Season One, Episode Nineteen - “The Gauntlet”
After the Apocalypse26 Jun 2021

Season One, Episode Nineteen - “The Gauntlet”

After the ApocalypseA pandemic survival storySeason One, Episode Nineteen - “The Gauntlet”

“I don’t like it.” KJ said.

“Of course you don’t.” the old man said in return. “Besides the obvious answer that the world has gone to hell, why not?”

“There’s too much smoke. Why would there be so much smoke this many weeks in? Who’s burning stuff and why are they doing it?”

“Maybe it’s a barbeque.” The old man joked. “Yah know, short ribs, beer… It does smell like cooking meat.”

“Maybe they’ll barbeque your scrawny ass, old man.” She countered. “It smells more like plastic or tires or something.”

Bill sniffed at the air and didn’t seem pleased with what he smelled, but for now he could only pace and offer up an occasional worried whine.

...

Greetings my survivor friends. How’s the apocalypse treating you?

Special welcome to my daughter, who pitched in with the typo hunting in this episode. Thanks for the great Father’s Day card!

I am stunned and amazed that here we are, episode 19. Who knew we’d be able to pull it off. This chapter was fun to write. I think we have a clear understanding of who these characters are – so I can drop them into situation and let them speak for themselves.

We see our female protagonist Janet, a.k.a KJ the Killer, slipping into that ambiguity that the end of the world forces on people. We see the old man teetering on the brink of reality and sanity. We see the world thrashing about in the worst types of reactions that befall humans.

The question is which way will they all slide? What will they choose? Do they even have a choice?

We introduced that there is a ‘big bad’ roaming around as the world starts to coalesce around survivors. The ‘big bad’ is more than an antagonist to create narrative tension. The big bad is an alternate blueprint. He is the dark side of humanity that is always just outside, peering through that little window shaped like a porthole in the front door of civilization waiting for us to make a mistake.

And that’s always the tension with humanity.

Civilization is a chaos suppressant. Civilization sees chaos as evil. All our religions have a manifestation of chaos, from Loki, to the Devil, to Coyote – there’s always that tension between order and chaos, or more pedantically, good and evil.

If you don’t have that tension, then the story is just action without purpose. Or horror without purpose. Or comedy without purpose. And when the narrative fiction falls into that space you lose interest in the fate of the characters and all the action in the world can’t keep it going.

You need stakes. Unless there are stakes. Unless there is tension. There is no compelling narrative.

And that’s the fun part of creating a dystopian, apocalyptic universe. You get to decide how that tension of good versus evil is resolved.

Anyhow… enough with the ontology.

And speaking of Coyote the mischief making chaos god of some Native Americans - Here’s my reading list tip for you this week. The Tony Hillerman books about Navajo police detective Joe Leaphorn? I’m not a big mystery fan, but I started listening to these on audio book when I was commuting from my home outside Boston up to an office in Quebec City Canada.

It’s a long drive.

I would get books on tape at the local library for the ride. Hillerman was an Albuquerque New Mexico resident and did a great job describing the Southwest US cultures, and in particular the Native American mythologies. The audio books, if you can find them, are read by Native American voice actors and the cadence of the read is amazing.

There ya go – grab some Hillerman audio books for your summer vacation.

In two weeks we will present the last chapter, chapter 20, in this first season. Then we’ll take a pause to turn the first season into an e-book, a paperback and an audio book. I’ve got a copy editor to work through the scripts and I’ve got a couple artists working on cover art.

I’m recruiting a book launch team and typo hunters. Come over to FaceBook and join the After the Apocalypse group that can be found by searching for “OldManApocalypse” – all one word – and pitch in.

I’m asking nicely. I could use the help.

I’m happy with how this season and the overall format came out. We’re up over 11,000 downloads now. That’s not bad for 6 months in as an indie podcast.

The format lends itself to binge listening. The short consumable episode length and consistency allow people to just queue them up and march through them. Another irony of the podcasting world is that what took me 6 months to produce takes you a couple days to consume!

I can keep up with this fortnightly cadence and still produce a decent quality product. Unfortunately for you I have a full-time job and other things to attend to or I would be cranking out a season monthly!

The next season we are going to add more compelling characters to the universe, we are going to add situations and institutions and threats that test our survival skills.

So stick with us after the break. I hope all of you up in my hemisphere are enjoying your summers and those of you in antipodal hemispheres are enjoying your winters.

As always I could use your support on the Patreon page to keep paying the bills. And I can use your participation on the facebook group at oldmanapocalypse.

And of course keep leaving 5-star reviews on iTunes and keep telling your friends.

