Jerry Pournelle Would Be Pleased

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Our little experiment in how fast AI can be utilized to crank out a solid hard science fiction novel has proven to be an absolutely unmitigated success that has already far exceeded our expectations. SPACE FLEET ACADEMY: YEAR ONE has not only provided a solid foundation for our new BIOSTELLAR hard science fiction series, but has actually become the #1 bestseller in Military Science Fiction. Which is why we have moved up the schedule, and instead of releasing the first book in the companion series next, we will be releasing the next book in the series in less than four weeks.In fact, SPACE FLEET ACADEMY: YEAR TWO is already available in preorder.Survival of the fittest in space just became a lot more dangerous.Eleven colonies have gone dark across Federation space. Senior cadets are being deployed to a frontier that devours ships and returns only silence. Constantine Ramsey returns to a Space Fleet Academy transformed by war. He and his fellow second-years are being thrust into leadership roles for which they’re not ready. The new curriculum sets aside theory for brutal new training in surviving first contact with alien predators and making terrible decisions where every choice comes with a body count.But when their latest training exercise feels too dangerously specific, Constantine begins to suspect the Academy has crossed a line. As rumors about forbidden genetic programs and agency crackdowns intensify, he’s forced to confront a terrifying question: How far will the Federation go to indoctrinate the leaders humanity needs to survive in a harsh and unforgiving universe? And when the Mandate demands the unthinkable of him, will he have the strength to do what he believes to be right?What this demonstrates is that science fiction is at its best when it is a literature of science-inspired ideas, not a literature of characters, ideologies, or representations. Biostellar is an idea that is the result of combining the latest in hard biological science as exhibited in The Frozen Gene with a) Star Trek and b) the boarding school tradition that realized its peak science fiction depiction in Ender’s Game.There are, of course, other influences. JDA is heavily influenced by Lois McMaster Bujold’s Barrayar works. I am heavily influenced, in the science fiction context, by Frank Herbert, and, to a lesser extent, Dan Simmons. The combination effectively provides JDA’s lighter approach with gravity and my darker approach with humanism.Our objective is to release one Biostellar novel every month for at least the next six months. It’s an ambitious one, particularly in light of how it is not even in my top seven priorities for 2026, but I genuinely think we can not only do it, but do it while maintaining a high level of entertainment value to the readers.DISCUSS ON SGThe post Jerry Pournelle Would Be Pleased appeared first on Vox Popoli.