George L. Cook III's Blog, page 53

Interview with George Cook author of The Dead War Series Book Two: Abomination

Hi this is George Cook, the author of The Dead War Series. I have released book two in the series, Abomination. I occasionally interview authors of zombie books here on Thedeadwarseries.com so it only makes sense that I interview myself about the new book. Check out my interview below.


TDWS: Let's get right top it. There is a big surprise at the very beginning of the book. How or why did you come up with that?

George Cook: First let me thank everyone who purchased The Dead War Series: Book One and made it successful. Without those people there would have been no book two.

The surprise at the beginning of Abomination was not part of the original story arch for The Dead War Series. I had planned out how the story of the first three books would go and I ran into the issues with the motivations for certain character's actions.

If you have read book one you know that some characters seem to be against humanity. I had to come up with a reason, a good reason for their actions. Hence the surprise at the beginning of the book was born.

TDWS: You mentioned characters. Are they all back in Book Two?

George Cook: Oh yes Sergeant Richards, Jackson, Holloway, Smith, Duncan, Blake, Delice etc are all back. There are also new characters and Sgt Jackson's platoon The Peacemakers are introduced.

Also Sergeant Liu who previously only appeared in the short stories "Zombie Killer" and "Safe Zone" finally shows up in the main story line.

TDWS: How would you compare Book Two to the first book?

George Cook: Book Two is a lot more action oriented with some bigger action sequences than the first book. The horror and suspense element are still there though as the antagonist and protagonist are in a dark hospital full of the living dead. You never know what's around the corner.

I also tried to insert a little humor to keep things from being so dark. That's hard though since the whole world has gone to hell.

TDWS: At the end of Book Two we start to see some technology. What's up with that?

George Cook: LOL. Let's just say that both sides have things that they don't want anyone to know about. That will play in big time in Book Three: War.

TDWS: Sergeant Richards seems even more sure of himself this time out. Are we seeing an evolution of the character?

George Cook: I think what you are seeing with the Sergeant Richards character is a man thrown into extraordinary circumstancesy making the choice to rise to them instead of be crushed by them.
As seen in the short story "Safe Zone" he truly believes that mankind can win the war against the dead and now he has a chance to make sure that happens.

TDWS: The entire cast of The Dead War Series is very multi-cultural. Why so?

George Cook: Because the United States is. I hope it doesn't take a zombie apocalypse to bring us all together but if it does no one will care if the man or woman next to them is black, white, brown, yellow, Muslim, Christian, Jewish, straight or gay. They will only care whether or not you can kick some zombie ass and help ensure their survival.

TDWS: There is another surprise when Sergeant Richards and The Peacemakers finally find the zombie.What comes of that?

George Cook: Nice try, but that wont be divulged until Book Three. All I can say is that the surprise will lead an enemy to reveal themselves more than they wanted to and lead to an all out war at The Rock.

TDWS: So there will be another battle at The Rock?

George Cook: Yes that was planned from the start. I actually made a video back in January 2012 after the first book came out. Watching it now is funny because Book One actually had a different name at the time. Here is some audio from the second battle and this is all the scoop you are going to get.




TDWS: What will you tell us about Book Three: War?

George Cook: There will be much more action, military hardware, and that no character is safe. It will be all out war.

TDWS: When will Book Three: War be released?

George Cook: The week of October 31st of course. LOL.

TDWS: Where can people keep up with you and what's going on?

George Cook: Of course right here on The Dead War Series Blog. They can also follow me on Facebook or Twitter.

TDWS: Thanks for the interview and thanks for your time.

George Cook: For you guys anytime.

Great close up picture of Danai Gurira as The Walking Dead's Michonne

AMC has released new photos of The walking Dead cast. Check out this cool close up shot of Danai Gurira as Michonne.

Interview with 1 of the creators of Night of The Living Dead Live ( it's a play adaption of the movie. )

Earlier today I got a very intriguing tweet about a  play. To be more exact an onstage adaption of George A. Romero's classic film Night of The Living Dead. An adaption that has the approval of Mr. Romero himself. So much so that he is an executive producer of the play. I was immediately interested. So interested that I reached out to the creators of the play, Phil Pattison and Christopher Harrison. Phil Harrison was nice enough to do an interview here at The Dead War Series. Check out our interview below:

TDWS: Please let us know a little about yourself / yourselves and your interest in Night of the Living Dead.

