The International Writers Magazine Editorial NOVEMBER 2024

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Welcome to this edition of Hackwriters. 25 years on-line, 8,028 + articles - reviews - stories - travel -
share any feature you like and pass them on. NOVEMBER 2024 - Previous Editorial here

Welcome: Editorial - November - Happy Thanksgiving - Drive Safe!!!!

The US Electorate have spoken - Trump has won the Presidency, the Senate and the House. Now we have Trump's Rocky Horror Show of Cabinet hopefuls. America is in for a very bumpy ride. James Campion writes on lost values in America

I swear that once upon a time we used to respect our leaders. Politics was something to aspire to because you wanted to make society better, bring justice to the oppressed and prosperity to the poor. In the UK the government we have now are an instant busted flush grasping for freebies in exchange for favours yet to be delivered and no doubt eyeing up lucrative jobs they can do after they have destroyed hope for everyone else. Their first Budget has plunged everyone into a deep gloom.

Which of course bring us to Donald J Trump, the greatest charlatan of them all. How more than 50% of the US electorate believed this venal unhinged old man will make their lives better is beyond comprehension.  He has openly said he will make them poorer, gut social security and Medicare as well as deport up to 11 million tax paying illegals, whomever he doesn't like, which will further reduce the tax base and leave many businesses unable to function as increasingly the remaining white-working class are too obese and sick to work. But the verdict is in and yes this is what they want. Bitcoin has soared, the stock market is up, Musk must be overjoyed as he contemplates huge government contracts and zero tax. Climate change solutions are toast.

At the same time the war between Israel and Iran’s proxies will intensify. Maybe Iran is holding back until they have a deliverable nuclear weapon, but who is to say North Korea won’t help on that score, or Putin, as Iran is in the BRICS.  I recall from a very early age my local church was always preaching that Armageddon would begin in the Middle East and it is sure looking odds-on these days. We used to talk of ‘wise heads’ who would prevent such a thing but evidence of such a person in that region or indeed any other is hard, if not impossible to locate.

Floods in Valencia - Spain 2024

I was planning to take an autumn break in Spain but the extreme floods in the Valencia region have made me cancel, it wouldn't be right to go when so many are suffering. About 250+ people are feared to have perished (217 confirmed so far) and many, many animals (which no one mentions). The videos of the destruction are heartbraking. People attacking the Spanish King is a response to the lack of visible support from the government. Flooding also arrived in Barcelona and now in Girona and Malaga and now today Wales in the UK is flooding too. Extraordinary weather.

Who needs tourists if you are underwater and covered in mud, right? In addition hot-headed locals are marching and want tourism banned. There were marches in Seville, Madrid, the Canary Islands last weekend. Tourism represents 13% of Spain’s economy. Some 90 million people visit annually for the sunshine and history. Similar protests are happening in Italy, particularly Venice. 

I know from my visit to Amsterdam in the spring just how unpleasant overcrowding can be (yes I was one of them). The fault I think lies in Airbnb. All the places where locals used to live have been bought for short lets. Not only do locals have nowhere to live but rents have doubled where something might be available and of course, staying in an Airbnb means you are depriving thousands of hospitality jobs as hotels become unviable. It is literally destroying a whole way of life and should be severely restricted.

So much is changing, from the way we consume music, or get our news (apparently 73% of under thirties use Tik-Tok for that). Everything points to more and more social isolation. You can have a million followers but no actual flesh and blood friends.  Trust is devalued, anxiety increased, and the bogyman of AI is creeping up behind you. No wonder the kids aren’t alright.

**Meanwhile if you haven't seen it yet - go see The Wild Robot. It is a lovely life-affirming movie. Also look out for FLOW - about a cat and other animals surviving a flood. Looks amazing.

*** I’ll make a plea here for readers to download my new book ‘The Restoration of Ami’ a runaway teen seeking the mother that abandoned her...

© Sam Hawksmoor - November 25th 2024           
*Sales of Sam North's and Sam Hawksmoor's books help keep Hackwriters going. Sam Hawksmoor's Books below

The Restoration of Ami: ASIN: B0CVQMH78C - Kindle ISBN: 978-1-7385181-0-4 - Print UK Pub: Hammer & Tong/KDP 2.29.24 Remy has one last obsession – to complete the restoration of his ’57 Studebaker Golden Hawk.  He’s planned a road trip to Montreal to find a part he desperately needs. It’s a long way from Florida; his Chevy truck is almost as old as he is. There are doubts he’ll be able to make the drive, doubts about his bladder, his heart, but he’s determined to go. At the very first urgent stop in the pouring rain, a dog appears from nowhere and jumps into his truck, quickly followed by a drenched teen. Scared, the girl, Ami, urgently needs a ride. She has escaped from a nearby religious cult and is desperate to find the mother who abandoned her there when she was just five years old. One old man, a troubled teenage girl and Stan the dog are on a road trip into MAGA America. With each mile they travel Montreal seems to get further away. 'Fabulous, can't-put-down story with quirky, original characters, a loveable dog and a great adventure'. ***** Roxy West on Goodreads.

A MAGA Road Trip by Sam Hawkmoor

The Book of Ashes • Sam Hawksmoor ISBN: 979-8-837434-952 ASIN: B0B85HFK86 Hammer & Tong - print and kindle 'an immensely satisfying story' - Walli Leff on Goodreads. 'a fun read with unique elements ... exemplary in its voice and style' 'Judge, 10th Annual Writer's Digest E-Book Awards An extract from the Book of Ashes		The Book of Ashes - Some secrets are meant to be kept forever The Case: Delaney and Asha run their own investigation company now. Hired to find a writer who stiffed a client of $10,000 - things go bad pretty fast. "This was supposed to be a simple track and trace job. Find the writer, bank the money. Now it's a horror show."

'We Feel Your Pain' by Sam Hawksmoor ISBN-13: 979-8699087693 Published by Hammer & Tong Print & Kindle Book One in the Delaney & Asha series		We Feel Your Pain – So you don’t have to. The Case: Delaney (42) and Asha (22) run the Office of Berg City Oversight. Their role is to expose the scams, keep the city safe from unscrupulous people.  When something looks too good to be true – it’s a scam, right?  But what if the scam works?  What kind of scam is that?

MISSION LONGSHOT: how far will you go to save one life? 2024: Honorable Mention in the Purple Dragonfly Awards (Sci Fi) Gerry is convinced aliens are going to attack on Millennium Eve - Y2K night. Everyone else is preparing for the end of civilisation. That night only Gerry notices aliens land. He and his spacenut pals Jolene and Kali race to be the first to greet them... 'Climate change, lost alien civilisations, adventures in deep space. Great fun with endearing characters'. Kitty Thomas

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'. * Screenplay a quarter-finalist in the Screencraft competition 2024

'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 only 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, 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' betrayal, revenge, relationships and the laws of gravity. 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 * Also published as Rüya by Marti Yayincilik - The Turkish publishers of TOZ & Golge Part 2: The Hunting of Genie Magee - fight for the right to exist

*December 9th: Sara Troy interviews Sam Hawksmoor on Self Discovery Wisdom

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