Investigation: ‘Why’ Darabont’s Walking Dead vision didn’t happen.

 

 An interesting story was brought to my attention this morning, Shock Till You Drop talks about what Frank Darabont envisioned in Season 2 Walking Dead, this originated from a communication to Aint it Cool News.

 

‘Darabont’s’ idea mirrors my zombie horror Dead Pulse. Granted Dead Pulse is a homage to Romero, but Dead Pulse is an original piece of work. I should also mention I’ve never read the Walking Dead Comics.

Before I go on here’s a little background to what happened last year. After the Comic Con in 2011 Ben Davis, AMC vice-president of scripted programming, gathered the cast together for a meeting. In this meeting, he told that Darabont had been fired. Saying “This isn’t working.” And Darabont was ‘let go’.

 

Part of Darabont’s concept explained to Ain’t It Cool News is a follows:

 

“We’d start with a squad of maybe seven or eight soldiers being dropped into the city by chopper. They have map coordinates they need to get to; they’ve been told to report to a certain place to provide reinforcement. It’s not a special mission, it’s basically a housekeeping measure putting more boots on the ground to reinforce key intersections and installations throughout the city. And we follow this group from the moment the copter sets them down. All they have to do is travel maybe a dozen blocks, a simple journey, but what starts as a no-brainer scenario goes from “the city is being secured” to “holy shit, we’ve lost control, the world is ending.”

 

Our squad gets blocked at every turn and are soon just trying to survive. I wanted to do a really tense, character-driven ensemble story as communications break down, supply lines are lost, escape routes are cut off, morale falls apart, leadership unravels, mutinies heat up, etc.” and goes on to say,

 

“So the story follows these soldiers through hell as the city falls apart and the squad implodes, with Sam’s soldier being the main character and the moral center of the group. He becomes the last survivor of the squad, and he finally gets to the map coordinates they’ve been trying to get to from the start.”

This raises some questions given that my story was banded around ‘Tinsel Town’. Prior to the zombie boom!

It’s odd that through a series of unfortunate events that my story (written in 2007) that contains the above was erroneously published in 2009, I would mention the book because I wouldn’t want any one to purchase it in that state, it’s unedited and incomplete (and goes for around $156 – Do not buy this!)

 

In March 2011 Dead Pulse was published on paperback and on a variety of e-book platforms and contains the very same segments from the 2007 albeit expanded, edited correctly and this time authorised. Anyone who has read Dead Pulse will immediately realise that Frank’s description bares an uncanny  striking similarity to the Ravenswood massacre chapter where a small group of the soldiers are sent  to the city on what should be a simple mission to retrieve information and goes terribly wrong.

 

The cast of The Walking Dead were told Frank was fired by ‘scripted programming’ section. By default see why ‘his’ wild card’ didn’t make it into Season 2.

 

To get a feel of Dead Pulse’s tone and to see some of the similarities here’s the trailer or for curiosity get the book free with Amazon prime here:

 

 

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Confessions of a Writer – Truth, Tips and what they wont tell You

There’s no fancy pictures with this blog post, no eye-candy, no poll and no video. For promos head over to my site. Here are words, numbers and letters. Many have already closed down the window – those still reading I thank you…

 

The thing about being 5’4 is that you fall under the radar. For me it is a blessing, it’s what being an underground author is all about and as you get older you shrink. Ghost writing gigs aside I turned down two projects in 2011. One for ethical reasons, the other because I preferred the films to the TV series. No one can ever accuse me of selling out.

 

There seems to be less reading going on these days, with more people spending time on Facebook, sort of facebook-worms and on game consoles. Lot’s of authors think a book signing makes them a good writer, even famous but in reality most people there are just browsing and not specifically there to see them. Even at conventions, the readers are there to see the ‘famous’ head-liners, the book you signed will probably end up on eBay. You are usually there as ‘padding’.

 

 My editor makes me look good – I have no marketing company behind me and will remain an alternative writer. Does it matter, not to me, of course everyone wants to make it like Tony Montana, however, I never have to proclaimed to be a great writer, just an engaging, neat storyteller. I’d like to think those who buy my books retain them. And story telling is a dying art. Those strong narratives are progressively being replaced by watered-down, bloated, re-jigged, reworked, repackage, mis-sold, ‘safe’ stories. Saturated and bland with anything intriguing being few and far between. The same can be said for film.

