A former Spalding Grammar School pupil is celebrating the launch of his new book.
Clive Simpson has set Flood Waters Down in a near-future Lincolnshire transformed by rising seas, failing infrastructure and rapid advances in Artificial Intelligence.
It visualises the Fens as a flooded frontier where ‘fractured communities cling to survival.’
Clive (pictured) grew up in Pinchbeck and then trained as a local reporter before heading to London and Portsmouth before specialising in space, always an interest.
Since 2015 he has been editor in chief of international space magazine ROOM Space Journal.
He says Lincolnshire’s distinctive geography was central to the book’s theme.
“The Fens have always fascinated me. It’s a landscape that can feel both beautiful and fragile.
“Living in low-lying parts of Lincolnshire, you’re always aware of how much daily life depends on the balance between land and water.”
Many real locations across South Holland feature in the book – including Surfleet Seas End, Spalding Power Station and the Sir Peter Scott Lighthouse at Sutton Bridge.
The story follows Jack Craft, a man navigating a flooded Fenland who is joined by Sara Flynn from London.
They encounter the Fen survivors, traders and powerful individuals living inside the Tulip Haven, a vast domed settlement built to shield the wealthy from environmental collapse.
“It’s essentially a story about moral courage and endurance. About what people choose to hold on to when the water rises and the noise falls away,” said Clive, now living in Sleaford.
Flood Waters Down is available online and through bookshops.
