A Post-Apocalyptic Interview with Malcolm Timperley

Our next anthology, Tales from the Ruins, is going to be a cataclysmic one! It will be released on the 25th of February but the Kindle version is available for pre-order today at just 99c instead of $3.99. To celebrate the imminent publication of the first Black Beacon Books anthology exclusively dedicated to post-apocalyptic fiction, we’re interviewing the contributing authors. Behold the maniacal workings of their troubled minds!

Hi Malcolm, 

Let’s make the first question a lighthearted one...hmm...okay, got it! Is your story simply an entertaining piece of fiction or are you giving us a peek at the terrifying fate tomorrow will unleash upon us?

Three ill-matched guys holed up in a remote farmhouse isn't that rare an event (been there, done that). Giving the threesome no alternative but to be there following social collapse is a realistic scenario, but it’d likely be for more prosaic reasons than the particular apocalypse this bunch are fleeing.

What is it that makes post-apocalyptic fiction so appealing? Would the world be better off if more people read this genre? 

It’s the feeling that this might happen to me but, thankfully, it isn’t doing. Yet. I don’t think reading more post-apocalyptic fiction would affect the world either way. Knowing that it’s fiction allows people to escape for a while, so they can leave the everyday and slip into something more comfortable. Like denial.

Do you have a favourite post-apocalyptic author? 

They’re all dead. And you wouldn’t believe what happened to them...

Some people like to listen to music while reading. Which song can you imagine providing the soundtrack to your story? 

I listen to music or I read, never both simultaneously. If music is on I shut it out completely to concentrate on the story. So choosing a soundtrack song is difficult, but I’d go for either Unfinished by The Dunes and/or Down in the Water by Oddfellow’s Casino. Sorry, that’s two choices, isn’t it? Tell you what, you listen to both of them and decide; they’re both on Bandcamp.

If you woke up in your story tomorrow, what would you do?

Try to go back to sleep. If that failed, I’d probably do pretty much exactly what the protagonist does in the story.

There are no firearms or ammunition. You have to choose an everyday object from the home or garden as your weapon of choice—what’s in your hands? 

The firewood axe from the shed. It’s sharp and has a neat non-slip handle for when things get hairy. And wet. And sticky.

Time to get more personal. Tell us three interesting facts about yourself.

1. I have dozens of friends. I keep them downstairs, arranged alphabetically.
2. I’m not one of those people who loves to hear only the sound of their own voice. I listen to
all of them.
3. I recently went a whole week eating nothing but left over bits of Waffles. I miss that dog.

What do you aim to give your readers? 

Haloperidol.

What are you working on now? 

A tale involving the ultimate horror scenario – a corporate team building awayday.

Where can we find you online? 

Wading through the sludge that sinks to the bottom of the internet. Try Twitter @MalTimperley

Thanks for playing along. Good luck in the wastelands!

Thanks. Who said I was playing?

Black Beacon Books on Goodreads

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A Post-Apocalyptic Interview with David Turnbull

Our next anthology, Tales from the Ruins, is going to be a cataclysmic one! It will be released on the 25th of February but the Kindle version is available for pre-order today at just 99c instead of $3.99. To celebrate the imminent publication of the first Black Beacon Books anthology exclusively dedicated to post-apocalyptic fiction, we’re interviewing the contributing authors. Behold the maniacal workings of their troubled minds!

Hi Tumsh,

Let’s make the first question a lighthearted one...hmm...okay, got it! Is your story simply an entertaining piece of fiction or are you giving us a peek at the terrifying fate tomorrow will unleash upon us? 

Humanity seems to have an unlimited capacity for finding reasons to fight each other, whether it’s ideology, religion, or territory. I’m looking at what would happen if the state broke down and private armies deteriorated into warring factions, fighting over ever decreasing enclaves under their control. To me that is a terrifying scenario, but one which seems very possible given what is happening globally.

What is it that makes post-apocalyptic fiction so appealing? Would the world be better off if more people read this genre?

I think post-apocalyptic stories are cautionary tales. They serve a similar purpose as traditional folk tales, warning us of the dire consequences of following a certain course of action.

