Why I hate fast moving zombies!

This was written last year but with the release of World War Z this weekend I thought it would be timely to repost this.

When I started to write my Kindle Book The Dead War Series: Book 1 one thing I knew for sure was that I would have the good old fashioned slow moving kind of the walking dead. You know the kind that you actually might have a chance to get away from?

Now of course there are those that argue that it really doesn't matter if they are fast or slow because if a zombie apocalypse does occur it won't make much difference because at the end of the day we are all fuc*** anyways.

While I understand that line of thinking I would like to chime in with why I think slow moving zombies are better especially in walking dead stories. I honestly believe that slow moving zombies at least let the reader / viewer know that there is hope that the protagonist might just survive ( as long as they avoid malls ).

Think about it. If dozens or hundreds of fast moving zombies are coming after you how do you fight back? You are not going to outrun them because the dead don't get tired. ( Let's be honest most Americans are not running that far anyway. ) You can't possibly shoot them all because a fast moving target is harder to shoot and unless every zombie had the head the size of Jay Leno's you would be shooting at a small moving target.

To be honest I hate fast moving zombies.

I think fast moving zombies represent no hope and who wants to tell a story with not even a little bit of hope for mankind? I mean the heroes of the story will most have likely lost most of their loved ones, are constantly looking over their shoulders, have trouble finding food and water, are doing whatever they have to do to survive and still have no idea how the dead began to walk again.

It's kind of fuc*** up to throw fast moving zombies on top of all that, don't you think?

At least with the slow moving kind putting up a fight is possible as long as they are not many in numbers. The heroes have a chance ( Well until a character inevitably does something stupid that allows the dead to attack them in the house or building they have holed up in). I believe there should always be some hope that a character can escape or live through a zombie attack. Hope is what keeps humanity going in tough times and I'm pretty sure that a zombie apocalypse qualifies as a tough time.

So what do you think? Do you prefer fast or slow moving zombies? Does it even make a difference to you which kind will eventually be feeding on your entrails?

George Cook author of The Dead War Series

Interview with Sergeant Richards, hero of The Dead War Trilogy

Here is an interview with the character Sgt. Richards the hero of The Dead War Trilogy. Get to know this new hero.

TDWS: Sergeant Richards you have been lucky enough to survive this long in The Dead War. Why is that?



Richards- Because I'm afraid.


TDWS: Afraid?



Richards: Yes Afraid. It's amazing how fear can keep a mother fucker alive. Many think of fear in a negative way but a scout soon learns that it helps him stay alive.


TDWS: Interesting. How were things early on here in Newark when the virus or whatever it is broke out?



Richards: It was weird here in Newark. We knew it was happening but it was happening at such a slow pace at first that many didn't take it that seriously. In New York and Philly it was tearing through the populace but here it crept up slowly until that one day it just exploded.


TDWS: That one day. What was it like?



Richards: It was crazy. I thought the world was ending. It spread so quickly that we on the police force were caught completely off guard. We were literally overwhelmed in hours. We couldn't even protect ourselves let alone the citizens. Many of the people committed suicide, some alone but others in huge groups.


TDWS: Why so many suicides early on?



Richards: One thing the scientist did realize was that the virus didn't reanimate those that were already dead. It could only be passed on by a bite from the dead to the living. Many decided they would go out on there on terms.


TDWS: Why didn't you consider killing yourself?



Richards: Who said that I didn't?


TDWS: How did you go from wanting to kill yourself to joining the army?



Richards: a year into this shit I hooked up with a few former cops and their families. We actually made a little safe enclave in an old forgotten school that was boarded up. We were able to hold off the dead but I started to feel like we were just surviving not living. Eventually the dead got in and after me and others escaped we heard rumors about the army recruiting. I was tired of running so I decided to join up. The rest is history.


TDWS: What was it like fighting the dead?



Richards: A fucking mess. The sergeants and officers who trained us were battle tested having fought in the African Conflict but they taught tactics that were of use against the living. The sheer number of the dead was also a major problem. The first year we thought our unit was named retreat because we heard the word so much.

