William R. Forstchen
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William R. Forstchen (born October 11, 1950) is an American historian and author. A Professor of History and Faculty Fellow at
Montreat College Montreat College (pronounced "mon-treet") is a private, Christian college in Montreat, North Carolina. Founded in 1916, Montreat College offers associate, bachelor's, and master's degree programs for traditional and adult students. The college's m ...
, in
Montreat, North Carolina Montreat is a town in Buncombe County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 723 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Asheville Metropolitan Statistical Area. The town is best known for Montreat Conference Center, Montreat College, an ...
, he received his doctorate from
Purdue University Purdue University is a public land-grant research university in West Lafayette, Indiana, and the flagship campus of the Purdue University system. The university was founded in 1869 after Lafayette businessman John Purdue donated land and money ...
. He has published numerous popular novels and non-fiction works about military and alternative history, thrillers, and speculative events. His three alternate novels of the Civil War were co-written with politician
Newt Gingrich Newton Leroy Gingrich (; né McPherson; born June 17, 1943) is an American politician and author who served as the 50th speaker of the United States House of Representatives from 1995 to 1999. A member of the Republican Party, he was the U ...
; two also had the participation of writer Albert S. Hanser. He and the other two men have also written three novels about General
George Washington George Washington (February 22, 1732, 1799) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Father who served as the first president of the United States from 1789 to 1797. Appointed by the Continental Congress as commander of th ...
during the
American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...
.


Early life and education

Forstchen was born and grew up in
Millburn, New Jersey Millburn is a suburban Township (New Jersey), township in Essex County, New Jersey, Essex County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States census, the township's population was 20,149, reflecting an increase of 384 (+1.9%) from t ...
. He attended
Hightstown High School Hightstown High School is a four-year comprehensive high school, comprehensive state school, public Secondary education in the United States, high school that serves students in ninth grade, ninth through twelfth grades three communities in Mer ...
. He completed his doctorate at
Purdue University Purdue University is a public land-grant research university in West Lafayette, Indiana, and the flagship campus of the Purdue University system. The university was founded in 1869 after Lafayette businessman John Purdue donated land and money ...
, studying under the historian Gunther E. Rothenberg. He specialized in Military History, the
American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...
, and the History of Technology. His doctoral dissertation was ''The 28th USCTs: Indiana's African-Americans Go to War, 1863–1865''. Fortschen has been a resident of
Hightstown, New Jersey Hightstown is a borough in Mercer County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the borough's population was 5,494,Boys' Life ''Scout Life'' (formerly ''Boys' Life'') is the monthly magazine of the Boy Scouts of America (BSA). Its target readers are boys and girls between the ages of 6 and 18. The magazine‘s headquarters are in Irving, Texas. ''Scout Life'' is pu ...
'', and novels for both adults and young adults. He has published nearly fifty books. His young adult novel, ''We Look Like Men of War'', is about an African-American regiment that fought in the Civil War at the
Battle of the Crater The Battle of the Crater was a battle of the American Civil War, part of the siege of Petersburg. It took place on Saturday, July 30, 1864, between the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia, commanded by General Robert E. Lee, and the Union Arm ...
. It is based on material he originally developed for his dissertation. Since the late 20th century, Forstchen has shifted toward writing historical fiction and
alternate history Alternate history (also alternative history, althist, AH) is a genre of speculative fiction of stories in which one or more historical events occur and are resolved differently than in real life. As conjecture based upon historical fact, altern ...
. In non-fiction he has concentrated on history and technological issues.


John Matherson series

Dr. Forstchen's novel, ''
One Second After ''One Second After'' is a 2009 novel by American writer William R. Forstchen. The novel deals with an unexpected electromagnetic pulse attack on the United States as it affects the people living in and around the small American town of Black Moun ...
'' (2009, Tor/Forge/St. Martin's books) reached the ''New York Times'' best seller list; it was on the list for twelve weeks. The sequel, ''One Year After'', was released in 2015. The concluding work of the trilogy, ''The Final Day'', was released on January 4, 2017. All three of the books in what is now called ''The John Matherson Series'' achieved
NYT best seller ''The New York Times'' Best Seller list is widely considered the preeminent list of best-selling books in the United States. John Bear, ''The #1 New York Times Best Seller: intriguing facts about the 484 books that have been #1 New York Times ...
status. The book has been translated and printed in over a dozen countries. Forstchen based his research for ''One Second After'' on the 2004 bipartisan Congressional study of the potential threat to the continental United States from an EMP attack: ''Report of the Commission to Assess the Threat to the United States from Electromagnetic Pulse (EMP) Attack''. Drawing on this and other government and private studies, Forstchen explores in his novel what might happen in a "typical" American town in the wake of an attack with electro-magnetic pulse (EMP) weapons. /sup> Forstchen has been invited to make presentations regarding the threat of EMP before members of Congress, and at
STRATCOM United States Strategic Command (USSTRATCOM) is one of the eleven unified combatant commands in the United States Department of Defense. Headquartered at Offutt Air Force Base, Nebraska, USSTRATCOM is responsible for strategic nuclear deterre ...
,
Sandia Labs Sandia National Laboratories (SNL), also known as Sandia, is one of three research and development laboratories of the United States Department of Energy's National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA). Headquartered in Kirtland Air Force Bas ...
, and
NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agency of the US federal government responsible for the civil space program, aeronautics research, and space research. NASA was established in 1958, succeeding t ...
.


