I love learning. If there are explosions involved, all the better. Let’s discuss Cage and Joule using leftover fireworks to blast their snowmen come late January. Or to blow up the rotting pumpkins come December. (That one set the yard on fire..in multiple places!!! Do not ask me how handy I am with the fire extinguisher)

But this one is about REAL explosions. The kind you can’t buy in a Sad Sam’s tent in the summer. I’ve done them myself. Gotten demos just for me. And then, there are ones like this. A full demo by the bomb squad and I’m so grateful to have gotten to attend at a writer’s conference.
I’ve watched (and taken copious notes!) the robot check a suspicious backpack, then detonate it for good measure. I’ve seen the team blast up everything from flashpaper to C4 to improvised devices. They all make different booms. And I learned how to set them off too. (I do love some det cord! It burns an orange sine wave on your retina as it lights up!)

So here is where I managed to catch the explosion as it was happening! I will say, an author’s life is never dull. And if you’ve read FRACTURE FIVE, some of the things I learned from the blasts are in there!

If you need me, I’ll be over here, blowing shit up. You know, for research!

If you’re here, it’s probably not a surprise that I do extensive research (some of it is still tucked away for future books!) Including ridealongs whenever I can get them. Also, firearms training! (I have good hit rates against the bad guys, but ‘good’ is a relative term. It’s really hard to take out a surprise shooter, even when you know you’re in shooter training and someone is going to fire at you.) I died. A lot.

We also did dog training, which I’ve used a lot of in learning how dogs/wolves bite, tackle, pull and win! (These two canines did a lot of demos for me and also were put through their usual training while I watched.) I’ve used some of this in the NightShade series and some in Black Carbon. And there’s definitely more to come!

Happy 2025

I don’t know about you, but social media is always something I find to be churning and changing. If you haven’t already found me there, I’m on Bluesky! More books and info and updates with a faster turn around than I can put here. Follow me at: @ajscudiere.bsky.social

Lastly, if you want to see something really cool that’s getting started, head over to my YouTube channel. (Yes, I have one of those!) I haven’t done anything with it before, but there are new things coming within the  month and you’ll want to be there for it. I’m adding alllll my audiobooks and you can listen for freeeee! Subscribe now so you’ll get all the updates! (It doesn’t cost anything and you’ll just get a ping when I post something new.)  >>> https://www.youtube.com/@ReadAJS

Happy Reading! AJ  O.o