Greetings all,
This is now the fourth year of my eight-year commitment to go all in on becoming a successful author businessman. My annual State of the Weech is just one way I use to track that, and it’s also how I let everyone know what I’m up to.
For a number of reasons, 2020 was a big setback for me as an author. With COVID, all the conventions I intended to participate in were cancelled. This meant the money I would earn there wouldn’t come. I was only able to release one title, my Christian memoir about my mothers death titled Testimony: A Trial of Faith. I genuinely thought I’d release Betrayed last year, but there was a huge gap because I had to simply save up money to pay for editing. I will have to continue to do that (more on that below).
While 2020 was hard on conventions and making progress on additional drafts, it did allow me to get a bit more writing done (if only a bit). I’m positive Betrayed will be out this year. I’m hopeful it will be out in the next three months, but that’s not a guarantee.
With all that said, here are my plans for what I hope is a rebound in 2021.
May 1 (or sooner): Betrayed: Book Two of the Oneiros Log. I’m almost done with the Beta Draft (as in only a few chapters away). From there I send it out to Sara for the proofreading. I’m also going to send this draft to willing Advanced Readers in exchange for an honest review. I’m pretty optimistic about this goal. I have to save up the money for edits, and I have to save up the money for the cover, but I think May is feasible.
These are sure things in 2021. I am about halfway through the discover draft of Discovered: Book Three of the Oneiros Log, and that will be my main project when Betrayed is published.
A quick update on projects I mentioned last year:
Sonnets for my Savior: I completed it, but I doubt it will be more than a series of blog posts. I’m not a poet by trade, and getting feedback has proven difficult. I was happy to have the idea and see it through, but that’s about where it ends.
Musings on Christianity: I also finished this blog series, but again getting participation proved more difficult than I’d imagined. I was happy to study my faith and research questions in a scriptural way, but I wouldn’t feel comfortable releasing this as it’s little more than my personal pondering.
So those projects are probably being left where they are.
Now for projects I am planning to work on in the near future:
Discovered: Book Three of the Oneiros Log. As I said above, am I’m about halfway through the discovery draft. I’d be over the moon if I got this book out in late 2021, but that’s super ambitious at this point. It is my next primary project when Discovered goes to print.
The 1,200: As I said last year, I’m meaning to get to this project. It needs some rework, especially considering current events in real life. But I still think it’s a good story. So I’ll make those edits and I’ll get it out there as soon as I finish Oneiros.
Visits From A Man Named Nobody: This is Christian Science Fiction. I’m posting segments each Sunday as part of my Testimony series. Since this is fiction, I will be publishing this when it’s finished. I’d expect this will be released sometime next year.
New Utopia: This story (pitched as Mistborn meets Avatar), needs revisions and edits, and I’ll jump on them as time permits. This will not be published before 1,200.
Mercer: This is a series I intend to write. I’ve come to realize I’m actually happier working on a large product and a small project at the same time. It gets more titles out and makes me feel more productive. Mercer is going to be a bunch of small novellas written like episodes of a TV show (I call Mercer Dresden Files meets Bones). I will start working on this on the “sooner” side of things, and it may come out before 1,200 (though I don’t think so).
Perception of War: Images of Truth: I did get a few thousand words added to this very large discovery draft, and I will finish the discovery draft of this before I do any revisions to 1,200. I really love this series as a whole (Sojourn in Captivity is basically a prologue novella to the series). I hate starting new books before I finish a draft of one I’ve been working on, so I will get Betrayed to print, finish Discovered (so those who love the series can see how it ends) and then get straight to work on this. 1,200 will probably come out first but this will become the main priority when Oneiros is done.
Leah Saldawn and The Nick of Time: The discovery draft is done. I’ll probably get this out one day, but it’s a very low priority for a few reasons. First: it’s targeted to a 12-15 year old audience, which is way outside my current marketing group. Next, I have so many other projects I’m looking forward to, so this one just isn’t that high on the priority list. It’ll get out there someday, but I wouldn’t anticipate it coming out anytime soon (as in the next three years).
My publishing goals: Discovered (guarantee 2021 release), Betrayed, 1,200/Mercer, Mercer/Images of Truth, Mercer/New Utopia. You see Mercer there a lot because it’s indented to be a constant series with me. I’ll release Volumes in smaller chucks (paperback) and Seasons in larger Omnibuses (box sets). The idea for Mercer is 12 novellas (episodes) / three volumes per season. The goal is to release a bigger project and then a Mercer episode in a sort of pattern. I’m not sure how it will actually play out, but it is the goal.
As for my eight-year goal? Well, I’m actually selling more digital copies than ever before, and that’s encouraging. Hopefully, I’m still losing less money each year. Again, after eight years, if I’m not making a profit or breaking even, I probably need to rethink some things. With COVID, 2020 became far more about marketing, and I’ve seen some positive results. I’m still working toward the dream of making this a full time gig for me. At the halfway point, it’s a little discouraging to see how far I still have to go, but it doesn’t change my drive.