Other works

Forstchen's novel ''Pillar to the Sky'' (2014) explores the concept of a
Space Elevator A space elevator, also referred to as a space bridge, star ladder, and orbital lift, is a proposed type of planet-to-space transportation system, often depicted in science fiction. The main component would be a cable (also called a tether) anc ...
. The tower would rise from the equator to
geostationary orbit A geostationary orbit, also referred to as a geosynchronous equatorial orbit''Geostationary orbit'' and ''Geosynchronous (equatorial) orbit'' are used somewhat interchangeably in sources. (GEO), is a circular geosynchronous orbit in altitud ...
and beyond in order to revolutionize space transportation in the 21st century. Forstchen's thesis is that the building of such a permanent transportation system to high earth orbit would reignite America's economic and technological prominence in the 21st century. He promoted the idea that such a tower could be used to "hot wire” limitless non-polluting energy from solar panels deployed in space and free peoples on earth from dependence on
greenhouse gas A greenhouse gas (GHG or GhG) is a gas that Absorption (electromagnetic radiation), absorbs and Emission (electromagnetic radiation), emits radiant energy within the thermal infrared range, causing the greenhouse effect. The primary greenhouse ...
-emitting energy production.


Reception

Forstchen has self-published two novellas. ''Day of Wrath'' (2014) is about an
ISIS Isis (; ''Ēse''; ; Meroitic: ''Wos'' 'a''or ''Wusa''; Phoenician: 𐤀𐤎, romanized: ʾs) was a major goddess in ancient Egyptian religion whose worship spread throughout the Greco-Roman world. Isis was first mentioned in the Old Kingd ...
-inspired attack on United States public schools. ''Twin Flame'' (2017), co-authored with author Nora D'Ecclesis, is a "biographical novella". He explores the history of his relationship with his former wife Robin.


Bibliography


Magic: The Gathering

# ''Arena'' (1994)


The Lost Regiment Series

# '' Rally Cry'' (1990) # '' Union Forever'' (1991) # '' Terrible Swift Sword'' (1992) # '' Fateful Lightning'' (1992) # '' Battle Hymn'' (1997) # '' Never Sound Retreat'' (1998) # '' A Band of Brothers'' (1999) # '' Men of War'' (1999) # ''
Down to the Sea ''Down to the Sea'' is a 1936 American drama film directed by Lewis D. Collins and written by Robert Lee Johnson and Wellyn Totman. The film stars Russell Hardie, Ben Lyon, Ann Rutherford, Irving Pichel, Fritz Leiber and Vince Barnett. The film ...
'' (2000)


Ice Prophet series

# '' Ice Prophet'' (1983) # '' The Flame Upon the Ice'' (1984) # '' A Darkness upon the Ice'' (1985)


Wing Commander series

* '' Wing Commander: End Run'' (1993) * '' Wing Commander: Fleet Action'' (1994) * '' Wing Commander: Heart of the Tiger'' (1995) (along with Andrew Keith) * ''
Action Stations General quarters, battle stations, or action stations is an announcement made aboard a naval warship A warship or combatant ship is a naval ship that is built and primarily intended for naval warfare. Usually they belong to the armed ...
'' (1998)


Star Voyager Academy series

* '' Star Voyager Academy'' (1994) * ''Article 23'' (1998) * ''
Prometheus In Greek mythology, Prometheus (; , , possibly meaning "forethought")Smith"Prometheus". is a Titan god of fire. Prometheus is best known for defying the gods by stealing fire from them and giving it to humanity in the form of technology, know ...
'' (1999)


Civil War alternate history trilogy

With
Newt Gingrich Newton Leroy Gingrich (; né McPherson; born June 17, 1943) is an American politician and author who served as the 50th speaker of the United States House of Representatives from 1995 to 1999. A member of the Republican Party, he was the U ...
and Albert S. Hanser. # '' Gettysburg: A Novel of the Civil War'' (2003) # ''
Grant Comes East ''Grant Comes East: A Novel of the Civil War'' (2004) is an alternate history novel written by Newt Gingrich, former Speaker of the United States House of Representatives; William R. Forstchen, and Albert S. Hanser, and the second of a trilogy. I ...
'' (2004) # '' Never Call Retreat: Lee and Grant: The Final Victory'' (2005)


Pacific War series

Along with
Newt Gingrich Newton Leroy Gingrich (; né McPherson; born June 17, 1943) is an American politician and author who served as the 50th speaker of the United States House of Representatives from 1995 to 1999. A member of the Republican Party, he was the U ...
. # ''Pearl Harbor'' (2007) # ''Days of Infamy'' (2008)


