Destroying the city of Boston … one page at time. This has been a slow burn in the book because so much happens in a short period of time, it’s hard to focus on the parts of the story that matters. When the dead walks the streets, everyone has a story and I can guarantee you that they are all interesting. So I stay focused on my main characters while still painting the nightmare behind them.

What’s happening now … Randell (the main character) having discovered his mother has abandoned him takes a midnight train back to the hospital only to find it barricaded by a concrete wall. It is labeled a Green Zone. For authorized personnel only. He is ushered to Fenway Park whereby it is converted to a hospital, almost filled to the capacity with the sick and the dying. The dead wander the streets while the police and national guard work non-stop to round up all the walking dead, hoping to contain the threat. Simon, a beat cop, waits in his apartment for his friend to arrive and spill the beans on how the “infected” (the popular mindset is that the zombies are a result of a bio-attack) are being cured. Hint, hint … is that smoke I smell?

The challenge with the writing is finding the breaking point of organized society. In a lot of zombie films, the dead appear to sprout overnight, tipping the balance in the course of twelve hours. I just don’t see that happening. It would take awhile for the zombie population to reach critical mass and you bet that before that point has been reached, people will do whatever it is possible to stifle the uprising.

So my question … how long do you think it would take Boston to collapse from the very first zombie to social anarchy? Here are my parameters. My zombies can’t be killed. Head shots will slow them, but not kill them. My zombies start as fast runners, but as they age (or rot), they devolve into the Romero slow type of zombie. Bites are not contagious but that doesn’t mean you should underestimate the dangers of the human mouth. There’s a whole crapload of bacteria in it when a person is alive. Nevermind dead. Also, the authorities are somewhat prepared for the outbreak.

So what do you think? I’m guessing four days. What’s your take?