Countdown to Action, chapter 1 posted
Posted by Publisher at 5/2/2008 8:46 PM and is filed under uncategorized 
I have posted chapter 1 of Countdown to Action! To read it, go to http://www.ftlpublications.com, click on "Countdown to Action" and then click on "read chapter 1."
Loved it, can't wait for the book!
Excellent job linking in Tim Casey and other chracters into the pre series history.
Good job!
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I read this chapter a couple of times and I think my greatest issue with it is it doesn't make me care for the characters.
This author writes about people I love and I don't care at all what happens to them!
It is boring, it doesn't grab me by the throat and drags me down, thus failing to see the illogical parts, the plot holes or the plain faults made by not researching the subjects enough.
It hardly describes scenes and the dialogues sound strained and formal.
!SPOILER ALERT!
And then there is that over dramatic dying scene…
You lie in the snow, trapped under your vehicle, you're dying and then you have calm and collected words of wisdom for all your children in their birth order?? I happen to doubt that. I think you would be crying and screaming:"Help! Get me out of here!" Or something like that.
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I've got to ask...who is the target audience for this?
The style says 8-9 year olds - especially in the dialog tags. But you have a plot device of college students so drunk they've passed out, and your POV character is an adult.
This, to me, is neither fish nor fowl. The style is way too simplistic to attract anyone beyond a bright ten year old...but the themes and featured characters are aimed at much older readers. Kids aren't interested in reading love scenes or the traumatic after-effects of death.
And what mum has even considered whether he five year old might not want to go to college? What five year old even knows what college is? IMO it would ring much truer if she advised Gordon not to be scared about starting first grade.
I'm an adult Thunderbirds fan, mum of an 8 and 11 year old, btw. I'll run this past them and get their opinions...but it's much more simply written than most of what they enjoy.
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I thought this first chapter was fantastic. I was drawn in right away getting to know the characters and cried when Lucy died and felt compassion for each of her family members. I think I would have enjoyed more of the courtship and beginning of married life together but I realize that the story was not about that. I will look forward to the rest of the book and how the story develops. I think it is suitable for kids of many ages.
Great job thus far!
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I love your characters, especially Jeff - they have already come alive for me and if the second chapter is as good as the first chapter, I won't be able to put the book down.
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I love it so far. Can't wait to get the book and continue reading it. It is a excellent read and I will not be able to put it down. I love books like this.
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I love the show. I love it to pieces. I have seen amazing authors do wonderful things with it. Even the 1960s work by Theydon, and the TV21 comics, captured exactly how the Thunderbirds world can work. It is an imaginative, futuristic, and exciting world where anything is possible. And the Tracys are amazingly strong characters with incredible stories to tell.
This is why I am with the comments from GillyLee and Cathrl. This chapter, containing characters I love and a situation I always wanted to read about, has left me wondering when the real version of the story is coming. This chapter is not well written, the characters aren't there. I'm afraid this needs some serious reworking. This is a very long way from being readable, and an even longer way from being professional. This isn't the finished version due to be distributed to fans. Is it?
For all the reasons above - no characterisation, description, or legible style, this is not a Thunderbirds story or a readable work of any fiction.
And no one wanted to like this more than me! (well, perhaps a few. Just about)!
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I love the original Thunderbirds TV show and still think it has a lot to say to the world of today. However, I found this chapter disappointing. The writing style is clunky - it reads like a business memo. Eg, "Like Scott, Jeff had been waiting for Lucy to bring home some revenue so he could afford to get it fixed." Why not just say 'bring home some money' or 'raise some cash'? And would Jeff Tracy, the Man of Action, really expect his wife to support him while she is raising 5 young sons? I don't think so.
Some heavy editing would improve it and make it age appropriate (is it aimed at early teens?). It needs more emphasis on emotional characterisation. The risk with the 'action, action, action' structure is that there will need to be a rescue and/or death ever chapter to keep the reader interested, which may not be sustainable.
