The International Writers Magazine October Editorial 2017

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Welcome to this October edition of Hackwriters. Read us and our amazing archives too. 18 years on-line, 7456 articles - reviews - stories - travel - share any feature you like and pass them on using the links.
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Editorial: Shifting sands.

59 dead - 540 in hospital from one madman's shooting spree in Las Vegas. There's no way to make sense of this. If this isn't a time to discuss gun control - when is? 850 injured in Spain as the Madrid government tries to prevents Catalonia leaving the union. Memories of Franco's repression are stirred and independence is more likely than ever thanks to heavy handed National police actions. James Skinner has a good piece on how and why Catalonia wants independence this month and there will be more to come... and James Campion brings controversial sense to the NFL Kneelgate issue and remembers Tom Petty.

Uncertainty is the hobgoblin of modern life.  I detect there is ‘disruption’ overkill going on. Uber potentially banned in London, zero hour contracts, fake news so persistent people actually prefer watching RT because they’d rather believe in their lies than the balanced truth of mainstream media.  The few that watch or read the news that is.  I was shocked by my neighbour’s confession the other day.  Never read a book.  None of their nieces and nephews read either. This was entirely normal to them.  In fact, invited in to my other neighbour’s home I noticed they had no books either.  So, I tested a worrying idea out on my students (born around the millennium) on their favourite books. (As opposed to what they may have been forced to read at school).  The result is that few buy any books at all. (Few read newspapers anymore or listen to or watch the news).

Now when I mention to them that they might possibly might want to be writers who get paid for their work one day – there might be a disconnect here.  If you don’t buy other peoples’ books – why would they buy yours?  In fact, I go further, how many of you bought or downloaded a first-time novelist in the last year?
What about yourself?  When did you last try a new author?

What’s my problem with this?  Well as someone who is about to launch a new novel on the world – it is important that we promote books as something essential. Something we should be engaging with.  The competition for young minds is so strong now. YouTube, Facebook, Netflix, Amazon Prime, WhatsApp, actual cinema (although less so than it used to be) gaming, how on earth does one fit a book in there and engage with well ‘paper’ or swipe the pages on an eBook.  Perhaps that’s why audiobooks are doing so well, you can listen to one and do other things – although you might miss some of the nuances on the way.

I’m not trying to be a dinosaur, just saying that it’s not peoples fault there is so much to take their attention – but the pleasure of a book and how long it lasts in the mind is so important, I’d hate for it to be a skill and cerebral experience we lose.  A good fiction novel can alter the way you view the word in a way that other media cannot.  Just as I can most times remember a movie from a simple snatch of the film score, a good novel goes in deep and stays there.  TV or tablet media is all surface.  You can try, but it just doesn’t last.

Disagree all you like, it’s what I believe. 
And I look forward to The Book of Dust by Philip Pullman coming shortly…. The PR campaign is well underway.

© Sam Hawkmoor October 2017
Be the first to read: Girl with Cat (Blue)
'London doesn't exist. Has never existed and those who say it does are liars... '

*As ever Hackwriters is supported by sales of our books - so do buy, print or kindle, we aren't picky.
The Sam North Novels here.
**And thanks for those who do. The Heaviness, Another Place to Die: Endtime Chronicles are recommended.
also read The Repercussions of Tomas D

J&K 4Ever - Love and Devotion in the Wastelands 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.  She is pursued by ruthless Enforcers on horseback, whose task it is to bring runaways back, dead or alive. '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 2015

The all new edition of 'ANOTHER PLACE TO DIE: ENDTIME CHRONICLES By Sam Hawksmoor and Sam North Could you live in a world where antibiotics no longer work? Print & Kindle Q&A interview with the authors here A city gripped by fear as a lethal virus approaches from the East. No one knows how many are dying. 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. Do you stay and hide, or do you flee? Review from the First Edition: 'Beautiful, plausible, and sickeningly addictive, Another Place to Die will terrify you, thrill you, and make you petrified of anyone who comes near you...' Roxy West - Amazon.co.uk

Spy/Romance thriller set during the Blitz in WW2 - Kindle download All proceeds go to keeping Hackwriters going 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 with alternative facts ' *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 this year. If you enjoyed it, please post a remark on Amazon or Goodreads. It all helps. * Now published as Rüya by Marti Yayincilik - The Turkish publishers of TOZ & Golge

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