The conventional wisdom is, of course, to write the series in story-chronological order. Write Book 1, which story-wise takes place earliest, then write book 2, which takes place next, and so on.But why write in books at all?
The conventional wisdom is, of course, to write the series in story-chronological order. Write Book 1, which story-wise takes place earliest, then write book 2, which takes place next, and so on.But why write in books at all?
If you know that you are writing a series or a multi-volume epic, you are quite likely to be visualising scenes and actions and bits of dialogue, but not all in the right order. And probably not the boring bits that just join things up (the bits that Mozart delegated to assistants).
So why not write them at the point that your mind is running away with you and record them fresh?
Why not write them in order, go back and make whatever adjustments are necessary in earlier books and then publish them?
My YA series, Victorious Maiden, employed such a strategy. I wrote book three, then wend back a generation for book two, and back two generations for book three. The problem I ran into was that since I knew the ending, discovering the story became a chore, and I lost interest in finishing the series. I have three novels that are 75% complete that I may never finish.
The conventional wisdom is, of course, to write the series in story-chronological order. Write Book 1, which story-wise takes place earliest, then write book 2, which takes place next, and so on. Sometimes an author writes a prequel, or side book, or shoehorns one into the middle.
But it occurred to me that writing them out of order might yield big benefits.
Even if you're a damn fine author, a new series usually develops as it goes on. It often finds its voice and hits its stride in book 2 or 3 or even 4. You can see this principle at work in TV seasons and movie sequels as well--the first one is rarely the best.
But, for most of us genre fiction authors who depend on series, the Book 1 is the reader magnet. It tends to be discounted, either permanently or intermittently. It's the first thing a new reader of that series will read--and because of the principle above, it may well not be the best book in the series. But, it behooves us IMO to have Book 1 be the best book in the series--except for the very last book in the series, perhaps, the climax. Either way, though, for marketing, you want to put your best foot forward. Once readers are invested in characters, they can forgive a book being not quite spectacular, as long as it's good and gives them what they want.
So it seems to me that it might behoove us--okay, me, since I'm between series now--to write the series out of order. Say, deliberately write book 3 first, in order to get comfortable with the new characters and universe, to develop their voices and shake out the kinks. Then, write books 1 and 2 afterward. Then, go back over book 3 before publishing, in light of what I've learned, to smooth out any rough spots or to tweak anything that needs tweaking. This might yield a better, more enticing Book 1.
Thoughts?
....The problem I ran into was that since I knew the ending, discovering the story became a chore, and I lost interest in finishing the series.
For me, it works because each book stands alone as an independent story.....The problem I ran into was that since I knew the ending, discovering the story became a chore, and I lost interest in finishing the series.
This has been a problem for me when it try to write out of chronological order. Some can do it successfully, but I'm not one of them.
The problem I ran into was that since I knew the ending, discovering the story became a chore, and I lost interest in finishing the series. I have three novels that are 75% complete that I may never finish.
Just my two cents...write down the major plot points and pants the rest. grintThe problem I ran into was that since I knew the ending, discovering the story became a chore, and I lost interest in finishing the series. I have three novels that are 75% complete that I may never finish.
Yes, this scares me quite a bit whenever I'm working on an outline. I lose interest in projects far too easily, yet at the same time I work better when working from an outline. What do you do?
The interesting thing I find about hopping about in a series is that at different points different characters talk to me. Sometimes they change where they are going and that will change the story a bit. Rather than boredom I find characters keep growing and developing. I've had several go from 1 dimensional friends that add to the plot line to the point I must write an entire book about them. (I plan to give those away for freebies on my website for a short time.)The problem I ran into was that since I knew the ending, discovering the story became a chore, and I lost interest in finishing the series. I have three novels that are 75% complete that I may never finish.
Yes, this scares me quite a bit whenever I'm working on an outline. I lose interest in projects far too easily, yet at the same time I work better when working from an outline. What do you do?
I wrote book three, then wend back a generation for book two, and back two generations for book three. The problem I ran into was that since I knew the ending, discovering the story became a chore, and I lost interest in finishing the series. I have three novels that are 75% complete that I may never finish.I would never regard anything as final until it is published. Endings can always change.
I write from outlines, and I often have 3-4 books in the series outlined before I start writing book 1. It helps to know where things are going.
Lately I write out of order within a book because certain scenes are more fun than others. Even with an outline, it does make extra editing work to smooth inconsistencies.
I get what you're saying. We want to put our best bit out as the first taste, while series tend to be the best at the end, because everything's so well-developed.
I think it would be really hard to write this way, though. You'd essentially be writing prequels to your books, which locks you down creatively, since you've already established what happens in the future.
It might be better to write the whole series, before launch, then go back and revise book 1 knowing what you know after writing book 3.
I write from outlines, and I often have 3-4 books in the series outlined before I start writing book 1. It helps to know where things are going.
Lately I write out of order within a book because certain scenes are more fun than others. Even with an outline, it does make extra editing work to smooth inconsistencies.
Question: when you outline that extensively, do you find that you lose any interest in the project at all? Do you still feel as energized to write the story, or perhaps you feel more energized having outlined it so thoroughly? Genuinely curious, as I often struggle between plotting and pantsing and when to do either. Thanks for your insights. :cool: