Susan J. Crockford: Eaten: A Novel

Advance copy: Backstories on books by NASW members

Cover: Eaten: A Novel by Susan J. Crockford

EATEN: A NOVEL
Susan J. Crockford, Ph.D.
CreateSpace/Spotted Cow Presentations Inc., November 13, 2015
Paperback, $14.49, Kindle, $6.99
ISBN-10: 151930255X
ISBN-13: 9781519302557
ISBN-Kindle: 9780991796625
ISBN ePub: 9780991796618

Crockford reports:

Eaten is a polar bear attack thriller set in Newfoundland, Canada, in 2025 — a genre some call speculative fiction. I incorporated polar bear ecology into a story for readers who would likely never buy a science book.

While I include a recommended reading list, the book is primarily for readers who love a good story with a strong science background.

In this tale, the occupants of hundreds of small towns and isolated outposts across northern Newfoundland find themselves unprepared for a surprise spring onslaught of hungry polar bears. People haven’t just been killed, they’ve been eaten.

As the attacks multiply, people find they are not safe even in their own homes. Local residents, Mounties, and biologists struggle with a disturbing new reality: they have a huge polar bear problem on their hands, and if they don’t find a solution quickly, more people will die gruesome deaths, and more polar bears will be shot. Stopping the carnage and terror will be the biggest challenge they’ve ever faced.

Susan J. Crockford, holding a polar bear skull.

This is my first novel. I'm a zoologist who grew up in a family of storytellers and avid fiction readers. When I decided to try my hand at writing a novel, it felt like a logical progression from science writing, not a leap. After blogging about polar bear science for three years, and selling a few polar bear magazine articles, featuring these Arctic predators in my next book just felt right.

I had a few months free to do nothing but write, so I went for a novel rather than turning my blog into a science book — my original plan. I found the new genre less daunting than I had feared, and enjoyed the process more than I expected. I would definitely do another!

I decided to self-publish, but hired a professional fiction editor as well as a formatting specialist to facilitate the online submission process; both were worth every penny. I found my editor, Caroline Kaiser, via the Editors Association of Canada, at a cost of less than $2,000, and the formatting specialist from the back side of the title page on another recently published book. I returned the favor, and did the same: www.mrlasers.com. The formatting cost a few hundred dollars, and saved me much time and aggravation.

Contact info:

Susan Crockford, 250-884-1300, sjcrock@shaw.ca, www.pacificid.com, Twitter: @sjc_pbs
Blog website: www.polarbearscience.com
Book website: www.susancrockford.com
YouTube book trailer: https://youtu.be/3Zw9DCvPTD8

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Tell your fellow NASW members how you came up with the idea for your book, developed a proposal, found an agent and publisher, funded and conducted research, and put the book together. Include what you wish you had known before you began working on your book, or had done differently.

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Thinking of writing a book? If you are a NASW member, you may access a list of more than 150 books and online resources to help you craft your book proposal, find an agent and funding sources, negotiate your contract, learn about self-publishing, publicize and market your book, and more at https://www.nasw.org/article/write-book.

Send book info and questions about book publishing to Lynne Lamberg, NASW book editor, llamberg@nasw.org.

Advance Copy

The path from idea to book may take myriad routes. The Advance Copy column, started in 2000 by NASW volunteer book editor Lynne Lamberg, features NASW authors telling the stories behind their books. Authors are asked to report how they got their idea, honed it into a proposal, found an agent and a publisher, funded and conducted their research, and organized their writing process. They also are asked to share what they wish they’d known when they started or would do differently next time, and what advice they can offer aspiring authors. Lamberg edits the authors’ answers to produce the Advance Copy reports.

NASW members: Will your book be published soon? Visit www.nasw.org/advance-copy-submission-guidelines for information on submitting your report.

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