Ok, so I am writing a new novel and thought I would share the first 3 chapters. I would appreciate feedback and remember, its not been proof read. Just really after feedback on content, see if the full book would interest you etc. That would be great. Thanks. It has no name yet and this is not the final cover, just a very rough picture. Anyway, here it is, enjoy!
Chapter 1
How did I get here you may ask? Lying on a golden beach with the warm Atlantic ocean waves lapping at my feet. The morning sun warming my body. Palm trees swaying along the coast line as a herd of elephant stroll towards my battered blood soaked body. Yeah, not as idyllic as you first thought, hey? Im not even sure where here is but I’m pretty sure its somewhere along the African coast. Well actually Im certain as there are no elephants in South America. So how did I get here. Well lets go back to the beginning.
You know the saying “it is better to have loved and lost than never loved at all”? Well what an utter load of nonsense. At least one who has never loved doesn't have the pain of lost love. And thats how it started. With the girl I loved breaking my heart. I never thought I would find love, moving around so often to study wildlife in far off places. Well I had a placement for much longer than usual and met the girl of my dreams. I wont go into it as thats of no interest to you, but needless to say she stole my heart and made everything carefree. Until she left me.
We were working and living on a small volcanic Archipelago in the Atlantic ocean. I doubt you have heard of it. Its so small and of no note to anyone except the military who have a base here and to biologists like myself. I was heartbroken when she left me and took it very hard. I think it was made worse by the small island mentality. Luckily being an Archipelago I had some escape so grabbed a sea kayak and based myself on one of the adjoining islands for a while. It was all well and good (who am I kidding it was depressing having just a volleyball with a face for company) until I needed to do a supply run. These runs inevitably brought unwanted questions and no matter how hard I tried I couldn't avoid seeing her, since the only place to stay was the conservation house with her.
I decided I was no longer happy working here and I had lost sight of why I was there. I needed a break, a fresh start, a holiday. So I handed in my notice, crated up my possessions to load on the military flight off the island and got myself a one way ticket out of there. I didn't even say goodbye which looking back I regret. Actually there is a lot I regret, like getting on that plane.
As the plane left my little Archipelago I shed a tear for what could have been then closed my eyes and hoped to never see the place again.
A few hours later I was thrown out of my seat and deafened by sirens. Confusion set in then I remembered where I was and became even more confused. Pulling myself to my feet I stared out the window in disbelief. The engine was in flames. As I stood there open mouthed A jet hurtled by out of the setting sun. We had been hit by a missile. But who's missile? I guess it was something to do with the oil fields we would eventually fly over? Anyway back to the plane.
I heard someone shout “All none military get to the cargo hold!”. I looked around and saw I was the only none military person there. Like I said, there was nothing on those islands for the normal person. As I descended the ladder the plane hurled to the side throwing me off balance and crashing into one of the crates. I heard the pinging of metal along the bottom of the plane which I guess was hostile fire from the jet. Looking around I saw my crate of possessions so hid next to it for some emotional comfort.
My hiding didn't last long as a second explosion battered the plane. A different siren sounded and the tail ramp of the plane descended. As I looked out at the orange sea below I caught the sun dip below the horizon. Strangely I felt disappointed that I didn't see the green flash.
I was snapped out of my disappointment by one of the military leaping down the ladder.
“Put this on!” He yelled at me. It looked like a backpack then I saw the pull cords and realised what it was. I was expected to leap out of a plane with no training into the Atlantic ocean? I turned to protest but the military man was busy unclipping all the crates and pushing them out the plane. And there went mine! I ran to the door to watch my belongings plummet to the big blue below. Before I realised it I was falling after it, the military guy having shoved me out the plane with his boot.
What did I do? How does a parachute work? I vaguely remembered from a video game someone saying “count to 5 and pull the cords!” I got to three and pulled the cords. I was pleasantly surprised and relieved when my fall was slowed and a giant bed sheet hung above me. It was strangely peaceful slowly gliding in the silent sky after the chaos of the plane. The plane! I looked around to see the jet make a final pass as it released another missile. My plane was engulfed in a giant fireball as the wings tore themselves from the body. I couldn't watch so focused on the sea below.
