CHOOSE YOUR LINE

The same world. Two ways through it.

Where should you begin?

I created this page for anyone interested in stepping into the Ashen world who would appreciate a little direction before opening the first story.

Some readers prefer to start at the beginning of a world’s history and move forward. Others enjoy meeting characters in the middle of their lives, discovering their histories later, and finding that something they thought they understood now means something different.

Neither preference needs defending. They simply offer different pleasures.

The two routes below reflect that distinction...
The order in which events unfold, or...
The order in which the stories took shape.

My intention is not to declare one the proper way to read, but to help you find the experience you are most likely to enjoy.

FOLLOW THE LINE

Experience it as it happened.

There is something satisfying about knowing where things began.

For the chronological purists, and anyone who simply prefers cause before consequence, this route follows the broad history of the Ashen world. You encounter the foundations of the Program before seeing what grows from them. You watch relationships develop, decisions accumulate, and principles meet the circumstances that will test them.

Think of the forward momentum of The Martian: Mark Watney is stranded, must find ways to survive, and works toward the possibility of rescue. The satisfaction comes from following the problem and the response, one hard-earned step at a time. Or consider Independence Day, advancing through July 2, July 3, and July 4 as each day changes what humanity must do next. The calendar moves forward, and the story moves with it.

That is the appeal of Follow the Line. You build your understanding alongside the world itself.

Begin with The Program: Birth of a Shield, then follow the people who must turn its intentions into a way of living.

This route follows the world’s broad chronology. Individual stories may overlap in time or look back into a character’s past at points.

FOLLOW THE CREATION

Experience it as it was discovered.

Sometimes, meeting someone before you know their history is precisely what makes learning that history matter.

This route follows the order in which I developed the Ashen stories. You enter a world already in motion, meet people carrying experiences you have not yet witnessed, and gradually discover what brought them there.

Consider the order in which the Star Wars movies were released...A New Hope, The Empire Strikes Back, and Return of the Jedi. Years later, we were granted the backstory in Episodes I, II, & III. Consider the famous revelation between Darth Vader and Luke Skywalker in The Empire Strikes Back, a secret guarded carefully during the film’s production. For an unspoiled viewer, it changes the meaning of what came before. Watching the prequels first changes that experience...information that once arrived as a shock becomes something you already understand while the characters are still discovering it. Neither approach erases the story’s value, but they do not offer the same moment of discovery.

Or consider Pulp Fiction, whose interconnected scenes and stories deliberately unfold outside chronological order. For viewers who love that structure, putting every scene into its proper place on a calendar would not be a helpful correction. It would change the experience they value.

 "When" you learn something can matter as much as "what" you learn.

The Ashen world was not developed in a straight line, either. A character in one story raised a question that became another. A relationship invited a history. An off-handed comment or consequence demanded that I go back and discover the choice behind it.

Follow the Creation lets you follow that unfolding understanding.

Begin with Ashen Honor, then explore the world as its people and possibilities emerged for me.

This is the writing and development route. While it is not specifically the publication order, it is very nearly the same.

YOUR WAY INTO THE WORLD

One route lets you recognize the roots when their consequences arrive. The other lets you encounter the consequences, then discover how deep the roots run.

You may prefer one approach for a first reading and the other when you return. You may simply find a character or a story that interests you and begin there.

These are suggestions, not an entrance examination.

Explore The Stories for introductions, covers, and each work’s current status. Then choose the line that interests you.

The world is the same. How you come to know it is yours.

-JKLucas