Cheers!
Saturday, 19 March 2016
THE LAST SOLDIER RELEASE DAY!
Hello, all. Okay, today marks the release of the third and final novel in the Plague trilogy, THE LAST SOLDIER. I must admit to having conflicting feelings about it, as it's the 'last' book in the series, and it feels like the end of an era in a way - which probably sounds stupid, I suppose. But I'm very excited to see it out in the wild. I'm going to miss that fictional world of mutants, monsters and desperate survivors, but at least I can say I put all my effort into it and the series has been well-received. If you happen to pick up THE LAST SOLDIER, let me thank you in advance and I hope you enjoy it. And watch out for the virus-blighted mutants...
Cheers!
Cheers!
Wednesday, 10 February 2016
Just a quick post to let you know THE PLAGUE WINTER has received an excellent review over at 2 Book Lovers Reviews. Thanks Greg, it's much appreciated.
I'm very pleased with the initial reaction to the novella, and long may it continue! I hope future readers enjoy it too!
Following the devastating outbreak of an alien virus, Eddie and his young grandson struggle to survive within the wasteland of Great Britain. They live day-to-day, scavenging among the ruins, trying to avoid the deadly infected that now roam the land. But Eddie has other demons to conquer: a longstanding drink problem that needs to be kept in check if he wants to keep both himself and his young charge alive.
When a stranger enters their lives, seeking help, Eddie is forced to make a choice that could alter their lives forever.
THE PLAGUE WINTER is a standalone novella set within the same world as THE LAST PLAGUE and THE LAST OUTPOST.
I'm very pleased with the initial reaction to the novella, and long may it continue! I hope future readers enjoy it too!
Following the devastating outbreak of an alien virus, Eddie and his young grandson struggle to survive within the wasteland of Great Britain. They live day-to-day, scavenging among the ruins, trying to avoid the deadly infected that now roam the land. But Eddie has other demons to conquer: a longstanding drink problem that needs to be kept in check if he wants to keep both himself and his young charge alive.
When a stranger enters their lives, seeking help, Eddie is forced to make a choice that could alter their lives forever.
THE PLAGUE WINTER is a standalone novella set within the same world as THE LAST PLAGUE and THE LAST OUTPOST.
Monday, 1 February 2016
THE PLAGUE WINTER
Today marks the release of my novella THE PLAGUE WINTER from the very kind people at Infected Books. I've had to keep this a secret for the last few months, so I'm very happy to see it out in the wild and following in the footsteps of Adam Baker's KILLCHAIN as the second release in YEAR OF THE ZOMBIE, which I'm very honoured to be a part of.
It's a standalone story set in the same world as my novels THE LAST PLAGUE, THE LAST OUTPOST, and the forthcoming THE LAST SOLDIER, in which the world is devastated by an unknown virus that transforms people into mutated bloodthirsty monsters, and I had a blast writing it. Thanks to David Moody and Wayne Simmons for letting me be a part of this very cool project!
Cheers!
Following the devastating outbreak of an alien virus, Eddie and his young grandson struggle to survive within the wasteland of Great Britain. They live day-to-day, scavenging among the ruins, trying to avoid the deadly infected that now roam the land. But Eddie has other demons to conquer: a longstanding drink problem that needs to be kept in check if he wants to keep both himself and his young charge alive.
When a stranger enters their lives, seeking help, Eddie is forced to make a choice that could alter their lives forever.
THE PLAGUE WINTER is a standalone novella set within the same world as THE LAST PLAGUE and THE LAST OUTPOST.
