2012... Deep Breath... Afghanistan

My last post was January 4th.

No excuses.

I wanted it that way.

I needed a break. I wrote a quarter of a million words in the last six months and needed a break. So I sat back and watched great friend Brian Keene go to Sundance for his knock-em-dead movie Ghoul, my daughter prepare for a career in the Navy, and my wife pull our new house together. I let life stroll by for a few weeks. I read some books. I enjoyed my family. I poked away at a few new projects. I bought Skyrim and am two-handing my way through the monsters and mages who try and stand in my way. It's been a nice break. But I'm about to climb back on that super-charged, techni-colored creation machine and get cracking.

After all. I have a deadline this year that's much earlier than the rest of them

July 2012 I've been given an all-expenses paid trip to the grand resort called Afghanistan, where I'll wear the finest in body armor, carry the coolest personal weapons, and try and keep my head down for six months. Although I might be able to pen a few words when I'm there, I'm not going to plan on it.

So I gots to get my stuff done.

This is what I have planned so far--

BLOOD OCEAN hits the streets on Valentines Day. I'm going to begin a push for this, so I hope you all are ready to make a few phone calls.

SEAL TEAM 666 is turned in. I'm awaiting edits. Looks like we have an official cover. This book is going to be HUGE. Too bad it's going to be released when I'm in Afghanistan. Gonna make it a bitch for you to get one personalized.

GHOST HEART - YA Novel co-written with Yvonne Navarro. Cover by Vincent Chong. Published by Dark Regions. Hopefully ready by WHC.

THE LOUP GAROU KID - Third Book in Vampire Outlaw Trilogy. Published by Bad Moon Books. Hopefully ready by WHC.

Comic Books - I have several projects going. We're hoping to have BLIGHT ready for Phoenix ComicCon so we can shop it around. We're still looking for an inker/letterer, so apply within.

Animated Project - I'm contracted with Pulp Gamer to help conceive a special animated adult show. Still working on the scripts and back story for this. NFI.

Blight as drawn by Nick Diaz

Short Stories-

War Cthulhu story due in March.

C. Augest Dupin murder story due in September (which means July). This will be my first co-written story with Yvonne.

Psycho story due in March.

Novella due to Dark Regions in September (which means July)

Novella due to James Roy Daley ASAP.

Appearances -

BLOOD OCEAN book signings are being arranged as we speak. I was going to do them, but Abaddon said that they'd like to arrange them for me, through Simon and Schuster. More later.

Feb 4 Appearance - Sierra Vista Public Library
Mar 10 - 11 Tucson Festival of Books

Mar 29 - 31 World Horror Convention Salt Lake City

May 24 - 27 Phoenix Comiccon

Some of the authors scheduled for Phoenix Comicon

If there are any other requests, I'll consider them. But my Spring is tight. I have a trip planned with Yvonne for she and I to spend time together before I go. I hope to fit that in around her birthday.

That's all for now.

Fan Review of Multiplex Fandango

Larry Meier is a fan of mine. He said he wanted people to know how good Multiplex Fandango is. Since he's just a regular Joe, and doesn't have a blog or anything, I offered to give him voice.  Here is Larry's review:      


Review of MULTIPLEX FANDANGO by Weston Ochse. 

Deluxe Lettered edition

First off, get your computer fired up, and click on the following Link  Good, now give yourself the best belated Christmas and/or New Years gift you will ever get and fork over $45.00 for the Signed, numbered edition, (or-if any remain, by all means splurge on the Deluxe lettered), of said title by the supremely talented, literary samurai that is Mr. Ochse. 


