As I steer my writing schedule into one that will support progress for all of my active universes, I want to update you on my status with various works. I have twenty books in different phases of completion, nine of which are Starships Universe, eight of which are in the newly named “The Ajan Warriors vs. The Ironjammer Pirates” Universe, and three of which that are either standalones, spinoffs or part of my experimental publishing projects.

The Every School in America project is going to focus initially on print, because we need to place books in schools, most of which have little or no capacity for managing electronic titles. We will still make ebooks and audiobooks available where we can, but it turns out print books are fairly popular in all genres, so that’s the direction we’ll take in the short term. Some of these titles like Hunter Killer and Dreadnought Ascendant have already been released. I’m adding new material to those books along with some others because there are scenes that got missed. That new material will eventually find its way into second editions, which will be clearly labeled so readers can tell the difference.

Also included in these works are some Action Faction titles that are either “Audience of One” projects or ongoing serialized releases here on my main site. Generally speaking if a title is part of the official catalog it will be available for sale at Getabook.today. If it is still in progress, or an Action Faction story, it will be listed here first.

My other motive in posting updates like this is to reassure you I’m writing and not out in a field somewhere marching around.

The Wiki – I’m authoring a Wiki, which will serve as a secondary reference for all the named elements of my literary universes. It will start with the big three: Starships, LadyStar vs. Ironjammers, Kings and Conquests, and expand from there to include spinoffs like Silver Eagles, Tricycle Force/Zombie Salvage and so forth.

Ai – 7400 words – This is my story about a retired and largely isolated Army officer who is facing struggles far too common in our modern society. He invents an artificially intelligent android who, unlike most of the mechanisms of our world, is actually on his side for a change.

Attack Pattern – 5600 words – This is book two in my upcoming Advanced Starship Tactics series. I only have one scene written so far. I’m working on integrating that scene with the events of book one.

Dreadnought Ascendant – 51000 words – I want to add some new material regarding the USS Republic and give her a proper sendoff in the last chapters.

Encounter at Demon Skull – 12000 words – This book has a good structure, but is only about half the proper length of a novella in my fantasy series.

Hellstrike – 15000 words – I think this story (Argent goes back in time to present-day Earth) has a ton of potential, both as a standalone and as a serial on the site here. I want to develop it more fully so the story is satisfying and not rushed.

The Hexing Harpy of Grisbane Hall – 4000 words – I’m rewriting this one from the ground up. It’s a Halloween-theme haunted house story that is equal parts spooky and silly, but it is great fun to write. This will be book eight in my episodic fantasy series.

Hunter Killer – 17000 words – The bonus material for this book needs to be written and published in a second edition.

Invicta – This is book three in the Advanced Starship Tactics series. I haven’t started work on this one yet.

Jacks to the Nines – 11000 words – This is a commissioned Action Faction title featuring a battle in the Platmore Field system between the Bandit Jacks and none other than the Imperial Butcher himself and his mighty starship, the Xelo. These are parallel events which take place during the events of Destroy All Starships.

Jaesha the Aranid – 1300 words – I’ve invented a “hunter” character for my fantasy series that is roughly equivalent to the mentor character Reina of Kulnas. I may expand this cast of characters to include others so there is a colorful history for my fantasy stories to draw on.

Last Charge of the Defiant – 14000 words – This is book one in the Advanced Starship Tactics series. It has an absolutely stunning premise, and fits in perfectly with the looming mystery of Omicron 474 and the wreck of Tae San. Watch closely for this one.

Lions Pride – 65000 words – As some of you may know I had a seven-year career in marching bands. Four in high school and three at a Division I university. This story is my tribute to my almost-career as a musician.

No Savage Under This Moon – 15000 words – I’ve added some new powers for my fantasy characters, which I plan to retcon into my previously published books so I can make all the plots consistent and reach a higher word count. I want my novellas to come in at 22000 to 25000 words as a rule.

The Shabby King of Never-Christmas – 4000 words – In keeping with my holiday series, I have to write a Christmas book for my fantasy characters.

The Phantom of Hollow Forks- 5000 words – This will be the first true “dungeon” expedition for my fantasy series, at least the first that includes both the LadyStar and Ironjammer characters. I’m re-visiting almost all my fantasy books except Dawnsong in order to include the Ironjammers wherever possible.

