Gaye Levy
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Today I share the next author interview and book giveaway in the latest Backdoor Survival Book Festival. A. American, the author of Going Home and Surviving Home, is joining us today for an interview and is also providing one reader with a free copy of both books.
Enjoy the interview and be sure to check out the details of this week’s giveaway below.
An Interview with A. American
An Interview with A. AmericanTell me about your books, Going Home & Surviving Home. What are they about?
There are two, the first is Going Home and the sequel is Surviving Home. Going Home follows Morgan Carter on an odyssey across the state of Florida after all power, all cars simply quit. Morgan is 250 miles from home when this happens. Being a prepper he has a pack and quickly figures out the only way it was going to happen was to walk. The book chronicles the walk back to his family and the people he meets along the way, good and bad.
Surviving Home picks up where Going Home leaves off. All his walk home what was happening with his family gnawed at Morgan, he finally makes it and now must deal with the reality there. In many of these sorts of novels the community pulls together and aid one another. Of course there is always one guy that is the problem. In Surviving Home we look at a community that simply cannot pull together for a number of reasons.
How do you survive when everyone around you is simply out for themselves?
What type of research did you have to do while writing these books?
For Going Home my research was conducted over years, though at the time I didn’t know it. On Morgan’s walk home I list the route in detail, place names, roads and land marks, they are all real. I’m a Florida native and this route was one I drove very often, I know it like the back of my hand. When it came to writing Going Home all I had to do was close my eyes and drive the route, I could see it all.
How long did they take to write?
The first book in the series was completed in ninety days. I wrote it on an internet forum just for fun. After nearly two million on line views it has taken on a life of it’s own.
Every book, fiction and non-fiction, includes a message. What message do you hope my readers will take with them after reading Going Home and Surviving Home?
For both Going Home and Surviving Home the hidden message, not so hidden really, is simply to take responsibility for your and your family’s life. Prepare, be ready and keep an eye on the horizon less the storm catch you while at sea.
Can you tell us a little bit more about yourself?
This year I celebrate my twenty-third anniversary. We have three beautiful daughters who are truly good girls in this modern world where kids often turn into nightmares. I’ve been a Prepper since the early 90’s, an active woodsman and recreational shooter. Prepping is simply part of my life, it isn’t something I do, it’s something I am.
Do you have plans for another book?
Escaping Home released in October. It is the third book of the series and there will also be a fourth.
The Book Giveaway
A copy the both books, Going Home and Surviving Home, have been reserved for one lucky reader. Here is this week’s question:
How would you survive if everyone around you was simply out for themselves?
To enter the giveaway, you need to answer this question by responding in the comments area at the end of this article. The deadline is 6:00 AM Pacific next Thursday and the winner will be selected at random using tools on the random.org website. Also note that the winner will be announced in the Sunday Survival Buzz and he or she will have 72 hours to claim the winning book.
Note: If you are reading this article in your email client, you must go to the Backdoor Survival website to enter this giveaway in the comments area at the bottom of the article.
The Final Word
The message in A. American’s books is clearly one of personal responsibility. As I make my way through Surviving Home, I find myself pondering the possible choices I would have to make if I were in a similar situation. That is why I love survival fiction: it makes you think and it opens your mind to new possibilities.
I hope you will enter the giveaway to win your own copy of this fabulous new book!
Enjoy your next adventure through common sense and thoughtful preparation!
Gaye
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Spotlight Item: 
Going Home: A Novel of Survival (The Survivalist Series)
If society collapsed, could you survive?
When Morgan Carter’s car breaks down 250 miles from his home, he figures his weekend plans are ruined. But things are about to get much, much worse: the country’s power grid has collapsed. There is no electricity, no running water, no Internet, and no way to know when normalcy will be restored—if it ever will be. An avid survivalist, Morgan takes to the road with his prepper pack on his back.
Surviving Home: A Novel (The Survivalist Series)
No electricity. No running water. No food. No end in sight. If life as you knew it changed in an instant, would you be prepared?
In Going Home, readers were introduced to Morgan Carter, the resourceful, tough-as-nails survivalist who embarks on a treacherous 250-mile journey across Florida following the collapse of the nation’s power grid. Now reunited with his loving wife and daughters, Morgan knows that their happiness is fleeting, as the worst is yet to come. Though for years Morgan has been diligently preparing for emergency situations, many of his neighbors are completely unready for life in this strange new world—and they’re starting to get restless. With the help of his closest companions, Morgan fights to keeps his home secure—only to discover shocking information about the state of the nation in the process.
Bargain Bin: Today is all about books. Listed below are all of the books in the current Backdoor Survival Book Festival. There are both fiction and non-fiction titles and a bit of something for everyone.
