My new zombie story obsession: Bug, by Callie Chase

These days zombie stories are a dime a dozen. With so many zombie stories to choose from, anyone with a discriminating taste for the undead can afford to be choosy. Whenever a new zombie story arrives on the scene, there is (understandably) some apprehension, but when it comes to Bug by Callie Chase, it’s the real deal. The story is unfolding incrementally on Amazon’s new platform Kindle Vella, and the serial format works really well to keep readers engaged while also building suspense between episodes.

The story opens with normal people doing normal, everyday things. Bea and her roommate Rowena, Drew and Tobias are all strangers, caught up in the middle of the chaos when the world starts falling apart. People around them start turning into flesh eating zombies and some turn into animals and what in the blazes is going on? It’s a lot. They’re all stuck in different spots across Los Angeles as the city tries to convince residents to remain calm in the wake of the mysterious events transforming its citizens into something…else. (As if, right? Does “remain calm” ever really make people calm?)

Bug is not your average zombie story

Here’s what makes Bug stand out: Chase doesn’t skimp with the details. Ever wonder what life is like at the moment the zombie outbreak begins? It tends to be glossed over on shows like The Walking Dead in favor of flashbacks that come long after the world has gone to pot. Chase remains rooted in the early moments, laying the foundation for her story so that she can really run with it later on.

It’s the little details that I appreciate the most, next to her interesting and well-developed characters. As a fan of The Walking Dead, Chase knows what the apocalypse will look like later on, so she spends time building a story that makes a lot of sense from the start. Take, for example, hiding ammunition. One of her characters is smart enough to be thinking about the big picture, so she hides ammo in tampon boxes. Clever.

Chase also knows that The Walking Dead hit some speed bumps along its run and she’s actively course correcting to ensure that her story remains fresh and new throughout.

Now that Kindle Vella has been around for a few weeks I’ve had a chance to play around with Amazon’s new platform, and I like it. I totally understand the appeal of Kindle Vella for authors. You can release episodes of a story at your own pace, gathering feedback as you craft the story (assuming it’s not complete when you first start releasing installments) and the story never really has to end.

Traditional novels follow formulas, with a handful of acts and some kind of resolution or cliffhanger that ties into the next book. With Kindle Vella, serialized stories can go on indefinitely if an author chooses to build a word that has infinite possibilities, much like the story in a comic book. (Or South Park, where the kids have been in fourth grade for about a zillion years…)

Chase’s world is vast. It starts out in Los Angeles, but it could move anywhere and follow anyone. The zombie virus and the world of the shapeshifters serve as a springboard, so she never has to end Bug if she doesn’t want to. Bug can go on for three years in serialized form instead of taking place through multiple books, and it works so very well.

There are many other Kindle Vella stories out there that work well with this new format. Some won’t work in a serialized format.

Bug works. It works really well.

If you’re a fan of horror, zombies, shapeshifters or apocalyptic dystopian nightmares that force everyday people into extraordinary circumstances, then Bug is for you. Bug is available now and there are already more than a dozen episodes for you to enjoy, with the first three available for free.