Do you have a favourite post-apocalyptic author? 

I’m going to go for Adam Roberts, and two books of his. Firstly ON, published in 2001. It has great premise. The world has shifted on its axis and the centre of gravity has changed. The surface of the Earth is now a wall with a vast, endless drop and people live on the ledges that were once the sides of mountains. The main character falls from the ledge where his village is and finds himself pressed
ganged into an army engaged in a conflict between warring Popes. The second is New Model Army, published in 2010, where a network of wireless connections, the internet and CCTV, called Pantegral, unleashes a skewed democratic form of conflict where anyone at all can take up arms and become a soldier.

Some people like to listen to music while reading. Which song can you imagine providing the soundtrack to your story?

Given the theme and location of my story it would have to be London Calling by The Clash. Also the title of my story was drawn from their album track, English Civil War.

If you woke up in your story tomorrow, what would you do? 

I would probably jump in the 181 bus that features in my story and drive as far away from the centre of the conflict as possible, avoiding getting taken out by surface missiles.

There are no firearms or ammunition. You have to choose an everyday object from the home or garden as your weapon of choice—what’s in your hands?

Probable a steak hammer. It’s light and easy to carry, but it can do a lot of damage. It would be useful both as a weapon and as a tool. If push comes to shove, it could also be thrown at an advancing assailant.

Time to get more personal. Tell us three interesting facts about yourself.

I just took early retirement but up until a month ago I was a national official
for one of the UK’s largest trade unions.

I am currently training to be a tour guide. My course project is Waterloo in Time and Relative Dimension. A guided walk that looks at all sorts of connections the Waterloo area in South East London has with SciFi, Horror and Fantasy fiction.

Before all of that, I was a Chef. I have worked in clubs, casinos, hotels, and banqueting venues. I once worked a summer season in a holiday camp that was half a mile away from a nuclear power station.

What do you aim to give your readers?

I want to provoke some thought. In my story, I wanted to look at how war can dehumanise child soldiers and the ways civilians caught up in conflict find to cope.

What are you working on now?

I’m working on a horror novella set in the swinging 60s. It’s called the Hurdy Gurdy Man and it draws inspiration from the Grimms’ Fairy Tale Fischer’s Bird.

Where can we find you online?

My website is www.tumsh.co.uk
In case you are wondering, Tumsh is a nickname from the Scottish Border that used to be given to anyone with the surname Turnbull.

Editor's note: David and I are almost certainly distant cousins since we both have Turnbull ancestry. The Turnbulls controlled land around the town of Selkirk. Interestingly, the lifestyle of the border families over several centuries wasn't that different from what's described in David's short story set in a post-apocalyptic London. If you'd like to learn more about the "border reivers", George MacDonald Fraser's book, Steel Bonnets, is a riveting read.

Thanks for playing along. Good luck in the wastelands!

A Post-Apocalyptic Interview with Claire Fitzpatrick

Our next anthology, Tales from the Ruins, is going to be a cataclysmic one! It will be released on the 25th of February but the Kindle version is available for pre-order today at just 99c instead of $3.99. To celebrate the imminent publication of the first Black Beacon Books anthology exclusively dedicated to post-apocalyptic fiction, we’re interviewing the contributing authors. Behold the maniacal workings of their troubled minds!

Hi Claire,

Let’s make the first question a lighthearted one...hmm...okay, got it! Is your story simply an entertaining piece of fiction or are you giving us a peek at the terrifying fate tomorrow will unleash upon us?

A bit of both! My story is more of a snapshot rather than a larger, linear tale. I wanted to describe a "normal" day in the life of someone trying to survive in a post-apocalyptic world. So I suppose it's less entertainment and more "oh gosh, this must be really lonely".

What is it that makes post-apocalyptic fiction so appealing? Would the world be better off if more people read this genre?

