The International Writers Magazine Editorial February 2022

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Welcome to this February 2022 edition of Hackwriters. 23 years on-line, 7847 + articles - reviews - stories - travel - share any feature you like and pass them on. February 25th 2022

Coronavirus UK: 31,933 tested positive - 120 deaths (845 last seven days) - Feb 25th 2022 4.00pm
Get Vaccinated! It is still infecting and killing unvaccinated people! Get Boosted!

Editorial: Words Matter

War has finally begun as Russia crushes Ukraine defences. The Russians are attacking from all sides and the missiles are landing on civilian as well as miltary targets. If the West retaliate Putin has threatened WW3. It's both tragic and absurd. Regime Change that no doubt former president Trump will approve of. Let the resistance make Russia regret this war.

It was extraordinary to see the world leaders crawling to Moscow to bow down before the Czar - but once again appeasment didn't work. No one learns anything from history it seems. 190,000 Russian troops are already killing and showering cities with lethal missiles. Sanctions? Putin asks? Is that all you've got? We are increasing them but it won't stop the killing. The Russians have siezed Chernobyl. Why? What is their plan?

It's the Year of the Tiger and world is undergoing realignment. Have you stockpiled yet? Dug your fallout shelter? We've been lucky these past thirty years with just one superpower but now there are three and many rogue nations with nuclear weapons, some quite prepared to use them. One thing is sure, the world will have been radically changed before it is out. Will China emerge the winner? Is Taiwan safe from missiles now?

Ask Whoopi if words matter or was it 'just a little detail of history' as France's Le Pen senior once remarked. Ask Neil Young if words matter, he certainly cares what's said on Spotify, so should you. Fascism wears many faces and erasing the inconvenient facts of history is the number one objective. Joe Rogan may end up not liking this new anti-vax anti-science world he's helping to create. In China or Russia it's practically illegal to remember anything from history at all now. Banning books in the USA leads to burning books, then people, which is what 'Maus' is all about!
Then there's Legitimate Political Discourse which is anything but. Confused? Words Matter you see.
Fahrenheit 451 anyone? by (Ray Bradbury an author worth rediscovering).

I read The Times every day.  To balance it I also read The N.Y. Times on-line.  Not much of a confession is it.  I get up, go fetch (1600 steps), have breakfast and read about things that have already happened written by people who are probably just as desperate as myself to think about what the hell to write about that doesn’t concern Boris, Putin, Biden, Trump, War and cancel culture.  One can instinctively smell the desperation of the daily columnist whose living depends upon coming up with 500 plus words everyday, month after month.

I’m writing something new now, seventy thousand words so far on a sequel to ‘We Feel Your Pain’.  It may never see the light. I know it’s a good idea but perhaps it should be a stand-alone. The trouble with sequels is that the main protagonists already know each other. There’s none of that frisson of ‘will they get it together or not’.  They’re already together.  You could break them up but they don’t want to, so you have to reply on the plot and well, it's harder than it should be.

So I read the newspapers that bit longer to avoid tackling the problem. I went to see Sing 2 to cheer myself up (Piggy Power worked). I go for walks to avoid writing, but guess what, the subconscious goes to work anyway and wakes you at 3am with a major detail you overlooked. Did you leave a character stranded and forgot to go back for them?  What year did that really important incident happened and how old was the victim? Is their testimony accurate?

For those of you who may not be writers and think it’s easy to come up with fresh ideas or characters or even dash off 500 entertaining words a day it can be a painful process.  You can argue that nothing columnists write makes a difference. Our regular columnists James Campion or Indiana Lee would say you're wrong. Once something's read or said it has impact way beyond the orginal audience.

The horrible mess we find ourselves standing knee deep in in the UK right now was caused by a desperate part-time MP and newspaper columnist; who wrote two articles. One was for Brexit - the other against. Tossed off in less than an hour (allegedly) the consequences of his words will touch every one of us in the UK in a profound and utterly negative way forever.  Words matter.

Enjoy February – say a prayer for Ukraine and all women in Afghanistan.

Happy Year of The Tiger from us at Hackwriters

© Sam Hawksmoor February 2022 - Editor - author of The Repossession of Genie Magee
*Girl with Cat Blue screenplay reached the quarter finals for the ISA Screenwriting Awards Jan 2022

A Cure for Sceptics by Sam North Publisher: Hammer & Tong ( July 2021) Paperback & kindle: 326 pages ISBN-13: 979-8537465874 Delaney and Asha run the Berg City Office of City Oversight. Their role is to expose the shady characters running scams and fraud against the city. 300 complaints flood in for a $30,000 treatment that claims to abolish pain forever. Unfortunately the Mayor himself is touting the scheme. When Delaney finds himself left for dead at the bottom of a cliff he gets the message that he's supposed to leave this one well alone. 'A great human story that wears it's heart on it's sleeve.' Dr Allen Cook - Bridgeport University ‘a brilliant and intriguing tale’ Amazon **Sample Sam North's new novel here.

