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Crafting political thrillers based on true events requires a careful balance, merging fact with fiction into riveting tales that come across both disturbing and unnervingly plausible. Has the world lost its last thread of sanity? Mass media drowns us daily with never-ending cycles of calamities, from cataclysmic global events to political quagmires. These scandals are nothing new, some more egregious than others, but all spark outrage across the political spectrum. It’s tempting to dust off that old protest sign. Sadly, it’s still relevant. Writers like me craft sociopolitical fiction to explore and process society’s critical issues with the hope that change will follow. But hope implies a futuristic expectation. What can I as a writer do to bring these injustices to light and engage readers who might not seek such information in nonfiction formats? My novels are rooted in a deep commitment to address issues which I’m passionate about: social inequality, the preservation of nature and wildlife, and society’s power to address the challenges of political corruption. They aim to provoke thought and discussion, to question past indiscretions which continue to plague us. Sidney J. Harris once observed, “History repeats itself, but in such cunning disguise that we never detect the resemblance until the damage is done.” Environmental and Political Corruption and Broken Promises My latest political thrillers, Ada & Eddie and Amanita Virosa: The Destroying Angel , are byproducts of my extreme dissatisfaction with the growing inequality between the rich and poor in the UK, fueled by greed and lust for power on the one hand and by the government's indifference and corruption on the other. The real-life events below provided the backdrop for my hard-hitting political thrillers. • In 2011, a proposed mine in the North York Moors promised wealth but delivered disaster. The ambitious project, hailed for its potential to generate billions and create jobs, today stands idle due to lack of funding. Stakeholders, many of them locals, lost their investments; 80% of the 1,400 workers face losing their jobs, and the natural habitat of endangered moorland birds, among other wildlife, is woefully marred. Barry Dodd, chair of York, North Yorks, and East Riding Local Enterprise Partnership said the project was a key part of the government’s plan to build a “northern powerhouse.” • Undeterred by the tenacious objections of conservation advocates, the hunting of wildlife continues in the UK by circumventing or illicitly exploiting “exemptions” to the Hunting Act of 2004. These loopholes essentially prevent a ban on certain activities which Parliament did not intend to prohibit in the first place. Lax investigation of violators and enforcement of these laws are major hindrances in holding illegal hunters accountable. • Allegations of child sexual abuse had been circling Westminster since the late fifties, a simmering scandal which boiled over in the 70s and 80s. Multiple dossiers on pedophiles allegedly associated with the British government, including MPs, House of Lords members, intelligence agents, as well as children’s homes carers, teachers, and a prominent child psychiatrist, were identified . During this time, several missing young boys were found murdered in the Greater London area. Cover-ups by government officials and police occurred on an unprecedented scale but were investigated in a cursory manner or not at all, until years later, when the perpetrators were deceased and files were found to have mysteriously disappeared. The Paedophile Information Exchange, with its high-profile membership, operated openly between 1974-84. An investigation into government funds being secretly siphoned to the group eventually led to a dead end. A thorough investigation by the Independent Inquiry Child Sexual Abuse Committee in 2022 concluded that “There is ample evidence that individual perpetrators of child sexual abuse have been linked to Westminster. However, there was no evidence of any kind of an organized Westminster pedophile network.” • The systematic genocide of the Romani and Sinti people by Nazi Germany took place between 1939 and 1945. The Nazis viewed them as “asocial” and racial “inferiors,” much as they did the Jewish population. Ripped from their homelands, an estimated 23,000 Roma were sent to the notorious Auschwitz-Birkenau camp, where they were subjected to torture, gruesome medical experimentation, and death. During the Bosnia War (1992-95), 30,000 Romani people were among those targeted for eviction by Serb nationalists in order to create territories with a Serb majority. Their removal methods included "killing of civilians, rape, torture, destruction of civilian, public, and cultural property, looting and pillaging, and the forcible relocation of civilian populations." Of particular interest was the role of Romani women as fighters, like Fadila Odžaković Žuta , a member of the 1st Motorized Brigade, who was tragically killed at the age of 34. She served as my inspiration for the character of Amanita Virosa. Crafting Political Thrillers In writing fact-based political thrillers, my first step is finding a provocative issue which compels me to take a stand. Once I identify particular aspects of society I’m interested in examining further, I then clarify my unique perspective on those questions. Meticulous research is done to ensure the details are factual and coherent. Finally, I ask what I want my readers to take away from this story. Political fiction offers escape, of course, but stories based on true events help us to make sense of the chaos and draw lessons from it, to reaffirm what we stand for. The best stories are more than suspenseful plots. Realistic themes drive them. Empathetic characters and their struggles and values draw us in, and we become their champions when we see some aspects of ourselves in them. Ordinary Characters Who Change the World Fictional narratives rooted in real events have a unique power to engage readers emotionally, creating a connection to the characters who are enmeshed in these situations that is both personal and profound. We are often drawn to inspirational movement figures, like Martin Luther King, Jr., Malala Yousafzai, Nelson Mandela. But stories of ordinary citizens fighting for change offer a different perspective. We get to walk beside them, experiencing their struggles, emotional journeys, and perils of participating in a social or political movement. Many of my protagonists are heroic women with strong supporting characters that cut across all ages. In Ada & Eddie, both main characters are middle-aged, while some of their cohorts are spirited seniors who sprinkle humor into the plot. Eddie is a simple, homeless man by choice. Ada, a widower and former activist, becomes Eddie’s source of spiritual strength. In Amanita Virosa: The Destroying Angel, 1980s London is crumbling under the weight of political corruption, unfettered rogue gangs, and the victimization of children. Amanita, a courageous Romani fighter who fled the horrors of war-torn Bosnia, forms a radical alliance with Everard, a young firebrand, and Doris, a feisty pensioner to stop the corruption. Connecting with Readers Novels have the power to inspire change and serve as a call to action. They can motivate readers to demand accountability, participate in civic life, and push for reforms. With a critical mass of citizens sufficiently alarmed about the world’s trajectory, creative writers are in an ideal position to expose and mitigate change. At least, that's what I'd like to see happen. If not, at the very least, they can inform and entertain. Nothing wrong with that.

