The eye-catching book marketing to the left caught my eye in the local mall, and for the first time I bought a Patricia Cornwell novel. It was available on the Kindle and so I just downloaded it there and then (yes, I love my Kindle!)
Patricia Cornwell is just one example of an author who has created a successful series with 17 books featuring Kay Scarpetta.
Why should authors create a series of books?
- Publishers want them, so do the fans and you make more money. Face it, publishing is a business and if there is a successful series of books then everyone makes more money. Fans also love them and will generally buy/read every one in the series if they engage with the characters. They might discover your story in book 5 and then go back to read the rest of the books, or start at 1 and be a lifelong fan.
- You get to develop your story and your characters. For a nice, tight plot and storyline for today’s mass market novel, there is not much space for slow character development or exposition. Mass market novels that make money are fast paced with movement and action. If you have a series, you can develop facets of your characters that would get edited out otherwise as too minor to the story.
Lessons Learned From Patricia Cornwell on Writing A Successful Series
- Create a compelling character whose work /life allows for a series of stories on a theme. Think JK Rowling’s Harry Potter school years; Dan Brown’s symbologist Robert Langdon; Kathy Reichs’ forensic anthropologist Tempe Brennan, Stephanie Meyer’s Edward and Bella, Ian Rankin’s Inspector Rebus (21 novels!) and of course Cornwell’s Medical Examiner/coroner Kay Scarpetta. Is there potential for more adventures for your main character? For multiple books, you also have the chance to develop sub-characters, e.g. Scarpetta’s niece Lucy is still going strong in the latest book after appearing as a 10 year old 20 years ago.
- Understand timelines and allow for growth and change in the character’s lives. For a series of books, you need to have a clear timeline for all characters and make sure you keep consistency across the books. This takes some planning! Check out this great post on Meta-documents from author Scott Westerfeld, who is also writing a series of novels.
- Add hooks into the book that relate to other books/stories. When writing the first book, be aware of the future possibilities and plant seeds that can be hooks for other stories. In the future books, have references back to other adventures that can encourage readers to go check out previous books too. Once an avid reader finds an author they love, it is likely they will buy the whole backlist and then wait expectantly for the next book.
- Have a formulaic plot but keep the details original. Readers come to trust an author and like to know what they are getting. The Scarpetta novels are not original plots, but the fans get what they want every time. A series of books must be have similarities in plot and style. But of course, many authors then create another series with another character which means they can expand their writing more.
Personally, I am writing a thriller for NaNoWriMo with the aim of making it a series, so I am researching at the same time as writing and trying to follow these tips myself. Do you have any more ideas or tips for a book series?
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I’d like to add: Know where you are going!
IMO, there’s nothing more frustrating than a series that starts out great and then goes totally off the rails because the author is making it up as they go along. It’s all too common in TV — *cough*the X-Files*cough* — but the danger is there in any kind of series.
Also: When the story is done, let it be done. If there’s anything more frustrating than a series ruined by lackluster planning, it has to be a series that’s being kept alive soley for the cash. I do realize that publishing is a business, but it pains me to see great stories and characters tarnished by unneccessary, forced sequels.
Hi Vinz, that is an excellent point! I actually stopped reading the latest Scarpetta – it didn’t engage me at all. vs/ Meyer and Rowling who obviously have the right length – maybe 6/7 is all that can be done.. although my Dad still loves the Ian Rankin books.
I guess just stop when the story gets old, or becomes so formulaic or when sales drop
Thanks, Joanna
I think Sandford’s Prey series is also a very good example. While there are definitely a couple of weaker novels in the series, it’s still amazingly good after 19 novels! Sandford has let the character of Lucas Davenport age and change. That does make book 19 very different from book 1—but the change has kept readers engaged. Characters that seem to be kept in limbo and never age, never change have less of an appeal for me. As a reader, that sense of engagement is what makes me either pre-order a book or just wait for it at the local library.
Writing a series is not just great financially; it allows the author to really explore a story that has so much to it, that condensing it into one book would be rubbish. Personally, I’m writing a trilogy of trilogies. Once the series is done, it’s done. That chapter will be over. What I don’t like are those series’ that last forever and never seem to end. The Scarpetta books got boring after a while. They were too similar to me. IMHO, a real series is a continuation of a greater story. The first book is the beginning and the last the end and every book in between is the middle. A series of books shouldn’t be like soaps or other ongoing TV series’. They need an end. People get bored after enough time.
I think the same could be said for non-fiction, especially non-fiction narrative. Like Anne LaMott–using a theme for her three narratives. Branding gives wings to voice in many ways/genres. Do you think?
Great points. I’ve often noticed how much more quickly I’ll buy a sequel or part of a series by a known authors than I would a standalone by even the same known author. And I’ve often thought, ‘I should get into that! It obviously works.’ Of course great writing and characters are essential also, but still.
Deborah – I’ll have to check out that series – thanks
Hannah – you’re right, it can definitely develop the character more and allow a more in depth plot
Amy – I love Anne Lamott – she is so human and her narrative is her life. Brilliant!