Phil: Nictophobia Films is co-owned by myself Phil Pattison and Christopher Harrison.www.nictophobiafilms.com

We started the company in the Winter of 2008/2009.  Our first project was a short Stephen King film entitled "The Man Who Loved Flowers".  Chris had obtained the rights to the script of which he adapted from the short story of the same name under his "DOLLAR BABY" program.  The film, directed by Christopher Harrison and edited by Andrew Coutts (SAW 5,6,7, THE DAY), continues to play around the world at various Stephen King related festivals.  We released a campy low-budget zombie film "VS. THE DEAD", in August of 2011 of which I directed/edited (Midnight Releasing).  Next month we are releasing an homage to 70's/80's slasher films, called DEVIL'S NIGHT (there is an article in the latest issue of Fangoria!!) via BLACK FAWN FILMS DISTRIBUTING.  It stars scream queen DANIELLE HARRIS (Halloween 4, 5, Rob Zombie's Halloween 1 & 2) SHAWN ROBERTS (Resident Evil, Diary of the Dead, Land of the Dead) and STEVE BYERS (House of the Dead, Total Recall 2012).  This film was directed by Christopher as well.  We continue writing and producing and our latest film project, THE MUMMERS, is slated for pre-production in 2014.

TDWS: How did this idea of turning Night of the Living Dead into a stage play come about?

Phil: A mutual friend of ours had gone out for Halloween as a zombie.  He had posted a picture of him and his girlfriend on FB.  What was different about their costumes from your typical zombie attire was...they were black and white!!  Chris immediately came up with the idea after seeing this picture.

Phil: Chris approached me and threw the idea of doing a stage adaptation of NIGHT.  I was sold on the idea from day 1.... especially after seeing the highly successful EVIL DEAD: THE MUSICAL (twice) in Toronto.  The film really lends itself to the stage.

TDWS: How was it trying to adapt the movie as a play? What challenges have you run into?

Phil: As stated above, the film really lends itself to the stage as it is a single location and all the principle characters are very diverse.  In that respect, it was very easy... however, Chris and I who usually write for the screen, found it difficult to translate some of the scenes for the stage.  We also wanted to make sure that we didn't affect the integrity of the film and Romero's name.  Kinda scary and exciting knowing that our hero's were going to be reading our material based on their work.

TDWS:  I noticed on your site that George A. Romero was listed as an executive producer. I have many questions on this alone.

TDWS:  How did you get an opportunity to meet him?

Phil:  Chris and I both agreed that this production was NOT going to happen without George's approval.  They (George Romero, John Russo, and Russ Streiner) had been taken advantage for the past 44 years because of the public domain issue. We didn't want to be part of that.  They are our hero's and mentor's.  As filmmakers, Chris and I could not and would not take advantage of this unfortunate situation. They have lost a lot of money and opportunities because of it. We tried to to get in contact with George early in the writing stages without any luck. Then it wasn't until we were screening our film DEVIL'S NIGHT at last years RUE MORGUE'S FESTIVAL OF FEAR in Toronto, that we finally had an opportunity to contact the GODFATHER of ZOMBIES.

John Russo and Russ Streiner were unannounced guests.  Chris and I were confined to our booth all weekend and never had an opportunity to walk the convention floor and check out the guests and vendors until the middle of the last day.  To our surprise and excitement, we found John A. Russo and Russ Streiner along with George Kosana.  "Holy Shit"!  we thought.... Here is our chance to get to the man himself.  Needless to say, we took advantage of this opportunity and obtained John Russo's phone number.  Him and Russ were extremely interested and intrigued about the project and asked us to give them a call and discuss further.  A short few weeks later we made contact with both men in a conference call and pitched the idea to them.  They LOVED it and agreed to be part of the production.... however we still needed George's seal of approval. We sent over the working script, penned by Chris and Myself, which in turn was sent to George. Long story short... they all loved it and a formal meeting was set up in Toronto (where George currently resides).