Legends of the Riftwar

With
Raymond E. Feist Raymond Elias Feist (; born Raymond Elias Gonzales III; December 21, 1945) is an American fantasy fiction author who wrote ''The Riftwar Cycle'', a series of novels and short stories. His books have been translated into multiple languages and ha ...
. # ''
Honoured Enemy ''Honoured Enemy'' (or ''Honored Enemy'' in the US, 2001) is a fantasy novel by American writers Raymond E. Feist and William R. Forstchen. It is the first book written in the ''Legends of the Riftwar'' and is the only one of the series to be coa ...
'' (2001)


Historical fiction

* '' We Look Like Men of War'' (2003) * '' The Battle of the Crater: A Novel'' (2011) (with
Newt Gingrich Newton Leroy Gingrich (; né McPherson; born June 17, 1943) is an American politician and author who served as the 50th speaker of the United States House of Representatives from 1995 to 1999. A member of the Republican Party, he was the U ...
and Albert S. Hanser)


George Washington series

With
Newt Gingrich Newton Leroy Gingrich (; né McPherson; born June 17, 1943) is an American politician and author who served as the 50th speaker of the United States House of Representatives from 1995 to 1999. A member of the Republican Party, he was the U ...
and Albert S. Hanser. * '' To Try Men's Souls: A Novel of George Washington and the Fight for American Freedom'' (2009) * '' Valley Forge: George Washington and the Crucible of Victory'' (2010) * '' Victory at Yorktown'' (2012)


Star Trek: The Next Generation

* '' The Forgotten War'' (1999)


Shattered Light series

* ''Catseye'' (1999) (along with Jaki Demarest)


Gamester Wars trilogy

* '' The Alexandrian Ring'' (1987) * '' The Assassin Gambit'' (1988) * '' The Napoleon Wager'' (1993)


Non-fiction

* '' Hot Shots: An Oral History of the Air Force Combat Pilots of the Korean War'' (2000) (with Jennie E. Chancey) * '' Hot Shots: America's First Jet Aces'' (2002) ( with Jennie E. Chancey) * '' Honor Untarnished: A West Point Graduate's Memoir of World War II'' (2003) (wrote introduction) * '' It Seemed Like a Good Idea...: A Compendium of Great Historical Fiascoes'' (2009)


Crystal series

With
Greg Morrison Greg Morrison is a Canadian composer and writer best known for his work on the Tony Award winning musical ''The Drowsy Chaperone'', written with songwriting partner, Lisa Lambert. ''The Drowsy Chaperone'' was their first collaboration. In 1999 La ...
. * '' The Crystal Warriors'' (1988) * '' The Crystal Sorcerers'' (1991)


John Matherson series

* ''
One Second After ''One Second After'' is a 2009 novel by American writer William R. Forstchen. The novel deals with an unexpected electromagnetic pulse attack on the United States as it affects the people living in and around the small American town of Black Moun ...
'' (2009) * ''
One Year After 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1 ...
'' (2015) * ''The Final Day'' (2017)


Stand-alone

* '' Into the Sea of Stars'' (1986) * ''
1945 1945 marked the end of World War II and the fall of Nazi Germany and the Empire of Japan. It is also the only year in which nuclear weapons have been used in combat. Events Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix. Januar ...
'' (1995) (along with
Newt Gingrich Newton Leroy Gingrich (; né McPherson; born June 17, 1943) is an American politician and author who served as the 50th speaker of the United States House of Representatives from 1995 to 1999. A member of the Republican Party, he was the U ...
) * '' The Four Magics'' (1996) (along with
Larry Segriff Larry is a masculine given name in English, derived from Lawrence or Laurence. It can be a shortened form of those names. Larry may refer to the following: People Arts and entertainment * Larry D. Alexander, American artist/writer *Larry Boone ...
) * '' Doctors of the Night'' (2011) * '' Pillar to the Sky'' (2014) * ''Day of Wrath'' (2014) *''Twin Flame'' (2017) *''48 Hours'' (2019)


Short stories and novellas

* "A Hard Day for Mother", collected in
Harry Turtledove Harry Norman Turtledove (born June 14, 1949) is an American author who is best known for his work in the genres of alternate history, historical fiction, fantasy, science fiction, and mystery fiction. He is a student of history and completed ...
's anthology ''
Alternate Generals Bibliography of science fiction, fantasy, historical fiction and nonfiction writer Harry Turtledove: Writing as Eric Iverson ''Elabon'' * ''Wereblood'' (1979) * ''Werenight'' (1979, revised in 1994 to include ''Wereblood'') * ''Prince of the North ...
'' (1998) * "Lee's Victory at Gettysburg... and Then What?", '' Alternate Gettysburgs'' (2002)


References


External links

*
Fantastic Fiction Author Page

Modern Signed Books BlogTalkRadio Interview with William R. Forstchen
Talking about "The Final Day", March 13, 2017 {{DEFAULTSORT:Forstchen, William R. 1950 births 20th-century American novelists 21st-century American novelists American alternate history writers American male novelists American science fiction writers Hightstown High School alumni Living people Purdue University alumni People from Hightstown, New Jersey People from Millburn, New Jersey Novelists from New Jersey 20th-century American historians 21st-century American historians Montreat College faculty 20th-century American male writers 21st-century American male writers American male non-fiction writers Historians from New Jersey