Praise for Hawkins’ previous work:
‘One of the most intriguing post-apocalyptic novels I’ve read in a long time.’ (David Moody on THE LAST PLAGUE)
‘A new voice in infection fiction.’ (Sean T. Page on THE LAST PLAGUE)
‘A world of bloody, tearing violence, of pain and misery; of utter solitude, and tooth and nail survival.’ (Ginger Nuts of Horror on THE LAST OUTPOST)
It's a standalone story set in the same world as my novels THE LAST PLAGUE, THE LAST OUTPOST, and the forthcoming THE LAST SOLDIER, in which the world is devastated by an unknown virus that transforms people into mutated bloodthirsty monsters, and I had a blast writing it. Thanks to David Moody and Wayne Simmons for letting me be a part of this very cool project!
Cheers!
Following the devastating outbreak of an alien virus, Eddie and his young grandson struggle to survive within the wasteland of Great Britain. They live day-to-day, scavenging among the ruins, trying to avoid the deadly infected that now roam the land. But Eddie has other demons to conquer: a longstanding drink problem that needs to be kept in check if he wants to keep both himself and his young charge alive.
When a stranger enters their lives, seeking help, Eddie is forced to make a choice that could alter their lives forever.
THE PLAGUE WINTER is a standalone novella set within the same world as THE LAST PLAGUE and THE LAST OUTPOST.
Praise for Hawkins’ previous work:
‘One of the most intriguing post-apocalyptic novels I’ve read in a long time.’ (David Moody on THE LAST PLAGUE)
‘A new voice in infection fiction.’ (Sean T. Page on THE LAST PLAGUE)
‘A world of bloody, tearing violence, of pain and misery; of utter solitude, and tooth and nail survival.’ (Ginger Nuts of Horror on THE LAST OUTPOST)
Saturday, 12 December 2015
Confidence and Stuff
I needed a subject for a blog post. I spent ten minutes trying to think of one, then I saw that my friend and fellow writer Paul M. Feeney wrote a Facebook post about self-confidence and 'imposter syndrome'. So I thought they would make a decent topic to blog about. And it would do nicely, as I've been trying to increase my usual output of one post every six months.
Confidence, eh? Who'd have it?
Who's got it?
I've got a bit. Not much. Probably enough to write a paragraph or two before the doubts creep in. Why bother, Hawkins? What's the point, motherfucker? You're useless, so give up, and leave the writing to the writers with actual talent. You got a bit lucky with that one book, but now you've found your level, fuck-face.
Charming, aren't they? To clarify, there isn't an *actual* voice. So I'm not crazy; I've been tested.
Anyway, I digress. For the last few weeks I've been stuck in a bit of rut with the ol' writing. It's not a 'creative block' as such, more of a small crisis of confidence, and the writing's been a bit more of a struggle than usual. I find writing difficult at the best of times, but lately the self-doubt has been quite dispiriting. But hopefully I'm getting through it. I've just finished the first draft of a short story, and I feel better about it now than I did while I was writing it, so maybe I'm climbing out of the rut. But it's not a big deal. We all struggle. I guess that all writers go through lean patches.
And I suppose that if a writer had constant and total confidence, bordering on arrogance, he'd probably be a knobhead. I'm not a knobhead.
That's it really. Not much else to say. Just trying to keep the blog ticking over.
Hope you're all well. Keep writing, writers.
Cheers!
Confidence, eh? Who'd have it?
Who's got it?
I've got a bit. Not much. Probably enough to write a paragraph or two before the doubts creep in. Why bother, Hawkins? What's the point, motherfucker? You're useless, so give up, and leave the writing to the writers with actual talent. You got a bit lucky with that one book, but now you've found your level, fuck-face.
Charming, aren't they? To clarify, there isn't an *actual* voice. So I'm not crazy; I've been tested.
Anyway, I digress. For the last few weeks I've been stuck in a bit of rut with the ol' writing. It's not a 'creative block' as such, more of a small crisis of confidence, and the writing's been a bit more of a struggle than usual. I find writing difficult at the best of times, but lately the self-doubt has been quite dispiriting. But hopefully I'm getting through it. I've just finished the first draft of a short story, and I feel better about it now than I did while I was writing it, so maybe I'm climbing out of the rut. But it's not a big deal. We all struggle. I guess that all writers go through lean patches.