Dotted around I could see a number of crates floating on the surface and, I cant tell you how happy I was to see this, an orange life raft which had self inflated as it hit the water. That was my target although I was a bit reluctant to try and steer the shoot incase I over did it. I have no idea how long it took to finally hit the ocean but it was well into dusk. I was glad of a water landing as I didn't need to work out how to land, I just held my breath. Slipping out of the backpack I looked around for the orange raft which was a few hundred meters away.
In the back of my mind all I saw was the big fish. We had been getting more sightings of tiger shark over the last few months on our island and it was with reason they were here too. But as Im writing this you know I wasn't eaten alive. I finally made it to the raft and was so thankful I was in the doldrums or I would have had seasickness to deal with too. I knew I should have gathered what I could from the wreckage but I was exhausted, panicking and it was now dark. I lay back and closed my eyes as the milky way made its appearance overhead.
Chapter 2
I awoke the next morning feeling very refreshed and thinking why is there not a not a holiday package like this. Well not quite like this, but on an inflatable raft in a safe environment. They are so comfortable, its basically a waterbed house. The sun was just rising and thankfully the sea seemed to be just as calm as yesterday. I stretched and looked around me. There where a lot less containers and crates this morning, most probably having sunk. But there was mine, bobbing along in the ocean. I decided To gather supplies and where better than my own crate. I knew I had clothing, first aid equipment, camping gear and some other random things that would make the situation a bit more comfortable.
After my crate I decided I would search the military ones for food and water. Stripping down, well I was the only one around, I slid off the inflatable. I panicked slightly as I felt a strong undertow. Despite looking calm above there was actually a very strong current, I just had no point of fixed reference to notice this. I made it through the current and to my crate. As I reached it I realised I had no idea how to open it without everything pouring into the abyss.
Stumped I swam back to the inflatable to think it over. It was still cool, the sun not yet having warmed the world, but I wouldn't have long before it got uncomfortable. Looking around the raft I took in what was supplied. Flare, emergency rations, solar blankets, and a life ring on a length of rope. That would do.
I decided rather than mess up and lose valuable items from my crate I would practice on a random military one. So attaching the rope to the dingy I swam out once more, this time to the nearest crate. Looping the rope to it I swam back and pulled the crate to the raft. Securing the two together I sighed with relief to find the crate was a simple zarge type lock, the type that just clips shut. I opened it up and found something utterly disappointing. A box of soggy boot and not much else. After a yell at the box I set it loose to sink to the depths and focused on my crate.
Same technique, same out come, but with a bit more success. After travelling to field sites in the tropics where you can expect your bag to fall in a river, I had automatically packed everything within dry bags. I unloaded what I could and what seemed useful, making myself a comfortable little nest. I couldn't keep everything as I didn't want to sink but I kept anything useful for survival, my mp3 player, a solar battery and my ebook reader. At least I would have something to keep me occupied.
I collected a few more boxes, using my newly acquired penknife to open a few, and amassed a nice supply of food and water. It was getting uncomfortably hot so I had to eventually stop and was left to wonder what treasures I had missed. I left one unopened crate attached to the raft and settled under the shade cover for a nap.
I woke to a much cooler air. I took a sip of water, conscious that even though I had a large stock, I had no idea how long I would be here. The sun was getting low so I decided to work out which way I was heading. I guessed I was still in the southern hemisphere so did the watch navigation trick. Point 12 at the sun and go halfway between 12 and the hour hand to find North. Well I found north before realising It was pointless. I had no fixed point to judge my drift by. I dropped to the floor and sighed. Oh well, I will hit land at some point I told myself.
Chapter 3
Two weeks later and still no land. I had been keeping tally on an app on the mp3 player which I was able to keep charged with the solar battery. I must have listened to the whole collecting who knows how many times. I was starting to re-read ebooks. But my supplies were still going strong. This must be the most luxurious cast away experience anyone has ever had I thought to myself. Who needs man Friday I asked my volleyball (who knew that when I bought the volley ball as a castaway joke that I would actually be glad of it?). If that film had taught me anything it was to not through it overboard. He had survived two weeks but had yet to respond. That was a good thing right? Answer me! Oh well.
I was snapped out of my argument by a spray of water. A whale! I rushed to my feet to gaze upon the leviathan and was disappointed to find a booby pop up under the boat. Thats odd. They are usually streamlined divers. They only make a splash when evading the sky pirates, or frigate birds. The huge black birds would attack the smaller birds to try and steal food. I looked up and saw a small flock circling above. “Well, get going” I told the booby. It just sat there and honked at me. “Oh, so your a female then. Well get going girl.” She cocked her head as if trying to understand. It was then I saw the damaged wing. The frigates must have really done a number on her. I leant over the side and pulled her into the boat. She showed no fear as I laid her on a towel.