TDWS: What was he like and how did you react to meeting him?




Phil: It was like being a kid on Christmas morning.  No Kidding.  I had met George in 2004 at the first annual Festival of Fear but I had stood in line for sometime  doing so and it was a quick handshake.  That was cool, don't get me wrong, but it didn't compare to having such an intimate meeting with him.  We met at the King Edward hotel in Toronto on April 23 earlier this year.  Chris and I arrived 15 mins early and grabbed a table at the hotel bar.  As we were about to sit, Chris hits me in the arm and says "Look outside"!!  I look outside the bar window facing King St, and there was the man himself getting out of a car.  At that moment, things became very real.  We were about to talk business with our hero!!  Then him and Russ walked in!!  It was SURREAL!! To this day... the best moment of my life!  And I'm sure Chris will concur.  

TDWS: What was his reaction to your idea of turning the movie into a play and how did he wind up as executive producer?


Phil: There are a slew of NIGHT stage adaptations floating around the world, past and present.  Not a single one of them had approached him, John or Russ... if you can believe that. (what I have seen online is pretty sad!) Being the first didn't get us the approval.  It was our ideas for the play and the team we assembled that really signed them on.

It was also our first choice to approach CHRISTOPHER BOND who was co-creator/co-writer/director of the EVIL DEAD: THE MUSICAL.  We met him several months prior to meeting up with Romero and Streiner.  Chris (Bond) was super excited to be part of the production and immediately became a big part...our director was found!!  However, he had some concerns about our script.  Not that is was a bad script, in fact he quite enjoyed it but he explained that it may not translate all that well to the stage.  A lot of boarding up windows could really bore a live audience.  It was a hard decision but we handed the writing over to him and his amazing writing team TREVOR MARTIN and DALE BOYER.  (Chris and Trevor wrote the film A LITTLE BIT ZOMBIE, just released on Blu-Ray/DVD)

Bond joined us when we met up with Romero.... and again... along with the ideas that he and his writer's contributed with ours, the original NIGHT filmmakers had no doubt in their minds that we were about to create something special and amazing.  A re-branding of a their cult classic and a opportunity to finally get something back and enjoy the fruits of their labor from so many years ago... which they so rightfully deserve.
George was very excited and happy about everything we proposed and was more than happy to be involved.  He was the kindest and coolest man I have ever met.... well so is John and Russ for the record!  Our meeting lasted over 2 hours as we intently listened to his behind the scene stories from some of our favorite films.  Wow.... an experience that we will never forget.!!

TDWS: What has been the reaction of others to your idea and how did they receive it?

Phil: As fan boys, it was our mission to make sure that the production be accepted by the fans.  What sets us apart from any other stage adaptation of NIGHT is... our play will be in Black and White, from the set to the players. Oh, and THIS IS NOT A MUSICAL!! Musicals don't sit to well with true horror fans, although EDTM was amazing, I know a lot of people who wouldn't give it a chance.  I'll admit that musicals aren't exactly on my radar of cool things either.  When people learn that our production is B&W and not a musical, they go pretty nutty over the idea... in a good way!  So needless to say, we haven't received any negative feedback! PHEW!  Our writers have also done an AMAZING job re-creating this classic story.  I can't give away too much but what I can say is I have no worries that the true horror/Romero fan will love it!!  We do.
TDWS: How is the play  being financed? How can interested parties get involved?
Phil: We do have private investment as well we are running an INDIE GO GO campaign to allow fans to get involved.  George, Russ, and John have been so supportive that they have also contributed to the campaign by donating signed THE ANUBIS scripts plus some lucky contributors will receive a personal phone call from the horror legends congratulating them and talking about the play.  We also have exclusive and limited artwork and t-shirts available designed by world renowned zombie portrait artist, Rob Sacchetto, tickets etc. Oh, and a chance to meet the legends too.  go to www.indigogo.com/notldl

TDWS: What would you consider a success once the play gets off the ground and is actually live?

