Welcome to 3024AD!

My name is Dean Smith-Richard and I am excited to share my project with you. It is a different kind of science fiction- I hesitate to say unique- where much of the emphasis is on science and realism. What if fights that took place on a spaceship were actually in zero gravity? What about inertia in space battles? What effect would planetary colonization have on governments, on corporations, on trade? These questions are addressed via character driven narrative.

The first series of short stories follows the exploits of Digger, a thief with a hidden past. However, it doesn't stop there- people and places overlap, characters that appear in the background of one story have their story told.

The collection is nearly 30,000 words long- essentially a short novel. It contains nearly 20 short stories, all intertwined and affecting one another. Excerpts are found on teaser cards on this page and more will be revealed through the tumblr and twitter accounts.

What's the money for?

The base goal of $3,000 covers the expenses related to getting the book ready to epublish, including:

• Cover art (this is the biggest part)
• Editing
• Formatting
• ISBN registration
• Rewards

The stretch goals (more on that in a second) will allow me to physically publish it, or even publish the next installments in the 3024AD universe.

I am working with the amazingly talented Peter Pachoumis on cover design, which I will be sharing as it progresses. Please check out his amazing work over on his site, and maybe tell him how awesome he is on twitter (hint: very awesome).

Rewards

*Update: New Rewards*:

Thanks to some cost-saving measures and the number and level of backers, some new rewards can be added!

First, there will be a desktop wallpaper for all backers at any level! Second, there will now be two (signed) bookmarks at the $10 level and above instead of just one. Third, there will now be two prints of character art available at the $150 and above level- both Digger and Sabrina!

There is now also a $55 level reward, which adds a 24x36 print of 'Unforgiving', by Johnny Atomic of League Entertainment:

*End of update*

I want the Kickstarter to act as a preorder and an opportunity to have some cool stuff made, exclusively for Kickstarter backers.

First off, there are a few things everyone gets- even if you only pledge $1. Each and every backer will get a personal email of thanks from me, because you are awesome. And if you are on Twitter, follow @3024AD and I will follow you. If you have a Kickstarter or cause to promote, I will RT that for you as well!

Secondly, while none of the rewards are limited in the quantity available for Kickstarter, the concept art bookmarks and prints and named characters will be only available through the Kickstarter.

I also wanted the rewards to really tie in to the 3024AD universe, so there is an exclusive story that will only be available to Kickstarter backers, as well as a preview of the upcoming novel. There is also the opportunity to make yourself a part of 3024AD cannon, via a character named after you- or even based on you.

The highest level reward is a trip to the great northwest, and a tour of The Museum of Flight by me. This is a place that is very special to me, where I have spent a lot of time and helped inspire the love of flight that in turn inspired these writings. Also, Seattle is a pretty cool city and I will be happy to show you around (two people max, time and date convenient for all parties, exact accommodations TBD).

Finally, for any physical rewards (postcard, posters, etc) if you live outside the US, please add $10 for international shipping.

Thinking Big

The 3024AD universe is not limited to this collection- Series Two of the short stories is already planned, the first novel is started and more are outlined. To the end of getting those finished, edited, formatted and published faster, here are the some of the stretch goals I am shooting for:

The first is for a physical printing of Series One to be physically published ($5,000)- anyone who pledged $25 or more gets a signed copy.

The second, at $10,000 is the ebook of the first 3024AD novel (a preview of which is one of the rewards). This will cover all expenses for producing the novel, and all backers who pledged $10 or more well get a ebook of it.