TSJ’s THE SAVAGE DEEPS Longlisted for the 2020 CYGNUS Award
I found out recently that THE SAVAGE DEEPS has been Longlisted for the CYGNUS Science Fiction Award.
I’ll keep my eye on the process and let you know what happens. I’m thrilled that my underwater Science Fiction TechnoThriller/Adventures are being noticed by readers and reviewers.
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The Increasing Relevance of TSJ’s The Rise of Oceania
There have been many news articles recently about the need to expand our resource exploitation into the oceans. This is the foundation of my series The Rise of Oceania: a new Cold War triggered by the quest to claim underwater wealth. The oceans occupy 71% of the planet, and the value of minerals, plants, and fish living there is incalculable. As our populations on the surface explode, as climate change ravages our coastlines and destroys staple food-growing (“breadbasket”) regions, the need for new resources will skyrocket. This has been discussed in academic circles for many, many years, but as climate change escalates this century, the need to invest in the underwater world will increase dramatically. Check out this article on kelp on CNN only two weeks ago:
https://www.cnn.com/2020/11/20/uk/uk-kelp-farming-seaweed-rathlin-c2e-spc-intl/index.html
“Something of a wonder crop, gram for gram, kelp and other seaweeds have as much protein as beef and are one of few non-animal sources of Vitamin B12 …”
Kelp can grow a meter a day in the right conditions, and will be an increasingly valuable resource in the next century.
Diver and Kelp Forest, from Wikipedia Commons
And then there’s an article on mining resources on the ocean floor, published in The Atlantic earlier this year. The title is
“History’s Largest Mining Operation Is About to Begin.
It’s underwater—and the consequences are unimaginable.”
My series The Rise of Oceania features a massive area of the Pacific called The Iron Plains and the resulting political and military interventions in order to gain control over it. Scientists have long known about metallic nodules on the ocean floor, lying right on the surface. There’s no need to drill into the rock for access; the water pressure at depth is the greatest obstacle, but it’s one that we can overcome. When the need for these resources supersedes the cost of extraction, the political and military responses will be monumental. I wrote about the coming Second Cold War here.
https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2020/01/20000-feet-under-the-sea/603040/
I’m happy that people are noticing my series and its relevance to populations today due to the effects of escalating climate change. Watch this space for more news soon.
Mineral Nodules on the Seafloor; from Wikipedia Commons
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“Reading The Savage Deeps is like watching a movie … mesmerizing … Torpedoes, mines, imploded subs, and bodies litter the ocean floor … Johnston is an author skilled in bringing life to his characters through dialogue, engaging readers’ emotions by their behaviors and thinking, and creating brilliant settings, all of which play out like scenes in a movie.” — Five Stars from Readers’ Favorite
“The Savage Deeps delivers on every level.” — SFcrowsnest
“The Savage Deeps is like a futuristic Das Boot with a lot of intense action and some interesting technology … full of spine-tingling thrills … I give The Savage Deeps a five star rating.” — A Thrill A Week
Praise for THE WAR BENEATH
“If you’re looking for a techno-thriller combining Ian Fleming, Tom Clancy and John Le Carré, The War Beneath will satisfy … a ripping good yarn, a genuine page-turner.” — Amazing Stories
“One very riveting, intelligent read!” — Readers’ Favorite
“If you like novels like The Hunt for Red October and Red Storm Rising,
you will certainly enjoy The War Beneath.” — A Thrill A Week
“If you’re here for thrills, the book will deliver.” — The Cambridge Geek
“… an engaging world that is highly believable …” — The Future Fire
“This is a tense, gripping science fiction/thriller of which Tom Clancy might well be proud . . . When I say it is gripping, that is the simple truth.” — Ardath Mayhar
“… a thrill ride from beginning to end …” — SFcrowsnest
“… if you like Clancy and le Carré with a hint of Forsyth thrown in,
you’ll love The War Beneath.” — Colonel Jonathan P. Brazee (RET),
2017 Nebula Award & 2018 Dragon Award Finalist
“Fast-paced, good old-fashioned Cold War espionage … a great escape!” — The Minerva Reader