I started reading the Obernewtyn Chronicles by Isobelle Carmody when I was in high school, which instilled a respect for nature and conserving things that may one day be taken away. I know a lot of people who read the series grew up with a similar mindset, so I definitely think the world would be better if more people had read the genre. I don't know if the world would be better off now, since there are many people in power who have the ability to focus on climate change issues and choose not to. But there are many younger people who will one day replace these relics and bring about change.

Do you have a favourite post-apocalyptic author? 

Did I mention Isobelle Carmody? For those who haven't read the OC, it's set in a post-apocalyptic world following a global nuclear holocaust called The Great White. Because of this event, people were born with enhanced mental abilities, called Talents. They include Empathy, Healing, Futuretelling, Farseeking, Beastspeaking, Teknopathing, and Coercion. Some characters even have the Killing power. These people are condemned by the religious council, the Herder Faction, and sent to Obernewtyn, a place initially built as a prison, but which over time becomes a sanctuary. I think it's such a powerful story because it's all about resilience, especially when it seems the world is against you. I recommend it to everyone!

Some people like to listen to music while reading. Which song can you imagine providing the soundtrack to your story?

Major Tom by Peter Schilling. But in the original German. It's got the right amount of hope and resilience. And it's so catchy.

If you woke up in your story tomorrow, what would you do?

Wish I wasn't so antisocial! I'm pretty headstrong, but I think I'd try and find a group of people and stick with them. People who know how to survive in the wilderness – and know how to rock-climb! Also cry because there's no more music. Music is life.

There are no firearms or ammunition. You have to choose an everyday object from the home or garden as your weapon of choice—what’s in your hands?

I'm actually an avid gardener, so I have a solid axe. It's good for cutting down trees, and I'm assuming good for chopping up zombies.

Time to get more personal. Tell us three interesting facts about yourself.

I was almost crushed to death by a giant stone pot plant as a child. I deliberately broke another kid's arm when I was a kid cause he was mean to me (I swear I'm not a psycho). And I once took off all my clothes and let strangers paint me.

What do you aim to give your readers?

Food for thought. I like exploring what it means to be human, and all the facets that make us so unique. I want people to read my stories and think about their connections to their bodies and who they are as individuals. What makes them unique? What seems like a detriment but is actually a superpower?

What are you working on now?

I'm currently working on a short story about the bone fairy, a more twisted relative of the tooth fairy. She takes the bones of people with cancers like chronic lymphocytic leukemia, a cancer of the blood and bone marrow. It's kind of like darker version of "Through A Glass, Darkly" by Norwegian author Jostein Gaarder.

Where can we find you online?

You can check out my website at www.clairefitzpatrick.com.au, my Instagram at
throughaglass_darkly91 (I post a lot of pictures of my garden, my cats, and my chickens), and
my Twitter at CJFitzpatrick91.

Thanks for playing along. Good luck in the wastelands!

The Second Black Beacon Book of Mystery: Release Date and Table of Contents

If you enjoyed the first volume of The Black Beacon Books of Mystery, you're going to absolutely love the second. It's even more puzzling!

The Second Black Beacon Book of Mystery will be released on the 8th of July, 2023. This leaves all you armchair detectives out there enough time to find your magnifying glasses, binoculars, notebooks...and to train your little grey cells!

We have a great mix of well-known authors and new talent, and both reprints and original fiction. This anthology will be almost exclusively traditional fair-play detective puzzles, so readers will need to be on the lookout for clues!

Alexander's Nose by Dave Duncan
Bread Pudding by Karen Keeley
Christmas Funeral Potatoes by E. E. King
Lost at Sea by F. K. Restrepo
Lurking in the Shadows by Edward Lodi
The Impossible Theft by Cameron Trost
If It's Tuesday, This Must be Murder by Josh Pachter
Justice for Jaynie by Yvonne Ventresca
Keep Your Friends Close by Maggie King
Too Many Sherlocks by Paulene Turner
Villainy in the Vertical Village by Joseph S. Walker
Screen Shot by Teel James Glenn
Spanner in the Works by Alan Barker
The Murderer's Vade Mecum by Erica Obey
There is a Tide by Elizabeth Elwood

Please note that the order of appearance is subject to change.