Sleep With One Eye Open

The Zombie Apocalypse doesn’t start in America, China or Europe. It begins in our own backyard; Sydney, Australia.


It’s 2019 and the annual Zombie Pride Parade is about to commence in Sydney. Instead of the usual cast of jovial participants in fancy dress, the Sydney City CBD is inundated by a horde of zombies flooding out from the underground train station in Hyde Park and rampaging into an unsuspecting public. A large scale brawl erupts in the CBD as people suddenly realise that they aren’t just defending themselves, they’re fighting for their lives.


As people scramble to escape the danger, we follow John’s journey as he tries to escape the carnage and savagery. By the time he has reached safety, the media have only sketchy reports of the morning’s events; while the police and riot squad are at a loss to understand the motives of the group responsible for the lethal riot that continues to rage.

No matter who John runs into, their story is always the same; they were attacked by a group of psychotic individuals with an unrelenting thirst for violence and murder. But they didn’t use weapons. They bit people! John does his best to prepare for a bleak and dangerous future as the situation spirals out of control. It becomes immediately apparent that the government is manipulating the media when news broadcasts are being censored.


The scourge of the undead rapidly spreads across the city as people make things worse by engaging in looting and vigilantism. With their attention diverted from the real enemy, hordes of zombies easily overrun entire suburbs within hours. Just when things look to be at their worst, the entire city is plunged into a blackout, allowing looters, thugs and bandits to add to the increasingly insurmountable difficulties people are already facing. John’s struggle to survive begins with the knowledge that nowhere is completely safe. He must always be on the lookout for somewhere to fall back to, as well as places to forage for supplies.


With only stealth and his wits to rely on, he manages to make a temporary home for himself and a fellow refugee in an abandoned building. But the band of psychotic miscreants who have taken over the building next door are unaware of their presence. As the days pass, the risk of discovery increases greatly. He knows that Sydney will inevitably fall into the grasping hands of the undead, and that the thugs and other lowlifes will be there to victimise those not strong or smart enough to escape the necropolis.


The daily fights for survival become too much after tragedy strikes, and the decision to leave the city is finally made. His journey to find his loved ones is almost as dangerous as remaining behind. But at least if he dies on the run, he dies as a free man. Not hiding in an abandoned building, waiting to starve or be eaten.


John’s journey home takes him to places we’ve all been, or should make the effort to

visit..... coastal and rural Australia.


There aren’t any high powered firearms with a seemingly inexhaustible supply of

ammunition, nor are there any impenetrable fortresses. This is the story of an ordinary man

who makes use of wit and guile to achieve the seemingly impossible.