The Next World War
Can the free nations of the world—fractured, disinformed, and unprepared for the titanic technological shifts in warfare—once again unite against an allied enemy that threatens global tyranny?
The Next World War tells a terrifying story of a near-future global conflict that begins in the Baltics, spreads across the Pacific, and reaches deep into the heart of America. Told in a documentary style reminiscent of the acclaimed series The American Revolution and The World at War, the Next World War series is set in 2032 and follows the leaders, warfighters, and civilians caught in the front lines of a war where the lines no longer exist.
Watch the series on the YouTube Channel, FLAT CIRCLE HISTORY,
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LATEST RELEASE!
Episode 20: The Hypersonic Blitz
“Hauntingly realistic.”
“Best series on YouTube!”
“Tom Clancy must be smiling.”
“Riveting and well told.”
Help keep this story going!
All of this takes time, money and resources… and I’m a one-man show! And as my father once told me, “if you do something well, you should be compensated.” Perhaps most importantly, I treat this endeavor as a business, because doing so gives it weight. It forces on me the discipline, persistence and the respect it deserves. It isn’t a hobby for me. So, how can you help?
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A bit of background about why I am doing this.
As a child of the cold war, a very long time ago I read the book, “The Third World War” by Sir John Hackett. Even though I was in my early teens and only understood a portion of it, the story and its non-fiction style felt terrifyingly real to me. This, from a kid at the time who was plotting blast radius circles on my father’s state road atlas, wondering if our house was in range of being incinerated. Point being, that which terrifies us, fascinates us. The thought of a third world war was both of those things to me. In the early 90’s, I thought that possibility was thankfully behind us. Not anymore. With events in Ukraine, the Middle East and tensions rising in the Indo-Pacific, In 2023 I created Flat Circle History, the name a nod to Nietzsche and his phrase, "Time is a flat circle", in the hopes of providing a cautionary tale and a proper peek into the future, so that maybe we won't repeat the past.
Getting the story right:
From the US to Europe and Asia, I have interviewed scores of current and former military personnel and defense industry professionals; from combat pilots to naval intelligence, cyberwarfare experts to defense equipment manufacturers, all to help refine the story and ensure its plausibility. More than once, those interviews have rocked me back in my chair, the information provided leaving me deeply unsettled. My next instinct, as always, is to immediately find a way to incorporate it into my story.
An eye for detail:
In many cases, the locations of scenes are real. From the location of the Marine MEU battle near Tapa, Estonia, to the NATO defense of Rezekne, Latvia, I scouted my locations through Google Maps, then Street View, rebuilding those locations as close as possible. Will the casual observer know that the radio tower near Ignašāni is where it is in real life? Or when the passenger jet crashes into the roadway at Tuscon International Airport, it’s the real-life East Valencia Road? Nope. Will a local? Very possibly (and some have contacted to tell me!). Mostly I do it for me, combining a love of cartography, storytelling and authenticity. Plus, it helps draw me into the world I’m creating.
How are these episodes created?
Mostly through gaming platforms, including:
ARMA3: used for people and close-up shots using a TON of mods created by the ARMA3 community. Are the graphics dated? Yep. ARMA3 is over a decade old. But if I need a Lithuanian combat uniform, or a Russian Lancet-3 drone, I can find it there. In ARMA3 I build my sets and code the characters to fight, walk and talk… sometimes with bizarre effects. Lots of blooper reels via ARMA3.
DCS: used for aircraft, some ground and naval scenes. Provides some stunning aerial views.
Cold Waters: naval surface and sub warfare.
Command Modern Operations: typically for showing radar scenes.
X-Plane: used for civilian aviation and when I need aerials of locations (White House, etc.)
Who does the voice-over narration?
ElevenLabs: the main narrator and characters are all created in ElevenLabs. I tried to do it myself in the first beta and yeah, I’m not cut out for that.
About John Forsberg
Three authors in my teens set me on this path: JRR Tolkien, Tom Clancy and Sir John Hackett. Tolkien for the world-building, Clancy for the detail, Hackett for the relevancy. Since then, I’ve always been writing. In 2014 I wrote a successful self-published sci-fi book that told of a near-future war in space. The amazing reader responses told me that maybe I had some writing chops to do more of this. Then, life happens and it wasn’t until 2023, after retiring from the tech industry, that I began writing a follow-up to the sci-fi book, but with Ukraine at war and watching the gut-wrenching news out of Bucha and Irpin… I felt compelled to write something closer to the now, and closer to my heart. So began Flat Circle History. In June of 2023 I released the first few episodes, crossed my fingers, and kept writing and creating. In November, it suddenly took off and opened doors to fans and contacts in the defense and national security realm that I would have dreamt possible. And here we are! And I’m having a ball.
