Creative Writing

Andy Chapman wakes up after yet another strange dream, which causes him to question his very existence. It involves a cryptic poem and leads him on a path to discover the awful truth about everything he is and was. 

He is one of a group of individuals with no apparent connection who are trapped within a small village with no possibility of escape, barring a bus that appears with no known timetable.

The sequence of dreams continues with a trip to ancient Egypt, where he is a fierce warrior who helps the slaves revolt against Khufu, ensuring they get paid for building his pyramids. From there, Andy has additional dreams, each revolving around a historical event, none of which seem to be historically accurate.

From Nazi Germany, where Andy helps to kill Hitler, to Cajamarca, where he foils Pizarro’s attempts to conquer the Incan Empire, he rights the wrongs of history, all the while receiving mysterious clues as to the nature of his reality. 

Throughout, Andy runs the gamut of emotions, ranging from hope, rage, and joy to utter despair, all the while under the watchful gaze of Sharon, a shadowy presence whose goal is to help Andy solve his mystery without excessive interference.

Meanwhile, other villagers also experience unusual dreams that tell stories of forgotten, tragic pasts. From Jim Rourke, who constantly fails to decipher the meaning of Waiting for Godot, to Peter Thomas, who wakes up in the town with no memory of the past, somnambulance pervades a town where no one is sure who they are or how they got there.

Andy’s mother continually strives and succeeds in routinely preventing his progress. After constant setbacks and an inability to stand up to bullies, Andy is constantly on the verge of cracking before finding the courage to fight back. As further dreams begin to paint a clearer picture, Andy finally faces his demons and understands his predicament.

However, just as it seems like Andy is about to learn everything, he gives in to self-doubt because of his lack of courage. He begins a descent into madness, no longer capable of differentiating between fantasy and reality.

One morning, Andy wakes up in bloodstained clothing with no memory of what’s just happened. After being arrested for multiple murders, Andy goes on trial and seems destined to die. Suddenly, another vision comes, giving him the information he needs to finally escape his perpetual torment, or so he thinks. 

Another obstacle cruelly awaits, and as time runs out, Andy must fight to save his very soul.   

Human nature is unchanging, regardless of how hard we try to fight it. Our inner desires return to haunt us, and Mike Roberts is about to learn this the hard way.

He is one of the leaders of The Movement, an organisation that represents the last chance to fight back against the tyrannical government leader and de facto dictator, Peter Anderson. After 15 fruitless years of protest, he is desperate to return to his former life of luxury. 

As it becomes clear that The Movement is crumbling into dust due to public apathy, Mike starts considering the unthinkable as he tries to justify his lust for wealth and decadence by giving his wife and child a better life. He begins to remember his old ways and is tortured by a selfish and tragic past yet seems drawn inexorably towards it. 

Peter sees this hesitation and invites Mike into his cabinet to become the respectable face of the administration. At one time, Peter was friends with Mike’s father and betrayed his trust. Now, he wants to crush another member of the Roberts family as he lusts after revenge for a perceived wrong. 

Despite warnings from Eric Phillips, a fellow leader of The Movement, and after extreme government coercion, Mike eventually succumbs to Peter’s overtures and is immediately rewarded with the trappings of wealth he craves. 

In the meantime, Peter is also attempting to obliterate the city’s gangs and befriends The Cobras to achieve this goal. He pretends to assist them in their bid to riddle the city with drugs but has a different fate planned for The Cobras. Throughout his devious plotting, Peter has an unwilling sidekick who lurks in the shadows and serves as an agent of chaos. 

Mike is successfully brainwashed and helps Peter deliver the major project that is destined to destroy the city. Yet the government’s real intentions are discovered by others who try to warn Mike but he is so enamoured by his new position of importance that he doesn’t listen. 

Only murder and a devastating tragedy bring Mike to his senses but is it all too late? After learning the heartbreaking truth about why he suffered such traumas in his youth and finds out a ghastly secret about a lifelong ally, Mike discovers that there is no peace for him, even in his dreams. 

Peter is on the verge of a magnificent, catastrophic triumph but his arrogance blinds him to a threat that could cheat him of the ultimate victory.  

In The Automaton Empire, Mike Roberts discovers that there is no escaping your true nature, no matter the cost.

· The Buzz

· The Priceless Chit

· The Janus Effect

· Alphabet for Dummies Parts 1 & 2

· Four Seasons Notice

· Road to Erudition