S.A. Shaffer's Blog
May 10, 2023
New Sci-fi Series!
NEW SERIES coming May 30th! A thrilling full sci-fi release abounding with new worlds, aliens, and one of the greatest journeys yet! You’ll open portals to other galaxies, fight giant, harry gorillas, and fly starships into unknown dangers. The Protectorate Wars isn’t going away; but after the third installment, I felt like stretching my other creative muscles. I hope you all enjoy my longest book yet!
October 20, 2022
Rogue Release: November 15!
Introducing the cover for The Protectorate Wars: Rogue. In the third installment of this series, David faces some of his greatest challenges yet! The Outlands present a strange new way of life in which one false move could end in a deadly duel. David must stay alive long enough to discover the secrets his father and grandfather took to their graves. Newly appointed Speaker Johnson wrestles with the assembly while October 20, 2022 Read More
September 17, 2022
The key to every good story is… Timing!
It has been a long time since I’ve said anything, and for this I apologize. Life has a way of catching up with you. A lot of things have happened. I changed jobs. I got engaged. I started writing a new series—But I won’t bore you with the details… Anyway, before I begin talking about other boring things, I’ll share the things you actually want to read about, most importantly, September 18, 2022 Read More
June 4, 2021
AUDIOBOOK IS HERE
The Protectorate Wars: Born Hero is now available on Audible. Since audiobooks are my favorite form of storytelling, this feels like a dream come true. Am I excited? Yes, yes I am. So excited I might be tempted to give away free copies… It’s an uncertain time in the Fertile Plains. Sixty cycles have passed since Alönia won the Protectorate War, but time and conflict have eroded the security gained June 5, 2021 Read More
THERE ARE SO MANY PUNK GENRES!!!
For those of you who love to punk around, I’m sure many of you have wondered just how many punk genres exist. The answer is far, far more than any of us know about. I intend to constantly add to this post as I learning about new punk genres, and I would encourage everyone to comment on any that I miss. I more or less tried to do this in June 5, 2021 Read More
December 30, 2019
STEAM IN THE REAL WORLD
I first watched this video several years ago. Needless to say, I was shocked. This 1925 car has 1000 lbf of torque and a top speed of 132 mph (212 kph). That’s more than many modern cars, especially considering the fact that there is no transmission and only four cylinders. This left me with a very interesting question: What would steam power look like today if it had remained the December 30, 2019 Read More
June 7, 2019
LIVING FICTION, Part 3
There is a reason I left plot for the final part of this three part series. I am a firm believe that people don’t actually care about plots as much as they think. Readers care more about who is doing something rather than what they are doing. In addition, No matter how hard an author works, there is always someone who will predict their plot from page one. That in June 8, 2019 Read More
LIVING FICTION, Part 2
Have you ever begun a story and found the first few chapters exciting and action-packed, but as the story progressed you feel yourself losing interest? The sword fights, car chases, and shootouts, seem wearisome, less exciting, and even dull. I’ve read hundreds of these stories and even written a few, and it took me years to discover what killed the fiction. The characters lacked the qualities that made them real June 8, 2019 Read More
June 3, 2019
THE NEXT STEP
Once an author meets and understands their characters, plots the course of their lives, and kindles hope in their hearts, it is important to surround the characters in an intriguing and unique environment. Settings can vary, but there is one universal truth: people read to escape the places that they are. An author must use their setting as a vehicle of transportation. PLACES OF INSPIRATION It’s difficult to come up June 3, 2019 Read More
April 20, 2019
LIVING FICTION, Part 1
A lot of people write for a lot of different reasons. Some people write to educate an audience. Some write to propagate a message; others write purely for financial gain. While none of these reasons are wrong— April 20, 2019 Read More
