coronavirus – Atomic Slingshot Press

Times are a Changin’

That clip above is from the movie Watchmen. This is my feeling in a nutshell.

With all of the change going on in the world at the moment, it is hard to tell what is going to happen in the future. People are hoping that in a few weeks, things will go back to normal, and we will all go back to work. People expect this situation will be a distant memory.

The human part of me hopes this will be the case. July will roll around, and the world will be back to normal. Borders will be open, people will go to concerts and sport’s games.

The writer part of me knows this won’t be the case. The writer part of me starts asking questions. Many of which the human part of me knows that’s not going to happen.

(Please note, this is a thought exercise to show how I world build scenarios for my novels.)

The writer in me starts compounding the situation. The scenario. In the United States, ten million people have lost their jobs in a week. Air travel has stopped, and borders are closed. Millions of ex-pats are trapped in foreign countries with no ways to get home. Around the world, tens of thousands have died from the disease and more will before everything is over. Most of those who have passed away are the elderly, but the young have also been affected.

I see things happening in multiple ways. This list is not complete.

One. In response to these events, many places have adopted authoritarian policies to combat this virus. China went even more welding people into their homes. Hungary has taken authoritarian policies. In New Jersey, a guy was arrested for paddleboarding. There was no one within miles of him.

Authoritarian power is given by the people willingly. Those in charge will never voluntarily give that power back. It only is given after violence. This is the start of a dystopian world where everyone is afraid of the virus and stays isolated from each other.

Two. A cure is found and wildly given to societies. People try to go back to the way it was in the hopes they can have normal. It doesn’t come as the world of yesterday is gone and gone for good. The new world is one where people are wary of each other, where people keep a stockpile of food and medicine. Where people pay off the debts and gather together three months of money. The threat of a new disease spreading across the world is too high for people.

Three. Things get worse. Currently, there is an argument over the real death rate of the disease. Accusations of the CCP lying about their numbers is rampant. There are huge gaps between what is happening in New York City and rural Alabama. There are also reports that people are getting re-infected over again.

The disease exemplifies the rifts in society and causes society to crumble. Federal governments become helpless to do anything as their employees refuse to go to work to keep safe their own families. Regional warlords and strongmen pop out of the woodwork.

Are any of these going to happen? Who knows. I am not an oracle. I don’t have the gift of foresight. But I can make educated guesses by studying current events.

If I were to write a novel based on one of those scenarios, then I would spend more time fleshing out the idea.

But as a writer, what do you think is going to happen?

This journey is not something I can do alone. It takes support from many people for it to become a reality. The easiest way is to visit my Amazon Author Page and purchase one of my books. They are available in all countries and for free on Kindle Unlimited. I do have a tip jar set up at Ko-Fe, where you can buy me a coffee. Or you can also visit me on Facebook. Your help and support are much appreciated.

Change and being Creative

In the last two weeks, the world has changed. It has changed, and I fear it won’t go back to the way it was. No one wanted this specific change. No one wanted to be locked in their homes for months, yet here we are. Once this is all done and a memory. People’s mentalities will have changed as the disease has affected either loved ones or their friends.

I’m not going into detail about Covid-19. There are a dozen different people to read and watch who are smarter than I am.

For me, my focus is my writing and my creative pursuits. Before, I spent my time writing, and I do the same thing now. I write things and hope one day I get projects completed.

As a creative, it is crucial to keep working and keep being creative. I have seen other creatives bend under the weight of this change. They aren’t writing, drawing, etc. They spend their time binge-watching whatever Netflix has going on. Maybe they need to do that.

But is it the best thing to do as a creative? Life is full of change. It comes and goes. Many times it is unwanted, yet it will happen anyway.

Change is the only constant thing in life. There is no point going against it. There is only letting it flow around. To move with the water, not against it.

For this COVID bullshit, it is looking at the silver lining. I’m not starving, and I am not being evicted. I have the time to be able to do what I need to get done. I have time to write. I will make use of this time and do just that. There is no point in letting change ruin my life.

COVID-19

The world has changed. One day I was looking forward to the start of my kid’s spring break with family coming over. I have a month left of my semester at university before I start the summer session.

Now, things are different. The spring break went from two weeks of having my kids in the house to being done until September. Except the school district didn’t say, it’ll be back in September. They said it’s closed until further notice. To me, that means I may be homeschooling the kids for the next few years. If it lasts that long. My kids were disappointed when I told them spring break was over, and I bought them school books. They have been doing schoolwork every day, whether they like it or not.

For me and my schooling, it has all been transferred to online learning. Which is different. Now students all over have to learn the discipline to self-motivate to get their work done. For me, it’s challenging to get the assignments done on time, and I think my self-discipline is higher than most. Not better than most, but it’s high. My wife might say something else about my work habits. She calls me a workaholic perfectionist under my own tyrannical rule.

The amount of stress from the uncertainty is everywhere. I can’t turn on Facebook or Youtube without seeing it. The uncertainty of money, food, etc. is everywhere. Store shelves are bare as people stock up on essentials. The last thing people want to do is to be locked in their homes and starve to death. (I’m not talking about the TP fiasco. I don’t understand that.)

However. All of that is an aside and not what the blog is about. Like many, I have self-isolated into my own house. I have a terrible history with bronchitis, and as this causes breathing issues, I have no interest in getting it.

What to spend my time working on?

For me, the answer is one of three things in no particular order. I help my kids with their schoolwork. Or I do my own school work. Or I write my novels. I am even hoping to read a few books myself.

For you, it might be different. It is something to do with escapism, and I got your escapism right here.

If you are from the United States and not Canada, like I am, Kindle Unlimited has a two-month trial. This is a good deal, and details can be found here.

Once you have the trial, what do you read?

Sleeping Legion Series by J.R. Handley

One of my all-time favorite series filled in intense action and in-depth characters.

Rebyrth by R. Max Tillsley

For those with kids needing distractions, this is a favorite story of my son, who says its a great adventure story about robots, conspiracies, and kids defying all odds.

Cone of Silence by Drue Bernardi

Take all of the disaster books, and the cream of the lot will be this one. Written by a storm chaser, this is about a meteorologist trying to do the right thing.

Demon Scroll by Tim Niederriter

Demon Scroll is an epic sword and sorcery novel where the heroes and monsters may be one and the same.

Jordie in Charge by E. A. Shanniak

For those whose takes aren’t in the standard fantasy and science fiction genres, Shanniak has got you covered. She writes romance novels set in a fantasy world of her own.

Storming Area 51, an anthology.

Thirty-five awesome stories – one kick-ass meme that started it all.
It started as a joke. Storm Area 51 they said. They can’t stop all of us they said. But all laughter stopped when the U.S. Air Force mobilized the reserves and pulled out the big guns.

This is an anthology where you can find my short story, “Rise of the Ghids.” Storming area 51 is all about people to storm the secret base to see the aliens. But what about the aliens? What is their story? That is what I told.

Seismic Shock by Nathan Pedde

This is my own novel. Set in Tokyo, Japan, when Yellowstone supervolcano blows its top. This starts a chain of disasters from earthquakes to tsunamis that shut down nations and society as its currently known.

I hope these suggestions help you to spend your time in isolation.