Last week I wrote about 2007, explaining where things went off track and how we pulled ourselves back up and ended the year with several positive accomplishments. Today I get to talk about what we see ahead for 2008. Actually, this is a little bit premature. Although I’ve served as 12 to Midnight’s president for a couple of years, our company is truly a group effort. Everyone contributes, and everyone has a say in the company’s direction. Our annual strategic meeting is January 12, and today is only January 7. Regardless, while the details may change I think the broad outline will remain the same.

The first title we’ll be releasing in 2008 will actually be under the Silven Crossroads banner. Our long-overdue fantasy+technology title, SteamWorks, is currently in layout. This title will not be making the crossover to the Savage Worlds system, but d20 System fans will find a lot to love with this book.

We are still writing ETU: Degrees of Horror and still taking suggestions for a better name. Other than SteamWorks, this book is our focus until the first draft is complete. Several chapters are already written, and in typical 12 to Midnight fashion I can tell you we’re over-delivering on content. ETU will easily have enough adventure hooks to run three campaigns without ever touching the plot points. ETU is being written for the Savage Worlds system. Whether it ever makes the jump to another system remains to be seen.

Once ETU has entered the editorial cycle, some of us will focus on other short-term projects. For instance, this year we will most likely release three new Pinebox titles: 12 Hours to Midnight (the 12 part serialized adventure), The Prodigal, and House on Dale Island.

Until we have our annual meeting, I don’t know our convention travel plans this year. I know Ed Wetterman will be at a Savage Game Day in Austin, TX on January 19, and some of us will be at AggieCon in March, but other than that we have not yet set a schedule. If anyone who runs a con would like someone from 12 to Midnight as a gaming guest, just contact us in the forums.

I’m pleased to announce that we’ll be transitioning to a new webhost toward the end of the month. This is a big upgrade for us. The new server has more than six times the storage capacity, runs newer versions of PHP and MySQL, and caters to e-commerce sites. That means our store, the Midnight Cellar, will be even faster than before. The store, the main site (which you’re reading right now), and the forums will all move to the new server. However, we’ll still be 12tomidnight.com. The move will undoubtedly result in some down-time, but we’ll do our best to keep it to a minimum and warn you in advance.

Regarding the store, we hope to build upon what we’ve learned last year and make the store even better. Right now we’re using Google Checkout for all our payment processing. We would greatly appreciate your feedback. How’s that working out for you? Are you avoiding purchasing from the store because other payment methods aren’t available? Did you have technical difficulties? By the end of 2008, we hope to also bring you a whole new selection of genre-related items. Rather than limit ourselves to downloadable RPGs, hopefully by mid-year you’ll also be able to check out hard-to-find game props, novels, movies, and music.

That’s a very brief overview of what you can expect this year from 12 to Midnight. I can’t begin to tell you how much your support and enthusiasm has meant to us. All of us have full time jobs outside the RPG industry. 12 to Midnight is a labor of love, and you’re the ones who make it enjoyable. Your e-mails, forum posts, reviews reassure us that we’re not just whistling in the dark. You keep bringing us light, and we’ll keep populating the shadows. Deal?