And I suppose that if a writer had constant and total confidence, bordering on arrogance, he'd probably be a knobhead. I'm not a knobhead.
That's it really. Not much else to say. Just trying to keep the blog ticking over.
Hope you're all well. Keep writing, writers.
Cheers!
Friday, 4 December 2015
Works in Progress and Stuff.
I thought I would blog, as that's apparently something writers do every now and then, and I really should be using this medium more. So here goes, and this will just be a rambling post of sorts because it's Friday, I've been looking after my daughter since seven am, and I'm a little wired on coffee. Plus my thoughts aren't the most coherent at the best of times.
So, I decided to write about my forthcoming releases and stuff I'm currently working on. Because I couldn't think of anything else to write about. Did I mention it's Friday?
Okay - forthcoming releases over the next few months include the German version of THE LAST PLAGUE, published by Voodoo Press, which I'm very excited about as I'd never thought in a million years my work would be translated into another language. Then there's my short story BLACK FLOWER BUTTERFLY in Belladonna Publishing's anthology STRANGE LITTLE GIRLS. Then after that, at some point next year, will be the final novel in the 'plague' series, THE LAST SOLDIER, and a mystery novella or two I can't reveal yet. The German version of THE LAST OUTPOST is due to be published at some point too.
What am I working on presently? Well, I've got two projects on the go at the moment - a short story - MISERY ARTIST - for an anthology, and a novella called KING CARRION. Once they're done I'll start on my next novel HUNT THE DEVIL. I may even have a crack at submitting to Black Static, but that depends how ridiculously optimistic I get.
At least I've got plenty to do between changing nappies and walking dogs. Onwards.
So, that's it. I hope to make more effort at blogging from now on. I may even write about something interesting. Maybe. We'll see.
Be excellent to one another. Bye.
So, I decided to write about my forthcoming releases and stuff I'm currently working on. Because I couldn't think of anything else to write about. Did I mention it's Friday?
Okay - forthcoming releases over the next few months include the German version of THE LAST PLAGUE, published by Voodoo Press, which I'm very excited about as I'd never thought in a million years my work would be translated into another language. Then there's my short story BLACK FLOWER BUTTERFLY in Belladonna Publishing's anthology STRANGE LITTLE GIRLS. Then after that, at some point next year, will be the final novel in the 'plague' series, THE LAST SOLDIER, and a mystery novella or two I can't reveal yet. The German version of THE LAST OUTPOST is due to be published at some point too.
What am I working on presently? Well, I've got two projects on the go at the moment - a short story - MISERY ARTIST - for an anthology, and a novella called KING CARRION. Once they're done I'll start on my next novel HUNT THE DEVIL. I may even have a crack at submitting to Black Static, but that depends how ridiculously optimistic I get.
At least I've got plenty to do between changing nappies and walking dogs. Onwards.
So, that's it. I hope to make more effort at blogging from now on. I may even write about something interesting. Maybe. We'll see.
Be excellent to one another. Bye.
Wednesday, 11 November 2015
Interview with Ken Preston
Today I welcome author Ken Preston to the blog for a quick chat. He's a nice chap and a fine writer, and it's great to have him visit my humble blog.
How would you describe your writing style?
Flamboyant? Classical? Vivacious? No, none of these.
I always try and write a book that I would enjoy reading. Every now and then I might pick up a Man Booker winning novel that I know is going to be hard work, but mostly I read to be entertained, and entertainment is what I strive for in my writing.
So, my books are fast paced, action packed, and funny too. The humour mainly comes out in the dialogue, and my characters like to talk a lot.
Which of your books/stories would you recommend as a good starting point for someone who hasn’t read your work?
I write in a broad range of genres, but for all the horror fans out there, Joe Coffin Season One is the obvious jumping in point. The Joe Coffin series is a British gangster, Birmingham set, supernatural horror series, written in episodes and seasons TV style. It’s violent, bloody, funny, profane, explicit and thunders along like an out of control express train. But make sure you start with Season One, because this is not the kind of book series you can jump into in the middle.