Phil: To see this idea turn into a reality...that in itself is a success!  But we need to make sure that we please our audience.  If our audience enjoys it, and more so the horror fans, then I think Chris and I can look at each other and smile.

TDWS: What's in the future for Nictophobia Films?

Phil: Once our initial run in Toronto is complete, we are taking the production to the home of zombies. Our goal is to have NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD LIVE up and running in Pittsburgh, PA by October 2013 for the 45th anniversary of the film. We are currently looking at possible venues with the help of Russ and John. We will be heading down to the steel city in the coming months. Then ultimately, we want to hit the road with it, and travel across North America. Broadway is in our sights!

We continue to write and produce and will be gearing up for some film production in between all this excitement.However, our main focus right now is NOTLDL.

TDWS:  Is there anything you want to get out there that you didn't get a chance to say by answering the questions?

Phil: For the record, we are the first and ONLY *OFFICIAL* NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD LIVE. endorsed by the original filmmakers.  George, Russ and John have not approved nor have they endorsed any other version (aside from their own) of NIGHT stage or film ...past and present.  They deserve more respect (and a lot of money) for many years of being ripped off and taken advantage of.
This is the first time GEORGE A. ROMERO, JOHN A. RUSSO, and RUSS STREINER have all worked together since the 1990 remake of NIGHT.

Another zombie attack? Naked, bloody, screaming man gnawed woman's head after jumping from window

Naked, covered in his own blood and screaming "like an animal," a Doylestown man attacked a woman in Hawley on Friday and gnawed on her head after breaking into a home and jumping from a second-floor window, state police said.

Richard Cimino Jr., 20, first pulled his car behind 634 Hudson St. early Friday morning, got out and stripped to his underpants, state police said.

When the resident at that home awoke to Mr. Cimino's attempt to break in, Mr. Cimino fled to 521 Hudson St., took his underpants off on the way and broke into that home, which was empty, state police said.

Mr. Cimino walked up to the home's second floor, jumped out of a window and severely injured his arms and legs when he hit the ground, state police said.

Bleeding profusely, Mr. Cimino went through the home's garage, then approached two women walking down the street - Ann Monaghan and Nancy Dean-Corino, both of Hawley.

Mr. Cimino tackled Ms. Dean-Corino and, bleeding all over her, "began to gnaw" at her head, all while "screaming like an animal," according to a state police press release.

Read more here: Naked, bloody, screaming man gnawed woman's head after jumping from window

Review: Resident Evil Retribution

First things first. Resident Evil Retribution is a very good action movie that has zombies in it. It is definitely not a zombie movie. ( I have to put that out there this being a zombie blog and all. )

It has spectacular set pieces and action, which I loved.

I wont go too much into the story as not to post spoilers but what I can say for fans of both the movie franchise and the games is that familiar characters are back and in some cases appearing for the first time.

Leon S. Kennedy ( Johan Urb ) and Ada Wong ( Li Bingbing ) finally appear in the movies and Luther West ( Boris Kodjoe ) is back in this one. Other characters from the movie series pop back up but I wont give those spoilers here.

I only have two real issues with the movie. One is major and one is minor.

The major one is the acting of Sienna Guillory as Jill Valentine. To put it bluntly she was horrible. I know the Resident Evil movies are popcorn movies and no one is expecting award winning performances but she was really bad.

The minor issue is with the character of Alice ( Milla Jovovich ). Now in the last movie Wesker supposedly took her powers. You would never know it by the way she flips, jumps, and generally kicks ass in this movie. I mean she beats the hell out of dozens of zombies, flips over zombies and assorted monster's heads, and takes punishing blows like she's Superman. This wouldn't be much of an issue if it weren't for something that happens and the end of the movie that reminds you of this.

Both those issues aside this is a fun action filled movie. The zombies on motorcycles in Moscow doesn't come off as crazy as it sounds and is a great action scene.

The Resident Evil movies all follow the same formula. That formula being action, badass chick in skin tight suit, zombies, big guns, loud music, and monsters. This one does it very successfully.

There are even a few actual scares early in the movies when he zombies get some screen time. Yeah so what I jumped once. LOL.