 

There’s no doubt that there’s a snobbery and click within the film and writing industry, it’s not just confined to those fields. All my working life and to my own detriment I’ve never been willing to play the game. And yet both Blood Hunger and Dead Pulse (outselling Blood Hunger 5-1?!) continue to be modest successes and Terminus my art-house film has exceed expectations. POWER TO THE PEOPLE! And lately power to ebooks and kindle.

 

 

That said, I am not alone there are many like myself that call a spade a spade and strive to create, not to conform. Being professional doesn’t mean you have to sellout or give in. Although these days does it matter, I’ll never be down with the kids most can’t watch a film over 89 minutes or read anything longer than a 140 character tweet. Should I cater for them or the growing and diverse following I have? You have to ask why do you do it? If your doing it for fame, money it’s unlikely you’ll make it unless you have a bagful of cash to hand over to a PR company and 15 -25% to an agent. It’s all a bottle neck smoke screen. Many of the best artists are sadly not filthy rich, so don’t get the credit they deserve, you have to search them out they are there. They could be you. Get you site, get your product, it’s true build it and they will come. Despite my latest works being part if a saturated genre, they were conceived a long time ago and are definitive and exciting horror homages.

 

 

2012 will see the release of the last of my sub-horror genre books Darkest Moons (limited Edition) which will be followed by a film adaptation.

 

 

Thanks again for all your support, you don’t have to read my books or films but keep spreading the word to keep an ageing man happy. If you are a writer or filmmaker or anyone with a dream – believe in yourself and just keep plugging. (Unless you really do suck)

 

 

 

Have a great 2012!

 

My best

 

A.

Horror writing inspirations and beyond

Why do writers write? Whether it’s fiction or nonfiction, poetry or plays, writers use words to transport readers, inform readers or entertain readers and from the simplest blog post to the greatest novel, it’s emotionally satisfying. I did it because I had a story to tell. After a failed attempt of writing simply to satisfy what publishers thought the readers wanted I set out to write something that I would enjoy reading myself and hoped others would too. Below I’ve touched on what inspired me to write each book and what the books are about…

With Blood Hunger by default you’ll find elements of pop culture hits Twilight, True Blood, Vampire Diaries due to their source material but what I’ve set about doing with Blood Hunger is give a fresh reinvention of the vampire legend. As well as traditional folklore I’ve encompassed the spirit of Bram Stoker’s novel ‘Dracula’, Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu’s novella ‘Carmilla’. The story premise is that of



http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=thebredea-20&o=1&p=8&l=bpl&asins=B0041VXTMA&fc1=000000&IS2=1&lt1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifran explorer making a discovery in Romania, dubbed the ‘Ice Prince’ find it is significant enough to put him and his girlfriend Lucia Ferrara in the media spotlight. Iliana and her sister’s journey to the United Kingdom, news that the ‘Ice Prince’ had been discovered ceases their many years of blood abstinence and they unleash a bloodthirsty terror on humankind leaving a trail of death from London to the Welsh countryside.



From the fall of the vampire and the Dracul brothers in medieval Europe to their return in the present day. Prepare yourself, their first bite will be your last! 

Also you can sink your teeth into a bloodthirsty, gruesome and vicious comic tale adaptation.

The first issue here. based on the book Blood Hunger.



With DEAD PULSE I set about to re-imagine and pay homage to George A. Romero undead. Lucio Fulci films also inspired the zombie horror adventure.

http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=thebredea-20&o=1&p=8&l=bpl&asins=B004RCLWAO&fc1=000000&IS2=1&lt1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifrThe dead have returned to life…



The world’s focus is on the city of Ravenswood and the once idyllic town of Farmore as platoons and scattered survivors fight the hordes of the dead, unbeknownst one of them holds the key to end the undead’s reign of mayhem.

Across the city at a body disposal plant a small group take shifts on the ‘death watch’. Their hopes hinge on the soldiers of Farmore to rescue them. But with no contact for months, no food and surrounded by the dead, have they got what it takes to survive?



