Brexit – it’s set the UK in turmoil and left a country divided. I’ve blogged many a time before about how the Atlantic Split and Brexit really aren’t that different, and it frightens me what will happen in the future. Whilst I am no expert on what’s currently happening in the country, I know an awful lot about the fictional Atlantic Split after creating this universe over ten years ago. So, in this week’s blog, let me enlighten a little more about the Atlantic Split and what Brexit can learn from it.

In An Undercover Dream, the Atlantic Split is officially explained. Whilst the prologue at the start of Atlantic Split also does that job, it’s only really in this book that it’s brought into the context of Luke’s world. Lest to say, he’s surprised by what he learns. It’s so important to be aware of the origins of this war, and without spoiling too much, let me just say that the cause seems almost illogical.

The Atlantic Split war is based on what would’ve happened if War Plan Red had been rediscovered and put into place. There’s a great documentary you can watch here which gives a very good overview. When I created this universe, I initially didn’t know all the logistics but this really helped me out and put it all into context.

By the end of the war, things got out of hand and it all spiralled from there. All sense went out of the window, and I don’t think the two governments realised what would happen once the split occurred. However, the world you’re seeing in Luke’s universe is set over 40 years after the war. I imagine in the mid 70s, we were looking at a very similar situation to what is going on in Parliament right now. It would have been turmoil.

Acts that dictated the shattering of the special relationship. Outside companies began choosing sides and loyalties to their countries. Exports and imports and shortages occurred. Cultures changed. Stories spread. Education. Cuisine. Media. Technology. Entertainment. Phraseology. Products. Travel. All affected. A whole world changed – split apart across an ocean. It would have taken decades for the split to properly be enforced.

But, were there protests? Just like the claimed 1 million people who turned up for the march on Saturday? Who would’ve stood up years before Luke was born? When his parents were only children, were there a million people back then trying to stop the Atlantic Split? That is a question that only the past could answer. In short. Probably not a million, but certainly some. However, what occurred after the split was fear as opposed to dissatisfaction which is what Brexit brings. Fear is the greatest motivator of all, and if people are scared that the war would’ve turned nuclear, it’s clear why they wouldn’t have wanted anything to do with the other nation. On both sides. But to have a split that lasted over 40 years? To be enemies for so long and never try to consider moving forward? The people in power at the time would be long gone and new generations would have arisen since. I suppose that’s why Luke stood up for it – because he didn’t see how it made sense. It was an extreme measure which maybe at the time felt inevitable, but splitting up and isolating from one another is not the answer. It’s never the answer.

That’s what Brexit needs to learn from the Atlantic Split. See how the world is affected 40 years on – where the whole world is split apart and people are prosecuted for choosing the wrong side. It’s like the Berlin wall again and division is the deadliest way to encourage prejudice and hatred. That’s why I voted to remain and I stick by that decision – because Brexit will only encourage hatred and divisions to grow. Like I said, I’m no expert, but from writing about the Atlantic Split I know how destructive something like this can be. I was the one that wrote it, so I’m the one who’s pleading – do not let Britain and the EU go down this way. Do not let us become split apart like the world I created. That should be fiction and it was only ever intended to be fiction. This is reality and it is a terrifying reality which could destroy the world as we know it. Destroy Europe as we know it.

So please – keep us remaining and fight against Brexit in any way you can. And if Luke Bright was real, he’d be leading this revolution. But, I’ll happily take his views and apply them here and stand up in his place. The world deserves better. The world doesn’t deserve another split. It deserves unity.

Atlantic Split and At Liberty To Live, the first and second books in The Luke Bright Series are available to purchase NOW! An Undercover Dream – the third book in the series will be released in SUMMER 2019! 

Please follow me on my blog and social media links below, and use the links on my website to purchase a copy of each if you have not done so. Don’t forget to leave a review! Thank you once again for taking the time to read this blog post.

N.A.K.