As my readers and Weston Ochse’s readers know, MONSTERS OF SAIPAN was a collaborative novel the two of us were writing together. We serialized it jointly on our Patreon pages, with the intention of publishing it once the serial was finished.

With Weston’s passing yesterday, I want to give his fans an update on the status of the novel.

The plot of MONSTERS OF SAIPAN was all Weston’s, and the main characters were based on guys he had served with in various capacities over the years, both in the military and as a private defense contractor. This was a story that he wanted to tell, and I was happy to be along for the ride.

Last year, when his health was such that he couldn’t work on the book, we put it on hold (but did not tell the public why). Because the characters were so near and dear to him, I didn’t want to forge ahead, and figured I’d wait until he got better.

This year, when it slowly became clear that the fight he was engaged in was even more serious than we’d thought, we talked about MONSTERS OF SAIPAN some more. He gave me clear instructions on the remainder of the plot, etc. and I gave him my word that I’d finish the book, should the worst happen. But I also insisted that we wait and see. Weston, like Keith Richards, just seemed like an impossible fore of nature, and even in these last few weeks, I secretly expected that he might actually beat this thing.

With his passing, I will keep my word and finish the novel. I do not, however, have access to his Patreon page. And I don’t think it’s right to ask his fans to pay for access to my Patreon just so they can read the serial’s continuation. So, what I’ve decided is that I will finish the novel off Patreon, and then — with Von’s oversight and permission — we’ll sell it to a publisher, so that all of his readers have access to it.

I will need time to read back over his notes, and email and text message exchanges with me regarding the book. Once I’m in the right headspace, I’ll go back to work on it. The book was roughly halfway complete, so I am confident it will be completed by summer of 2024. Thank you for your patience and understanding.

— Brian Keene