Writing a Sequel and Maybe a Series
Writer: Paul Attaway
It’s going to be easy, right?
When I wrote my first book, Blood in the Low Country, I did not intend to write a series, but as I rifled through various story ideas for my next book, the idea of a sequel grew on me. Once I decided to do it, I made several decisions.
The first decision I made was to write a sequel that could stand on its own. In other words, it was my goal to write a book that one would enjoy if they hadn’t read the first book, that one would enjoy and not find overly repetitive had they read the first book, and one that upon finishing, were they inclined to read the first book, there would still be enough suspense, etc.… to keep them interested.
The second decision I made concerned point-of-view. In my first book, the narrative perspective was third-person omniscient. As the author and storyteller, I knew all and told the story that way. In Eli’s Redemption, I felt the voice of Eli had to be heard more clearly so I wanted to write the story in first person from his perspective. But I needed to introduce other characters and subplots which required an omniscient narrator. I settled on a hybrid approach.
The biggest challenge to the hybrid point of view approach was keeping straight where I was in the story while writing it and who needed to run the story at that particular point in the story – Eli or the omniscient narrator.
A third challenge pertained to the ending. Would there be a third book in the series? A fourth book? And did I need to know the answer to this question to finish the book?
I researched what constitutes a series and the challenges and opportunities presented when writing one. I was intrigued. The first thing I learned is that there are different types of series. For instance, in a dynamic or serialized series, the books are not standalone books and should be read in order and plot and character arch are important. A good example of this type of series is the Hobbit series or the Godfather movie series. However, in a static or episodic book series, the stories rely upon one or more recurring characters and each book is a separate installment in their lives. A good example is a private detective series or other mystery series such as the Agatha Christie books. Finally, in an anthology book series or interlocking book series, the books are tied together by a world or setting or character relationships. The books do not have to be read in order necessarily and can consist of a series of mini dynamic books. You create the world in which they live.
I have decided to write a series of books that fits this last category, an anthology book series. As I finished Eli’s Redemption, I left open the possibility for more stories coming from the characters in these books and I’m glad I did, because I’ve begun writing the next book, which will focus on Eli’s brother, Walker. Doing so will allow me to spend time with characters I enjoy and perhaps find more readers along the way who enjoy them too.
About the Writer
Paul was born and raised in the Atlanta, Georgia area. Paul and his wife, Lyn, met in college at Georgetown University and were married after Paul graduated from the University of Georgia School of Law. They moved to Phoenix, Arizona in 1988 where Paul embarked on a thirty-year business career before retiring so he could write fiction. Paul and Lyn raised three children together in Phoenix and now live in Charleston, South Carolina.
Website: paulattaway.com
Writer’s podcast episode, HERE.