TDWS: Do you enjoy killing the dead.

Richards: At first yes. I felt like I was taking revenge for everyone that they had killed including my family. But soon you start to realize that it's not really revenge.

TDWS: How so?

Richards: Think about how can it be revenge if you are putting some poor bastard out of his misery? By killing them we are putting them at rest.

TDWS: What unit were you first assigned to?



Richards: Bravo Company 22 Battalion, better known as the Newark Hellcats. I was assigned to the second platoon under Sergeant Ridley. She's a tough bitch and I mean that in a nice way.


TDWS: What happened to them?



Richards: Last I heard they are still going strong. They are taking forward positions in the war here in Newark. It's been almost a year since I have seen them though. We were a good unit. I liked it there.


TDWS: So why become a scout?



Richards: Wasn't my choice. None of us were exactly volunteers. We were selected by our company commanders and sent to Fort Dix for training. But this time we were trained by soldiers who were battle tested against the dead.


TDWS: What's it like? Being a scout I mean.



Richards: It's weird. You learn to stay alive on your own and when you encounter the dead you sometimes wish you had help but you have been fighting alone so long you don't trust anyone but yourself.

TDWS: How is it when you are fighting alongside other troops?

Richards: Hard. I have to remember that they are friendlies with me and every creature moving is not trying to take a hunk out of me.


TDWS: Have you killed friendlies before?


Richards: To be quite frank with you, yes. I have had to and to kill other humans who are not so friendly.


TDWS: Humans that are not that friendly?



Richards: You know cannibals, warlords and their play armies, shit like that. Hell, I prefer dealing with the dead. At least I know what their agenda is.


TDWS: You are painting a bleak picture. Do you think we can win this war?



Richards: Early on I would have said no and I honestly believed that just surviving another day was a victory. I remember early on that we all thought it would be like some "28 Days Later" shit and that the daed would all just drop and it would be over. We soon realized that's not going to happen and once we really started to fight back I saw something starting to return.


TDWS: What is that something?



Richards: Hope. As long as we have hope and keep fighting we will overcome the dead. We will rebuild our world.


TDWS: I guess that's a good note to end our interview on.



Richards: Okay. I have a war to go fight anyways.

Buy The Dead War Trilogy here for $2.99:

The Dead War Series, The Reviews Are In

Check out these reviews for The Dead War Series: Book 1 at Amazon


18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Action filled, February 25, 2012
By quanda
This review is from: The Dead War Series: BOOK 1 (Kindle Edition)
A short read but action packed and very intense. The action sequences left me breathless and their were a few scares. I loved the main character, Sergeant Richards. A new action hero is born. Can't wait for book two.



18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Dead War, February 19, 2012
By Roddy (Missouri)
Amazon Verified Purchase This review is from: The Dead War Series: BOOK 1 (Kindle Edition)
It could do with a bit more editing and spell checking but all in all it's a pretty good story. I would like to see more in this series in the future. The spelling mistakes are minor and not all that distracting. Having someone else read it first and point them out can easily prevent it in future editions.


Set in the future, the main story is about a scout who has to deliver a message to another military camp and has to make his way across a zombie infested city to do it. He not only meets up with the undead cannibals but the living type as well. I don't want to give too much away as the story is fairly short.
Even an old hillbilly like me enjoys a good zombie story when it's done well and this author did a pretty good job of it. I've already bookmarked his main page so I can keep track of more additions to this story.

( Note from the author. The book has been edited since Roddy's review. )


6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Zombies vs the US Army!, February 26, 2012
By BKC This review is from: The Dead War Series: BOOK 1 (Kindle Edition)
I really enjoyed this book. The action was great and there was rarely a moment when the action slowed down. The zombies in the book are the good old fashioned slow moving kind but the soldiers carry up to date mid-21st century weapons making for some great battle scenes. If you like action, zombies, and military hardware this is a story for you.