I initially was struck by an idea of a room where everything you could possibly need existed in a can somewhere: so you’d have cans of pencils, cans of paper, cans of fillet steak, anything. This quickly became the contents of some kind of incredible fallout shelter, combined with an image of a young boy showing his sisters how nuclear fusion worked by slamming two peach halves together and making a mess. 

Jake Carter-Thomas – 18 September 2014

The Back Flap

In the Cold War era, a small-town family decide that a fallout shelter is the right thing to add to their house following a visit from a salesman, who promises to ease their sleep with a custom cellar conversion. Meet the Braves: father, George, is a New York neurologist, while his wife, Maisie, is stuck at home with the screeching kettle that mocks her failed aspirations and their three children who don’t seem to need her at all. When the installation is complete, the family decide that they will sleep in the shelter ‘just in case’. But on the way down, George slips and hits his head, losing consciousness. Maisie awakes to find the door sealed and the emergency radio dead, and is unsure whether her husband is losing his mind or if the world really has ended. A story about finding courage in a society that sells solutions via scared consumption, and embracing dreams.

About the book

What is the book about?

On the small-scale, it’s about a family taking extreme measures to survive first out of fear and then necessity. On a larger scale it’s a commentary on how society tries to make people consume out of fear, showing that bravery comes from within not without.

When did you start writing the book?

Summer of 2011

How long did it take you to write it?

I wrote the first draft in a year and have spent another few months doing re-writes and edits.

Where did you get the idea from?

I initially was struck by an idea of a room where everything you could possibly need existed in a can somewhere: so you’d have cans of pencils, cans of paper, cans of fillet steak, anything. This quickly became the contents of some kind of incredible fallout shelter, combined with an image of a young boy showing his sisters how nuclear fusion worked by slamming two peach halves together and making a mess. In the finished book the shelter loses some of its magic, but it is still full of lots of weirdly labeled cans, which they begin to fear are some kind of practical joke. I am also happy to say that the scene with the fruit blast made it in too. It’s fair to say I have always been obsessed by atom bombs and all the related paraphernalia. Any one who has similar feelings will definitely enjoy the novel.

Were there any parts of the book where you struggled?

The major struggle was selling it, or failing to. I had an agent who sent it to all of the big publishers but they ultimately couldn’t see enough of a market to get behind it.

What came easily?

Most of it. I know it’s a cliché but once I had the set-up it mostly “wrote itself”. What was incredibly useful to support this was research and reading about the time and all of the various ideas for shelters that existed. All of this reading went into a soup in my head and the novel came out. I wrote a synopsis but a lot of the magic came out on the go as I found solutions to the problems I had set up. I’d imagine not all of the solutions are as good as the others but a few I am proud of. The muses were smiling on those days. Also, this wasn’t my first full novel and it does get easier each time so keep at it.

Are your characters entirely fictitious or have you borrowed from real world people you know?

I borrowed a scene about listening through a hotel wall with a glass from real-life, and also a story about snapping turtles, which I felt was a good symbol of the story as a whole. But the characters are fictitious.

We all know how important it is for writers to read. Are there any particular authors that have influenced how you write and, if so, how have they influenced you?

I learned a lot about dialogue from William Golding who is an amazing writer. I feel my style is similar to his. This was an accident rather than by design as I came to him late. But it was more than inspiring to actually find someone who wrote the way I want to write, the stories I want to read and write, who also endured the struggles of publication and persisted. I also owe a debt to Douglas Coupland who showed me it was ok to be obsessed by atomic war, and J G Ballard for kindling the darkness in all great literature.

Do you have a target reader?

Anyone who likes good writing and dark but redemptive fiction (and/or nukes).

About Writing

Do you have a writing process? If so can you please describe it?

I tend to sit down for an hour or two as early as I can with good coffee and just go for it. I can write easily but what comes out is usually a mess. I try not to let this worry me, though I do tend to pick at earlier chapters, until I get all the way through to the end. When done I always print out the manuscript and edit it by hand, typing up corrections once it is all done. I probably need to do this four times, but usually only do it a couple. It is very rare to actually change the story once I have the “first draft”. This may well be a weakness. I have found a writing group very helpful for goals and also critiques and feedback that always shape the work in progress. I am lucky to be close to a group that studied together at university and then continued to workshop off-and-on in the following years. I think over half of our twelve have now or have had signed with agents so it won’t be long before the first big hit.

Do you outline? If so, do you do so extensively or just chapter headings and a couple of sentences?

I tend to go for a three or five paragraph document with a paragraph for each act. I find if I plan it too much I find it boring; it’s important to let your subconscious work at finding novel solutions (pun intended) rather than just assuming you have it all worked out.

Do you edit as you go or wait until you’ve finished?

Bit of both. I can’t resist when I re-read earlier chapters to get back up to speed. Also, if I am work shopping it’s like a competition – it has to shine, it has to be free of mistakes (it rarely manages either at that stage but that’s the aim).

Did you hire a professional editor?

No – I am open to the fact that it may contain typos (hey, I saw the BACK COVER of a book from a large publishing house with a typo the other day) but I think there have been enough eyes on it so that there are no clunky phrases to ruin the fictional dream along the way, and enough minds to have helped shape a coherent story.

Do you listen to music while you write? If yes, what gets the fingers tapping?

Varies. Often in a coffee shop there is no choice, but usually I am miles away while writing so it’s more background. I find film soundtracks to be good for writing, though I hope this doesn’t make my novels too cinematic.

About Publishing

Did you submit your work to Agents?

I had one all the time I wrote this. We have since separated, though I am of course interested in finding new representation, and am currently querying with my newest novel.

What made you decide to go Indie, whether self-publishing or with an indie publisher? Was it a particular event or a gradual process?

Really just to see what happened – a lot of people have been telling me I should and have been supportive of it. I am very aware I may not sell very many books but the feedback so far has been good. I am not expecting overnight success / wealth; it’s not about that.

Did you get your book cover professionally done or did you do it yourself?

I thought about a professional. I was actually really gutted that the perfect piece I found for the cover was not available. In the end I decided I could do my own (I like to make digital art as well as write) and found the perfect image from the era – a swimming pool sales event also advertising fallout shelters (if you read the book you will get the significance even more).

Do you have a marketing plan for the book or are you just winging it?

No comment. 🙂

Any advice that you would like to give to other newbies considering becoming Indie authors?

I wouldn’t give up on the traditional publishing route so easily. I am only publishing this because it has been shopped around so unless it proves it can sell well (come on people) it is effectively dead in their eyes (sad as that may sound). Being represented by an agent, talking to editors can get you some first class advice and team spirit, whereas going it alone can be frightening. But it is not easy to get one – so much luck is involved, you just have to have the right book at the right time and have it land on the lap of an agent who isn’t too busy. And even then there are no guarantees it will be published (I think maybe 1% of books written get published, if even that). It is also vital to get the opinions of people who aren’t your friends and don’t be too precious about it. If you are young and starting out your work is not going to be as good as people you know and love are telling you. Read some Booker prize winners, read William Golding, and aim high while accepting it will take many, many years to get good and many, many more to become exceptional. But keep going and keep learning.

About You

What are you working on now?

Having written what might be described as a pre-apocalyptic book I am exploring something set post. It feels slightly bandwagon jumping but I hope it has a story of its own to explore. Working title is The Lanyard.

End of Interview:

For more, visit Jake’s website.

Get your copy of Nineveh Fades, or, The Bomb Shelter from Amazon US (paper or ebook) or Amazon UK (paper or ebook).