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Sequel before original has been accepted

CalRazor

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Going to be sending out my first manuscript soon. I've been playing around with a sequel and wondering if that's even worth it, considering the original is still a babe in the woods. Are there any advantages to writing a sequel while you are farming out your original novel? I'm torn because the sequel has potential, but it will be a major time sink that seems dependent on the first book being accepted (the odds of that being quite low). If I choose not to pen the sequel, thinking about writing something in a different genre.
 

lizmonster

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Going to be sending out my first manuscript soon. I've been playing around with a sequel and wondering if that's even worth it, considering the original is still a babe in the woods. Are there any advantages to writing a sequel while you are farming out your original novel? I'm torn because the sequel has potential, but it will be a major time sink that seems dependent on the first book being accepted (the odds of that being quite low). If I choose not to pen the sequel, thinking about writing something in a different genre.

What do you want to write now?
 

indianroads

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Going to be sending out my first manuscript soon. I've been playing around with a sequel and wondering if that's even worth it, considering the original is still a babe in the woods. Are there any advantages to writing a sequel while you are farming out your original novel? I'm torn because the sequel has potential, but it will be a major time sink that seems dependent on the first book being accepted (the odds of that being quite low). If I choose not to pen the sequel, thinking about writing something in a different genre.

Even if you don't get your novel picked up by an agent and publishing house, you can still self publish.

To me, this comes down to whether or not you love your story. If so, then it will get out there one way or the other - so, naturally you would want to start with your sequel. If not - and by the sound of your post, this seems likely - why even submit it?

If you're not excited about your work, set it aside and look at that different genre that seems so appealing. However, if you do that, will you regret it? Putting your blood and sweat into a project isn't always fun, but hard work is how great works are accomplished.
 

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Here's what I always tell people when this question comes up.

Things you have to consider if you write the sequel before selling book 1 (assumes trade publishing):
  • You may never sell book 1, so time spent on a sequel will not go towards selling your next book.
  • You may sell book 1, but that might be the only book the editor wants, so now book 2 is in limbo
  • You may have to do edits on book 1 that will negate the entire plot of book 2 (I have done this; thankfully I hadn't written book 2 yet)
  • The more you put into a series, the more heartbreaking each rejection of book 1 will be (because of course you'll get some rejections)


However...

If you are wanting to (or willing to, if things don't go well with trade publishing) self-publish, having the series all ready to go at the time of publication is a good plan.
As I was just talking about in a similar thread in Novels, if you write book 2 and further before book 1 is published, you have more freedom to change book 1 as needed to suit the series.
If this is the only project you want to work on, no reason not to go with where your heart lies.

I never tell authors not to write sequels to unpublished books if that's what they want to do. I just always tell them to go in with their eyes open.
 

lizmonster

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That's a hard question to answer since doubt has settled in a bit, which for me decreases desire to hone in on a particular project.

Ah, yes: doubt. Worst writer perk ever. :)

FWIW, I'd started a sequel around the time I was querying my first book, but my game plan was to self-pub if I didn't get a nibble after 6 months of querying. (This plan was admittedly kind of naive, but it kept me level-headed about the whole thing. Mostly.) But it was also what I felt like writing at the time, so it all worked out.

I'm currently at the point where if I want an agent I have to write a non-series book, so I'm working on something unrelated. And of course when I get frustrated with that book I keep thinking about the next series book (that I can't sell!).

So sometimes the decision is based on circumstances.

If you can't place this book with an agent/publisher (not sure which you're looking at), what's the plan?
 

CalRazor

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Even if you don't get your novel picked up by an agent and publishing house, you can still self publish.

To me, this comes down to whether or not you love your story. If so, then it will get out there one way or the other - so, naturally you would want to start with your sequel. If not - and by the sound of your post, this seems likely - why even submit it?

If you're not excited about your work, set it aside and look at that different genre that seems so appealing. However, if you do that, will you regret it? Putting your blood and sweat into a project isn't always fun, but hard work is how great works are accomplished.

About your first point, I really enjoyed writing the first book, and enjoyed reading it, but it's hard to escape that pessimism over how it will be received "out there." That sometimes eclipses the love I have for the story.

Work ethic and maximizing chances for success has become a theme for me (to the exclusion of other principles). It's why I finished my first book, finishing a novel brought with it slightly higher chances of success than continuing the habit of abandoning projects. I've left projects on the shelf for most of my life, and what's grown from that is wanting to achieve success, things like genre or any specific idea? Doesn't matter, as long as the style remains intact.
 
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lizmonster

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About your first point, I really enjoyed writing the first book, and enjoyed reading it, but it's hard to escape that pessimism over how it will be received "out there." That sometimes eclipses the love I have for the story.

Work ethic and maximizing chances for success has become a theme for me (to the exclusion of other principles). It's why I finished my first book, finishing a novel brought with it slightly higher chances of success than continuing the habit of abandoning projects. I've left projects on the shelf for most of my life, and what's grown from that is wanting to achieve success, things like genre or any specific idea? Doesn't matter, as long as the style remains intact.

So given this, the question "which one do you want to write?" is about more than just the story.

You've accomplished something huge: you finished a book, after spending a lot of time on projects you've later abandoned. This is an impressive thing, and you're rightly proud of it, in addition to being nervous about the reception of the end product. Given your focus on work ethic and maximizing chances...would you feel similarly accomplished if you finished another, totally unrelated book? Or would it feel like a bigger accomplishment to complete the sequel that's rattling around in your head?

