The chapter I posted today (ch 10) was written nearly four years ago, and to this day, I believe, is the most controversial of my forty-two chapter first book of this series. For starters, the events depicted in this chapter draw close parallels to real-world events that many believe could have actually led to the apocalyptic events in this book. Without giving too much away, I will say that those events are very divisive, especially in the US. You will likely either love or hate this chapter.
I lost beta readers over this chapter, and there was a time when I considered toning it down significantly, and even changing the root cause of the apocalypse all together. I almost gave up entirely when I reviewed the initial feedback.
When I came up with the idea for this trilogy, it started with a simple 'what-if'. What if certain people in power ACTUALLY got what they wanted? What if all the extreme rhetoric that was being spewed happened? Could it lead to an apocalypse?
To change the events in this chapter would mean to change my whole purpose for writing this book.
The other issue people have had with this chapter is that it is very much an info dump. I completely agree, and considered spreading this info out through the book, but changed y mind for a couple reasons.
1. If what happened to Dauphine, happened to me, I would insist on knowing the details above everything else. Since the story is written in first person, we learn as Dauphine learns.
2. The cause of the apocalypse does not heavily influence the plot. It is required, primarily, for setting. If I were to spread out these details over multiple chapters, it would become prevalent than it is.
I decided to rip off the band-aid, and move on.
I look forward to your feedback