I pulled out the first aid box and bound her damaged wing to the body. As I was doing this I noticed a blue numbered tag on its leg. “Huh, so you came from my island too”. The birds were given these tags to collect all sorts of information if the are seen again such as age and distances travelled. “I think I know how gave you this” I sighed as I remembered why I had left the island. It was then a thought struck me. If I had been drifting for two weeks and this bird from my island had now shown up, was I just being drawn back there?
I had been hoping I was near Africa and was drifting west. I really hoped this bird was a long distance traveller. The bird turned out to be a welcome distraction over the next few days. I started talking to her and tried to come up with a name.
“How about I name you ….” I stopped myself saying the name that had likely ringed the bird and broke my heart. “How about Bird?”. That had no emotional attachment. Bird just looked at me and honked. From then on I spoke to her as Bird, rather than the bird.
I guess you are wondering what she ate and drank? Well a common ration is tins of sardines, a fish these birds will willingly eat. These though were in a tomato sauce. I ate the sauce, filled the tin with sea water, and let bird feed herself on the fish. She didn't need to drink as she got all her liquid from the fish. I just added seawater as the fish was a bit dry.
I had many long and deep talks with Bird and started to neglect my volleyball. I talked about everything from which sardine sauce was the best to had I made the right choice. And as always she just honked. But it was reassuring to have the company now. The days dragged on and the sea remained calm. The sun rose in the east and set in the west. The milky way came and went each night. Nothing changed during my time at sea until one morning I smelt something. Something familiar. Guano!
I sat up and peered over the side. And sure enough, there floating in the ocean, was my little archipelago I had so desperately hoped never to see again. Wait? Didn't I end up on some African beach? Yeah, but not yet. And thats it for being at sea? Well yeah, there really isn't much else to talk about out there. I could tell you each sing I listened to, or every conversation I had with Bird, but thats not at all interesting. So, How did I get to Africa? Well just wait. Im back on this island again right now.
Chapter 4
“Well Bird, welcome home” I said as I rummaged for the emergency flare.
Chapter 1
How did I get here you may ask? Lying on a golden beach with the warm Atlantic ocean waves lapping at my feet. The morning sun warming my body. Palm trees swaying along the coast line as a herd of elephant stroll towards my battered blood soaked body. Yeah, not as idyllic as you first thought, hey? Im not even sure where here is but I’m pretty sure its somewhere along the African coast. Well actually Im certain as there are no elephants in South America. So how did I get here. Well lets go back to the beginning.
You know the saying “it is better to have loved and lost than never loved at all”? Well what an utter load of nonsense. At least one who has never loved doesn't have the pain of lost love. And thats how it started. With the girl I loved breaking my heart. I never thought I would find love, moving around so often to study wildlife in far off places. Well I had a placement for much longer than usual and met the girl of my dreams. I wont go into it as thats of no interest to you, but needless to say she stole my heart and made everything carefree. Until she left me.
We were working and living on a small volcanic Archipelago in the Atlantic ocean. I doubt you have heard of it. Its so small and of no note to anyone except the military who have a base here and to biologists like myself. I was heartbroken when she left me and took it very hard. I think it was made worse by the small island mentality. Luckily being an Archipelago I had some escape so grabbed a sea kayak and based myself on one of the adjoining islands for a while. It was all well and good (who am I kidding it was depressing having just a volleyball with a face for company) until I needed to do a supply run. These runs inevitably brought unwanted questions and no matter how hard I tried I couldn't avoid seeing her, since the only place to stay was the conservation house with her.
I decided I was no longer happy working here and I had lost sight of why I was there. I needed a break, a fresh start, a holiday. So I handed in my notice, crated up my possessions to load on the military flight off the island and got myself a one way ticket out of there. I didn't even say goodbye which looking back I regret. Actually there is a lot I regret, like getting on that plane.
As the plane left my little Archipelago I shed a tear for what could have been then closed my eyes and hoped to never see the place again.