Season One, Episode One is currently free on Amazon UK/US for anyone who would like to try it out risk free!
Do you have a favourite character from any of your stories?
I love them all, like the children of mine that they are, even with their defects and failings. I love Joe Coffin, which is fortunate as I think I will be chronicling his (mis)adventures for some time to come. I also love Stump and Corpse from the Coffin series, too.
But I think I have to give Tom Mills, also from Joe Coffin, a special mention. Readers react so strongly to him, saying things like ‘I hated Tom’ and ‘I absolutely loathed Tom’. And I find that so interesting, because yes, he’s a reprehensible character, but I still had a little sympathy for him.
What is the best piece of writing advice you’ve received?
American crime writer Lawrence Block, when asked ‘How do you write a novel?’ replied:
‘One word at a time.’
Best advice ever.
Who are your literary heroes/heroines?
Lawrence Block, who has amassed a huge body of amazing work over the years. Stephen King (of course), Robert Louis Stevenson, HG Wells and JRR Tolkien for introducing me to the wonders of reading as a child, James Herbert and Guy N Smith for almost putting me off reading for life because their books were so terrifying to me as a child, and Harper Lee for writing To Kill a Mockingbird, and Ken Kesey for One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest, two of my all-time favourite books.
What book do you wish you’d written?
The one that’s going to sell gazillions of copies and be optioned by Hollywood.
What book are you currently reading?
The Tenth Man by Graham Greene.
I’ve just finished reading Raven’s Gate by Anthony Horowitz, which is a YA book. That was very good.
My bookshelves are currently groaning beneath the weight of all the books I haven’t read yet. I try to promise myself every now and then not to buy another book until I have made some headway into my TBR pile, but it never happens. I just can’t resist buying books. My Kindle is similarly overloaded with books to be read. In fact, Rich, one of yours is queued up on there!
What do you like to do when you’re not writing?
Is there such a thing as not writing? I’m father to two school age boys, so my typical day starts at 6:00 am when I write for an hour or so, then I get the kids up and breakfasted and off to school. After that it’s back to the writing cave.
I do love to go trail running, but find it difficult to fit in the runs, especially the longer ones. I also love watching movies and TV. Currently loving Hand of God with Ron Perlman, and Gotham.
Oh, and of course I love reading, too.
I am in a constant quest to organize my day better, so that I can spend some of it doing stuff other than writing. But it’s difficult.
What advice would you give to new writers just starting out in the business?
Write.
And then write some more.
I know that sounds trite and overly simple, but seriously, content is king. Faced with a choice between promoting existing work or creating new work, I would say nine times out of ten you’re better off going creating new work.
What do you think of the current state of the horror genre?
I love it! And not just horror, either. We’re living in a Golden Age of books, with the digital revolution completely democratizing the publishing process. Whilst there will always be crap books being written and published now that the publishing gates have been thrown wide open, I think that the indie writing sector is maturing. Three years ago I was ready to never publish again, I despaired at the lack of quality content out there.
But now I see more and more well written, professionally published novels coming out of the independent sector, and that’s great.
And I think it’s the indies who are doing the best work in the horror genre right now.
What are you working on at the moment?
Joe Coffin Season Three is about to take over my life for the next few months, but I have also been working on a new series. This one’s for Young Adults (but with adult cross-over appeal I hope). The first book in the Planet of the Dinosaurs series will be out at the end of November.
If you had the chance to co-write a novel with an author of your choice, who would it be?
Duncan Ralston and I have talked vaguely about co-authoring something, but that’s a long way off yet. Duncan is great, and writes in a similar style to mine. If you haven’t checked out Gristle and Bone, go do it now!
Finally, are there any nuggets of info about future works you’re willing to share?
I’ve always got work on the go, and ideas bubbling away.
