It’s legendary at this point. Robert Picardo told me to write my own Star Trek show if I didn’t like what they were doing with Starfleet Academy. So I did. It’s a dream story for an author. Space Fleet Academy debuted, hit number one, and kept selling, with huge reviews on Amazon from rabid sci-fi readers who were betrayed by what Star Trek gave them. Now we’re on Year 3. Meanwhile, the actual Starfleet Academy series is done. Two seasons, canceled, and the sets are being auctioned off right now.
I’m not gloating, I’m just noting the scoreboard. Well, maybe gloating a little.
Year 3 is the most ambitious book in the series. The threat that’s been building in the background since book one is starting to surface, and the cadets don’t know where it’s coming from. That mystery has been the engine underneath the whole series. Year 3 doesn’t resolve it, but for the first time, you start to feel its heavy burden pressing upon the cadet’s shoulders. The danger is real. The stakes are personal. These kids get pushed harder than they ever have before, and not all of them come out the same on the other side.
We also made a choice to flip the structure of what we’d been doing. The formula that worked in Years 1 and 2 gets broken. I wanted this book to feel like the series was growing up alongside its characters. The payoff should be quite fun for series readers.
Amazon readers have responded incredibly well. The ratings are strong with 4.6 star ratings across more than 200 reviews, especially compared to what Starfleet Academy was pulling on Paramount+. There’s an audience that wants this kind of story: adventure-first, character-driven, no lectures. That audience found us, and they’ve stayed.
Year 3 is available now. If you’ve been following the series, this is the one you’ve been waiting for. If you’re new, start with Year 1 and clear your weekend.
The cadets need you! Read here.
This is what we all need to be doing. Making our own culture and supporting like minded creators.
Youtube videos, tweets, and articles are great, necessary even. But we need to start building our own mythologies and stories.
Give it a go. A few of you may be more talented than you think. You certainly can't be worse than the Starfleet writers.
Our own efforts are slow going. Turns out, a story with a lovesick succubus finding God, redemption, (and love), isn't "clean" enough for most Christian readers and isn't anywhere near dirty enough for most "romance" readers.
But we're not discouraged. Our next book will have a monster slaying priest--think the Witcher, but all his gadgets and powers are divine gadgets and powers