With death at their door, only time can tell…

http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?lt1=_blank&bc1=000000&IS2=1&bg1=020202&fc1=DD1313&lc1=FF000C&t=thebredea-20&o=1&p=8&l=as4&m=amazon&f=ifr&ref=ss_til&asins=B004URRNH2

The Breathing Dead Tales encompasses both books and is only available as an eBook exclusive to Amazon. With them both read together you can see the subtext of how they are ‘linked’ ever so slightly.

I hope you enjoy the books as much as I did writing them. Please leave a review wherever possible and spread the word. Thanks

Dead Pulse zombie horror trailer

The wait is over. Capturing and encapsulating the spirit of George A. Romero’s zombie mythos and more… Dead Pulse is out on paperback and Kindle. Enjoy the trailer.

The dead have returned to life…

The world’s focus is on the city of Ravenswood and the once idyllic town of Farmore as platoons and scattered survivors fight the hordes of the dead, unbeknownst one of them holds the key to end the undead’s reign of mayhem.

Across the city at a body disposal plant a small group take shifts on the ‘death watch’. Their hopes hinge on the soldiers of Farmore to rescue them. But with no contact for months, no food and surrounded by the dead, have they got what it takes to survive?

With death at their door, only time can tell..

Order your zombie Kindle copy here
Dead Pulse Facebook page

Heroines. Why Lucia Ferrara is no Bella Swan, Buffy or Mina Harker.

What have Underworld, Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Van Helsing got in common? No not girl power. Answer: Heroines.Where does Lucia Ferrara fit in this feisty bunch amongst a love struck teenager similar to Twilight’s Bella Swan? Kick-ass characters like Buffy, Selene and Anna Valerious. A damsel in distress, Wilhelmina “Mina” Harker as in the tradition of Bram Stoker’s Dracula novel. Lucia is like none of the above…

What she has got in common is that she’s a fictional character, a heroine who finds herself in an extraordinary and dangerous situations faced with deadly choices. She’s an everyday woman, just like you. No super powers, no desire to become a vampire, no longing to marry Jonathan Harker. She pouts and snorts when she laughs. Her problems are balancing her work, health, friends, relationships, men and family.

Trading in Zumba, aerobics classes every Monday, Wednesday and Saturday for something a little tougher like Kalaripayat or sparing sessions, she likes to keep herself in shape. Despite being beautiful, with the looks of her mother (who she tragically lost to cancer) and celebrities Alyssa Milano and Mila Kunis, she still feels self-conscience and insecure about herself.

Lucia Grace Ferrara went to a public school and then Goldsmith University, London picking up a BA (Hons) in English and American Literature. After the death of her father she has only his friend and her godfather Robert Morgan to look out for her and her boyfriend Max to rely on. However, this is her greatest flaw thinking she needs a man in her life to make her feel strong,(a replacement for her deceased father?).

That said, her life changes when Max makes a find that puts him on the cover of  the tabloids and she gets an unwanted slice of fame. She meets a captivating, woman named Iliana in a museum and soon Lucia is drawn into a world of mystery and deception. It’s it not long after this ‘chance’ encounter that she is implicated in a murder and has Adrian Michaels a D.I contacting her to be questioned. Little does she know that a frozen body her mountaineering boyfriend has discovered is linked to this enigmatic woman and she instinctively knows that something is not quite right.

Encounters at the museums, several invitations, a masque ball, an outdoor music show and lavish dinners entwined with death, mutation and infatuation and she finds herself in a web of deceit within a rabbit hole.And her life is turned upside down when she meets a man named Stellan.

Lucia is given an old book which gives her an insight to who’s body has been found and who this woman may really be. Soon she finds herself questioning her sanity and decisions as these strangers offer so much and ask for so little. Before long she is forced to go head to head with Iliana, her sisters and even Stellan. It increasing becomes difficult to remove herself from the dreamlike, perilous, situations and locations she finds herself in.

There are endless actresses that would make the perfect Lucia Ferrara, personally I like the idea of Jaime Murray, but casting direction was never my forté,  who would you chose?

Are there any elements of  Bella, Selene or Mina in Lucia, that’s for the reader of Blood Hunger to decide. One thing is for sure, Lucia maybe the most unlikely of characters to have ever faced and uncovered real evil…

Blood Hunger is out now.

