First Look into author Jesse Freeland's "Running From Death"

1) What is your story about?
A) My story is about a zombie apocalypse, and two guys (Frank and Chris) who work together to survive.

2) What is the inspiration behind your story?
A) I got a lot of inspiration from watching The Walking Dead, and also from I Am Legend. I Am Legend has a really emotional story, and makes for a great “Last person on earth” type of movie.

3) What is the title of your book?
A) “Running From Death”

4) Who are your characters?
A) Frank Smith was a soldier who fought in Afghanistan for two years. Shortly after the apocalypse happens, he runs into Chris, a former police officer who is looking for supplies at a gas station. They work together to survive as long as they can.

5) Who are the good guys and bad guys?
A) Frank and Chris are obviously good guys, while the zombies are the bad guys.

6) Are there special qualities about your main characters?
A) Frank fought in the war in Afghanistan, so he knows all about survival, and using guns. Chris also has a real knack for shooting since he was a police officer.

7) How does your zombie book stand out from other zombie books?
A) I think you’ll just have to read the book to find out…

8) Does your story relate to life?
A) It does in some ways, but obviously we haven’t had a zombie apocalypse, so it doesn’t relate too much.

9) What lessons does your story teach us about life?
A) “Running From Death” is all about these two guys who work together to survive. Without each other, they wouldn’t be able to live. In an apocalypse, there is no hatred of other people, and difference are put aside. The story teaches people to set aside their differences, and work together with other people to accomplish their goals, because we can only survive by ourselves for so long.

10) What makes your story important to you?
A) I enjoy writing it, and it has parts in it that are very emotional. I really feel it’s a story that people can become connected to, mainly because of the characters and who they work together.

11) Do your characters have flaws? What are they?
A) Chris has had some really bad things happen to him since the zombie infection started. There are times where he tends to just shut down and forget about the world around him. Frank has those moments too, and he also goes through a lot of stress mainly because of the war he fought in for two years. They definitely have their flaws, and they must help each other to work through the difficult times.

12) Did you have any road blocks while writing this story?
A) Yeah, definitely. I think it was difficult coming up with a title, which I still may change it later on, but I also want to have the best ending possible for the story. Everything that I write at the beginning has a huge impact on how the book is going to end. So there are times when I just have to stop and think about how my decisions will change the ending.

13) Are there any major twists in your plot?
A) You’ll just have to read and find out.

14) Tell me more about how your characters met.
A) That’ll ruin the whole part when it happens. You’ll just have to read it…

15) Did The Walking Dead play a major part in the development of the story?
A) It did in some ways. I’ve been watching The Walking Dead every Sunday while I’m in the middle of writing this story, and I wanted to be able to capture the emotion that The Walking Dead does. It has a very emotional story between all of the characters, and I wanted to kind of capture the same idea.

16) How has writing this story affected you?
A) It’s made me more interested in zombie shows and books, which are awesome.

17) Zombies are a hot topic these days. Do you think your story will be successful?
A) I think so. People seem to have a great obsession lately with stories that are about mankind’s demise. In movies, shows, and books about the apocalypse, people are forced to set aside their differences to work together in order to survive. My story is emotional and has zombies in it like other zombie stories, but there’s a lot more to it than just that. I think there’s a lot that makes it different.

18) Do any of your characters have any moral obligations to the zombies?
A) They kind of feel bad for them. Even though they are flesh eating monsters, they were once people, which now have lost their souls and thoughts.

19) Do your characters have any moral compasses?
A) They definitely have different morals that they live by. But overall, there most important goal is to survive.

20) Do you think of yourself as a pioneer into the zombie apocalypse field of writing?
A) I think I can change it drastically, and change the way people think about zombie stories.

Click on the hyperlink to read more about Jesse's "Running From Death" here.