A few hours later I was thrown out of my seat and deafened by sirens. Confusion set in then I remembered where I was and became even more confused. Pulling myself to my feet I stared out the window in disbelief. The engine was in flames. As I stood there open mouthed A jet hurtled by out of the setting sun. We had been hit by a missile. But who's missile? I guess it was something to do with the oil fields we would eventually fly over? Anyway back to the plane.
I heard someone shout “All none military get to the cargo hold!”. I looked around and saw I was the only none military person there. Like I said, there was nothing on those islands for the normal person. As I descended the ladder the plane hurled to the side throwing me off balance and crashing into one of the crates. I heard the pinging of metal along the bottom of the plane which I guess was hostile fire from the jet. Looking around I saw my crate of possessions so hid next to it for some emotional comfort.
My hiding didn't last long as a second explosion battered the plane. A different siren sounded and the tail ramp of the plane descended. As I looked out at the orange sea below I caught the sun dip below the horizon. Strangely I felt disappointed that I didn't see the green flash.
I was snapped out of my disappointment by one of the military leaping down the ladder.
“Put this on!” He yelled at me. It looked like a backpack then I saw the pull cords and realised what it was. I was expected to leap out of a plane with no training into the Atlantic ocean? I turned to protest but the military man was busy unclipping all the crates and pushing them out the plane. And there went mine! I ran to the door to watch my belongings plummet to the big blue below. Before I realised it I was falling after it, the military guy having shoved me out the plane with his boot.
What did I do? How does a parachute work? I vaguely remembered from a video game someone saying “count to 5 and pull the cords!” I got to three and pulled the cords. I was pleasantly surprised and relieved when my fall was slowed and a giant bed sheet hung above me. It was strangely peaceful slowly gliding in the silent sky after the chaos of the plane. The plane! I looked around to see the jet make a final pass as it released another missile. My plane was engulfed in a giant fireball as the wings tore themselves from the body. I couldn't watch so focused on the sea below.
Dotted around I could see a number of crates floating on the surface and, I cant tell you how happy I was to see this, an orange life raft which had self inflated as it hit the water. That was my target although I was a bit reluctant to try and steer the shoot incase I over did it. I have no idea how long it took to finally hit the ocean but it was well into dusk. I was glad of a water landing as I didn't need to work out how to land, I just held my breath. Slipping out of the backpack I looked around for the orange raft which was a few hundred meters away.
In the back of my mind all I saw was the big fish. We had been getting more sightings of tiger shark over the last few months on our island and it was with reason they were here too. But as Im writing this you know I wasn't eaten alive. I finally made it to the raft and was so thankful I was in the doldrums or I would have had seasickness to deal with too. I knew I should have gathered what I could from the wreckage but I was exhausted, panicking and it was now dark. I lay back and closed my eyes as the milky way made its appearance overhead.
Chapter 2
I awoke the next morning feeling very refreshed and thinking why is there not a not a holiday package like this. Well not quite like this, but on an inflatable raft in a safe environment. They are so comfortable, its basically a waterbed house. The sun was just rising and thankfully the sea seemed to be just as calm as yesterday. I stretched and looked around me. There where a lot less containers and crates this morning, most probably having sunk. But there was mine, bobbing along in the ocean. I decided To gather supplies and where better than my own crate. I knew I had clothing, first aid equipment, camping gear and some other random things that would make the situation a bit more comfortable.
After my crate I decided I would search the military ones for food and water. Stripping down, well I was the only one around, I slid off the inflatable. I panicked slightly as I felt a strong undertow. Despite looking calm above there was actually a very strong current, I just had no point of fixed reference to notice this. I made it through the current and to my crate. As I reached it I realised I had no idea how to open it without everything pouring into the abyss.
Stumped I swam back to the inflatable to think it over. It was still cool, the sun not yet having warmed the world, but I wouldn't have long before it got uncomfortable. Looking around the raft I took in what was supplied. Flare, emergency rations, solar blankets, and a life ring on a length of rope. That would do.
I decided rather than mess up and lose valuable items from my crate I would practice on a random military one. So attaching the rope to the dingy I swam out once more, this time to the nearest crate. Looping the rope to it I swam back and pulled the crate to the raft. Securing the two together I sighed with relief to find the crate was a simple zarge type lock, the type that just clips shut. I opened it up and found something utterly disappointing. A box of soggy boot and not much else. After a yell at the box I set it loose to sink to the depths and focused on my crate.
