Progress of Dark Matter Trilogy...

In 2018, "Dark Matter: Code Red" released. In 2019, "Dark Matter Rises" release. 2020 saw a quiet year for me as a writer, right up until the end of the year, when I began writing "Dark Matter III" (though the first couple of chapters were written throughout the overall year). There's a good amount of work going on for these novels. I'll be breaking down the projects (we'll call it three separate projects, though it's really just one).

Dark Matter: Code Red

This was it. This was the project that catapulted me into the realm of being an author. The story was great, the characters were cool, Dark Matter was...himself. I loved writing the book, though it suffered from something later books didn't suffer from: this book was winged. Going into it, I had not mapped anything. Now that doesn't mean it was problematic. There was still plenty of great flow. However, certain terms or factions were renamed in the second and third book.

Now for what's changing in "Dark Matter: Code Red." The cover art is being replaced. That's the biggest change. You'll get to see the entire Williams family, some of the ships in the book, and a few other notable features found within the pages. Several terms have been changed (I refer to a "board" throughout the book; it is now the "Senate") to add consistency. A couple of new scenes have been added. A short story has been added to the end of the novel, one that I was just so lucky enough to find after thinking it lost.

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Dark Matter Rises

Like the novel before it, "Dark Matter Rises" follows the story of Collin Williams who is thrust into a war. This novel was meant to be the novel I wanted to write. "Code Red" was great, don't get me wrong, but the first novel (to me, at least) was more of an introductory to not only the main characters, but to the universe they thrive in.

"Rises" has the most updates. The editing was borderline skipped before publishing, due to time constraints, and I've hated my actions since then. Fortunately, the novel is MUCH nicer. I won't go into detail. If you read it, you may not notice the differences (us artists are our worst critics). Now for the noticeable changes: "Rises" is getting a new cover, one that will match it up with "Code Red." This cover will be the first to showcase Collin William's powers in the manner they were meant to be. A short story called "After Rising" has been added to the end of the novel.

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​Dark Matter III

This is the one. The third novel is the first to be written after some severe, life-altering changes I made in late 2018. I was reluctant to go into the novel, taking a year break from writing, then spending several months working on the first two chapters. In November of 2020, I knew it was time. The novel was finish at the beginning of February this past year, the fastest time (collectively) for me to write. This is due to knowing EXACTLY what I wanted. This novel is easily my favorite of the three. I can't mention much on the story yet, though.

"DMIII" doesn't have aanything changing because it hasn;t released yet. However, like it's predecessors, there will be a cover in the same art style (will touch base on that in a minute) as well as a short story at the end of the novel.

What Is Going On...

With the release of "DMIII," I wanted to re-edit and update the content of the first two novels to make sure they are consistent. The covers are being made with CGI characters and ships and short stories are being added. This is so much to do on the first two books that the decision was made to do an all-out re-release. Laughing Matter Studios is still trying to finalize those covers. Once they are finished, pre-orders will go live for "Code Red" and we will do the same for for the other books, each one month after the other. The trilogy will be taking five months out of LMStudios' schedule. The first month will be about the pre-orders. My studio will be talking all things Dark Matter. Months two, three, and four, will each be dedicated to their respectively released book. Month five (perhaps six as well) will all be dedicated to talking Dark Matter again as we close off this trilogy and pilot to the next arcs of the franchise.

As of right now, we are pushing through the process of getting the cover art done. As soon as the covers are ready, we will announce release dates. Stay tuned, because you guys are not going to want to miss this!