SURVIVAL MODE is the story of K, a fugitive who crash-lands on Yowl, an alien moon teeming with strange, beautiful, hungry creatures. Utterly alone, K's only companion is his survival suit, an AI whose sole purpose is to keep Yowl from killing K. It's a story about loneliness, paranoia, and the will to survive in the face of adversity.

It's a book I thought would never be more than the flavor text for an ipad game.

I started writing seriously when I was 12, and I sucked at it for a solid decade. I entered writing contests, I posted stories online, I mailed off dozens of yellow padded envelopes into a silent void. I filled up spiral notebooks, composition books, red and black books, art portfolios, all kinds of books, with dense lines of ink from my long lost, irreplaceable parker flighter. I wrote an unpublishable trilogy about a cab driver who could drive to alternate universes. I wrote a 240,000 word fantasy trilogy that's still years away from completion.

I thought I would languish forever never finishing anything, just starting a new project after every first draft so I never had to edit anything. I hated editing like poison, I would rather do almost anything else. But about five years ago, I realized I needed to get serious or I'd be stuck fixing computers forever. I've been working like crazy since, completing four books, learning how to edit, teaching myself to typeset, and working to get stronger as a cover designer. I still have a long way to go, it takes a damn lifetime to get any good at this, but I'm closer. I'm proud to have finally completed this short novella, knowing there's much more to come.

I absolutely could not have done this on my own. It took a very talented and attractive editor to kick me in the ass and get me moving, to not let me take the easy way out and just publish a c+ book. The incredibly smart, helpful friends who participated in our beta reader group gave a lot of tough, insightful feedback that has made the book much stronger. Clark Huggins, an awesome artist put together a great rendition of Yowl that came out far better than I'd even hoped. I can't thank these people enough for helping me take the first step towards my dream.

SURVIVAL MODE is just a little sliver of a book, but it means a great deal to me. Thank you so much to everyone who helped get it published.

You can buy SURVIVAL MODE:

Amazon Print
Amazon Kindle
Gutpunch Epub

I hope you enjoy it!

UNEXPECTED PROPERTIES,
Zak Zyz