And together, we will keep surviving.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Episoder(118)

Season four, Episode eleven – “Embers”

Season four, Episode eleven – “Embers”

After the ApocalypseA pandemic survival storySeason four, Episode eleven – “Embers”…Bill the Dog could sense concern. He could smell worry, tinged with the need for action. It was time to move. His right hip ached a bit from the effort of chasing down and disarming the kids. The pain was new to Bill. It started after climbing through that window. Bill was made for action, but windows and hard tile floors were not in his training.Bill wasn’t a puppy anymore. Like all good dogs, he had little concept of time and no concept of ‘getting old’. His experiences yesterday just made him a better dog for today. There was no sense of tomorrow. There was only now.If there was anything that men could learn from dogs, it was to live in the moment. Carpe Diem....Our Amazon Affiliate Code -> runic00-20Website -> http://www.oldmanapocalypse.com Buy me Coffee -> https://www.buymeacoffee.com/cyktrussellSubscribe page on Acast -> https://plus.acast.com/s/after-the-apocalypsePodcast on Acast -> https://shows.acast.com/after-the-apocalypseFacebook group -> https://www.facebook.com/groups/oldmanapocalypsePatreon to support the show -> https://www.patreon.com/AftertheApocalypseKindle Vella Story -> https://www.amazon.com/kindle-vella/story/B09LTRC8RHMerch Store -> https://www.teepublic.com/stores/after-the-apocalypse Twitter -> cyktrussell@twitter.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

30 Des 202330min

Season four, Episode ten – “The New State”

Season four, Episode ten – “The New State”

After the ApocalypseA pandemic survival storySeason four, Episode ten – “The New State”…“I don’t care who you were!” The General began. “I don’t care what you’ve done!” He continued. He looked out at the newcomers like an eagle eyeing a field full of rats trying to decide which one to eat first. His audience was the assembled remnants of The King’s men which Brent had brought back from the DC. Numbering a dozen, they stood uneasily in their dirty clothes. The wounded sat in wheelchairs. Some stared at the floor or off into empty space, exhausted and defeated and depleted. Others glowered like defiant teenagers....Our Amazon Affiliate Code -> runic00-20Website -> http://www.oldmanapocalypse.com Buy me Coffee -> https://www.buymeacoffee.com/cyktrussellSubscribe page on Acast -> https://plus.acast.com/s/after-the-apocalypsePodcast on Acast -> https://shows.acast.com/after-the-apocalypseFacebook group -> https://www.facebook.com/groups/oldmanapocalypsePatreon to support the show -> https://www.patreon.com/AftertheApocalypseKindle Vella Story -> https://www.amazon.com/kindle-vella/story/B09LTRC8RHMerch Store -> https://www.teepublic.com/stores/after-the-apocalypse Twitter -> cyktrussell@twitter.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

16 Des 202334min

Season four, Episode nine – “the General”

Season four, Episode nine – “the General”

After the ApocalypseA pandemic survival storySeason four, Episode nine – “the General”...“I can do all things through him who gives me strength.” The General finished his morning prayer, lifted his hands from the well-worn leather-bound bible, and felt the peace of that practice in his soul. The bible was a gift from his wife when they first got married. Sometimes they prayed together in the mornings. The practice cemented their partnership. It got them through the hard times. And there were plenty of hard times to be gotten through in a soldier’s life. ...Our Amazon Affiliate Code -> runic00-20Website -> http://www.oldmanapocalypse.com Buy me Coffee -> https://www.buymeacoffee.com/cyktrussellSubscribe page on Acast -> https://plus.acast.com/s/after-the-apocalypsePodcast on Acast -> https://shows.acast.com/after-the-apocalypseFacebook group -> https://www.facebook.com/groups/oldmanapocalypsePatreon to support the show -> https://www.patreon.com/AftertheApocalypseKindle Vella Story -> https://www.amazon.com/kindle-vella/story/B09LTRC8RHMerch Store -> https://www.teepublic.com/stores/after-the-apocalypse Twitter -> cyktrussell@twitter.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

2 Des 202336min

Season four, Episode eight – “Post-Natal”

Season four, Episode eight – “Post-Natal”

After the ApocalypseA pandemic survival storySeason four, Episode eight – “Post-Natal”...The mid-afternoon sun slanted through the dining hall windows and illuminated the two boys, Petey and Warren, hunched over large bowls of rice and beans, shoveling food into their mouths like it was some sort of carnival eating contest. Paul looked beyond the ‘kids’ at the bullet holes in the glass panels of the front door and immediately began thinking about how to fix them. One of those boomers at the zoo probably knew how to fix and re-mortar a window. But should he bother? Was it even worth it now? ...Our Amazon Affiliate Code -> runic00-20Website -> http://www.oldmanapocalypse.com Buy me Coffee -> https://www.buymeacoffee.com/cyktrussellSubscribe page on Acast -> https://plus.acast.com/s/after-the-apocalypsePodcast on Acast -> https://shows.acast.com/after-the-apocalypseFacebook group -> https://www.facebook.com/groups/oldmanapocalypsePatreon to support the show -> https://www.patreon.com/AftertheApocalypseKindle Vella Story -> https://www.amazon.com/kindle-vella/story/B09LTRC8RHMerch Store -> https://www.teepublic.com/stores/after-the-apocalypse Twitter -> cyktrussell@twitter.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

18 Nov 202329min

Season four, Episode seven "Starve"

Season four, Episode seven "Starve"

