The International Writers Magazine Editorial DEC 2025

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Welcome to this edition of Hackwriters. 26 years on-line, 8,095 + articles - reviews - stories - travel -
share any feature you like and pass them on.- Previous Editorial here

* James Campion has started a new music and rock profile podcast.
Introducing James Campion’s Profonde Musique - Podcasts and Rock Music Profiles

Welcome: Season's Greetings to all our readers past and present

Reason's to be cheerful? Not so much right now. I hope you all survived Christmas without falling out with anyone. It's a stressful time of the year. You want to be happy but are uncertain of what the year ahead will bring. Money is tight for most people and prices a lot higher. That coffee out costs twenty percent more than last year and I know several people who don't think they'll have a job very soon, especially with the new UK employment laws coming along that will accelerate staff shedding and increase the likelihood of companies replacing human workers as fast as they can. Add a punative business rate increases and we're going to see an ever diminishing supply of pubs and restaurants and independent shops next year. Despite what a certain president says - there really is an affordabilty crisis.

Time Magazine has made AI 'Person of the Year' - maybe in 2026 it will be The Terminator on the cover.
Some CEO's say AI will take up to 60% of jobs in our incredibly near future. Apparently AI oligarchs will own all the money and only electricians, plumbers, nurses, carers, and luxury party planners will have jobs. (You’ll note GP's don’t make the cut, AI will easily take their jobs too and lawyers with luck). No one else will be able to afford their mortgages or pay the rent and buy food. So, I’m thinking about all these banks that hold the mortgages with trillions of pounds and dollars – no one will be paying in anymore. Banks could go under leading to a rapid downward spiral and if you don’t yet live behind a very high wall (and let’s face it only the rich do), the hungry mobs will be coming for you and me and especially the old. The writer Neal Stephenson predicted all this thirty-five years ago with his Snow Crash and Diamond Age novels. That’s the great Christmas AI message. Enjoy what you’ve got people because you’ll sure miss it when its gone.

*A reader points out to me that AI can increase productivity and make work easier and this is a positive thing, but I'm thinking about Sam Altman (OpenAI) who has suggested that 'human labor' will soon be eliminated - so take that positivity and add Roman Yampolskiy the author of 'AI: Unexplainable, Unpredicable, Uncontrollable' interviewed on CNN who claims 99% of all jobs could vanish by 2030. There's an optimist for you.

So don’t think your savings will save you as AI decimates our jobs. What will save you? Gold? Bitcoin? When you end up cashing a krugerrand for a hot cup of tea and a burger your sense of gratitude might be a little stretched. It's no coincidence that Gold is currently $4,435 an ounce in the USA.12.22.25

To cheer you up read Philip Pullman's latest volume in the Book of Dust series instead. Or Leo by Deon Meyer who thinks he knows what happened to all that money the former South African president stole...

So here's a tip – smile like everything is perfectly ok. Enjoy those Christmas parties. We saw Knives Out 3 and Jay Kelly - *Jay Kelly was the better choice by far. As for Netflix buying Warner Bros? I'm not so sure it's a good thing for them to own everything. But now there's a counter bid. Watch that space.
PS I'm happy 'One Battle After Another' got nominated for the Golden Globes. Definitely the best movie this year.

Although Hackwriters is just an archive magazine now – it feels hard to just let all the bad stuff pass by without comment.

© Sam Hawksmoor Dec 26th 2025
Author of The Days After She Went Dancing and The Repossession of Genie Magee series.
(PS Perfect New Year gifts for readers you might know)

*Sam Hawksmoor's new mystery novel set in Spain is out now on Kindle and print. The Days After She Went Dancing Flamenco Can Be Murder! 'an intriquing, atmospheric novel (tinged with sadness)' Amazon review 1st Chapter here Backstory to the writing of the new novel here Catch up with Sara Troy's interview with Sam Hawksmoor here. Oct 1st 2025

*Sales of Sam North's and Sam Hawksmoor's books help keep Hackwriters archived.
Sam Hawksmoor's Books below

Whatever Happened to Genie Magee?

Whatever Happened to Genie Magee? • Sam Hawksmoor - Published 2025 ASIN ‏: B0DZTLNJHW ISBN-13: 978-1-7385181-1-1 USA Amazon link Genie wakes up with a head injury from serious car wreck. She has no memory of the crash, or who she is. As she begins to recover her identity, she accidentally discovers a graphic novel is serializing her life, in horrific detail.  Her therapist is deeply skeptical this could be true and worries for her sanity. But all she can think of is, why is this happening to her? And how can she stop them? No 4: In The Repossession of Genie Magee series ...

The Restoration of Ami: ASIN: B0CVQMH78C - Kindle ISBN: 978-1-7385181-0-4 - Print UK Pub: Hammer & Tong/KDP 2.29.24 Remy has one last obsession – to complete the restoration of his ’57 Studebaker Golden Hawk.  He’s planned a road trip to Montreal to find a part he desperately needs. It’s a long way from Florida; his Chevy truck is almost as old as he is. At the very first urgent stop in the pouring rain, a dog appears from nowhere and jumps into his truck, quickly followed by a drenched teen. Scared, the girl, Ami, urgently needs a ride. She has escaped from a nearby religious cult and is desperate to find the mother who abandoned her there when she was just five years old. One old man, a troubled teenage girl and Stan the dog are on a road trip into MAGA America. With each mile they travel Montreal seems to get further away. 'Fabulous, can't-put-down story with quirky, original characters, a loveable dog and a great adventure'. ***** Roxy West on Goodreads.

