Nine hours to keep a constellation in orbit.
One flight dynamics engineer. Hundreds of satellites. The math has to be right the first time, and it isn’t. Close Approach is a standalone procedural novella, free when you join the newsletter.
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The story
Helsinki, 03:40. Two dead satellites have just collided. The debris is already in her constellation.
“The plan she builds is correct. The plan she executes is correct. In orbital mechanics, correct has never been enough.”
When two dead satellites collide thirty-one hours before her shift starts, flight dynamics engineer Dara Kallio walks into a developing crisis at the Helsinki ops centre of Valo Space, a Finnish Earth observation startup. Her job for the next nine hours: build a fleet-wide avoidance plan against a debris cluster sweeping through her constellation, and execute it before the first conjunction window closes.
Close Approach is a procedural novella about competence under pressure, the gap between what an automated system knows and what an engineer carries in her head, and the cost of a decision that was right under one set of facts.
A standalone novella by Daniele Romagnoli, author of Moon Shadows, out now.
If you read for
Procedural, technically grounded fiction where the physics is the plot.
Close Approach is calibrated for a specific kind of reader. If any of these matter to you, you're in the right place.
- Hard sci-fi The kind where the physics is the antagonist, the math has consequences, and the engineering has to actually work.
- Realistic flight operations Control rooms, mission planners, telemetry feeds. Real procedures, not Hollywood ones.
- Real engineering Technical decisions drive the plot, and a competent engineer makes a satisfying protagonist.
- Procedural detail The story unfolds through decisions and consequences, not exposition. You're in the room with her.
- Pressure under a deadline One night, one engineer, finite time. Real-time tension that doesn't reset.
About the author
Daniele Romagnoli
I'm an Italian aerospace engineer. I write near-future techno-thrillers. Close Approach is a standalone novella where the institutions, orbits, and energy systems we already have are pushed just hard enough to break, restrained, technically immersive, read in one sitting.
My debut novel, Moon Shadows, is out now. Subscribers get the novella, occasional notes from the writing room, and first word on the next book.
Before you give me your email
Sensible questions, sensible answers.
Will I actually get spammed?
No. You'll get one welcome email with the novella, and then maybe one email a month, and only when there is something real to say (a release, a chapter, a behind-the-scenes note). One-click unsubscribe at the bottom of every message.
What format is the novella?
EPUB (Kindle, Kobo, Apple Books and most e-readers) and PDF. Delivered through StoryOrigin, which lets you send it directly to your Kindle or download it to your device. If you have trouble, their support helps you out.
Why is it free?
Because it's the best way to find out whether my writing is for you before you commit to a full novel. Close Approach is a complete story, no cliffhanger, no bait. If it lands for you, Moon Shadows, which launched worldwide in August 2026, will too. That's the deal: I write, you decide.
Is it really standalone?
Yes. Different cast, different city, different problem. You can read it without any prior context and feel zero pressure to continue. Readers who want more will find Moon Shadows, out now in ebook, paperback and hardcover, waiting for them.
Can I share the novella with friends?
Better: send them this page. They get their own copy, I add a reader to the list, and the world keeps growing. If they hate it, the unsubscribe button is right there.
What about my data?
Your email goes to my newsletter provider (MailerLite) and is used only for sending you the novella and occasional updates. I never sell, share, or hand it to third parties. Privacy policy.
Ready when you are
Get Close Approach now. Read it tonight.
One email. One novella. Nine hours of orbit, lived in real time.
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