Are you drawn to the mysterious allure of Gothic poetry and horror fiction? Gothic literature has captivated readers for centuries, delving into the depths of human emotion and the unknown. Since childhood, I have been aware of a different dimension where death and shadows are entwined, both inevitable and unavoidable. Seeing a woman pass into a wall on two occasions and dreaming dreams that were from another time or place reinforced in my consciousness that what we see is not necessarily what we know. It was with this belief and with the aid of mythology and ritual that I started to write. For years, I had been ignoring a particular yellow file on one of my bookshelves. The idea of going through all those scraps of paper after so many years seemed too much of a challenge. I finally plucked up the courage and delved into the contents, which I now offer up to any reader brave enough to pass their time being locked into a nightmare. I wrote them all when I was still in the bloom of youth, and they represent quite an interesting but very dark body of work. In school, we were fed a diet of Keats, Wordsworth, Milton, Wilfred Owen, and the incredibly boring T.S. Elliot. The latter comment may upset some people, particularly those who think T.S. was a decent bloke. Fascism is not something he should have supported, On my own account, I discovered Shelley and was impressed by his political outspokenness, which, in turn, gave me the courage to experiment in verse. Montague Summers’ book, The Vampire in Europe , a 1929 chilling account of the history of the vampire legend, had a great influence on the creation of my poems. Another influence was John Bunyan’s The Pilgrim’s Progress , a 17th century Christian allegory, which is difficult to admit, me being an atheist. But its allure for me is the simplicity of his writing with a combination of humor, adventure, and suspense. Beyond all that, several inexplicable and odd experiences through childhood and over the period of my writing have played a part as well. I was left to my own devices at a very young age, and in my solitude, I engaged with my mythological muse, Hecate, whom I credit with fueling my imagination and keeping me out of trouble. Words can be like gems or sticks. A coalition of words can become a diamond necklace or a broken picket fence, whichever way one wishes to use them, and as such, I use them for my psychological horror stories and poetry. Dark fantasy can be alluring, but dark reality is sometimes unavoidable and can cascade one's imagination deep into the hollowed skulls that litter the subsoil beneath our feet, to be returned once again to the world in the voice of a writer. Similarly, pathos and humor can change a day from clouds to sunshine where kindness and laughter find a place. My soon-to-be-released book, Strange Fruit: A Collection of Dark Allegories, Fantasy, and Madn ess, contains a tumbrel of unusual short stories—some sad, some strange, some dark and some funny but none ordinary. A collection of Gothic poetry, Poems to Steal Your Dreams, is also in the works . Some of my poems can be viewed in video format on YouTube . “The Hydra,” my favorite, is written in what some may call an old-fashioned or archaic style, with imagery that is quite dramatic and worth reading for that alone.

