it has been marred by her abuse and because of this she fears it as much for the pain it causes her to address it. Over time and with the guidance of others she is able to repair the abuse and it's revealed that it was the way she chose to mangle and hide away the monster that made it hurt her. 

Real life victims of abuse face the same sort of flawed outlook and rationalization for their staying in the relationship. They see the parts of themselves that could be their strengths as weaknesses, things to be avoided and buried inside, they become damaged for lack of that element of their spirit and only they can bring it back to the surface and reassemble it in a healthy way. 

Clearly Simone's message here is that abuse can only crush a spirit if it is unwilling to see the strengths hidden within and wield them to gain back control of self. Amelie was always strong she only needed to see it.


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    Amanda M Lyons

    Ms. Lyons is an author of fantasy, horror, and an avid reader of all genres.

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