u/Under-The-Ash

Hi everyone,

I’m an indie author currently working on a post-apocalyptic novel called “Life of Ashes.”

I wanted to share the core idea and ask for honest opinions from readers who enjoy the genre.

The story is based on a Yellowstone supervolcano eruption, but I tried to avoid the usual clichés (no zombies, no virus, no “elite military saves the world”).

Instead, I focused on something slower and, in my opinion, more unsettling: a realistic global collapse unfolding over days and weeks.

• ash blocking the sky

• cities slowly becoming unlivable

• communication and infrastructure breaking down step by step

• and ordinary people forced into impossible choices

The story follows different groups of survivors:

• one in Seattle as the chaos unfolds,

• another far away in France trying to protect his family while everything collapses globally.

I’m curious about something as a reader.

=> Would a “slow, realistic collapse” apocalypse interest you? 🤔

=> Or do you prefer more extreme, fast-paced scenarios (zombies, pandemics, etc.)? 🫠

I’m genuinely interested in feedback, not promotion. I’m still shaping the book and trying to understand what resonates with readers of the genre.

Thanks a lot for your thoughts 🙏

Hi everyone,

I'm a French self-published author currently experimenting with an English adaptation of my post-apocalyptic novel.

The story takes place primarily in the United States and begins shortly before a Yellowstone supereruption.

This is the introduction (1,129 words).

I'm mainly looking for feedback on:

• Does it read naturally in English?
• Does it feel translated?
• Would you have guessed it was translated from French?
• Are there any awkward sentences or expressions?
• Would you keep reading?

Thank you in advance for your time and feedback 🙏

---

SEATTLE June 11, 2025

3:00 PM – Local Time

The air felt heavy. Humidity hung over the city like a blanket, pressing down on everything beneath it. Even the clouds seemed sluggish, as though they were about to collapse under their own weight.

A bead of sweat rolled down Ethan's temple. Only twenty minutes had passed, yet this volcanology lecture already felt endless.

For the third time, he glanced at his watch. The second hand seemed frozen, just as sluggish as the atmosphere inside the lecture hall. The heat was oppressive. Most of the students looked half-asleep.

Joe, the group's resident smartass, rocked lazily on the back legs of his chair. Dark hair. Dark eyes. A lean, sharp-featured face. He chewed his gum slowly, as if sedated, always one inch away from tipping over. Ethan found himself hoping it would finally happen. Maybe Joe would crash to the floor and swallow that damn piece of gum. At least it would make things interesting.

Tom was the serious one. Athletic, African American, calm and focused. He was taking notes with complete concentration, missing absolutely nothing. If there was one student guaranteed to ace every exam this year, it was Tom.

Then there was Peter. Red-haired, slightly heavier than his friends, and always responsible for the joke that made everyone laugh—sometimes without meaning to. He seemed to be listening... with one ear. The other was occupied by a discreet Bluetooth earbud, probably feeding him another questionable podcast about the end of the world and how to survive a zombie apocalypse.

"...and now I'm going to need a little more of your attention."

SLAM!

The professor folded his chair against the desk without warning.

The entire lecture hall jumped.

So much for the afternoon nap.

Professor John Lowell was a renowned volcanologist. Naturally charismatic, calm under any circumstance, and capable of completely captivating an audience whenever he chose to.

He cleared his throat.

"What I'm about to tell you won't be in your notes. It won't be in your graduate textbooks either. The truth is, you have no idea what's rumbling beneath your feet. Right now, you're thinking about your love lives, your weekend plans, or Saturday's game."

He paused.

The room fell silent.

Tom turned toward Ethan with a grin and gave him a thumbs-up at the mention of the game.

"I'm going to tell you something," Lowell continued. "And for once, I'd appreciate it if you actually listened."

He slowly stepped away from the podium, his eyes fixed on the students.

"Yellowstone. Long Valley. Toba. Taupo. Campi Flegrei. Have you heard of them?"

Nobody answered.

"No? Well, they're not ski resorts. They're traps. They're bombs."

Silence spread across the lecture hall.

"Dormant bombs."

Lowell let the words settle before continuing.

"Let's take Yellowstone. Its last major eruption occurred approximately six hundred and forty thousand years ago. According to geological cycles, the probability of another eruption within the next century remains low... but not zero."

His gaze moved across the room, locking briefly with each student.

"And if it erupts, lava won't be what kills people. The sky will. Who's prepared for that?"

His voice rose.

"Nobody."

A tense silence followed.

Even Peter had removed his earbud. Joe had planted all four legs of his chair firmly on the ground, as though he wanted to feel the earth beneath him. Tom had stopped taking notes entirely.

"Has old man Lowell finally lost it?" Joe whispered to Ethan.

A few muffled laughs rippled through the room.

John Lowell placed his hands on his hips and looked directly at him.

"Mr. Richards. Care to share that comment with the class?"

