David Moody's Blog, page 105

New Facebook Group

Just wanted to say thanks to Shawn 'Rotting Corpse' Riddle for setting up Moody's Survivors – a new Facebook group for chatting about mine and other writers' books. Please head over here and join!

It's going to get very busy around here very soon, so this seems a good time to remind you that I can be followed on Facebook, Twitter, Goodreads and Friend Feed, so please sign up and keep updated.

This is a post from David Moody's RSS feed. For regular updates about the HATER and AUTUMN books and films, subscribe to the feed today!

New Facebook Group

The Day After

Several months late, but here's the second in my series of looks at classic (and not so classic) post-apocalyptic movies.

Picture the scene: late-1983 – a very different, pre-Internet world where news comes almost entirely from the daily papers and scheduled radio and TV bulletins, where information isn't available 'on tap' like it is today. It's a world which feels like it's permanently on the edge; split into east and west by two opposing superpowers with their respective leaders' fingers hovering over the buttons which, it seems, will inevitably release a nuclear Armageddon sometime very soon. In school playgrounds, kids talk nervously about things like Mutual Assured Destruction and what they're going to do when the four-minute warning sounds. There's an uneasy feeling of impending doom, and the lack of readily available information makes the playground chatter that much more frightening… 'your eyes melt if you look at one of them exploding', 'they'll aim at least three at our city, we won't have a chance', 'I heard Dad talking to one of his mates about the missiles at Greenham Common'…

I was one of those kids becoming increasingly pre-occupied with the end of the world. I kept a scrapbook of articles on the subject torn from newspaper and magazine pages, and when I heard about a TV movie being shown in the US which would show the effects of a nuclear strike on a city in Kansas, I knew I had to watch it. I persuaded my parents to let me stay up late for the UK premier, feeding them some spiel about needing to watch it for a project at school. Although it had nowhere near the impact which THREADS would later have on me, THE DAY AFTER was still startling viewing at the time.

Like THREADS, THE DAY AFTER portrays the after-effects of a nuclear attack through the eyes of a shattered community, focusing on several individual groups of characters: a doctor caught in traffic as the bombs strike, a farmer's family preparing for their eldest daughter's wedding, a serviceman stationed at a missile silo, a hitchhiker trying to get home from college before the unthinkable happens…

As you'd expect, the missile attack forever changes the lives of each of these groups of people. Dr Russell Oakes (played by respected character actor Jason Robards) manages to walk ten miles away from the devastated Kansas City and reaches the university hospital in Lawrence where, with others, he begins the impossible task of trying to care for thousands of injured survivors with limited staff and resources. Airman Billy McCoy is able to escape the initial effects of the blast, but after emerging from his bunker and scavenging for food, he succumbs to radiation sickness. Famer Jim Dahlberg and his family escape the blasts by sheltering in their cellar, although their son is blinded. A hitchhiking student, Stephen, (Steve Guttenberg in an early role) finds the family by chance. When Dahlberg's daughter flees the shelter, Stephen chases after her and brings her back to the cellar, but not before both of them have received a lethal dose of radiation.

As the film progresses, the sense of hopelessness increases. Virtually all of the characters either become sick or are killed. Food and medical supplies quickly run out or are contaminated. Almost all livestock are dead. The ground is poisoned and nothing will grow. What's left of society breaks down with frightening speed: law and order ceases to exist, mob rule and brutality taking its place.

Back in 1983, THE DAY AFTER had a huge impact. Its much heralded premier garnered record viewing figures in the US, with networks operating telephone helplines to calm terrified viewers. And watching the film again now with the benefit of history and hindsight, it's easy to understand why. Back then, there were times when nuclear war felt like a probability rather than just a possibility, and this was the first time Armageddon had been dramatized with such high production values. The movie (which was directed by Nicholas Meyer who had previously made STAR TREK II: THE WRATH OF KHAN), was aired with no commercials after the nuclear attack (either a planned move by the network or because no-one wanted to buy advertising time after the blasts, depending on who you believe). Perhaps the most telling anecdote about the film's power at the time, was the fact that it was believed to have had a major impact on both then-president Ronald Regan, and Mikhael Gorbachev.

