by Jay Wilburn
*Jay stared at the lawn and the house. It looked … normal. The rest of the neighborhood lay in ashes. The dead wandered all of Jacksonville. They wandered all of Florida and the world beyond, but this house looked just fine. He approached the door and knocked. He couldn’t remember the last time he knocked on a door. Armand answered and looked around outside. He blinked several times as his eyes refused to adjust to the light.*
Armand Rosamilia: What are you doing here? Why didn’t you call first?
Jay Wilburn: None of the phones work. It’s the apocalypse.
Rosamilia: Really?
Wilburn: You hadn’t noticed?
Rosamilia: Come in. I’m making pork roll.
*Jay stepped in and closed the door.*
Wilburn: Can I have some?
Rosamilia: No. What do you want?
Wilburn: I kind of want pork roll, but I’ll settle for an interview.
Rosamilia: A short interview … No pork roll!
Wilburn: Tell me the name of your latest book.
Rosamilia: Dying Days: Family Ties – A Zombie YA Novella
Wilburn: Describe it to me.
Rosamilia: It’s a YA (Young Adult) novella set in the Dying Days world from Armand Rosamilia! Emalee and Mason are brother and sister, differently abled teenagers, both with Down Syndrome, trying to survive during the zombie apocalypse. They both have unique powers that will be tested because sometimes it isn’t just the zombies that are threatening. Will they be able to protect one another and find safe haven from a world turned upside down?
I’d written a short story about them for a charity anthology and wanted to explore more of their story. Their mother, Mysti, was gracious enough to let me write a longer piece with them as the main characters.
Wilburn: What were your influences and inspirations in writing this book?
Rosamilia: The children themselves. When I got the idea to write the real Emalee and Mason into the short story and then the novella, they were both so happy about it. They’ll even be at Scares That Care this year and they’ll be at my table signing copies at some point, too.
Wilburn: Cool. Cool. How did you get pork roll down here during the apocalypse?
Rosamilia: You never mind what I got or how I got it! Next question!
Wilburn: How does this tie into the rest of the Dying Days universe? … the novella, I mean, not the pork roll …
Rosamilia: This is a one-shot book. I made sure it was a complete story and not a story with a major cliffhanger. Of course, there is always room for more story if the readers respond positively and sales are strong enough to warrant a sequel.
Wilburn: What do you hope comes from this book for readers?
Rosamilia: First, I hope I did justice to Emalee and Mason. I really hope readers of my Dying Days series will enjoy this book, which is obviously going to be slightly different because of the YA angle. It is still a great Dying Days story, I think. Beta readers have also told me it fits right in, so that is promising. Now I just need the readers themselves to love it!
Wilburn: Everyone pick up a copy of Dying Days: Family Ties – A Zombie YA Novella now.
Rosamilia: Who are you talking to?
Wilburn: Nobody. Mind your business. Enjoy your pork roll, Rosamilia!
Rosamilia: Close the door on your way out and if I find any pork roll missing, you better hope the zombies get to you first.
*Jay eyed the pork roll a moment longer. He sized up Armand and then decided to close the door behind him on the way out.*
Jay's Patreon Page | Purchase Signed Books