Book idea???

[Ampolitor]

Well I've been writing stuff (non published) for a bit, I literally have 10 to 20 leather journals full of short stories. Anyway I've been kicking the idea of getting my own zombie horror book self published but I want to know what you guys like.
Me I like the traditional Romero type zombies, even the runners like in the remake of Dawn. What do you guys like in the stories? and what are things that you are tired of seeing or thats been done to death.
I had one story which was set in a homemade RPG world, kinda like the terminator meets dawn of the dead....lol. Its set in the not so far future, space travel to near planets has just started and a crash landing of a shuttle brings a disease to earth. A disease breaks out, later on Robots were used to stem the disease and helped spread a antidote you could say that would stop the disease and repair tissue. Well the robots later on decide to wipe out all carriers of the disease mainly all humans with the exceptions of those already cleared and who are in safe zones. This starts a collapse and a large war. Well when the dust settles the humans win for now. Then the virus changes and the dead rise. Theres a lot more details but thats the real basic premise. Is it dumb as hell or doable in your eyes.
I want to do something different but stick to the traditional zombie. This game however was a huge hit in my local area (someone even stole my darn original copy!) Anyway I just want your thoughts. I read a lot of the zombie books out there now and some were good and some were........not my kind of book. BTW I think Day by Day Armageddon is prob one of the best ones that I have read in a LONG, LONG time.

 

[Kmart Kommando]

Brains?

 

[Ampolitor]

???

Well I decided to have two main characters, the story will be from the viewpoint of a police officer from a city in NC and from a US Marine. They will eventually meet up and there will be other characters but these will be the main two. I'm also going to do the mixed setting like my old rpg. Once i polish up the first chapter I'll post it up on the website! I hope I can get some comments good or bad are welcome.

 

[Ampolitor]

ideas

Ok, I'm going to use the running zombies but they're not going to be athletes, they'll be faster while they are fresh. Then as they compose they will become the standard shamblers. Now I want them to only come out during the night but I'm trying to figure out why? and where do they go?
This helps make the world seem more hopeful. Some of the boks that I read were so bleak it's like whats the point, you're going to die sooner or later (usually sooner) with those type of odds.
As for the weapons I'll try to keep to realism, of course it is set in the near future where space travel has just started to planets in our system. There are two or three colonies already set up on other planets, or dome cities. They are mainly research facilities though. I want to go a little into the future for more possibilties but not to far. I have weapons that are like the standard military rifles of today, except caseless rounds etc..
The story will go from the start of the disease from the eyes of the two characters, into the intervention of the CDC robots (ACS program, automated combat system) trying to quarantine the infected, to the burning of the infected and forced marches of the clean humans to safe zones, the discovery of the cure and battle with the CDC robots. Then the rising. It sounds erratic but comes together in the end.
the focus will be on two groups a Police officer and a smal band of survivors and a US marine and his squad. I'm still deciding on a main plot rather than just survival, thats been done to death before. I'm kicking around a few ideas, I'll post them once I make the final decision.
The book will be put on Lulu. com when I'm done.
Anyway keep the ideas coming!

 

[Ampolitor]

change of plans

Thats the basic idea, with a few other ideas that I've been kicking around. I was also thinking of a comet that heads towards earth. The government tries to keep it under wraps until it gets close enough for the amateurs to see it, then it's out. A division of NASA and other country space programs agree to send up strategic missiles to break it up, to lessen the impact.
This happens and only a few smaler pieces strike the earth, of course creating several mass casualty incidents, a few flooding incidents elsewhere (but not world changing big comets.)
A microrganism is released, a virus that infects many in the area to include first responders who show some of the first symptoms. The disease spreads and begins to kill off the infected.
Yadda, Yadda it spreads, gets worse and quarantine measures are enforced. It progreses to the point when the ACS is used. (Automated Combat System) to prevent any more people getting infected while dealing with the already infected. The disease still can't be stoped so the robots or ACU's begin to burn the infected on site. This causes panis so the government argues over these measures and decides to pull the plug.The key elements are rounded up and taken to safe zones where the areas are deemed sterile. A few even board shuttles to space stations and other colonies. Space travel by normal citizens is banned and a few are shot down to prevent the escape of the disease.
The government against the advice of DHS, CDC, and the WHO attempt to shut it down. They send a force to take out the computer.
A brief battle ensues as a few ACU's attempt to protect the mainframe. The ACS is hit with a missile strike and crippled, taken offline temporarily.
In time the disease mutates and is no longer airborne or dangerous to living humans.
The ACU's wander still killing infected, but see all humans as infected since they are all carriers.
The disease mutates and the dead rise. The world as we know it collapses,governments fall, societies crumble, and chaos ensues.
I plan on having my main characters start when the disease breaks and take it from there. I think this is a better scenario rather than the other one, what do you think?

 

[johndaw16]

Got to say I love zombies in any form, I'm especially partial to the brains kind myself. From what you've posted so far you seem to have a lot of material and ideas already.

One thing you might want to consider is setting up a thread in the SH forum. If you are looking for critiques of your work thats a good place to start, since so many people frequent the board. Just identify your story as fiction and ask for feedback and I'm sure you will get some replies. And if it goes well you might have some of your readers clamoring for a published story (see Sep's Tales of Wyre SH's if you don't believe me).

Just start small and jump and see if you catch peoples eye. My only other advice is if you do start a SH be sure to post regularly and be patient it takes time for the readers to get on board with a story.

Hope that helps.

Johndaw

 

[Ampolitor]

characters

My next posts this week will be al of the characters for the book so I can get your opinions on what you guys would like to see. What do you like to see in the main characters? What do you hate to see, stereotype characters? Whats been done to death in your opinion? How about suporting characters? The protaginist (villain?) I'm developing all of the details for the characters but I need input to see what the fans of the genre want. I just don't want to write a book that is so far off base with the characters that people hate it but I also want to stay true to the genre. As usual any input helps.

 

[direrodent]

I like reading both kinds of stories, really.

The traditional brain eating, clawed his way out of the grave living dead zombie is always fun.

I think for the current state of the horror genre though, to achieve the believability/realism required to really horrify the reader, the virus/chemical accident/government secret project gone bad model is much easier to do successfully though. These are things a lot of pessimistic modern readers can actually imagine happening, while restless dead crawling out of their graves is a bit harder to swallow.

I'd give either one a look though, if they were entertaining, well written stories.