I didn’t set out to write a conventional thriller. When I began Bad Wiring, I was trying to put something of life after the military into a British urban horror novel. I wasn’t chasing trends or page-turning formulas.
I was chasing truth.
One image lit the fuse:
A man alone in a high-rise flat. Blood on his boots. A busted Luger. A silence that wasn’t just quiet — it was wrong.
That image stayed with me. It became the spark that ignited Bad Wiring — a British urban horror novel set on Birmingham’s overlooked estates, where one man tries to hold himself together while everything else falls apart.
Mental Health, Silence, and the Long Road Back
Let’s be clear: Bad Wiring isn’t a war story.
It’s a post-war story — about what happens after the fight, when no one’s watching anymore.
When you leave the military, you’re not just shedding a uniform — you’re shedding a whole identity.
And in return? You get silence.
You’re forgotten by the government.
The world moves on.
Mates you’d have died for become distant memories.
And suddenly you’re alone — heightened senses, cracked routines, and no one guiding you through your return to civilian life.
It hums. Grows. Fills the spaces between.
But now, the only person listening… is you.
That’s what Bad Wiring is really about.
The kind of trauma that doesn’t scream — it whispers. It coils tight.
It’s not cinematic, definitely not heroic.
It’s survival.
The Experience Behind the Horror
I’m a veteran and I’ve lived some of the silence this book explores.
I’ve seen the systems we trust fall short. I’ve felt that quiet disconnection when you realise you don’t quite belong anywhere anymore.
I didn’t write Bad Wiring to vent. I wrote it to reckon — with the aftermath, the anger, the loneliness that comes once the world thinks you’re “done.”
Mutt — the main character — was born from that.
A man too dangerous to leave alive, too broken to save, too smart to stay quiet.
He doesn’t want revenge, or redemption.
He just wants the noise to stop.
What Kind of Book Is Bad Wiring?
This isn’t a neat story. It’s not dressed up for easy reading.
Bad Wiring is British urban horror — raw, short-chaptered, sharp as broken glass.
It blends elements of:
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Veteran fiction
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Supernatural horror
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Urban noir
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PTSD in fiction
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Mental health realism
If you’re looking for something that hits fast and doesn’t flinch, this is it.
Think Trainspotting meets Falling Down, with a touch of American Psycho’s internal monologue — with supernatural threats rooted in a recognisable British setting.
Grounded. Working-class. British.
How I Wrote It
Every chapter in Bad Wiring is built like a pressure valve.
Short bursts. Controlled pacing. Minimalist prose.
The style itself mimics how trauma operates — compressed, fragmented, urgent.
I wanted to reflect the mental state of a man unravelling slowly. A man who still knows how to fight, but doesn’t know what he’s fighting for anymore.
And the world he walks through? That’s real too.
Castle Vale. High-rises. Forgotten estates in Birmingham. The kind of places that don’t make the news unless someone’s been stabbed or someone’s been evicted.
The setting isn’t just background. It’s a second character — one just as brutal as the people in it.
Who Is Mutt?
Mutt isn’t a superhero, or a soldier anymore either. He’s something else:
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A man between worlds
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A man no one wants back
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A man who refuses to die quietly
He’s what happens when resilience isn’t rewarded and it’s ignored.
Every decision he makes is shaped by grief, duty, and refusal.
He’s not looking to save the world. He just wants to burn the lie that says the system ever cared.
For Readers Who Want the Truth
Bad Wiring is for people who want something different:
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If you’re tired of clean endings, then this book is for you.
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If you want fiction that reflects real trauma, this is for you.
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If you’re looking for a British horror novel with bite, silence, and soul — this is your next read.
Bad Wiring is Out Now
Explore Bad Wiring, choose an edition, or sign up for the free opening chapter before you decide.
If you read it, leave a review.
Not just for me — but for the next person searching for something real.
More by Scott Evans
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Running on Empty — A memoir on trail running, mental health, and surviving what follows
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Memory Wars — A cyberpunk thriller where memories are currency and the future has a price
Browse them all at scottevansveteranbooks.com
Also read: My journey with mental health and running — from war zones to trail zones
For more fiction from the world of Bad Wiring, explore the Monster Accord stories and case files. You do not need to read them before the novel.