The Priestess and the Rogue – 52000 words – This book is actually in rather good shape. I just have to complete act three. This will be the third novel in my fantasy series.

Protector of the Innocent – 14000 words – Very much like No Savage, it needs to be retconned with my characters’ current powers, and it needs a higher word count so it qualifies as a novella.

The Infamous 24 – 32000 words – My plan is to re-release this on my site here (as a serial) and then to slot the first 30000 words or so as a book one in a potential trilogy. I want to give all of the Facility 51 gadgets their due time in the sun.

Tricycle Force – 9000 words – My fantasy characters are participating in an “Isekai” story, which means they left their regular world for the fantasy world through a portal. Their “regular” world is where stories like Lions Pride take place. It is also where they encounter other teams of “heroes,” where the word “hero” is only used in its most generous form. Tricycle Force is one of those groups: a ragtag team of zany over-eager technology enthusiasts who are humanity’s last line of defense when aliens land and start eating every vehicle with an even number of wheels.

Wreck – 2000 words – This is a commissioned Action Faction title that features a “rebuild the starship” plot with a ticking clock.

LadyStar: The Dreamspeaker – 80000 words – This was my first novel, published in 2011. It did as well as could be expected based on my experience at the time, but it is incredibly out of date at this point. It needs a total rewrite, which will become a second edition and re-join the fantasy series as novel one.

Watch the video. Then you’ll know what’s at stake.

A renowned Internet celebrity recently challenged us to “become the culture” if we want to change things. Not as easy as it sounds, but when it’s important, you rise to the challenge. Our goal is to promote literacy and culture, and we have some powerful tools at our disposal.

The infrastructure I’ve built on this and other sites in my network give me the opportunity to rapidly publish at scale in universally accessible formats so anyone can follow my serialized fiction, book series, audiobook series and even collect paperbacks and hardcovers with no technological barriers, obstructive algorithms, screens clogged with ads, tracking, passwords, DRM, missing books and all the other nonsense you might encounter elsewhere.

You’re not going to find any of that here. As many of you know, I have been publishing on the Internet for more than 30 years. My sites pre-date virtually every currently recognizable platform. I launched my first site ten years before social media became popular. We don’t follow trends here. We have seen empires rise and fall through the windows of our little library. We are relentlessly independent and with your help we will stay that way. You certainly aren’t going to find what we do here anywhere else.

That’s why I’m putting my infrastructure to work in a program called The Action Faction.

What I’m offering you is regular access to new serialized chapters from my ongoing works. We had tremendous success with The Infamous 24, and we’ve seen steady growth ever since. Being able to grab a quick chapter of an exciting or thought-provoking story on a regular basis, text or audio, is very popular with my readers, and I expect it will only get more enjoyable as my stories progress.

There are roughly 40 titles on my store now that have sample chapters and/or sample audio on their home pages or on my web reader site. That represents approximately a quarter-million words of both fiction and non-fiction in many different genres: fantasy, romance, gamelit, science fiction and even comics. In addition to those sample works, I will regularly publish new chapters from ongoing works both here and on Bitbook, my electronic bookshelf service. I am also regularly releasing new public domain ebooks on the Library-Tron.

In exchange, we ask for your support in the form of an Action Faction sponsorship. These are one-time contributions that start at one dollar. They are not subscriptions. You can contribute as much as you like as often as you like. Think of it as a combination crowdfunding campaign and tip jar. But that’s not the limit of our vision.

For every $50 we receive in Action Faction sponsorships, we will put a brand new paperback or hardcover in an American school: elementary, middle school or high school. These books will be given to classrooms and libraries across the nation until we’ve placed at least one book on every campus in America. If we raise $100, that’s two books. $1000 is twenty books and so on. For a few thousand dollars, we can cover multiple school districts at a time.

It’s a value for value model. It gives all of us a way to make a positive impact on reading skills and literacy. There are students in this country who have never opened a brand new book in their life. We’re going to change that. One school at a time.

I’d like to invite you to bookmark my sites in your browser, and follow my RSS feed so you never miss a new chapter. I’d also like you to consider supporting our efforts to promote literacy, education and a more edifying culture for all of us.

Learn More about the Action Faction

— Shane