Where to begin.Well, suffice it to say that this is a quality production from the get-go.  From the stunning wraparound dust jacket by Vincent Chong, to the foil-embossed cover (created by Russ Dickerson), THIS book stands out.  What really matters in any book of course, is the writing.  Simply put:  Weston Ochse can REALLY write.  The sixteen stories in this volume run the gamut from rip-roaring, Sci-Fi infused, pulp horror, (see the stunning “Tarzan doesn’t live here anymore”), to the down home, Twainesque melancholy of “Catfish Gods”.  If you manage to get through that particular story without reaching for some tissues, then I highly recommend a trip to the optometrist, as your tear ducts clearly are malfunctioning.  Ochse has mastered the art of the short-story, and has consistently turned out taut, muscular, lean prose that cuts to the bone; leaving no fat or excess to waste.  There are writers who excel at seemingly either characterization or plot, yet few are able to blend the two as successfully as Mr. Ochse.  With his work you get lean, mean, beautifully written stories, all crafted with heart and soul.  The literary equivalent of a magnificent Christmas present, all packaged and wrapped with care, style, and superb craftsmanship. 


I’m not going to ruin the ride that Weston has waiting for you within those pages by detailing individual story synopses.  That’s spoiling half the fun for you.  Open this book up, and dive in.  I found it best to read them in order as presented.  Kind of like catching multiple back-to-back double features at the drive in…Or, more fittingly, at the Multiplex.

Weston Ochse is more than a writer to watch.  He is a writer to be enjoyed, read, and re-read, right now.  So, what are you waiting for? Get cracking on placing that order before the rest of us have to say “I told you so.”  Just be prepared to be hooked firmly by his writing.  You will soon be seeking out the rest of his catalog, and be eagerly waiting for his many upcoming works.  As addictive as a box of Popcorn at said Multiplex, but infinitely more satisfying!!!

Larry Meier

Larry Meier was born and raised in Boston. He graduated from Boston College in 87.  He owns the Little Cannoli Bakery/Pizzeria in Salem, OR. and works at Powells Books in Portland.  He is a self-admitted book junkie with over 500 limited editions and counting.  Reading, fishing, and more reading are his passions along with his wife Tina and daughter Allie.  He hangs out in the Twitterverse under the handle @LarryMeier

Thanks very much to Larry. I found some reviews of the Little Cannoli online. Here's a pretty good one. If you're in the area please stop in, talk books, and have a Cannoli. I intend to. I also want to point out that Powells Books is a pre-eminent bookstore chain. If you are passing through Portland, you have got to stop and spend a few hours in the aisles. I just love them

Butterfly Winter Gets Nod From the English Countryside

Matthew Fryer, of Sheffield, England, gave Butterfly Winter a nod as one of his Favorite Genre reads of 2011. "And although it’s only a short novella download, special mention also goes to “Butterfly Winter” by Weston Ochse, a breathtaking and beautifully written... tale of war and human nature that still haunts me months later.




Mister Fryer reviewed Butterfly Winter back in August where he said:

'“Even in the end the children still dance.” I’m a sucker for a great opening line, and that one certainly delivers. But that’s not all. Despite its bland cover, this novelette from Crossroad Press presents a beautiful, precision story about humanity, war and the dangers of hubris.'

and

'With a breathtaking conclusion, “Butterfly Winter” is superb and I couldn’t find fault. This is a journey we really share with the characters, and well worth the 99c (about 60p) it costs from Smashwords here. Thought-provoking and elegiac, it’s an experience that lingers. Recommended.'

Nice to see an Englishman grok this end-of-the-world tale of a clutch of Americans, lost in the wilds of China.

Thanks Mr. Fryer

ST666 Finished and Gone

Just a random picture of me

SEAL Team 666 is complete at 494 manuscript pages. I just pressed the send button to the editor at Thomas Dunne Books. This is such a satisfying feeling. ST666 is definitely, without a doubt, the best thing I've ever written. Yvonne, whose eyes are still bleeding from her edits, agrees. Now to sit back and breathe for a second.


As  I sit and reflect about the novel Blood Ocean and SEAL Team 666 and all the short stories and comic scripts I've done that are going to be published soon, I realize that I've written 250,000 words of fiction in six months. Clearly this  has been my most prolific period by far. That I was able to do it with trips to Europe, evacuations because of massive forest fires, moving from one house to another, and -- oh yeah -- a day job is just a freaking miracle.


I am exhausted.


But satisfied.


And soon, on to the next project.