Covid Numbers worldwide - Source: Worldometers.

Celebrating the publication of MISSION LONGSHOT: how far will you go to save one life? The climate is changing fast - the future of humanity is at stake, who wants to escape to an alternative planet on that spaceship with Elon? (Well not that actual spaceship but you know what I mean). Buy a ticket and enjoy the ride. But don't forget to buckle up. It might not go where you thought it would. 'Gripping adventures with highly engaging characters.' W. Leff - Goodreads

The Sam North Novels - still available to order Amazon or Lulu

*Keeping Hackwriters archived is supported by sales of our books - so do buy, print or kindle, we aren't picky.
Magenta - A chilling story of kidnapping, burning and strangeness set in the wilds of Lincolnshire

** The Heaviness, & The Repercussions of Tomas D - 'best time travel WW2 story in a long while'

The new edition of 'ANOTHER PLACE TO DIE: ENDTIME CHRONICLES By Sam Hawksmoor & Sam North There's no safe place to hide from a lethal pandemic Print & Kindle - Q&A interview with the authors here A city gripped by fear. People are petrified of being thrown into quarantine. Best friends Kira and Liz once parted are scared they will never see each other again. Teen lovers, Chris and Rachel, prepare to escape to the islands. a taster here The Last Ferry Review from the First Edition: 'Beautiful, plausible, and sickeningly addictive, Another Place to Die: Endtime will terrify you, thrill you, and make you petrified of anyone who comes near you...' Roxy West - Amazon.co.uk

Girl with Cat (Blue) - Shortlisted for the Rubery International Book Award 'a funny, bloody, colorful narrative that never fails to surprise the reader. Girl with Cat (Blue) provides great entertainment'.

'This book was amazing! I was hooked from the first few pages and couldn't put the book down.' Judge, 26th Annual Writer’s Digest Self-Published Book Awards. - Honorable Mention

J&K 4Ever - A post-apocalypse love story Sixty years after the end of everything the city of Bluette survives, controlled by a malignant sect.  A place where men rule, girls receive no education and are matched at 16 to the highest bidder.  No one is ever permitted to leave the city and outside is a murderous wasteland of despair. Orphans Kruge and Jeyna have been devoted to each other through all the years of terror in this harsh regime and sworn never to be parted.  But the beautiful Jeyna has been betrayed by the Warden. Kruge has been swiftly banished to the Scraps, under the control of the Keeper. Jeyna is heartbroken; she will not accept her fate and escapes to find Kruge.   'A genuine romance in a bleak but plausible and terrifying setting'.

J&K 4Ever

MARIKKA- exclusively on Amazon Print and kindle 2 Based on a tragic real life event, Marikka flees from an arson attack on her home to the sea, where she meets Starfish boy – a runaway working for Jackson, a scarred man hiding a sinister secret from the world. Meanwhile her real father searches for her with the aide of Anya, ‘the girl who can read objects’. More about the writing of this book ‘Long after my tears dried, my heart stayed with Marikka, Starfish Boy and the strange girl who reads objects.’ CT You will smile, you will gasp with shock, and you will struggle to read the words through your tears. Gemma Williams - Amazon.co.uk

Spy/Romance thriller set during the Blitz in WW2 - Kindle download The Repercussions of Tomas D A Hero? Or Englands Greatest Traitor? USA Paperback here 'Disturbing and very poignant YA love story that presents a chilling alternate future for an England that lost the war.' Marcel d'Agneau 'A brilliant imagining of living in the Blitz, well researched.' Amazon UK 'This is Man in the High Castle for teens and scarily plausible ' *download the Kindle version or buy the paperback from Hammer & Tong

'The Heaviness' for any reader who likes to think about such things as betrayal, revenge, relationships and the laws of gravity. An original Genie Magee story Genie & Renée have just 36 hours to save Rian or he dies 'Without a doubt, one of the best YA Sci Fi series out there.' Evie Seo - Bookish Kindle & print Thanks to readers who have been buying this title. * Also published as Rüya by Marti Yayincilik - The Turkish publishers of TOZ & Golge

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