October's Son - Amendment to Publication

In light of recent feedback, author John Michaelson was keen to stress that he does not condone the act of carrying knives or weapons in London.  He was also keen to give the details of organisations and charities who support the victims of knife crime and human trafficking.  John has come across several knife attack victims and regularly helps survivors of human trafficking because of the nature of his undercover work.

Details are below:

www.knifecrimes.org A support website for UK victims of knife crime; full of online resources and links to several charities, useful information and commentary from victims, relatives and experts.  Supported by the Home Office.

www.unseenuk.org set up in 2008 as a direct response to the exploitation of vulnerable children and young adults who become enslaved, both in the UK and abroad, and trafficked into gangs, usually for the purposes of prostitution. Unseen raises awareness about the issue and has made positive steps to rehabilitate those whose lives have been ruined through mistreatment by Ants.

www.nationalcrimeagency.gov.uk The NCA (formally SOCA) responds on a 24/7 basis, targeting the criminals and groups posing the biggest risks to the UK. They build a single comprehensive picture of serious and organised crime affecting the UK, drawing on information and intelligence from a wide range of sources.

www.stopthetraffik.org A global movement of activists around the world who passionately give their time and energy to build resilient communities and prevent human trafficking.

Formatting issues

During the formatting of October's Son, there were some American and English spelling conflicts and auto-correct functions and omissions that should not have occurred.  Burton Mayers Books would like to apologise to those who may have noted this during their reading experience, but would like to assure customers that this has since been rectified.  The Kindle version should auto-update and the print version has been amended with Lighting Source. On the plus side, this means that there are several first edition copies that will no longer be available anywhere else.

The alternatively titled Nook version 'The London Vampire Diaries' is set for release in 2015 and will feature photographic content so as not to clash with the Kindle version. The book will also be available on iBooks and other eReader devices at the end of 2015. 

Capturing The London Vampire

How do you catch a vampire? Harder still, how do you capture a vampire who claims he isn't a Vampire? Confused?

At Burton Mayers Books, we were faced with the same problem. Ahead of the release of October's Son: The London Vampire Diaries, we set about trying to shoot some images to use on the book cover and for publicity purposes.  John Michaelson is an enigma to say the least, and with no phone number and no known address, getting hold of him is hard at the best of times.  So imagine trying to arrange a meeting with The London Vampire himself.  Well, it happened somehow.

A meeting was arranged via Skype and John agreed to meet in London's thriving China Town.  We arrived and, too our amazement, found John waiting for us.  See picture below.

John was resolute about where we could go and take pictures, and warned us that Soho would be off limits that evening; he also stressed that the mask would remain on throughout the whole shoot.  He didn't talk much and seemed to be on a schedule of his own.

We got some great shots around China Town and it was amazing to see that most people didn't even blink an eye or stop to notice. It was like he didn't exist.

 This was especially noticeable in Leicester Square. See below.

His trail led us through St Martin-in-the-Fields and into Trafalgar Square where we got some amazing shots that we ended up using for the main cover.

We then followed him towards the river but he suddenly cut through Charing Cross and towards The Savoy where he revealed a bit of the city's history.  Below, Michaelson poses next to the capital's last remaining street lamp fuelled by gas from London's sewers.

We tried to persuade John into taking some shots along the Thames and across East London, specifically landmarks highlighted in his book.  John declined, however, because he had an appointment to meet a medical graduate nearby.  He didn't say much more before we took these last shots.

He was courteous, thanked us for our patience and said he looked forward to seeing the final version of the book.  We caught a bus back home with mixed feelings; a little unnerved about what he told us, and perhaps a little safer knowing he was out there watching our backs.

October's Son: The London Vampire Diaries is released on 27th October 2014.