Audiobook on iTunes

Dead Pulse and Blood Hunger Seasonal Thanks

Well 2010 is drawing to a close, I’d like to thank everyone who has bought Blood Hunger in whichever format, supporting my work and horror in general.

 

2011 will see the release of my book Dead Pulse another genre piece. However, there will plenty of twists in this zombie tale to set it apart from the recent pop culture flurry of the undead rising.

 

For updates, please join the facebooks groups for each book and spread the word. I also hope to see you on Twitter.

 

Also exclusive to the USA is the film Terminus. Check out the preview on Amazon’s Video on demand.

 

Thanks again, have a horror Christmas and a fantastic New Year!

My Best

A. M.

Reading horror books, how times have changed!

Like horror, enjoy reading, suffering technophobe? Don’t read on…

Call me old-fashioned but I liked using a circular dial on a phone, listening to it chink, chink, chink and speaking to an operator. These days we have mobile phones, touch phones and who know what the future holds. I’ve listen to an audiobook in bed, but never read a book for enjoyment on a PC or an electronic device unless editing or typing my own work. I may sound like a crusty old man, out of time but believe it or not I’m of the Star Wars and He- Man generation. Nevertheless, I do enjoy the tactile feel of a book in my hands, turning the pages the but times have changed… You can curl up on a dark night, grab your latest Herbert or King and not physically have to turn a page as such.  

Blood Hunger was published in June 2010. Times have certainly moved on since, woodblock, typewriters and Spirograph, everything has a cross over medium and choice for the consumer is paramount. Already there is an audio book on version of my vampire horror in iTunes, read by a lovely actress Sarah Leigh.

Moving swiftly on  Blood Hunger was released on Kindle. Kindle? I must admit I didn’t really know what it was, it’s been around for a while, I’d heard of it but never gave it any attention during my web surfing (which consists of usually keeping update with horror and film news). So what is Kindle? A Kindle is a thin electronic device used to download e-books and some magazines wirelessly and read them.

What is Blood Hunger? Blood Hunger is my latest horror offering, inspired by the spirit of Bram Stoker’s novel ‘Dracula’, Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu’s novella ‘Carmilla’, ‘Hammer Horror’s’ film series and cult horror ‘The Hunger’.

An explorer makes a discovery in Romania, dubbed the ‘Ice Prince’ find it is significant enough to put him and his girlfriend Lucia Ferrara in the media spotlight. Iliana and her sister’s journey to the United Kingdom, news that the ‘Ice Prince’ had been discovered ceases their many years of blood abstinence and they unleash a bloodthirsty terror on humankind leaving a trail of death from London to the Welsh countryside.

From the fall of the vampire and the Dracul brothers in medieval Europe to their return in the present day. Prepare yourself, their first bite will be your last! A definitive and fresh reinvention of the vampire legend.

Kindle is not a one trick pony, it’s much more that you  can no get Kindle on iPhone, iPod touch, iPad, PC, Mac, Android and Blackberry! This allows you to read books on the go if you wish. 

Blood Hunger on Kindle click below for:

USA version

UK version

Blood Hunger, The Dracula Myth and Legend

News, movie developments, but firstly, I’d like to sincerely thank all those who have purchased and read Blood Hunger, feedback has been very positive and I’m glad it has been well received, especially by die-hard vampire fans and the USA audience.

As I’ve mentioned in previous posts I continued shaping Blood Hunger, writing a definitive vampire tale true to the original origins but an injecting a modern spin and twist. And at times it is ambiguous but it was required for the reader to link and solve some of the mystery.

Picture from fullhalloween.com

Thankfully or worryingly, everyone seemed to have warmed to the cold-blooded killer vampire sisters Monica, Gabriella and the mysterious Iliana. And that Nettie Johns character hit a nerve.

The 1477 A.D segments of the book that follow the downfall of the vampire brothers Vlad, Mircea, Radu and Stellan – I tired to encompass the 15th century history as oppose to Bram’s 1897 Victorian London, and I love that readers ‘got it’ and liked the contrast in setting. Talking of contrast in setting, my research and correspondence with the police on the chapters set in the present day really helped give those parts some realism. Detective Michaels and explorer Lucia turned out well and I’m looking forward to seeing their film incarnations.

