Experience = Knowledge - Return to Civilization

Bec: As some of you may know, Sean T.
Page spent a week in solitude in a World War II bunker equipped for a
nuclear attack. I interviewed him before he went in, now I’m
interviewing him about his experience inside. Here’s the link to his vlog: http://www.ministryofzombies.com/page66.php

Bec: What was your first thought after
the doors were closed behind you?



Sean: I’ll be honest. I
think I underestimated the challenge. We all imagine this situation
but that’s from the safety & perspective of where we are at the
time. In this case, it was real. I was alone in a massive bunker -
sealed in, with strange noises coming from everywhere. It was a
unique experience & your senses go into overload for the first
few hours. Time seems to slow and you have to snap out of it. I
reckon I snapped out of it after about 3 hours & my preparation &
training kicked in but my first thought was ‘this is going to be
one hell of a challenge!’ as I watched the clock slowly
ticking.



Bec: Would you do it again if you could? For a longer
or shorter period of time?



Sean: 5-6 days was enough for this
time. I learned a lot & I think that if someone was going for much
longer they would need to do some serious planning. Having a focus or
a ‘job’ would be central - a task which needs to be completed
every day or regularly. For example, I had a complete schedule of
patrols, door checks etc to keep me occupied. The real killer for me
was the lack of outside light. I could cope with the isolation but
spending every waking hour under the humming electronic lights really
sapped me. Something like a 3-month period would I suspect be a
life-changing event!

Bec: If you did do it again, would you
want to take people with you? How many and who?



Sean: I’m
not sure. I’m currently talking to someone about something similar
but I think we would need to add a twist. I think in a bunker this
size doing it in a team would make it much easier as it’s so large
you could disappear for the day & meet up at the end of the
‘day’! If you did have a group, I think you’d need a military
structure to support it – so allocated tasks & an agreed
schedule – particularly if you were sealed in over a long period of
time. I have thought about leading a workshop of writers down to the
bunker for a shorter time. Can you imagine anything worse? Being
stuck with a bunch of writers!!



Bec: You said in your vlog
that you couldn’t write and had a somewhat hard time reading while
you were down there… Have you been able to write about the
experience since you’ve been out? Does reading apocalyptic fiction
bother you still?

Sean: This was the most interesting
part. When I started, I’d imagine productive hours of writing –
it was the perfect set up. But, once I was down there. The atmosphere
is dreary, oppressive & the post-apoc scenario seems just too
real. I couldn’t really write a word apart from a daily blog. I was
in an environment in which everything pointed to there being a
nuclear war outside. I knew it wasn’t the case but I did a lot to
help create this ‘belief’. Therefore, when I started writing
about it, it felt almost childish creating fiction. For example, all
of the warning posters about burn radius & megaton impact etc
were still up. I just couldn’t escape my surroundings & start
writing stories about such a horrific thing. Same with reading – I
just couldn’t escape into a novel or anything. I think if I was
there longer, I’m sure I would or if there were other people around
to normalize things.

Bec: I loved how you kept your sense of
humor and demonstrated it in your vlog posts. Was that hard for you
to do?

Sean: I think it’s part of who I am. I always like to
look on the brightside. At times, such as in the Infirmary it was
hard but the situation was so strange, there was nothing else I could
do. For example, it was 2 a.m., I was alone in a bunker, surrounded
by a coffins, body bags & cardboard caskets – not to mention a
lot of mannequins – what else was there I could do but insert a
dance routine? I suppose in reality it was my way of coping – the
surroundings are so grey & dull, if you don’t keep a sense of
humour, you could easily slip into depression or at least a
‘depressive’ state of mind.

Bec: Do you miss
Shirley?



Sean: I do. To get into the ‘mindset’ I wanted to
make things as realistic as possible & staying armed seemed a
good way of doing this. It was love at first site with that AK-47. It
became my surrogate companion, my crutch & my prop. It made me
feel safe, less exposed & was heavy enough to make me think about
planning my journeys around the bunker. She was a great assault rifle
;o) Looking back, I realized it also become a focus for my
blogs.

Bec: Do you think the apocalyptic fiction you’ve read
effectively depicts the true feeling of being isolated and alone
during a world tragedy?

Sean: I began to make sense of some
things I’d seen & read. The best example is the bit where he is
playing Bob Marley in the I Am Legend movie – I thought it was just
a Hollywood montage at the time but then I realized when you are
alone – music or any pre-recorded human speech is essential – it
really makes you feel less alone. I know folks are probably thinking
it was only 5 days but it felt like a long week alone & it has
made me read with a different eye.

Bec: Would you suggest that
more authors who write apocalyptic fiction go through such an
experience for learning purposes?

Sean: I’m not sure. I
think maybe different kinds of experiences would be beneficial. I
know my experiment was only ‘play acting’ but at the moment I am
struggling to work through how this will impact on my writing. I
suppose I’m in information & experience overload. I think
better writers might get stacks out of it & come out with the
best scary tale ever. The big thing it did show me is that it’s
easy to write about a post-apoc world when you are comfortable &
cozy in your writing place. I suspect it’s the same for war,
particularly frontline combat, & scenes of extreme violence.
Again, I hope I’m not exaggerating as I know I was only in a bunker
for the week but just that little taste of the end of the world made
me realize that I was writing from a privileged position of comfort.
I don’t know if that makes sense…

Bec: Is there anything I
didn’t ask you about that you would like to share?



Sean: The
whole experience was a great one for me & something I wouldn’t
rush to do again but would not have missed for the world. I’m sure
everyone’s experience would be unique. For me, it taught me about
self-reliance, about not taking some things for granted & I’m
sure it will help me with the writing but it may take a bit of time.
Also, it taught me how to put a dance routine together but you can
judge that one for yourself!

Bec: Thank you for stopping by
and sharing about your experience.

Copyrights owned by Rebecca Besser and Sean T. Page, 2013. All rights reserved.