THE BACKDOOR SURVIVAL BOOK FESTIVAL 4.0 – NON-FICTION
Backyard Cuisine: Bringing Foraged Food to Your Table
Home Remedies
Living on the Edge: A Family’s Journey to Self-Sufficiency
Make It Last: Prolonging + Preserving the Things We Love
Make Your Place: Affordable, Sustainable Nesting Skills
The Pocket Guide to Wild Mushrooms: Helpful Tips for Mushrooming in the Field
Good Clean Food
The Amazing 2000-Hour Flashlight
Recipes and Tips for Sustainable Living
The People’s Apocalypse
Go Green, Spend Less, Live Better
THE BACKDOOR SURVIVAL BOOK FESTIVAL 4.0 – FICTION
Going Home: A Novel of Survival (The Survivalist Series)
Surviving Home: A Novel (The Survivalist Series)
Expatriates: A Novel of the Coming Global Collapse
The Border Marches
Rivers: A Novel
After the Blackout
The End: A Postapocalyptic Novel (The New World Series)
The Long Road: A Postapocalyptic Novel (The New World Series)
3 Prepper Romances: Escape To My Arms, plus 2 other e-books (your choice)
Prepper Pete Prepares: An Introduction to Prepping for Kids
THE BACKDOOR SURVIVAL BOOK FESTIVAL 4.0 – LAST MINUTE ADDITIONS
The New Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day: The Discovery That Revolutionizes Home Baking
Escaping Home: A Novel (The Survivalist Series)
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Emergency Preparedness Items from Amazon.com
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69 Responses to “BDS Book Festival: Going Home, Surviving Home + Interview with A. American”
Surviving in a world where everyone is out for themselves isn’t much different from life in the world today in any major city. Everyone goes through their daily routine doing what they need to do, not giving a thought to the person next to them on the subway. The major difference will be the literal meaning of kill or be killed. If it comes down to my life or some piece of shit, the shit is getting flushed!!
In response to your question, I think I might try to be the “go to” guy. I have worn so many different hats in my life thus far, that I am kind of a Jack of all trades. I have worked as a Massage Therapist, a logger, a welder, built three houses from the ground up, done farm work, built farm machinery, run a metal fabricating shop, drove truck, worked in a saw mill, worked in a pottery, and much more. My wife and I are currently property caretakers for an 80 acre private rustic hunting club.
So I would try to be the guy that people need to show them how to do things and repair things. A central point where people can learn to take care of themselves. And hopefully, it will pull people together to get things done. And protect me and mine in the process.
I have pondered this question all day. I think I may have an answer of sorts.
I would stay inside during the day, only moving at night, so as not to draw attention to myself. The only time I would go out during the day would be if my supplies of meat grew scarce, and I was forced to hunt. In that case, I might use a pellet gun and hunt small game, as pellet guns are quieter and less likely to draw attention.
I have blackout curtains on my windows already, so I would not maintain my yard, in the hopes that people would assume no one lived there. I might scatter old clothes, to make that a more likely assumption.
I would grow food and beneficial herbs in inconspicuous areas, surrounded by growth that appears to merely be weeds.
I might hide our vehicles deeper into the woods, to further give the impression of having deserted the house.
Of course, there is always the possibility that someone would approach our home with the goal of either searching it, or taking it for themselves. If that was the case, I believe I would have to take my gun in hand and deal with that problem based on the current threat.
Realistically, where I am, I think I could survive and work with the people in this area….except for a couple that will, I’m pretty sure, take advantage for their own life, in any way they have to. They are well armed, being hunters and pretty ” me” minded.
I think I have a function during an emergency but for how long and how desperate times are, I don’t know.
I can only prepare as best as I can and try to be helpful to others without advertising that I have some stocks. Hunting, fishing and foraging is a big plus here, so it may not be as bad as someone living in the city or the suburbs. I also live on an island……complete desperation by others would do me in, at my age and health. I understand this.
As I live in urban California, the concept of ‘do-it-yourself’ is ingrained in the culture. I have picked destinations, and made arrangements + plans, but cannot guarantee anyone will keep their word. Rational prep means 1) expect nothing 2) presume ill intentions, and 3) move, hoping for the best.
All that, before we’re down to ‘loot’ mode. Small profile, reduced expectations, and experience at LONG-Term hiking.
I have several family members close by as well as a few close neighbors that always pitch in when we have bad weather that causes damage. My neighbors communicate with me on a regular basis and we watch each others children, property when they are gone for an extended time and make sure the word spreads when we have burglary issues on and around our street. I don’t live in a large city, but there are still a lot of people in our city, and some of these people will try to take what everyone else has due to drug habits or just because they can. I know which neighbors own guns, there is a lot of different skill sets amongst these neighbors and we watch out for our elderly neighbors. Could I survive if these people only look out for themselves? You betcha! My husband and I will work as hard as we can to survive. We have already prepared what we can and have a list to add from. We both have many skills to pull from. I would like to think my few neighbors would pull together as we have in the past in the event of a several day or long term problem. When Hurricane Ike winds rolled thru our state and knocked power out for several days and did massive damage, we did help each other, checked on our elderly and kept a very careful watch on our street. I like to think people will help each other but I also know everyone is not prepared to the extent we may be and of course the rules will change. I will not let harm come to someone else but at the same time I will check my trust level at the door until I see the signs of team work in the neighborhood. Keep things to yourself in regards to your preps because you just never know.
Only way to survive in a situation, of everyone being the “problem” not the solution, is to slither away out of sight as fast as you can. Glad to be where I am. Inconvenient, but in the long run, will be a benefit.
Lay low. Keep the preps hidden.
We anticipated these things and moved out of the big city 6 1/2 years ago to the countryside on 7 acres. Even though there are many independent and self-sustaining people around us, we still plan on keeping a low profile, protecting our property if needed. We’ve also been learning new skills along with preps so we can lay low and survive if others around us are going crazy. At least there aren’t too many people out where we live and our house is set well back and hidden from the small country road. And we’re over 150 miles away from the city we moved from.
Our little group will put into practice what we have been planning for years…follow the plan. If that is not enough at least we go down fighting. In short we will do “What Ever It Takes” in order to see the next sunrise.
Stay Safe
~Dairy