Same technique, same out come, but with a bit more success. After travelling to field sites in the tropics where you can expect your bag to fall in a river, I had automatically packed everything within dry bags. I unloaded what I could and what seemed useful, making myself a comfortable little nest. I couldn't keep everything as I didn't want to sink but I kept anything useful for survival, my mp3 player, a solar battery and my ebook reader. At least I would have something to keep me occupied.
I collected a few more boxes, using my newly acquired penknife to open a few, and amassed a nice supply of food and water. It was getting uncomfortably hot so I had to eventually stop and was left to wonder what treasures I had missed. I left one unopened crate attached to the raft and settled under the shade cover for a nap.
I woke to a much cooler air. I took a sip of water, conscious that even though I had a large stock, I had no idea how long I would be here. The sun was getting low so I decided to work out which way I was heading. I guessed I was still in the southern hemisphere so did the watch navigation trick. Point 12 at the sun and go halfway between 12 and the hour hand to find North. Well I found north before realising It was pointless. I had no fixed point to judge my drift by. I dropped to the floor and sighed. Oh well, I will hit land at some point I told myself.
Chapter 3
Two weeks later and still no land. I had been keeping tally on an app on the mp3 player which I was able to keep charged with the solar battery. I must have listened to the whole collecting who knows how many times. I was starting to re-read ebooks. But my supplies were still going strong. This must be the most luxurious cast away experience anyone has ever had I thought to myself. Who needs man Friday I asked my volleyball (who knew that when I bought the volley ball as a castaway joke that I would actually be glad of it?). If that film had taught me anything it was to not through it overboard. He had survived two weeks but had yet to respond. That was a good thing right? Answer me! Oh well.
I was snapped out of my argument by a spray of water. A whale! I rushed to my feet to gaze upon the leviathan and was disappointed to find a booby pop up under the boat. Thats odd. They are usually streamlined divers. They only make a splash when evading the sky pirates, or frigate birds. The huge black birds would attack the smaller birds to try and steal food. I looked up and saw a small flock circling above. “Well, get going” I told the booby. It just sat there and honked at me. “Oh, so your a female then. Well get going girl.” She cocked her head as if trying to understand. It was then I saw the damaged wing. The frigates must have really done a number on her. I leant over the side and pulled her into the boat. She showed no fear as I laid her on a towel.
I pulled out the first aid box and bound her damaged wing to the body. As I was doing this I noticed a blue numbered tag on its leg. “Huh, so you came from my island too”. The birds were given these tags to collect all sorts of information if the are seen again such as age and distances travelled. “I think I know how gave you this” I sighed as I remembered why I had left the island. It was then a thought struck me. If I had been drifting for two weeks and this bird from my island had now shown up, was I just being drawn back there?
I had been hoping I was near Africa and was drifting west. I really hoped this bird was a long distance traveller. The bird turned out to be a welcome distraction over the next few days. I started talking to her and tried to come up with a name.
“How about I name you ….” I stopped myself saying the name that had likely ringed the bird and broke my heart. “How about Bird?”. That had no emotional attachment. Bird just looked at me and honked. From then on I spoke to her as Bird, rather than the bird.
I guess you are wondering what she ate and drank? Well a common ration is tins of sardines, a fish these birds will willingly eat. These though were in a tomato sauce. I ate the sauce, filled the tin with sea water, and let bird feed herself on the fish. She didn't need to drink as she got all her liquid from the fish. I just added seawater as the fish was a bit dry.
I had many long and deep talks with Bird and started to neglect my volleyball. I talked about everything from which sardine sauce was the best to had I made the right choice. And as always she just honked. But it was reassuring to have the company now. The days dragged on and the sea remained calm. The sun rose in the east and set in the west. The milky way came and went each night. Nothing changed during my time at sea until one morning I smelt something. Something familiar. Guano!
I sat up and peered over the side. And sure enough, there floating in the ocean, was my little archipelago I had so desperately hoped never to see again. Wait? Didn't I end up on some African beach? Yeah, but not yet. And thats it for being at sea? Well yeah, there really isn't much else to talk about out there. I could tell you each sing I listened to, or every conversation I had with Bird, but thats not at all interesting. So, How did I get to Africa? Well just wait. Im back on this island again right now.
Chapter 4
“Well Bird, welcome home” I said as I rummaged for the emergency flare.
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