Hope to see another draft soon.
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I was looking forward to this new novel, and hoping it would be something that would attract new fans to TB-world, but I doubt if this work is going to achieve that.
My main reaction on reading it was to wonder what audience the author was aiming at. From the vocabulary and style I would guess the pre-teen market but it lacks the fast-paced action of the Theydon novels and the romance/death scene would be a turn-off for young boys. If aimed at an older audience then it needs more emotional depth.
A younger audience will find it hard identifying with Jeff as the main character. Theydon mainly focussed on Scott, who was ‘our’ hero and one we could readily identify with. Jeff as the ‘older generation’ lacks the same appeal for a young reader.
I understand that the author wanted to fill in as much backstory as possible, but by using the chronological approach, she has slowed down the action and created large jumps in the time-line (and to a 10/12 year old, 13 years is a very long jump). Perhaps it would have been better if she had started the story with a rescue, created a jeopardy situation by trapping one of the main characters, then filled in the backstory in a series of flashbacks (either from Jeff’s POV, or from one or more of the other main characters) while they all battled to get him out. Which they would, in true TB fashion, just in the nick of time.
To sum up, I am not trying to flame Miss Verba’s work, just look at it objectively as a piece of fanfiction. In its defence, I think it is miles better than the 2004 movie, and obviously written by someone who cares about TB, but regrettably I don’t think this novel will bring us a lot of new fans.
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There hasn't been a comprehensive "prehistory" written of the world of "Thunderbirds" since the magazine of the 1990s, which alone makes "Countdown To Action" a book to look forward to reading. It's also an enjoyable, adventurous outing with characters who are beloved by fans around the world. Chapter 1 fills in an element which has been largely neglected in Thunderbirds lore as it tells us about the relationship which brought those valiant Tracy brothers into our lives. Of course, "Thunderbirds" was never much on romance, but Ms. Verba's book reminds us that without a Mrs. Tracy (who was never even mentioned during the series) we'd never have had a story. My fascination with the series has always been more about what compels this amazing family to risk their lives time and time again, as well as about what in their collective background prepared them for their hazardous chosen task. "Countdown To Action" successfully delves into those questions and so much more, making it a satisfying introduction to an exciting new series.
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It's been 42 years since I wrote to the late Derek Meddings. Director of visual effects for the previous series "Stingray". He enthusiastically explained some of the visual effects and the story behind Gerry Anderson's new series Thunderbirds, that was, at that time in pre-production.. He felt sure that it would the best series yet, from the Anderson studios...
I am extremely gratified to know that after so many years, new stories are now to continue the Tracy family adventures...
But..Please remember that International Rescue is the family, not just the youngest son.... neglecting this fact is what doomed the 2004 flick.. So many of us had hoped to see what adventures that Scott, John, Virgil, Gordon and Alan would have with those marvelous Thunderbirds again.. Only to be disappointed by a pouty, self centered brat and a character who didn't even exist in the series... Tin Tin's and Alan's characters are part of a ensemble, not the "whole reason for any Thunderbirds story"....
The first chapter goes down pretty good, with attention to Jeff's old friend from the series, Tim Casey well received.. While criticized by some, Lucy's dying phone call to the family could also have some bearing on the dedication Jeff and the boys have to risk their lives for others.. Let's see how the story plays out first, after all we have not met Kyrano or Brains yet...
Gerry Anderson's Television series always seemed to depict adult concepts and stories, but although aimed at a younger audience, never made the mistake of "talking down to the kids".. It was this style of storytelling that endeared the shows to both a young and adult audience...Never forget that most of the adult fans out there, loved the shows as children who then grew into adults... My advice is , keep it clean, and exciting with great role-model characters.. Then you don't have to worry about age-groups. Besides, kids are smarter than you think!
No matter what, I am willing to give full credit to an author who is as enamored with the characters and concept as Ms. Verba... A labor of love can only improve with time,
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