Planet of the Dinosaurs is next up, with two more books in that series to follow quite quickly. Then there’s Joe Coffin Season Three, of course.
My zombie/cowboy mashup Population:DEAD! has been crying out to be turned into a series of novels for a long time now, so hopefully I will get around to that one day soon.
And then there are the romance novels that I write for British publisher DC Thompson.
But you don’t want to know about those, do you?
Thank you for having me on your blog, Rich, I enjoyed it.
How would you describe your writing style?
Flamboyant? Classical? Vivacious? No, none of these.
I always try and write a book that I would enjoy reading. Every now and then I might pick up a Man Booker winning novel that I know is going to be hard work, but mostly I read to be entertained, and entertainment is what I strive for in my writing.
So, my books are fast paced, action packed, and funny too. The humour mainly comes out in the dialogue, and my characters like to talk a lot.
Which of your books/stories would you recommend as a good starting point for someone who hasn’t read your work?
I write in a broad range of genres, but for all the horror fans out there, Joe Coffin Season One is the obvious jumping in point. The Joe Coffin series is a British gangster, Birmingham set, supernatural horror series, written in episodes and seasons TV style. It’s violent, bloody, funny, profane, explicit and thunders along like an out of control express train. But make sure you start with Season One, because this is not the kind of book series you can jump into in the middle.
Season One, Episode One is currently free on Amazon UK/US for anyone who would like to try it out risk free!
Do you have a favourite character from any of your stories?
I love them all, like the children of mine that they are, even with their defects and failings. I love Joe Coffin, which is fortunate as I think I will be chronicling his (mis)adventures for some time to come. I also love Stump and Corpse from the Coffin series, too.
But I think I have to give Tom Mills, also from Joe Coffin, a special mention. Readers react so strongly to him, saying things like ‘I hated Tom’ and ‘I absolutely loathed Tom’. And I find that so interesting, because yes, he’s a reprehensible character, but I still had a little sympathy for him.
What is the best piece of writing advice you’ve received?
American crime writer Lawrence Block, when asked ‘How do you write a novel?’ replied:
‘One word at a time.’
Best advice ever.
Who are your literary heroes/heroines?
Lawrence Block, who has amassed a huge body of amazing work over the years. Stephen King (of course), Robert Louis Stevenson, HG Wells and JRR Tolkien for introducing me to the wonders of reading as a child, James Herbert and Guy N Smith for almost putting me off reading for life because their books were so terrifying to me as a child, and Harper Lee for writing To Kill a Mockingbird, and Ken Kesey for One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest, two of my all-time favourite books.
What book do you wish you’d written?
The one that’s going to sell gazillions of copies and be optioned by Hollywood.
What book are you currently reading?
The Tenth Man by Graham Greene.
I’ve just finished reading Raven’s Gate by Anthony Horowitz, which is a YA book. That was very good.
My bookshelves are currently groaning beneath the weight of all the books I haven’t read yet. I try to promise myself every now and then not to buy another book until I have made some headway into my TBR pile, but it never happens. I just can’t resist buying books. My Kindle is similarly overloaded with books to be read. In fact, Rich, one of yours is queued up on there!
What do you like to do when you’re not writing?
Is there such a thing as not writing? I’m father to two school age boys, so my typical day starts at 6:00 am when I write for an hour or so, then I get the kids up and breakfasted and off to school. After that it’s back to the writing cave.
I do love to go trail running, but find it difficult to fit in the runs, especially the longer ones. I also love watching movies and TV. Currently loving Hand of God with Ron Perlman, and Gotham.
Oh, and of course I love reading, too.
I am in a constant quest to organize my day better, so that I can spend some of it doing stuff other than writing. But it’s difficult.
What advice would you give to new writers just starting out in the business?
Write.
And then write some more.
I know that sounds trite and overly simple, but seriously, content is king. Faced with a choice between promoting existing work or creating new work, I would say nine times out of ten you’re better off going creating new work.
