2022 in Review
Added 2022-12-31 17:57:31 +0000 UTC2022 was a big year for me. I completed the first trilogy of The Brightest Shadow, while The Weirkey Chronicles has continued strong with two more books. Most likely 2023 will be a little quieter, but you can definitely expect some solid content.
TWC
So far each book has done a little better than the previous, which is opposite the normal trend for series. That said, you guys have officially caught up with me. I had a bit of a head start when I began the series, and I stayed ahead for a while, but there's no more buffer. Don't expect long delays (two books most years should still be doable) but there will be gaps in between books because I don't want to present half-baked content.
Now some good news: the rough draft of TWC7 has been done for a while and I'm working on editing it. This one will be the longest book in the series by a modest margin, about 10% bigger than the previous record. Expect more info on that next week, and chapters before terribly long.
Looking forward to 2023
TWC8: Aside from the aforementioned chapters, in theory I should get into TWC8 during the year. That said, the seventh book finishes off the first (pre-Authority) saga, so there may be a bit of a gap. TWC8 and beyond will involve a new conflict heavily based on what's happened up to this point, leading to some major political payoff but also segueing into payoff for some of the biggest plotlines of the series. I want to make sure this is all done right.
Audiobooks: Travis Baldree hoped to narrate the third TWC book in 2022, but his schedule is getting swamped. The contract to three books is still valid and I extended it to seven. In addition to individual releases, I intend to do a box set of 1-3, as that will be a more attractive length for audiobook listeners. Will this happen in 2023? Hopefully, but we can't be sure.
New Covers: You've seen some nice TWC art that will hopefully become a striking new cover for the series. If all goes well, you'll be seeing more of these throughout the year.
Side Projects: Last year I hoped to finish a side novel and wasn't able to. This year my schedule is a little clearer, but there's more TWC work required. This one is ambiguous and will depend on how much I can keep my nose to the grindstone.
That's the situation! Thanks to everyone for supporting me this far. ^-^
Comments
Thank you very much!
Sarah Lin
2023-04-02 17:01:30 +0000 UTCI hit kindle! Will hit audible soon :)
Justin Ventura
2023-04-02 16:59:18 +0000 UTCI'm very glad to hear it! Please leave reviews if possible. ^-^
Sarah Lin
2023-04-02 16:58:37 +0000 UTCJust finished the brightest shadow, I really enjoyed it! One of my favorite arcs! Now… I must get those bad boys on hard copy 😎
Justin Ventura
2023-04-02 15:31:40 +0000 UTCGlad to hear that you read and enjoyed the third book! It's difficult to say about putting them out as shorter books; conventional wisdom is actually that longer books do better but that's not true in all cases. Ultimately I don't think that any different format would have made the series sell better. I'm grateful for everyone who enjoyed Blades Falling Softly, but future projects like that are not very likely. If I do return to TBS, however, you'll see some of those characters as adults.
Sarah Lin
2023-01-05 19:02:09 +0000 UTCI finally read The Unnecessary Victory over the holidays. Sorry the series isn't doing better for you; it's an amazingly rich and unique world you've made there. I wonder if it would have done better as more frequent, smaller books. They're really hefty--just the "what happened before" intro is almost a novella!--and already divided into sub-books. (On that note--are you think of doing any more side stories like Blades Falling Softly? I think that's my favorite of all your books, much more poignant than the lighter series, but without the feeling of hopelessness that I get from the rest of TBS. It left me with that same "waking from a dream" feeling I get from Patricia McKillip's books.)
Jeff Petkau
2023-01-05 18:00:29 +0000 UTCOh, I apologize, I meant no offense on the litrpg comment. I only meant that the genre is taking over my recommendations on kindle and audible. It could just be that Amazon thinks that's all I want to read. I have enjoyed a few of them, I just get more immersion in series like your TWC and Will Wights cradle and travelers gate. I wish you and yours a happy new year.
That's me!
2023-01-01 00:37:03 +0000 UTCThanks, I'm glad you've enjoyed it! I've dabbled in LitRPG, but you can look forward to more of this kind of progression fantasy from me. ^-^
Sarah Lin
2022-12-31 22:27:54 +0000 UTC> The contract to three books is still valid and I extended it to seven. Hurray :) I'm glad to know they were a success enough to warrant ordering more
Ferlin Sutton Léo
2022-12-31 21:16:22 +0000 UTCI really enjoy the magic system of your books. I love series when author go into detail about their magic system, rather than hand waving that magic happens. It's also refreshing to see progression fantasy that's not litrpg.
That's me!
2022-12-31 20:59:29 +0000 UTCOh thanks for the answer I was just curious.
Nimh
2022-12-31 19:14:50 +0000 UTCTravis Baldree hoped to narrate the third TWC book in 2022, but his schedule is getting swamped. Hopefully it will happen in 2023.
Sarah Lin
2022-12-31 19:13:22 +0000 UTCOoh, very fancy! I get what you mean about things you'd like to work on... if only time permitted
Tobias Begley
2022-12-31 19:13:18 +0000 UTCIt's not so much a single side project as several things I would like to work on in theory, if I can make time for them. One is the heist fantasy I've referenced on occasion.
Sarah Lin
2022-12-31 19:12:40 +0000 UTCThank you for the update! I do have a question though, is there any news on adding more TWC books to audible?
Nimh
2022-12-31 18:49:48 +0000 UTCthank you for the update, happy New year's and hope that trend continues
Izmir Beqiri
2022-12-31 18:13:06 +0000 UTCSo proud of everything you've done! That's amazing! Any hints on the side project? :P
Tobias Begley
2022-12-31 18:05:13 +0000 UTCThanks for the update! Looking forward to the future!
Jerek Kimble
2022-12-31 18:01:18 +0000 UTC