Visually, THE DAY AFTER is a mixed-bag. Refused permission to use stock footage for the bomb blasts, the film-makers instead resorted to using plumes of oil filmed in water tanks which immediately dissipates the impact of some of the attack scenes. That apart, there are still plenty of visually arresting moments: draped with a blanket, the airman wanders through a forest as fallout drifts down around him like snow; the hitchhiker chases after the terrified farmer's daughter, both of them running through fields filled with dust-covered animal corpses; a school gymnasium – every visible square inch of floor space taken up by the dead and dying. There's a fair splattering of gore (for a 1980's US TV movie, anyway) and the effects of radiation sickness are portrayed effectively. The physical devastation of the town of Lawrence is very well done and to my mind THE DAY AFTER wouldn't have been half as successful had it not been for the obvious willingness of the town and its citizens to participate. During shooting they allowed their streets to be filled with burned-out cars. Shop windows were smashed and locals were used as extras, paid a few dollars more if they were prepared to shave their heads and not bathe to help convey the scale and reach of radiation sickness.

Almost 30 years later (now that's a scary thought) it's easy to forget the impact THE DAY AFTER had when it was originally made. Perhaps it's because I'm from the UK and I can relate more to working class families in Sheffield than the folks of Lawrence, Kansas, that I find it far less effective than THREADS. Maybe it's because it had a relatively well-known cast. I've been asked many times who I'd like to see play the lead in the forthcoming movie adaptation of HATER, and I always say I'd like to see an unknown as Danny McCoyne, because familiar faces can be a distraction. Jason Robards had been on the screen for more than 30 years before appearing in THE DAY AFTER, JoBeth Williams (who played Nurse Bauer) had been seen as the mom in POLTERGEIST the previous year, and Steve Guttenberg and John Lithgow (as a science professor) were already established actors. The end of the world doesn't need star names!

There's a disclaimer in the closing credits which says something along the lines of 'this has been watered down for TV – if this happened, things would be far, far worse'. And that, I think, is the key difference between THE DAY AFTER and THREADS. THE DAY AFTER occasionally lapses into drama/soap territory with scenes of overly optimistic town meetings and the like. The implausible closing scenes of Jason Robards returning to the ruins of his home (literally a square space amidst acres of rubble) are almost like something out of THE BED-SITTING ROOM. The film feels compromised (it was watered-down from its original intended running length of four hours). THREADS, on the other hand, is unflinchingly bleak and dark, and is much better for it.

I'd recommend getting hold of a copy of THE DAY AFTER. It's a good, not great, Post-Apocalyptic movie which had an undisputed impact on many, many people during those uncomfortable, unsettling days of the early 1980s.

If you're interested in reading more, there's a fascinating, in-depth critique of the movie here.

Next up in the Post-Apocalyptic Movie Club, animated old-aged pensioner Armageddon: WHEN THE WIND BLOWS

This is a post from David Moody's RSS feed. For regular updates about the HATER and AUTUMN books and films, subscribe to the feed today!

The Day After

Signing at Waterstone's Leicester on 6th February

Good news – I'm pleased to announce that I'll be making a return visit to Waterstone's Leicester on 6th February between 3pm and 5pm to celebrate the re-release of Autumn: The City in the US and UK. Even more good news – this event will be a joint signing with Wayne Simmons to celebrate the re-release of Drop Dead Gorgeous!

This is a post from David Moody's RSS feed. For regular updates about the HATER and AUTUMN books and films, subscribe to the feed today!

Signing at Waterstone's Leicester on 6th February

Happy New Year

Happy New Year to everyone here, on Facebook, Twitter, and everywhere else this blog gets syndicated. I hope you all enjoyed the holidays and here's to a fantastic 2011 for all of us.

