Scott Coon Blends Military Precision and Sci-Fi Imagination in Bold Speculative Fiction

PHOTO: Scott Coon shares how military intelligence and programming expertise shape his visionary storytelling.

Corporate Power, Futuristic Worlds, and Human Resilience

Scott Coon draws from military and software experience to craft thrilling science fiction like Lost Helix and Godless Armageddon, exploring technology, power, and the resilience of humanity.

Scott Coon is a rare kind of storyteller—one who pairs visionary imagination with sharp intellect and hard-earned experience. A decorated U.S. Army veteran and software expert, Coon fuses speculative fiction with deep themes, thrilling plots, and grounded characters. His novels Godless Armageddon and Lost Helix aren’t just page-turners—they’re powerful explorations of societal structures, corporate power, and the enduring human spirit.

At Mosaic Digest magazine, we are proud to feature Scott Coon, a writer whose unique voice is matched only by his dedication to the craft. Whether he’s unpacking artificial intelligence’s risks and promises or crafting a poignant metaphor from a shark attack, Coon’s insights are as bold and original as his fiction. His generosity toward fellow writers, evident in his workshops, critique groups, and writing channel, makes him a pillar of the creative community.

Coon’s stories blend thrilling sci-fi with real-world insight, delivering unforgettable narratives that entertain, challenge, and inspire readers and writers alike.

At Mosaic Digest magazine, we are proud to feature Scott Coon, a writer whose unique voice is matched only by his dedication to the craft. Whether he’s unpacking artificial intelligence’s risks and promises or crafting a poignant metaphor from a shark attack, Coon’s insights are as bold and original as his fiction. His generosity toward fellow writers, evident in his workshops, critique groups, and writing channel, makes him a pillar of the creative community.

In this candid interview, Scott opens up about the life experiences that fuel his fiction, his hopes for the future, and the hard-won breakthroughs that shaped his writing career.

Your journey into science fiction writing began after a successful career in the military and software development. How have those experiences shaped the way you build worlds and develop tech-driven narratives in your stories? 

I often draw upon my current experience as a computer programmer and my past experience as a U.S. Army Electronic Warfare Signals Intelligence Analyst for my work. In Lost Helix, the main character is the son of a hacker, and thus, he is a hacker himself. In the opening scene of Godless Armageddon, we get to know the characters before they all die, and then the story truly starts. In that opening, you experience the Rangers storming Pointe Du Hoc during the Normandy invasion of World War II. In addition to my own military experience, I used the After-Action Reports of the actual attack to make this authentic. Though I did condense and fictionalize events for the reader. 

“Lost Helix” has received strong praise for its blend of mystery, corporate intrigue, and sci-fi adventure. What was the original spark behind this story, and what message do you hope readers take away from it? 

Over my adult life, I have watched the rise of the gilded age we are now in and felt compelled to write about it. The message I want readers to take away from Lost Helix is that corporations are like sharks. When a shark eats someone, that’s a shark being a shark. Getting angry at the shark is pointless. In Jaws, it’s the Mayor and the Sheriff you should be mad at for not doing their jobs to keep people safe. Corporations seek profit. Sharks eat meat. It’s the government’s job to keep both sharks and corporations from consuming people. 

You’re very active on social media and even run a YouTube channel sharing writing tips. How has connecting directly with readers and aspiring authors influenced your approach to storytelling? 

In addition to studying writing, I’ve also studied the lives of writers. I found successful writers need other writers (usually). And I definitely needed someone. When I moved to California, I found my current writing group. Godless Armageddon only exists because my friends in that writers group encouraged me to write it and helped me turn it into the epic it is today. It’s their encouragement and the encouragement from my readers that embolden me to engage in such ambitious projects. 

Sci-fi often reflects our hopes or fears about the future. What current real-world technology or issue do you find most inspiring—or most alarming—for the future of humanity? 

The answer to both is: Artificial Intelligence. The U.S. Airforce accidentally admitted that, in a simulation, an AI drone turned on its human handler and attacked the handler. So, that’s not good. However, self-driving cars are achievable. Fully automated fast-food restaurants, factories, and docks are achievable. I’m currently writing a solar punk novel where this has been achieved, employment is down to ten percent, and people live on Universal Basic Income, freeing them to create art, advance science, and travel the world. The world I am creating is within our reach today. We just have to choose to build it. 

Looking back, what would you consider the most defining or surprising moment of your writing career so far—whether it was a breakthrough in craft, a fan interaction, or a publishing milestone? 

Learning how to write in the days before the internet was challenging. Back then, most of my writing education came from Writer’s Digest. My final educational hurdle was learning how to show emotions in an engaging way. Fortunately, I found The Emotions Thesaurus. This reference book and its forward transformed my writing. My time studying poetry at Rutgers and all the time I spent studying the craft of storytelling had brought me a long way. But once I got past this shortcoming, I began regularly publishing short stories and novels and winning awards.   

You’ve written both short stories and full-length novels. How does your creative process differ when working on a short piece versus diving into a larger world like in “Lost Helix”? 

For a short story you have to bring the wider world and required subplots into the story in a concentrated way that still provides the depth the story needs. In a novel, you need to conceive of a story that will naturally fill the breadth of the book. Subplots and descriptions have more room to breathe, but you must keep the main plot in the story at all times. A short story requires a concentrated period of focus, usually taking about three months from brainstorming to completely reviewed by writers groups. A novel takes at least two years to complete those same steps. Both require outlines. And either can go through dramatic changes during the editing process. 

“A short story requires a concentrated period of focus… A novel takes at least two years to complete those same steps.” – Scott Coon