On a system of 1 -5 with 5 being the best I would have to give Resident Evil Retribution a 3 1/2.

Check it out!

George Cook author of The Dead War Series

Why do so many ( relatively ) unknown authors complain about Amazon KDP?

In the interest of full disclosure first let me say that I am a KDP user and have several Kindle books available.

I can honestly say that I have had some success. Now I will not be quitting my day job any time soon but I make a nice amount to supplement my income from my real job.LOL.

Now don't get it twisted I would love to sell a million books and get movie deals and become rich. But if it doesn't happen that's okay. Why? Because I got to publish my work and someone actually paid to read it. Someone else read my story! Isn't that what writers want first and foremost?

On Amazon KDP forums you will see many post attacking Amazon KDP. Now KDP does have some issues with reports and contacting support. I hate that there is no phone number and you have to go through their site ( email ) to get a question answered. Then there is the legitimate debate about KDP select which is a complete issue unto itself.

But to the complainers I would ask, " Is there any other easier way you could have gotten your book out and actually sold it?"

For all of KDP's issues I believe it's still the easiest and quickest way to publish a book. It has offered me the opportunity to fulfill a childhood dream and become a published author. Not just here in the United States but in other countries as well.

I sell four times as many books through KDP than I do with Smashwords, Pubit, and Scribd combined. I have not tried Kobo yet as I have just found out they now have a publishing method similar to Amazon KDP and Pubit.

Like many KDP authors I don't have a publisher or a huge marketing budget but I can do what I can through Twitter, Facebook, GooglePlus, and other online methods to market my books. I can help build word of mouth.

KDP gives me and many other authors more opportunity than any other eBook format or store before it to both publish and sell our books.

Is KDP perfect? No. Does it give many authors a chance to be published and earn money? Yes.

Isn't that what all writers want? An opportunity.

George Cook author of The Dead War Series.

P.S. I know some will strongly disagree with my post but this is my opinion based on my experience. All other opinions are welcome.

Author George Cook's personal invite to check out The Dead War Series Book Two: Abomination

George Cook has just released The Dead War Series Book Two: Abomination. Here is his personal invite to check the book out.

The battle against the dead continues. Sergeant Richards, Sergeant Jackson, Delice, Duncan, Blake and the dead are all back. New friends and more powerful foes will emerge. Surprises galore as it's revealed who released the Beserker Virus and why.

Buy The Dead War Series Here: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00961ICSQ

Zombie book of the day: Dead Nations' Army Book One: CODE FLESH (The True Zombie War)

A New World Order is now in place…ruling the planet…one that the populace allowed to get out of control…

The elite government officials, the most wealthy persons, those deemed ‘important’ now live in Utopias…waiting for the other 99 percent to die…

Originally the Order planned your demise via disease…yet, with the aid of a blessed ‘mistake’ they now have an army to do that for them…a vicious, desperate, hungry, army of zombies – or scrats - needing to eat human flesh in order to survive or die themselves…

The Dead Nations’ Army, or DNA, exists worldwide to aid those trapped in ‘Survivor Communities’ by fighting the Order and the scrats en route to providing medicine, sustenance, munitions, and whatever else they can find. Two siblings torn apart by the rise of the NWO find themselves on both sides of the war and realize after all these years they will need each other once again to survive.

However, the Order have other plans and the scrats appear to have plans of their own. Both have one thing in common: the destruction of the people left behind to fend for themselves…

Alan Dale’s “DEAD NATIONS’ ARMY” trilogy kicks off with a bang as “CODE FLESH” introduces you to a world that is as dark as it is real. Look around, the Order is coming, your flesh is needed…

SPREAD OUR DNA!

3 minute Resident Evil Featurette

Check out this 3 minute featurette for Resident Evil: Retribution.

A Dead War Series short story: Doctor

Here is the short story included in my new book in The Dead War Series Book Two: Abomination. A story titled Doctor.

She may be the only person that can save mankind from the zombie apocalypse. The problem is all of mankind wants her dead.TDWS:Abomination is available for $1.25 HERE