Unfortunately, after attending development meetings with the first producers  it’s apparent that the movie adaptation may omit the 1477 A.D segments due to budget constraints. I am in the process of pushing it’s development forward.  Hopefully it will exceed Terminus popularity.

Ultimately, I set out two write a definitive vampire story that encompasses and pays tribute to the myth and legend, which has such an affect on today’s pop culture. However, I was very conscientious to write something different to Meyer, Rice and so on, who’s work I have not read but have heard a lot about. I hope Blood Hunger continues to capture the imagination of new readers that have been surrounded by only Twilight, Vampire Diaries and True Blood types respectfully, while at the same time satisfying hammer fans and lovers of the vampire and Dracula legend itself.

Follow me on Twitter

I’ll be giving away Blood hunger T-shirts and stuff

Order your copy here: Blood Hunger

Dangerous and enigmatic vampires

Blood Hunger is here!

Follow Lucia’s adventure as she finds herself going head to head with the dangerous and enigmatic vampires of Romania.

From the fall of the vampire and the Dracul brothers in medieval Europe to their return in the present day. Prepare yourself, their first bite will be your last!

USA readers can order Blood Hunger here
For signed copies email

Click below to download the
Blood Hunger audiobook

also on iTunes from 15th July

The Real Life Curse of Blood Hunger

Do I believe Blood Hunger is cursed? Well it certainly has seen it’s fair share of misfortune.

I wrote Blood Hunger hot on the heels of The Breathing Dead a pulply novelette. True to form it gives the reader plenty of bite and fuel for their imagination with a narrative packed with hidden gems.

In 2009 I directed a photo shoot, which depicted a ‘glossy’ version of the characters from Blood Hunger. With a BBC make-up artist and an array of great actresses and models it turned out really well. It was great for vampire and horrors fans and good for the anticipation of the books release.

Then the ‘curse’ began, all the photo’s were accidentally compressed and the originals that were destined for enhancements were deleted, the photographer believing that they had been backed up on disc. This prevented any digital post editing being carried out on the photos due to the resolution. Nevertheless, I continued shaping Blood Hunger, writing a definitive vampire tale true to the original origins but an injecting a modern spin and twist.

Blood Hunger was due for publication by the original publisher, but a publisher that dealt specifically with horror approached me and I signed a three book deal, with the understanding that the story would not be edited. Everything was going fine and the publisher appeared happy.

The curse then struck again, there were issues with the editor wanting to change the vampires into something else. I explained “look vampires are vampires and every story will always be derivative of vampire folklore, Brams ‘Dracula’ and/or Sheridan Le Fanu’s gothic novella ‘Carmilla.’’

I should say some of the edits were useful and I took them on board. Then came more edit hits, and any ambiguity was required to be explained and ‘Americanised’. Now I don’t want to insult my readers intelligence by explaining everything, especially when all the answers were there and some ambiguity was required in any case.

Then the curse stuck hard. A sudden death, seriously. Sadly, Z. A Recht, a zombie author passed away. I corresponded with him about my own zombie book and mentioned Blood Hunger, he struck me as a fiery nice guy. So after Morningstar Saga writer died I was truly shocked.

I cracked on and I must admit I learned a lot for this editing process, as I was very old school and out of touch. However, as the editing process continued relations became strained with unnecessary changes to the story being requested and so on and I also felt there was lack of support from the publisher. Finally our agreement was terminated.

The curse gave one last blow, when the Blood Hunger master for the audiobook was corrupted. Thankfully, it was recovered and reader Sarah Leigh’s efforts were not lost.

Yeap, there’s no supernatural power, witchcraft, magic or causative force to this curse, just plain bad luck.

I had two spin off films of Blood Hunger made, ‘Terminus’ and ‘Revamped’ both filmed in the US, however, I was without a publisher. PS Publishing, Pan, Orion to name a few all showed promising interest. And while Blood Hunger has not been rejected, it hasn’t been snapped up either. Maybe it’s due to the saturated vampire market? Who knows, but one thing is for sure, Blood Hunger is very different to anything that is doing the rounds right now.

So that’s it. With a feature film in the works, curse or not in the face of adversity Blood Hunger will be released July 2010 after a years delay by Saturn. That is, unless the curse strikes again!