Joined: Sept 2010 Gender: Male Posts: 202 Karma: 9
Re: how did you get interested in the genre? « Reply #30 on Sept 15, 2010, 9:56pm »
When I was very young, for whatever reason I took storm warnings very seriously. Whenever I heard that "beep beep beep" on TV indicating there was a storm warning, I'd grab what I considered necessary supplies and stash them in the basement. Since I was about 7 years old at the time, those supplies were typically my stuffed teddy bear, a couple random cans of food, and a flashlight.
When I got a bit older, I joined Cub Scouts in hopes of learning woodcraft, camping, and that sort of stuff. I quit after making my umpteenth spray-painted pasta picture frame. Turned out the scout master wasn't real keen on taking a group of kids out to the woods.
In 5th grade, I discovered the serialized comic version of John Christopher's Tripods series in Boy's Life magazine. I tore through all of them, then hit the library to see about the "real" versions of the books. They didn't have them but did have his Empty World. It was those two works that set me on the path seeking all manner of post-apocalyptic stories.
My most treasured book is a copy of Empty World containing a signed bookplate John Christopher (Sam Youd) was kind enough to mail to me a couple years ago.
In the decades since reading Empty World, I've amassed a collection of a few thousand books (so far), the vast majority of which are either post-apocalyptic or survival-related in nature.
May the road gangs never meet you. May the wind be fallout-free. May the sun shine through the ashes, hot rain not fall on thee. And until we meet again, may no one hold your flesh in the palm of their hand.
There are probably a bunch of PA fans out there whose interest in the genre started with those stories.
That is so cool that you found a place where all those comics are posted online! Man those bring back memories.
Back in 2008, I had an article on assembling a bug out bag published in Boy's Life. I thought it was cool that I managed to get published in the same magazine as John Christopher, albeit separated by about 30 years.
Joined: Sept 2010 Gender: Male Posts: 105 Karma: 1
Re: how did you get interested in the genre? « Reply #33 on Sept 27, 2010, 10:05am »
When I was a kid there was an old country estate with a decrepit run down mansion, a typical haunted house. We all used to play there but thinking back it was like the Apocalypse had come. It probably started there!
Re: how did you get interested in the genre? « Reply #34 on Nov 8, 2010, 2:10pm »
Well the only reason I actually got interested in this genre was when I started thinking bout how we could actually survive without all the stuff we take for granted and that kinda led me to post apocalyptia and the desolate world beyond!!!
Re: how did you get interested in the genre? « Reply #36 on Nov 8, 2010, 10:31pm »
I think my parents showed me Mad Max when I was little, and that's what started it. I've always liked sci-fi, especially deserts and scavengers (I thought Jawas were amazing when I was a kid) and when I found about a genre that could revolve around this, I thought it was great.
Joined: Nov 2010 Gender: Male Posts: 490 Location: Arizona Karma: 25
Re: how did you get interested in the genre? « Reply #37 on Nov 16, 2010, 10:53am »
I grew up with 'duck and cover' drills in the '60s. PA movies I most remember as an influence were 'The Omega Man' and 'Soylent green' Lately I've been really fascinated by the whole Steampunk thing, although I haven't built anything yet. As a kid we had an organic garden and I was always reading Mother Earth news, back when it was just a paper rag, (which I preferred) and the idea of living off the grid in a dome with a windmill and solar panels like our friends did has always appealed to me. I'm finally getting around to doing it - may have found a job as a solar installer. (Keep your fingers crossed!) Add a kid's imagination and a fascination with the submachinegun Charleton Heston carried in 'Omega Man', (S&W model 76 BTW, which was patterned on the Swedish K / Port Said) and you can see where I'm coming from. We were pretty poor, so imagining going without is not a problem. Still isn't, LOL. My first short story (4th grade) was about a death row convict who had to run down a series of tunnels to shut off an atomic bomb. Pretty poor story, but good for a 4th grader. I got the idea from watching 'The Andromeda Strain', which is as cool a PA story as you can get, and shows a lot of foresight by Micheal Crichton.
tistine is a troll. No matter what you say, he will find a way to ridicule it. I encourage everyone to simply boycott him. Witness the responses I got from him. He's not worth the effort.