2011 started well for Kate Prince of Lapenty, France – she's the winner of my recent AUTUMN 'name the domain' competition. Her winning suggestion was 'last of the living' which I really liked because, like the books, it puts the emphasis on the living rather than the dead. Congratulations again Kate, and thanks to everyone else who entered. The new website, with a name inspired by Kate's suggestion, is my first priority for the new year and will be launched soon.

Just a quick reminder that you can still order signed books from www.infectedbooks.co.uk. Copies of the UK hardcover edition of AUTUMN: THE CITY (complete with its 'angry leaf' cover – thanks SFX!) will be added at the end of the month. As I mentioned previously, right now I'm donating a sum to charity for each book sold (click here to find out more).

This is a post from David Moody's RSS feed. For regular updates about the HATER and AUTUMN books and films, subscribe to the feed today!

Happy New Year

Happy Holidays!

Well that was quite a year! The last 12 months have been incredible, and there's plenty more planned for 2011. Just to whet your appetite, here's a taster of what's due: the final book in the HATER series: THEM OR US (I've just seen some proposed cover designs: wow… just wow!), several more AUTUMN books (watch for AUTUMN: THE CITY at the end of January / beginning of February and yes – at long last - AUTUMN: DISINTEGRATION later in the year), the AUTUMN website with over 100,000 words of free zombie fiction, and various other things I'm not allowed to talk about yet (including news of a long-gestating big screen project which I'm really excited about).

My New Years resolution for 2011 is to get more organised. I've got a stack of entries for the Post-Apocalyptic Movie Club to write up and post, and I want to talk about a few books I've recently read as well. I also owe blurbs to a few folks, so I'll be trying to catch up on my reading over the holidays. This is my last planned post before Christmas, but I might sneak in a few reviews etc. if the kids let me get close to the computer!

My main reason for writing today though is to thank everyone who has supported me over the last few years, and also those who've discovered my books more recently. It really does mean a lot and I hope you'll all stick around for more. Whatever you're celebrating, wherever you are, I hope you have a safe, happy and enjoyable holiday season and I'll leave you with this slice of utter genius from Team Unicorn.

[There is a video that cannot be displayed in this feed. Visit the blog entry to see the video.]

This is a post from David Moody's RSS feed. For regular updates about the HATER and AUTUMN books and films, subscribe to the feed today!

Happy Holidays!

Join the GRIMM club and support the Grimm Up North festival

The annual Grimm Up North festival in Manchester doesn't receive sponsorship from film agencies, councils and the like. To help keep the festival alive, they've launched the Grimm Club. The cost for a years membership is only £10 (plus £3.50 p&p), and members will receive free gifts, regular newsletters and access to exclusive online material as well as discounted tickets for the festival and priority booking. Click the banner below to find out more.

This is a post from David Moody's RSS feed. For regular updates about the HATER and AUTUMN books and films, subscribe to the feed today!

Join the GRIMM club and support the Grimm Up North festival

Kirkus Reviews selects Dog Blood as one of the best of 2010!

I'm really pleased that Kirkus Reviews have selected DOG BLOOD as one of their top Zombie and Vampire books of 2010. Click here to read more. It's fantastic to see the book listed alongside Justin Cronin's The Passage, Guillermo del Toro & Chuck Hogan's The Fall, and John Ajvide Lindqvist's Handling the Undead.

This is a post from David Moody's RSS feed. For regular updates about the HATER and AUTUMN books and films, subscribe to the feed today!

Kirkus Reviews selects Dog Blood as one of the best of 2010!

Interviews

I've been doing a lot of interviews recently, and have several more scheduled over the coming weeks. Please follow me on Twitter (davidjmoody) or 'like' me on Facebook to keep up to date when interviews and reviews are published.

If you've missed them, why not check out the interviews I did with Un:Bound and Flames Rising (with thanks to Adele and Eric respectively for the great questions!).