After the ApocalypseA pandemic survival storySeason four, Episode seven – “Starve”...Their thoughtful walk and conversation was interrupted by the echo of nearby gunshots and muted shouting - sounds that bounced their way through the campus off the walls of the empty dormitories and old classrooms. The sounds were out of place and jarring, like derisive curses overheard at an elegant dinner party. Paul and the Old Man, and Bill the Dog – the three of them - stopped on a dime and locked eyes with each other, instantly, wordlessly communicating the reality of the life-or-death tension that, here in the apocalypse, seemed to perpetually hang in the air at every turn....Our Amazon Affiliate Code -> runic00-20Website -> http://www.oldmanapocalypse.com Buy me Coffee -> https://www.buymeacoffee.com/cyktrussellSubscribe page on Acast -> https://plus.acast.com/s/after-the-apocalypsePodcast on Acast -> https://shows.acast.com/after-the-apocalypseFacebook group -> https://www.facebook.com/groups/oldmanapocalypsePatreon to support the show -> https://www.patreon.com/AftertheApocalypseKindle Vella Story -> https://www.amazon.com/kindle-vella/story/B09LTRC8RHMerch Store -> https://www.teepublic.com/stores/after-the-apocalypse Twitter -> cyktrussell@twitter.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

4 Nov 202330min

Season four, Episode six – “Hivemind”

Season four, Episode six – “Hivemind”

After the ApocalypseA pandemic survival storySeason four, Episode six – “Hivemind”...The old man was eager to talk to his son, Paul. Dr. Pannageorgio had confined the old man to his recovery room at the campus, but the old man was feeling better and chafing at the restrictions. Since his conversation with Jen, he felt motivated. He felt some of the old fire in his belly. He felt an urgency to get back to the business of living....Our Amazon Affiliate Code -> runic00-20Website -> http://www.oldmanapocalypse.com Buy me Coffee -> https://www.buymeacoffee.com/cyktrussellSubscribe page on Acast -> https://plus.acast.com/s/after-the-apocalypsePodcast on Acast -> https://shows.acast.com/after-the-apocalypseFacebook group -> https://www.facebook.com/groups/oldmanapocalypsePatreon to support the show -> https://www.patreon.com/AftertheApocalypseKindle Vella Story -> https://www.amazon.com/kindle-vella/story/B09LTRC8RHMerch Store -> https://www.teepublic.com/stores/after-the-apocalypse Twitter -> cyktrussell@twitter.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

21 Okt 202327min

Season four, Episode five – “Government”

Season four, Episode five – “Government”

After the ApocalypseA pandemic survival storySeason four, Episode five – “Government”…Brad was exhausted. (pause)He had spent the morning supervising the construction of the trench around the perimeter. They were making good progress, but never enough and never fast enough. He knew Rome wasn’t built in a day but that would be cold comfort when the next storm came. He could not remember the last time he had gotten a good night’s sleep. Since the battle, he had been busy inventorying what had been used, what was damaged, and what was left. In the heat of the action against the King there hadn’t been much focus on controlling the check-out of items and materials. Now he would be the one to clean up the inventory records. ...Website -> http://www.oldmanapocalypse.com Buy me Coffee -> https://www.buymeacoffee.com/cyktrussellSubscribe page on Acast -> https://plus.acast.com/s/after-the-apocalypsePodcast on Acast -> https://shows.acast.com/after-the-apocalypseFacebook group -> https://www.facebook.com/groups/oldmanapocalypsePatreon to support the show -> https://www.patreon.com/AftertheApocalypseKindle Vella Story -> https://www.amazon.com/kindle-vella/story/B09LTRC8RHMerch Store -> https://www.teepublic.com/stores/after-the-apocalypse Twitter -> cyktrussell@twitter.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

7 Okt 202330min

Season four, Episode four – “A Fool’s Errand”

Season four, Episode four – “A Fool’s Errand”

After the ApocalypseA pandemic survival storySeason four, Episode four – “A Fool’s Errand”...It was a grey day without rain.A slight wind ruffled the trees.Heavy gray clouds pressed down on the river valley. Even without the rain, the atmospheric pressure drained color from the surrounding forest and made it feel like they were driving through an evil forest tunnel, like something from a Grimms Fairy Tale or a Tolkien saga. ...Website -> http://www.oldmanapocalypse.com Buy me Coffee -> https://www.buymeacoffee.com/cyktrussellSubscribe page on Acast -> https://plus.acast.com/s/after-the-apocalypsePodcast on Acast -> https://shows.acast.com/after-the-apocalypseFacebook group -> https://www.facebook.com/groups/oldmanapocalypsePatreon to support the show -> https://www.patreon.com/AftertheApocalypseKindle Vella Story -> https://www.amazon.com/kindle-vella/story/B09LTRC8RHMerch Store -> https://www.teepublic.com/stores/after-the-apocalypse Twitter -> cyktrussell@twitter.comEmail List -> https://acast.us14.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=a02fed2a783fcc887760255a9&id=e15419e7behttps://fundraisers.hakuapp.com/christopher-russell Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

23 Sep 202333min

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