What do you think of the current state of the horror genre?
I love it! And not just horror, either. We’re living in a Golden Age of books, with the digital revolution completely democratizing the publishing process. Whilst there will always be crap books being written and published now that the publishing gates have been thrown wide open, I think that the indie writing sector is maturing. Three years ago I was ready to never publish again, I despaired at the lack of quality content out there.
But now I see more and more well written, professionally published novels coming out of the independent sector, and that’s great.
And I think it’s the indies who are doing the best work in the horror genre right now.
What are you working on at the moment?
Joe Coffin Season Three is about to take over my life for the next few months, but I have also been working on a new series. This one’s for Young Adults (but with adult cross-over appeal I hope). The first book in the Planet of the Dinosaurs series will be out at the end of November.
If you had the chance to co-write a novel with an author of your choice, who would it be?
Duncan Ralston and I have talked vaguely about co-authoring something, but that’s a long way off yet. Duncan is great, and writes in a similar style to mine. If you haven’t checked out Gristle and Bone, go do it now!
Finally, are there any nuggets of info about future works you’re willing to share?
I’ve always got work on the go, and ideas bubbling away.
Planet of the Dinosaurs is next up, with two more books in that series to follow quite quickly. Then there’s Joe Coffin Season Three, of course.
My zombie/cowboy mashup Population:DEAD! has been crying out to be turned into a series of novels for a long time now, so hopefully I will get around to that one day soon.
And then there are the romance novels that I write for British publisher DC Thompson.
But you don’t want to know about those, do you?
Thank you for having me on your blog, Rich, I enjoyed it.
Thursday, 29 October 2015
The Last Soldier and Awards
The third and final novel in the Plague series is almost done. Well, when I say 'almost done' I mean it'll need at least two more drafts before I can send it off to the publisher. I just hope it's not a complete flop, which is always in the back of my mind when I'm nearing the end of a project. We'll see how it goes.
In other news, the past weekend at FantasyCon in Nottingham was superb and I got to meet loads of new, talented people as well as see some good friends and some literary heroes of mine. I even got to meet Joe Hill and sit on a panel with him. He's a nice guy with a great sense of humour. Unfortunately The Last Plague didn't win the British Fantasy Award for Best Horror Novel, but it went to a worthy winner, Adam Nevill, for his novel 'No One Gets Out Alive', which is an excellent book and one I'd recommend along with his other work. Plus Adam's a friendly, humble bloke in a business which has its share of egotists and Prima Donnas, so he's really deserving of the award and sets a good example to other writers. Anyway I was just honoured to be nominated in the same category as writers like Adam, Gary McMahon, Alison Littlewood and MR Carey.
So, in summary, I really enjoyed the weekend and it's given me a kick up the arse with the writing.
I won't do a full report of the convention, because I'm lazy and today's my birthday. Now, I shall return to my unlit man-cave to continue editing TLS!
Cheers!
In other news, the past weekend at FantasyCon in Nottingham was superb and I got to meet loads of new, talented people as well as see some good friends and some literary heroes of mine. I even got to meet Joe Hill and sit on a panel with him. He's a nice guy with a great sense of humour. Unfortunately The Last Plague didn't win the British Fantasy Award for Best Horror Novel, but it went to a worthy winner, Adam Nevill, for his novel 'No One Gets Out Alive', which is an excellent book and one I'd recommend along with his other work. Plus Adam's a friendly, humble bloke in a business which has its share of egotists and Prima Donnas, so he's really deserving of the award and sets a good example to other writers. Anyway I was just honoured to be nominated in the same category as writers like Adam, Gary McMahon, Alison Littlewood and MR Carey.
So, in summary, I really enjoyed the weekend and it's given me a kick up the arse with the writing.
I won't do a full report of the convention, because I'm lazy and today's my birthday. Now, I shall return to my unlit man-cave to continue editing TLS!
Cheers!
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