Finally for now, tune into  www.hardrockradiolive.com between 7pm and 10pm UK time tomorrow (Thursday 16th December) to hear me in conversation on the DJ Hellyeah show.

This is a post from David Moody's RSS feed. For regular updates about the HATER and AUTUMN books and films, subscribe to the feed today!

Interviews

Fan art

It always means a lot when something you've written has such an effect on someone that it inspires them to create something themselves.

I recently came across this illustration by MishaChanX on Deviantart – the cutest Hater I've yet seen! (Click the image for a larger version). Being a typical angry 40 year-old bloke who writes about the end of the world for a living, I always picture the Haters as desperate, vicious, blood-soaked animals. Misha's approach is very different, but somehow equally disturbing…

Many of you will probably remember the cover of the Infected Books edition of AUTUMN which was itself originally a piece of artwork submitted by a reader (Dave Joseph, if you're reading this, please get in touch again – I've been trying to track you down).

Nick 'Pinchy' Pinch, a body piercer who runs Voodoo Body Piercing in Devon, has had the AUTUMN face tattooed on his leg. A massive horror movie fan, Pinchy also has a huge interest in body mods. If you're in Devon, you won't have any trouble spotting the guy. Apart from the AUTUMN tattoo, he has horn implants, a split tongue, scarifications, sub dermal implants (including one magnetic one!), and a load more tattoos and piercings. He told me how he loved the cover of the book and it's watercolour-like appearance.

To find out more about Pinchy and his work, visit him (Nick Pinch) or Voodoo Body Piercing on Facebook.

This is a post from David Moody's RSS feed. For regular updates about the HATER and AUTUMN books and films, subscribe to the feed today!

Fan art

Eric Brown's first mass market release

I know I've already mentioned this a couple of times, but I'm really pleased for Eric and I'm thrilled that The War of the Worlds plus Blood, Guts and Zombies – his first mass market release – is now available.

This from the publisher:

The Coscom Entertainment/Gallery Books reissue of The War of the Worlds Plus Blood, Guts and Zombies by H.G. Wells and Eric S. Brown is now available in bookstores nationwide, and at the following on-line retailers:

Paperback:

Amazon.com

Amazon.ca

Amazon.co.uk

Barnes and Noble

Simon and Schuster

Other On-line Retailers

eBook:

Amazon Kindle

Simon and Schuster

"A clever spin on one of the greatest pieces of end-of-the-world fiction ever written, The War of the Worlds Plus Blood, Guts and Zombies actually manages to add another level to Wells' classic tale of alien invasion. The living dead – an unexpected by-product of the arrival of the aliens – provides a constant threat to human and Martian alike. It's hard to tell where Wells' thoughtful prose stops and Brown's twisted madness begins. The curse of 'the Dead' is so cleverly interwoven into the original story that you'll be checking old copies, convinced the zombies were always there! A mash-up book that's actually worth reading!" – David Moody, author of Hater and Dog Blood

"Like the undead, Eric S. Brown is an unstoppable force in the genre. His fiction consistently delivers jolts to the heart and mind." – David Dunwoody, author of Empire and Dark Entities

The story:

The invasion begins . . . and the dead start to rise.

There's panic in the streets of London as invaders from Mars wreak havoc on the living, slaying the populace with Heat-Rays and poisonous clouds of black smoke. Humanity struggles to survive against technology far beyond its own, meeting fear and death at every turn.

But that's not the only struggle mankind must face. The dead are rising from their graves with an insatiable hunger for human flesh. Friends, neighbours and loved ones lost to the war of the worlds are now the enemy and the Earth is forever changed.

It's kill or be killed, if you want to survive, otherwise you might become one of the walking dead yourself.

The last Coscom Entertainment release: Possession of the Dead by A.P. Fuchs

For our full list of books, please see: www.coscomentertainment.com

This is a post from David Moody's RSS feed. For regular updates about the HATER and AUTUMN books and films, subscribe to the feed today!

Eric Brown's first mass market release