Would you look at that? Ain’t she pretty?
Infuriated by the bureaucracy of a corrupt system after a clandestine meeting in the backwoods; Wildcat Leander Calloway Toler, a lawman, or what passes for one in a Fallen World, takes matters into his own hands.
After recruiting a team of loyal companions, Leander and his crew set out on a quest across the mountainous coalfields of Southern West Virginia in search of the Brotherhood, a two-bit biker gang turned wasteland warlords who left him for dead, taking his wife and son in the chaotic days after the Fall.
That’s right. This is my latest novel, Wildcat, which drops November 20th and is being published by Chris Kennedy Publishing
Now, the really cool bit is that I was able to use something from my years growing up in Southern West Virginia. I spent many Sunday mornings in the old Stone Church, just past the mouth of Ethel Holler on the way up to Blair Mountain.
I remember that it always seemed cold in the place. One wood burning pot stove heated the main sanctuary in the winter when I was just a little guy. And sitting back taking a moment to think about it brings up the mustiness of the place from memory.
For those who have read Wildcat already have said it without a doubt has the Fallout Feel to it. The editor actually thought I’d played the hell out of Fallout 76, but I haven’t even tried it because I’m a cheap-ass who won’t pay for Playstation Plus. (The bunnies hate me for that.)
As for the artwork itself, I’m just amazed at how well the cover shows off the place. Even if it does crumble to the ground, there’s a good chance that it’ll live on for years to come.
The place has seen better days, for sure. The last time we were up home for my mamaw’s 90th birthday party, I swung by to snag a few pics before the place does collapse in on itself. The roof has caved in, collapsing the first floor into the basement. I don’t know what, if anything was saved from inside before that happened, but I hope someone saved something of the pews and other amenities from a time gone by.
If I had the money, I’d restore the place in a heartbeat. I’ve never really been the religious type, but there are a lot of damn good memories in that church along with the people I knew from i.
Below is a slideshow of the pics I snagged while back home.
It was such a blast, being able to include my childhood stomping grounds and more than a few people I know into the story woven into Christopher Woods Fallen World universe. If you like post-apocalyptic or anything Fallout related, then you’ll absolutely fall in love with this universe like I did.
Now, on top of all of that, I, like a lot of other writers tend to create playlists that feed the muse and help us get into the mood for what we’re working on. Most of Wildcat was actually fueled by a relatively new genre, called HickHop or Redneck Rap. Don’t ask me why, I normally hate country and only listen to select bits of rap, but it worked for this one.
Here’s a link to the playlist for any who are interested https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLFKm4GMp-flC0qm27AyZqvrjp9fYPQ-Km
While one song, in particular, is hard as hell to listen to now. It helped me get into that dark place of loss when writing some of the most painful scenes for Leander.
Until next time, keep your heads up and your pens sharp.
-WJR