If you’re interested in helping, the best way to do that is to purchase one of my books, read it, rate it, and review it. You can take it to the next level (if you like the book) by recommending it (or buying it) for a friend. In addition to God’s will, which I will always cheerfully submit to, this dream of mine isn’t possible without loyal readers.
That brings me to those of you who are loyal readers. I thank God for all of you. It’s great getting emails from some of you and seeing your reviews. It’s wonderful to know there are a few of you out there supporting me, and I truly hope your ranks grow.
I’m still grateful to God for what he’s done in my life. I have a wonderful wife and three great sons. I’m in good health. I have an amazing day job. In short, I’m truly blessed. I pray God blesses you all, and I hope you’ll continue this journey with me.
Thanks for reading,
Matt
2019 was a pretty good year in my opinion. I managed to release yet another four titles: 
Discovered: I changed the name from Hunted, but it’s the same project. If I release another book in 2020, it’ll be this book. I’ve finished the plotting to this story and started the overall outline. I’ll jump straight to this when I’m done with Betrayed.
The 1,200: This was actually something I intended to release a while back, but it just felt like getting The Oneiros Log done was the right call. If you liked The Journals of Bob Drifter, you might get a kick out of some of what happens. And if you look very closely, you might see some familiar faces. I might actually weave this in while editing Betrayed and/or Hunted. The question is when it will come out. I’m going to take a hard look at this story and make sure it works. I’ve developed quite a bit as an author, and so this story deserves an edit with my now more-critical eye. I plan for this to be released sooner rather than later. That’s exactly what was on my last blog. I’m still mulling over some pretty big decisions on this story, but it will be what I intend to work on and publish as my next full length release.
Perception of War: Images of Truth: So I was pretty deep into the discovery draft of that story when I started dancing around other projects. Sojourn became a priority, and now I’m gearing up to start this epic series. Images is the first book of at least twelve. It’s my special forces in space saga. However, that draft isn’t done, so what will happen is I’ll chip away at this while I’m editing 1,200.
July 1: So if I want to release four titles this year, something has to come out around here. I’m working on one project, but that might not happen. Could I get Betrayed ready to go? I have no doubt that I’ll get through a few drafts by then, but I don’t know that I can finish it. You see, Betrayed looks to be about the same size as Caught, which makes me happy. I want the whole series to be composed of fast-paced, action-packed quick reads. I can’t promise Betrayed will be ready by then, but I will try, especially if the other thing I’m working on doesn’t happen.
I honestly love Christmas. It is, in fact, my favorite holiday, but I promise there’s a correlation. I get upset during heritage month celebrations because they always feel like pretense to me, which is offensive. It feels like, “Today is the day we’re going to acknowledge that people of different races, nations, or sexual orientations are important.” Meanwhile I stand there and wonder why we can’t just be respectful every day of the year? Why can’t we carry on the spirt of Christmas all year?
My feeling, personal though it may be, is that NaNoWriMo takes away excuses. It’s beautiful. I’ve never needed a reason to sit down and write, but if this is what gets young writers in front of keyboards, then I love it.
I also like to take inspiration. One of my favorite things is to put stories in an imaginary blender and see what original concepts come out. I’m currently doing a read-through of an upcoming book, 1,200. The glimmer moment (idea) came from a story I was covering for the Navy. You see, there were (at that time) 1,200 homeless veterans in the city of San Diego. So I took that actual issue and ran with it. Remember that blender I told you about? One thing that always seems too convenient to me (though I do it, too) is the arrival of the Mentor or Impact Character. (Sometimes one man fills the same role.)
No it isn’t. I TOTALLY stole that from The Great American Hero. It’s about a guy who finds a super suit, but it doesn’t have any instructions. I’m not even going to lie. I applied an interesting concept in a different way. So when my main character (whose name is probably going to change) discovered his powers, he was on his own. This book is less dark than 
Let’s talk about blending again. I mentioned it above, and this is something I do in pretty much every stage of life and writing. I steal all of these great things, and then I take them all apart and put them back together like a Lego hodgepodge creation of my very own. I don’t actually know where I got the technique from, but I haven’t seen anyone who approaches it quite that way. So maybe that’s the one original thing I bring. I’m not saying I’m the only one who steals, I’m just saying that’s my particular twist on burglary. If you do it the same way, let me know.
In 
Two: The Mentor Magic Learning Montage: I’m less and less a fan of this every time I see it and use it. In 1,200, I took the mentor away JUST to avoid this. Inevitably in most fantasy sagas, there’s the “mentor” who appears JUST as the guy develops his power. How handy he shows up just in time to teach the guy how to become the hero. It’s a common thing and not really a “sin” in writing. I’ve just personally grown tired of it. (Though I did use a mentor archetype in New Utopia. Even then, I added a twist just to be different.) What this mentor can do is teach the user, and through him the reader, how the magic system works. In these types of stories, there’s usually a “hint” (see above) at how something thought impossible could happen. Or at least they do this next trick.
Three: Hang a Lantern: When the character does something impossible, and another character goes, “How could that be!” The reader gets a clue that this is an intentional thing. Then calmly waits for the explanation on how that should happen. If you use this, you NEED to explain that later in the story.
M.L.S. Weech 