I haven’t posted one of these since the end of March, and for that… I apologize. If you’re just following up on these now, the progress reports ^[1] are to check in and show you what’s up in Monica-land. I’m happy to report that all plates are spinning and balanced appropriately. I may even have a bit of a tan. SHOCKING, I KNOW!

I’m back from CONvergence ^[2] which is, in my opinion, the best-run convention in the country. There is always something to do whether you’re by yourself or not and folks are very, very friendly. I stayed across the way and that turned out to be the best, possible decision. No standing in long lines for the elevators; very easy to go back and chill if I need to.

The panels went great and I’m very grateful for the fine conversation and company of so many wonderful people. This was a fantastic convention and sorely needed. I’d been averaging somewhere in the neighborhood of four-to-five thousand words per day for almost two months straight, and the break totally recharged my batteries. Thanks, all!

I am still recovering post-con, so e-mail communication is a little sparser than normal as I slog through and get projects done.

Since a lot has happened since the end March, I’m going to give a bullet point recap of what I’ve done. Note to self: provide these updates monthly… Second note to self: no wonder my office is a disaster area.

Games

• Scion: Extras ^[3] – The annual White Wolf April Fool’s joke was an absolute blast to write. I had a ton of fun with this one. After the fact, we provided a Scion style Irusan write-up ^[4].
• Gaming in the ‘Verse: GenCon 2013 Exclusive ^[5] – What’s 268 pages and full of Firefly? This limited edition game book is a preview of both the Firefly RPG corebook and Echoes of War, our line of digital adventures that will launch soon. The official release date will be the first day of GenCon. You can order a copy through www.margaretweis.com ^[6] — you don’t have to go GenCon to get a copy.

I have a number of games and supplements that are in development. The ones listed here are either on my immediate “you must do this now” horizon or the first draft has been handed in.

• Brandon Sanderson’s Mistborn RPG – Thanks to the fine folks at Crafty Games, I’m able to announce that I worked on the Skaa supplement and handed in my first draft.
• Echoes of War: Old Friends In Low Places – I am writing an adventure for the Firefly RPG that takes place on Hera. My first draft is due shortly.
• Firefly RPG – Working on the revisions to the outline now and then assignments will be handed out. The writing continues! This will be released in stores February 2014.
• Vampire the Masquerade: Red List – I’m partnering with Matt M McElroy and diving into this with bloody abandon. Bloody.

Fiction

I cut back on my short story work in order to focus on long form, which has mightily decreased the size of my list here. Next month, I’ll put little word count bars in so you can see what progress I’ve made.

• The Women Who Called Down The Train – This is a Lovecraftian Orient Express story that’ll appear in an anthology. I read the editor’s draft for the first time at CONvergence and the story went over really well. I also received some feedback for the historical and pacing elements of this terrifying tale.
• My Compliments To The Tailor – I promised to donate this story to charity, but I’m not quite happy with it yet. I’d prefer to expand it some and I’ve gotten some historical fact-checking back on the Victorian-era voice. It’s just not long enough in my book, and I’d rather provide some value even if it is free.
• The Red Door – The novella is 40% done and I hate every damn word of it. I went back and storyboarded it last night. Due to the nature of this story, I have some word lists to build ahead of time.
• Traitor’s Masque – Alternately titled “Argentum.” I’m also going back into this and storyboarding certain sections, because I want to make the story tighter and more exciting. Pacing is crucial for this one.

Comics

• Last Man Zombie Standing – This stand-alone comic will be available in an anthology called Unfashioned Creatures, A Frankenstein Anthology ^[7] late this Summer. Want to see a preview? Check out the inks for Page 5 ^[8].
• The Adventures of Lord Lardbottom and Captain Whinypants – I have a few options available to me for comics, and I’m exploring those. My current plan is to get a year’s worth of scripts done for this satirical comic before moving further or finding artists.

Consulting

• ROFL! – John Kovalic’s new party game debuts from Cryptozoic Entertainment later this month. I had both hands in this project and it was fun to see it through to completion. Watch for it at a games store nearest you!
• Exalted Third Edition Kickstarter – I worked behind-the-scenes as the invisible ninja for this Kickstarter. We ended up just shy of $700,000, which set the current record for the most-funded RPG.