Joe straightened immediately.

"Uh... no, sir. I was just saying that would be insane."

"Insane?" Lowell replied. "That's an understatement, Mr. Richards."

The professor stood taller.

"A supervolcano eruption remains one of the most plausible global extinction-level events known today. More likely than nuclear war. More likely than another pandemic."

He allowed the silence to linger.

"Yellowstone erupts tomorrow? Ash covers half the continent. It reaches New York. And you, sitting here in Seattle, over eight hundred miles from the caldera, might have forty-eight hours before the sky turns completely black."

He stepped closer to the first row.

"And then what, Mr. Richards? What happens next?"

Joe shrugged.

"I guess Saturday's game gets canceled?"

A few students laughed.

"There it is," Lowell said. "Keep laughing. I'd be curious to see that smile when you're trying to survive the collapse of civilization at twenty-two years old."

His tone darkened.

"A global climate disaster. Temperatures dropping by five to fifteen degrees Celsius for an entire decade. A volcanic winter. Crops failing worldwide. Famine on a planetary scale. Power grids collapsing. Aircraft grounded indefinitely."

His voice lowered.

"It would be the apocalypse... within hours."

He paused again.

"And that's before we even talk about humanity."

The room remained perfectly still.

"The most civilized species on Earth would finally reveal its true face."

A faint smile appeared on his lips.

"Kind of like you, Mr. Richards, whenever someone steals your lunch."

The entire lecture hall burst into laughter.

The oppressive heat seemed to vanish, replaced by the kind of chill that crawls slowly up your spine.

Even Joe laughed out loud, impressed by the comeback.

Peter didn't.

He was staring at Lowell, eyes shining.

"Can you imagine that?" he whispered to Ethan. "A volcano powerful enough to bring an entire country to its knees. That's exactly why I'm here. I've been waiting for this class for months."

Ethan smiled.

His friends. Their jokes. Their presence.

If the world ever fell apart tomorrow, he knew he'd be able to count on them.

He glanced at his watch again.

The hands seemed to be moving much faster now.

Almost on the hour.

"Yellowstone has roughly a one-in-seven-hundred-thousand chance of erupting this year," Lowell continued. "So don't bother buying lottery tickets, Mr. Richards. You're more likely to witness the end of the world."

A few nervous chuckles followed.

"The energy released would be equivalent to nearly one million megatons of TNT. A shockwave capable of erasing everything within hundreds of miles. And the rest of the world?"

He took a breath.

"It would die slowly... buried beneath cold and ash."

His expression hardened.

"And that's not even considering the long-term consequences. It would be terri—"

BRRRRIIINNNGGG!

The bell interrupted him.

Class was over.

The atmosphere immediately shifted. The heat returned. The lecture hall felt suffocating once more, as though a countdown had quietly begun inside everyone's mind.

Tick.

Tock.

Tick.

Tock.

"For Friday," Lowell called out over the noise, "I want a paper outlining the possible consequences of a disaster on that scale. Economic. Social. Scientific. Impress me. Two pages. Double-sided."

Groans erupted throughout the room.

"Oh, and one last thing before you leave."

He raised a finger.

"A supereruption wouldn't kill everyone at once. It would kill the future. Slowly. Silently. The soil. The sky. The water. The climate. Nations."

Lowell inhaled deeply.

Then he finished.

"It would be like taking the light away from humanity."

Salut les redditeurs 🙂

Imaginez.

Vous êtes tranquillement assis sur votre canapé. Vous sirotez votre boisson préférée devant la télé. Vous zappez les chaînes sans vraiment faire attention.

Et puis d’un coup… impossible d’échapper à l’info. Toutes les chaînes parlent de la même chose.

Yellowstone vient d’entrer en éruption 🌋

Au début, ça paraît irréel. Lointain presque.

Des scientifiques parlent de plusieurs mois d’éruption. De famine mondiale. De pluies acides. D’effondrement climatique.

Et pourtant… vous êtes toujours là.

Dans votre salon.

À tenir votre verre.

Comme si le monde pouvait encore rester normal quelques minutes de plus.

Mais la suite… vous la connaissez ? 🤔

La peur qui commence doucement à gronder.

Les magasins pris d’assaut.

Les gens qui deviennent agressifs.

Cette sensation étrange que notre société tient finalement à très peu de choses (quand on voit notre gestion du carburant 🫠😱)

C’est exactement de ça dont parle mon roman : Vie de cendres.

J’ai voulu raconter les tout premiers jours après un tel basculement. Pas juste la catastrophe… mais surtout la transition. Le moment précis où le monde qu’on connaît commence à disparaître.

Ça fait plus d’un an que je travaille dessus, et honnêtement… depuis, je savoure un peu plus mes moments tranquilles sur le canapé 😅

Je serais curieux de savoir :

Qu’est-ce qui vous ferait le plus peur dans un scénario pareil ? 🫣