What if an American town was suddenly transported to a fantasy world like that of "Game of Thrones" or a Tolkien novel?

One night in the fall of 2016, Stoneford, a small coastal Connecticut town and the citizens within, with no warning or explanation, is "shifted" to an entirely new and frightening world, one where gods, magic, and monsters exist.

Our characters are modern-day Americans; they’ve read The Lord of the Rings (or have at least watched it). They have been unable to avoid hearing about that HBO show with the dragons for the past half decade like the rest of us. They recognize their surroundings as some sort of fantasy world, but one that is very real, and very deadly.

Now the people of Stoneford must fight for their existence, all while searching for answers to why they were brought here, can they get back, and if not, who will they become in this completely new world?

Not a science fiction or fantasy fan? Here’s what it’s really all about...

At its heart, this story is about ordinary people--people you know, people you recognize, people you love and hate--being put in extraordinary circumstances, and how it transforms them. They’ll have to make hard choices that could lead them to greatness or their own demise. They’ll be forced to question who they are, and if everything they’ve learned to be morally right still applies in a wholly different world. And, perhaps more importantly, they’ll have to ask themselves whether they can hold on to any part of the people they were before all this happened. Whether they even want to.

AND NOW, A MESSAGE FROM THE AUTHOR:

Hey there. I’m Paul. A little about me: I’m currently a freelance writer in Los Angeles, though I grew up in good ol’ Milford, Connecticut, (which has provided, and will continue to provide, much inspiration for Stoneford and its people). I watch pretty much every show on television, I get Thai delivery way too often, and I’m an unabashed (okay, a little abashed) Dave Matthews Band fan.

More importantly, like every other author on here, I’ve been writing creatively in some form or other since I was a kid. Last year I was laid off from my full time gig and decided to take a chance at making writing a career and not just something I’d do casually. So far so good, but please knock on all of the wood for me.

For most of my life I always had this vague idea that I’d one day write a novel, but never took the time to actually sit down and make it happen. When I was made aware of the Launchpad Manuscript Competition, I knew what I had to do. The Shift is truly something special to me. It’s been hard work, but it’s also been a blast.

I really hope you take the time to read a bit of the story I’ve uploaded here, and if you dig it, consider ordering the book. It’s a touch terrifying to have something I’ve written out there for all to see (I don’t know what’s scarier, strangers reading it or friends and family, ha!), but it means the world to me that any of you have even taken the time to read this far down in the "About" section, much less the first chapter of my book, haha. So, many thanks to you, my friends. It is truly appreciated.

Oh, and if you are able to, please share! Thank you, and [insert clever sign-off here].*

Cheers, Paul

*sorry, all creative energy is currently being exhausted on Chapter 2!