My 4th grade story? Hell no. I am working on my 2nd novel though - editing at present. It's a WWII thriller set in Sedona and Flagstaff at the end of the war. Hoping to get it to my agent by spring. I do have a PA story started, but because I have a contract with my agent I can't post free stuff, even if it's a serial.
tistine is a troll. No matter what you say, he will find a way to ridicule it. I encourage everyone to simply boycott him. Witness the responses I got from him. He's not worth the effort.
Joined: Nov 2010 Gender: Male Posts: 182 Location: England Karma: 8
Re: how did you get interested in the genre? « Reply #40 on Nov 25, 2010, 5:24am »
The few things for me were Mad Max, Terminator, Fallout and zombie films. Also, when i was young there was a series called The Last Train, which i loved (although i was about 10) which probably has a little to do with it.
Re: how did you get interested in the genre? « Reply #41 on Nov 26, 2010, 5:48pm »
It was the first terminator 4 me. It was so plausible an scary. A nigh invincible robot from the future sent to kill the mother of it's creator. We already have drones, prototype exoskeletons (Raytheon SARCOS), and ground robots w/ SAWs attached.
Joined: Nov 2010 Gender: Male Posts: 558 Location: Australia Karma: 24
Re: how did you get interested in the genre? « Reply #42 on Nov 26, 2010, 10:24pm »
It's been interesting to read people's accounts of how they got into the PA genre. I was trying to think back to when/where I got hooked on PA and I couldn't think of when or how it happened but reading all your posts has reminded me of 'how', I'm just not sure of the 'when'!
As a kid I watched enough television but without any particular interest in any one genre. I can't recall what TV station was broadcasting in Canberra when I lived there but the first sci-fi shows I remember watching were Lost In Space and the anime Marine Boy. Later I was fascinated by Dr Who and although not realizing it, I found sci-fi interesting enough I think, because it was so different to my main fodder - war stories (my father was in the Australian Army and had served in Vietnam), boys-own-adventure stuff and secret agent stories. I grew up with those shows, Blake's Seven, Phoenix Five, The Tomorrow People and a few others I can't recall.
I don't think I actually got to see any PA shows or movies at that stage. Another potential influence was that I grew up in both cities and country towns at a time when groups of boys were expected to wander around the landscape exploring the world around them (I was also in the Cubs and Boy Scouts so that helped too).
The first apocalyptic/post-apocalyptic story that I remember reading was Lord of the Flies when I was in my early teens. By that point Star Wars had kindled my interest in sci-fi so I started to target that genre and inbetween the typical stuff I found a few post-apoc stories. As another one who grew up (and then later joined the Army) during the Cold War era, I saw Threads and The Day After on television and at high school.
I got more interested in the 'day after' and 'dystopia' type stories and recall seeing Planet of the Apes, The Omega Man, Logan's Run, Class of 1999 and a few others on TV long after they had been at the cinema. Naturally I watched the Planet of the Apes TV series. I first saw Mad Max 2 (AKA the Road Warrior) at the cinema with my cousin - we were both still too young to see Mad Max as it was rated R and no video store was going to let us hire it. I finally saw it on video many years later.
I got interested in role playing games in 1990 and having been in the army I was looking for something that was modern military as an extra to AD&D. I found Phoenix Command which was too rules crunchy for my tastes and then someone suggested Twilight: 2000. From there I started pursuing PA rpgs and with the help of the internet (I started in 1999) found quite a few. I finally realized then that I had had an interest in this type of fiction/alternate history and that I'd actually been interested for some time.
I now own a decent collection of PA movies & TV series, a few novels, a few graphic novel collections and a bunch of rpgs. P.S. and also some computer games
« Last Edit: Nov 26, 2010, 10:32pm by KevinTheCynic »
Re: how did you get interested in the genre? « Reply #43 on Nov 26, 2010, 10:30pm »
My first contact with it was undoubtedly Thundarr the Barbarian. I didn't recognize it as a genre back then, though. After The Postman I was hooked. Favorite bits in the theme include The Road by Cormac McCarthy (I'm a dad), 28 Days Later, Mad Max, the Fallout series, and The Book of Eli.
I generally like most zombie movies so those are double whammies for me.
Re: how did you get interested in the genre? « Reply #44 on Dec 15, 2010, 7:33pm »
My dad scared the hell out of me in 1999 (the Y2K bug) saying the world was going to end. Stockpiled the house with tons of food and other kit. I guess that's what makes me so receptable to the genre. First movie relating to the genre was the remake of Dawn of the Dead, which sent me into a zombie craze.
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