I wasn't going to do it...

Feels strangely liberating, doesn't it?

abctriplets said:

To me, it always reeked of sadness and desperation. I mean, the chances of actually getting your book published are extremely stacked against you. And then you choose to spend how many years, how many hundreds of thousands of words, immersed in a world you created, when in all likelihood you probably won't be able to publish Book 1, let alone the rest of your epic saga.

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Some of us write for the sake of writing. Because we enjoy it. Publication is not the primary goal for alot of people.

If that's where the story goes and you want to write it, why not? The joy comes from the story. If not, what's the point of doing it at all?

And just because you thought up a sequel doesn't mean you have to write it right now. I saw the full trilogy of my story halfway through the first, did some research, made some notes, then let it sit there until I sold book one. Seeing potential in your story is a good thing.

It also doesn't mean you have to add the "series potential" line in your query. You can always save that for a conversation with an agent who offers representation.

you are blessed with a talent, and if that's the direction it leads you, why not explore it? Whatever comes from your efforts, you will learn and grow as a result.

I've never yet written a word that has series potential, by any stretch of the imagination, at least, not mine.

Is it the one with the twins? Because, yeah, that one totally has series potential But seriously, just outline your shiny new ideas, and keep working at the first story till you get it right!

abctriplets said:

In the back of my mind, I always had to chuckle at writers who talk about being in the midst of Book 4 in their series, meanwhile they were still struggling to query Book 1 (always with the sentence at the end stating that they had Books 2-4 all ready to go, if the agent wanted to see those too).

To me, it always reeked of sadness and desperation. I mean, the chances of actually getting your book published are extremely stacked against you. And then you choose to spend how many years, how many hundreds of thousands of words, immersed in a world you created, when in all likelihood you probably won't be able to publish Book 1, let alone the rest of your epic saga.

So there I was, happily plugging away at my stand-alone WIP. The one that I would make perfect before moving on and finishing work on my next stand-alone WIP. I was thankful that my plot and characters were neatly wrapped up at the end of my WIP. I'd never be one of those fools eagerly delve into their "Series Potential!" sagas.

And then the other night I thought of a sequel to my WIP.

And I started researching.

*Sigh*

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Believe me, you're perfectly normal. When I first wrote Gabriel, it was supposed to be a stand alone.

As you might have heard, I've spent 5 long years working on Gabriel. After awhile, I had ideas for two more books. One of those books was sparked when many of my trusted readers who've helped me Gabriel took an interest to that story's antagonist, and seeing there was more to say, I've been thinking of his story. I've written parts of it, and will work on it in earnest once I feel Gabriel can finally be as good as it'll get, though sometimes I wonder if that day will ever come...

I even have ideas for books set in the same world, but Gabriel isn't the MC, but might make appearances here and there.

Yes, I've written many other things in those 5 years, some of which I also think could have series potential, others not so much, but they're all important to me, and I loved writing them. Even on the days when editing them feels like I'm pulling my own teeth with no morphine, if you catch my drift.

My point is, if you feel in your heart that you must write this sequel at some point, just go for it.

I'm a firm believer that you must love and be invested in the stories you tell, otherwise you're cheating the readers you want to have, as well as yourself.

While publication is my goal in the long term, I'd never forgive myself if I put my name on something that I didn't love and believe in.

There are so many ways in life where we have to compromise and sacrifice. Something I've always known, always seen, and something I'm still learning to deal with.

But the one thing I'll never do is apologize for what I love and believe in.

That's the one of the most important things no one can take away from you.

Odds are one thing, surrendering to the odds is something else.

As a writer, I've been to Hell and back more times than I'd ever want to count, even ended up in a hospital when I emotionally lost it, making everyone at home uncomfortable.

But all that shaped me into who I've become now. I'm still overemotional, as you may know from some of my posts, but I've become a stronger writer all the same.

I've learned to trust my judgment more, while still knowing when to heed someone's advice. While I didn't love going through that abyss of emotional pain, it was worth it if I can learn from that experience.

I hope I'm not freaking you out, I just wanted you to know that it's normal to feel how you're feeling.

You obviously must love your current story's world and characters a lot to want to spend more time with them. You shouldn't feel bad about it.

Sometimes you can say all you need to about a character or characters with one book, and other times, you want to say more. I hope that helps.

C.J.

Took me 10 years before I felt compelled to write a sequel to my novella. Now I'm considering un-sequelizing it, as it doesn't need to be a sequel, but the MCs are so similar that it might be better as a sequel. They take place 15 years apart and the second isn't based on the first, so maybe it's not truly a sequel.

I think that's a good thing. Maybe you won't write the sequel. But what if...you get attention from an agent? Isn't one of the first questions likely to be, What else are you working on? Being able to say, Well, if a sequel is wanted, I already have the plot outlined... That would be a good thing.

As long as you've actually written book 1, it's cool. The problem with many of the "I'm writing a trilogy" folks is that they never even complete one novel, let alone three. And having such a large goal can be crushing sometimes.

But it sounds like you don't have that problem, so have fun!

Smish

I think we also need to honor and respect the creative process. Sometimes ideas pop up. If we don't pursue them, at least a little bit, we end up losing that juicy connection with the subconscious.

I notice that I go through phases. Sometimes I'm capable of intense concentration on one single project for months at a time. But when my life gets a little unbalanced, I get this urge to just poke along. Then I can do one of two things. I can turn into a slug and accomplish nothing. Or I can jot down every little idea that pops into my head and eventually the focus returns and I can move forward. But if I don't give in to those little urges, they get stuck in my brain and I can't do anything!

So my advice is: follow the new idea until you run out of steam. You'll suddenly be rejuvenated for the hard work of finishing the one you're already started.

I relate a lot to your OP, abctriplets. I haven't even told my agent that the book she's submitting is the first of a series, meanwhile I'm almost finished the first draft of the sequel. Is that bad? I figure if it sells and she wants to know what I'm doing next, I can tell her then.

I think mostly I want every book (in this series) to feel like a stand alone, so if I tell my betas and my agent that it's a planned series, they may start to look for things that make it seem more like a wannabe saga or something.

But, yeah, I got the idea for the character (and his story), planning it to be one book. It's weird how EVERYTHING wants to be a series nowadays...