Psychosis (Wildfire Chronicles Vol. 3)

Psychosis is perhaps a little more epic in scope, and introduces some new characters, but primarily we're picking up right at the very moment that Shock ended, and following Michael, Rachel and Jason as they run into John Francis and begin to understand that they are dealing with a situation far larger and more dangerous than they believed. 

I don't want to give too much away, but the character in question provides the eyes through which we see the people behind Project Wildfire and perhaps more importantly he reveals some important things about the virus. He is completely despicable, which made him a great deal of fun to write. The central idea with this character is that for most people the 'zombie apocalypse' is the worst thing that could possibly happen, but for him, it's like the world finally makes sense. He was born for it, and he plays a major role.

Absolutely. I felt that Panic was a story that began slowly and increased in pace throughout. When I wrote Shock I wanted it to be short and punchy, like an extended scene from an action movie. I wanted to see if I could take that pace as a starting point for Psychosis and push it. I feel that sort of aggressive pacing is one of the defining characteristics of the series, so I try not to let it drop.

Personally, I like horror that is unflinching. That's what I aim for. And Psychosis is all about things beginning to break down: trust, civilization, infrastructure, mental health. It's probably more extreme than the previous volumes, mostly because the characters are out in the open, on the run with threat coming at them from every direction. I love the idea of taking these characters from this small, quiet town on a ride into extraordinary danger and seeing how they cope.