In a world where the Covid-19 pandemic has left us all feeling like extras in a low-budget zombie flick, it’s no surprise that post-apocalyptic fiction is making a comeback.
You’d think that after living through a real-life apocalypse, people would want to steer clear of stories featuring death, disease, and the collapse of civilisation.
But no, it seems we just can’t get enough of watching the world burn from the comfort of our own homes.
Shows like “The Last of Us,” “Wool,” and the “Fallout” TV series are drawing viewers like scavengers to an abandonded vault, proving that our appetite for dystopian tales is as insatiable as a horde of hungry zombies.
It’s almost as if we’re collectively saying, “Sure, the pandemic sucked, but at least we didn’t have to fight off mutated fungi or live in underground silos.”
Why Post-Apocalyptic Fiction is Making a Come-Back
This resurgence of post-apocalyptic fiction is reminiscent of the countless war movies that emerged after the Second World War.
Or, indeed, how the genre itself grew in the growing paranoia of the Cold War – where the very real threat of nuclear annihilation was a real and present thing.
Perhaps it’s our way of processing the collective trauma we’ve experienced, or maybe it’s just our twisted way of feeling grateful that things could have been much, much worse.
Yes, both events saw great losses that will affect us for generations, but that’s the power of fiction.
It allows us to stare our trauma in the face, give it a cheeky wink, and then blow its brains out with a shotgun.
Returning to Post-apocalyptic Fiction
When Covid first reared its ugly head, I never imagined myself writing any post-apocalyptic fiction again – it was all too real, too raw.
The thought of revisiting a world ravaged by disease seemed about as appealing as licking a petri dish.
But here I am, writing “Punks Versus Zombies” as a fun side project, releasing it as a weekly audio serial for all the morbidly curious readers out there.
It’s funny how life imitates art, or in this case, how art helps us make sense of the absurdity of life.
We may have survived the pandemic, but we’ll always have the lingering fear that the next global catastrophe is just around the corner.
So why not indulge in a bit of post-apocalyptic escapism?
After all, it’s better to be prepared for the worst than to be caught with your pants down when the zombies come knocking.
Final Thoughts…
So, the resurgence of post-apocalyptic fiction is a testament to our resilience and our twisted sense of humour.
We’ve lived through a real-life apocalypse, and now we’re ready to face our fears head-on, one binge-watch at a time.
So grab your popcorn, settle in, and enjoy the end of the world from the safety of your sofa.
And if you’re feeling particularly masochistic, why not give “Punks Versus Zombies” a listen?
It’s the perfect way to remind yourself that no matter how bad things get, at least you’re not being chased by a horde of the undead.
You can find the audio version of “Punks Versus Zombies” on Spotify, or where you listen to podcasts. You can also listen on my YouTube channel @joncronshawauthor.