Overview

In Commanding the Stars, military strategist and scholar Michael A. VanPutte reveals how the imagined worlds of science fiction can illuminate the timeless realities of war. This work fuses classical military theory with speculative vision, arguing that science fiction serves as a laboratory where strategy's eternal questions meet tomorrow's technologies and moral dilemmas. From Sun Tzu and Clausewitz to Heinlein and Orwell, Commanding the Stars explores how writers and strategists alike grapple with the essence of conflict-its logic, its instruments, and its human cost. Whether examining cyber warfare, autonomous systems, or the manipulation of perception and information, VanPutte demonstrates that fictional futures often forecast the next evolution of command and combat. This 408-page book is organized into five comprehensive parts: Foundations, Means, Military Concepts, Ways, and End Game. The book dissects the anatomy of war across real and imagined battlefields. Readers encounter the full spectrum of strategic thought: from mobilization and logistics to deception, subversion, and the ethical reckoning that follows every campaign. The book contains a list of recommended readings for further exploration, a complete list of all maxims, 190 citations for referenced materials, and a glossary of terms used throughout the text. Drawing vivid lessons from Star Wars, The Expanse, Star Trek, and beyond, VanPutte shows how speculative narratives challenge assumptions and compel flexible, creative thinking-the very traits upon which survival and victory depend. At once scholarly and visionary, Commanding the Stars bridges the worlds of the strategist and the storyteller. It invites military professionals, students, writers, and gamers to test their theories within the boundless theater of imagination before confronting the unforgiving terrain of reality.

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Author Information

Dr. Michael VanPutte is a strategist, technologist, and author who explores the future of conflict through the intersection of military science and imagination. He served twenty-four years in the U.S. Army, beginning as an infantryman and completing Airborne and Ranger School before commanding combat engineers in combat during Operation Desert Storm. After nearly a decade as a combat engineer officer, he transitioned to cyber operations, serving as Director of the Army AI Center and teaching strategy and technology at the U.S. Army War College, where he helped shape the next generation of senior military leaders. He then served as Deputy Director of Operations for a predecessor to U.S. Cyber Command and as a Program Manager at DARPA, leading advanced research and development initiatives.After retiring from the Army, Dr. VanPutte consulted for the Director of National Intelligence and the Department of Homeland Security, and later co-founded Provatek LLC, a defense company specializing in advanced cyber operations. He has taught strategy at the U.S. Army War College and Worcester Polytechnic Institute, and computer security at The Ohio State University. He continues to write, lecture, and advise on strategy, technology, and national security, drawing on his experience across kinetic and cyber domains.

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