An extraordinary road trip by Sam Hawkmoor

The Book of Ashes • Sam Hawksmoor ISBN: 979-8-837434-952 ASIN: B0B85HFK86 Hammer & Tong - print and kindle 'an immensely satisfying story' - Walli Leff on Goodreads. 'a fun read with unique elements ... exemplary in its voice and style' 'Judge, 10th Annual Writer's Digest E-Book Awards An extract from the Book of Ashes		The Book of Ashes - Some secrets are meant to be kept forever The Case: Delaney and Asha run their own investigation company now. Hired to find a writer who stiffed a client of $10,000 - things go bad pretty fast. "This was supposed to be a simple track and trace job. Find the writer, bank the money. Now it's a horror show."

'We Feel Your Pain' by Sam Hawksmoor ISBN-13: 979-8699087693 Published by Hammer & Tong Print & Kindle Book One in the Delaney & Asha series		We Feel Your Pain – So you don’t have to. The Case: Delaney (42) and Asha (22) run the Office of Berg City Oversight. Their role is to expose the scams, keep the city safe from unscrupulous people.  When something looks too good to be true – it’s a scam, right?  But what if the scam works?  What kind of scam is that?

MISSION LONGSHOT: how far will you go to save one life? 2024: Honorable Mention in the Purple Dragonfly Awards (Sci Fi) Gerry is convinced aliens are going to attack on Millennium Eve - Y2K night. Everyone else is preparing for the end of civilisation. That night only Gerry notices aliens land. He and his spacenut pals Jolene and Kali race to be the first to greet them... 'Climate change, lost alien civilisations, adventures in deep space. Great fun with endearing characters'. Kitty Thomas

The Sam North Novels - still available to order Amazon or Lulu -

*Keeping Hackwriters archived is supported by sales of our books - so do buy, print or kindle, we aren't picky.
Magenta - A chilling story of kidnapping, burning and strangeness set in the wilds of Lincolnshire

** The Heaviness, & The Repercussions of Tomas D - 'best time travel WW2 story in a long while'

The new edition of 'ANOTHER PLACE TO DIE: ENDTIME CHRONICLES By Sam Hawksmoor & Sam North There's no safe place to hide from a lethal pandemic Print & Kindle - Q&A interview with the authors here A city gripped by fear. People are petrified of being thrown into quarantine. Best friends Kira and Liz once parted are scared they will never see each other again. Teen lovers, Chris and Rachel, prepare to escape to the islands. a taster here The Last Ferry Review from the First Edition: 'Beautiful, plausible, and sickeningly addictive, Another Place to Die: Endtime will terrify you, thrill you, and make you petrified of anyone who comes near you...' Roxy West - Amazon.co.uk

Girl with Cat (Blue) - Shortlisted for the Rubery International Book Award 'a funny, bloody, colorful narrative that never fails to surprise the reader. Girl with Cat (Blue) provides great entertainment'. * Screenplay a quarter-finalist in the Screencraft competition 2024

'This book was amazing! I was hooked from the first few pages and couldn't put the book down.' Judge, 26th Annual Writer’s Digest Self-Published Book Awards. - Honorable Mention

J&K 4Ever - A post-apocalypse love story Sixty years after the end of everything the city of Bluette survives, controlled by a malignant sect.  A place where men rule, girls receive no education and are matched at 16 to the highest bidder.  No one is ever permitted to leave the city and outside is a murderous wasteland of despair. Orphans Kruge and Jeyna have been devoted to each other through all the years of terror in this harsh regime and sworn never to be parted.  But the beautiful Jeyna has been betrayed by the Warden. Kruge has been swiftly banished to the Scraps, under the control of the Keeper. Jeyna is heartbroken; she will not accept her fate and escapes to find Kruge.   'A genuine romance in a bleak but plausible and terrifying setting'.

J&K 4Ever

MARIKKA- exclusively on Amazon Print only Based on a tragic real life event, Marikka flees from an arson attack on her home to the sea, where she meets Starfish boy – a runaway working for Jackson, a scarred man hiding a sinister secret from the world. Meanwhile her real father searches for her with the aide of Anya, ‘the girl who can read objects’. More about the writing of this book ‘Long after my tears dried, my heart stayed with Marikka, Starfish Boy and the strange girl who reads objects.’ CT You will smile, and you will struggle to read the words through your tears. Gemma Williams - Amazon.co.uk

Spy/Romance thriller set during the Blitz in WW2 - Kindle download The Repercussions of Tomas D A Hero? Or Englands Greatest Traitor? USA Paperback here 'Disturbing and very poignant YA love story that presents a chilling alternate future for an England that lost the war.' Marcel d'Agneau 'A brilliant imagining of living in the Blitz, well researched.' Amazon UK 'This is Man in the High Castle for teens and scarily plausible ' *download the Kindle version or buy the paperback from Hammer & Tong

'The Heaviness' betrayal, revenge, relationships and the laws of gravity. Genie & Renée have just 36 hours to save Rian or he dies. 'Without a doubt, one of the best YA Sci Fi series out there.' Evie Seo - Bookish * Also published as Rüya by Marti Yayincilik - The Turkish publishers of TOZ & Golge Part 2: The Hunting of Genie Magee - fight for the right to exist

Sara Troy interviews Sam Hawksmoor on Self Discovery Wisdom

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