Satire is a literary technique that has been used for centuries to humorously criticize societal issues and human behavior. What I like the most about satire is that it often acts as a safety valve for the expression of anger. Whenever I read a news article about certain politicians, for example, I can detect the ill-will in the background, and my rage ignites. I cannot go out armed with a Kalashnikov or a sniper rifle, but I can certainly vent my fury in words. The brilliant satirist, Carl Hiassen, explained: “Good satire comes from anger. It comes from a sense of injustice, that there are wrongs in the world that need to be fixed.” The way we make that rage palatable to readers is by infusing humor, irony and exaggeration into our writing. In that form, it can bring folks who’re not thrilled by political or social injustice discussions to come to the table and hopefully leave with food for thought. “Satires are made to critique and entertain,” states Dieter Declercq. "Satires are really designed for something other than changing the world.” ( Philosopher’s Magazine , Feb. 2021) To be sure, it is constructive social criticism with a bite, a coping mechanism and an often cathartic experience for the writer. In my view, perhaps a slice of mordant insight with an enticing cherry on top can draw readers’ attention to the oppressive flaws in modern society. What the reader does with the cherry is up to them. Though satire’s focus is often political, it does not have to be. Some of my satirical work also addresses human and animal rights and environmental protection. Here are a few tips on how to write satire effectively, which I hope you’ll find helpful. Understand the Purpose of Satire Satire isn’t just about humor; it’s about making a statement regarding unfair political or societal issues that you’re passionate about. Regardless of your goal, your satire should have an identifiable underlying message. For example, Jonathan Swift’s A Modest Proposal and George Orwell’s Animal Farm, both use humor to highlight poverty and totalitarianism respectively. So write with subtlety but not forcefully, trusting your readers to pick up on the underlying critique. What message do you want to convey? Find the Absurdity in Reality From your keen observation, think about what’s ironic, hypocritical, or ridiculous about your subject. Next, create a humorous, exaggerated version of that reality. For example, one of my stories features farm animals who unexpectedly exchange vocalizations—cows bray, donkeys moo—to underscore the absurdity of a farmer’s greed in a humorous way. When the farmer decides to make money off the attraction, the animals refuse to comply. Use Exaggeration and Hyperbole, But Don’t Overdo It Satire often relies on exaggeration or hyperbole, but this effect should be applied skillfully to avoid seeming absurdly off the wall. Hyperbolic situations should still resonate with readers, making them think, “That’s ridiculous—but I can see the truth in it.” Jonathan Swift’s A Modest Proposal does this by proposing a grotesque solution (eating children to combat poverty) to emphasize the severity of societal neglect. Consider Tone and Delivery The tone of your delivery is crucial. A tongue-in-cheek or deadpan approach can help convey the satirical nature of your piece. Think about your favorite stand-up comics and why their approach appeals to you. Avoid overt sarcasm, as it may come off as merely cynical rather than satirical. Use a light, playful tone to highlight even the darkest themes, allowing readers to see the humor without feeling alienated by the critique. Use Strong, Relatable Characters Characters in satire, whether human or animal, often embody exaggerated traits or ideas Make their personalities relatable to the reader: the hypocritical politician, the clueless detective, the overly sensitive pooch. By making them relatable and flawed, readers will see the character’s side of the issues you’re critiquing, making the satire even more impactful. Take Risks with Your Ideas Satire often pushes boundaries and pokes fun at topics others avoid. Don’t shy away from uncomfortable truths or controversial issues. Be brave in your critique, and trust that readers will see the satire’s intent, even if they don’t agree with you. And learn to develop a thick skin. Controversy has a habit of bringing dissenters out of the woodwork. Politely agree to disagree and move on. Shoot For Clarity and Brevity Excessive wordiness can lessen the impact of the humor and stifle your message, so aim for clarity and brevity. Keep your readers engaged and alert to the next bit of insight or punchline. Sample satire entry from my upcoming book, Strange Fruit: A Collection of Dark Allegories, Fantasy, and Madness A Letter to the Queen Dear Queen, It is with great regret that I wish to inform you of the death of my great-uncle, Urea Peake. As you may have been aware, Christmas Day was to be his 100th birthday, a milestone he had been eagerly anticipating. He was a small, insignificant person who left no previous sign of his long existence except for the now empty box of sixteen paracetamol tablets and a short note. I had left him earlier on Christmas morning to attend to other family matters while he eagerly awaited your congratulatory telegram recognizing his centenary. It was something he had incessantly talked about for the last four months, and it obviously meant a great deal to him. But, alas, your telegram never arrived. The paracetamol tablets, all sixteen of them (thirty-four pence at Tesco's, I believe) resulted in a rupture of his already ulcerated bladder, causing him to lose every last drop of his bodily fluids. Fortunately, he had chosen to sit in the bath with the plug out to save us the trouble of cleaning up should anything have gone amiss, as it did. When I returned that evening, I was confronted with a tiny, fragile yellow cadaver, the skin hanging limply between his ribs and pelvis. I can assure you that the odour was none too pleasant. He had left me a note of explanation, simply two words—‘SHE FORGOT’—written on the back of a water bill in black felt-tip ink. I understand that at this time of year, your own family must be very demanding, what with the shooting and heavy drinking, but I am truly dismayed that you, you of all people, should have been the cause, the destruction of not only his long unproductive life but also of his one and only aspiration—to reach his 100th birthday and receive a telegram from you, his Queen. Nonetheless, I wish you a happy New Year and with a deep bow, I will now close to carry out my great-uncle's last wish, which was, ‘Bury me in the garden’. I am, yours obediently, Harold Halouni (c) 2012 Barry Harden