In terms of circumstances...if you're looking to land an agent, then having an unrelated MS in the works is not a bad idea, just to hedge your bets. On the other hand, sometimes having a sequel, finished or in progress, can be an enticement for an agent as well, especially if they see series potential in the book you're querying. I've heard of it going both ways.

My story: I ended up with an R&R merging the book I was querying with the sequel I'd drafted. I'm no longer with that agent, but not because of this. I'm glad I had the sequel finished enough to make it all work. How unusual my circumstances were I don't know, but one thing I've learned is that everything happens in the publishing business, sometimes all at the same time. :)
 

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You may have to do edits on book 1 that will negate the entire plot of book 2 (I have done this; thankfully I hadn't written book 2 yet)

Yes, I've done that too. I was halfway done with the first draft and the whole thing had to go (including book 1). :)
 

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I've written a trilogy over the last 18 months, without selling the first. This is simply the story I wanted to tell. For me, keeping writing after years of not being able to and the prospect of finishing a trilogy (which I'd never done before) outweighed any market concerns. I never really think about the market in anything I write (I probably should here and there...) but Sage makes great points. As long as you understand the pros and cons, do what your gut tells you.
 

CalRazor

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So given this, the question "which one do you want to write?" is about more than just the story.

You've accomplished something huge: you finished a book, after spending a lot of time on projects you've later abandoned. This is an impressive thing, and you're rightly proud of it, in addition to being nervous about the reception of the end product. Given your focus on work ethic and maximizing chances...would you feel similarly accomplished if you finished another, totally unrelated book? Or would it feel like a bigger accomplishment to complete the sequel that's rattling around in your head?

In terms of circumstances...if you're looking to land an agent, then having an unrelated MS in the works is not a bad idea, just to hedge your bets. On the other hand, sometimes having a sequel, finished or in progress, can be an enticement for an agent as well, especially if they see series potential in the book you're querying. I've heard of it going both ways.

My story: I ended up with an R&R merging the book I was querying with the sequel I'd drafted. I'm no longer with that agent, but not because of this. I'm glad I had the sequel finished enough to make it all work. How unusual my circumstances were I don't know, but one thing I've learned is that everything happens in the publishing business, sometimes all at the same time. :)

Interesting. So, essentially, it can go either way? :) That makes the decision a bit more difficult.

Which would give me a greater sense of accomplishment is a good question. Probably completing the sequel since it continues an idea I've cultivated for over a year now, rather than completely switching gears. But I also don't want attachment to one character/world to cloud my judgement. Decisions, decisions...
 

Sonsofthepharaohs

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My novel got rejected from every major UK publishing house, and the feedback was almost universally 'really like the story, well written and researched, but no market for ancient Egypt right now'. One editor asked me if I would rewrite it as a different genre (huh?) and said they'd be interested in another story idea I pitched to her. But.... I'd always known this was only the first book, and there was at least one more to finish the character's arc. And I really wanted to write that sequel, regardless of whether the first book ever got a publisher. So I decided to shelve everything else and concentrate on finishing the story I'd set out to tell. As I started outlining the sequel, I realised there was potentially a series of 3 or 4, so self pubbing looked like the best way to go. But with the failure to get book 1 trade published, self doubt crept in and I haven't really been able to get the sequel off the ground. It's been almost three years since we shopped book 1, and I haven't written much at all in that time, too stuck on my current story to commit to another one, but too disheartened to finish it.

So, take whatever you will from this cautionary tale. It really depends what you want to achieve in terms of publishing goals, but if you have passion for a particular project, I'd say go with it.
 

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Kallithrix and lizmonster are right. This is true of anything:

You have to follow your passion.

Put aside your doubt for a minute, and decide where your passion truly lies. You said your pessimism over market reception sometimes eclipses the love you have for the story. Don't let it. If your love is for this story, follow it through.
 

Sage

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Kallithrix and lizmonster are right. This is true of anything:

You have to follow your passion.

Put aside your doubt for a minute, and decide where your passion truly lies. You said your pessimism over market reception sometimes eclipses the love you have for the story. Don't let it. If your love is for this story, follow it through.

But if it's true that the OP's love for the project is eclipsed by probable rejections as they query (because even books that are big successes have rejections first), that sensation isn't going to get better when they invest their time and emotions into a sequel while actually getting those rejections. I'm not saying that they shouldn't write the sequels if that's where their passions are, but I am saying that it gets harder to work on something when you're feeling that it's already getting rejected, and that can make you lose the love you might otherwise have had for writing it.

That's why you have to go into writing sequels with your eyes open. It's better to be something you want to write so much that it doesn't matter if book 1 gets rejected today, tomorrow, or even forever.
 
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Bufty

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It also depends what one means by a sequel. Is it the same characters? Same names? Same places? Is it the same setting? Does it really continue from the first one? Does it stand alone? Could it stand alone?

Any of those elements can be altered after the event if necessary.

Whatever your final decision, I wish you luck. No idea when one realises it's the right decision or not.:Hug2:
 

Harlequin

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So... Here are my random thoughts in no particular order.

If you sell book 1, publishers will likely be wanting a series or more similar books in that vein, and even if it is a standalone many contracts have a first look clause (they get first peek at whatever you produce next). Having a series or similar books in mind, isn't all terrible.

Lots of sff are series sales.

Books written together make for a stronger series (you can revise book 1 based on later additions to the series; less continuity errors). Think about Assassin's Apprentice and all the continuity flaws it contained because Robin hobb was not able to write them together. (OTOH, it didn't hurt her sales.)

I think there is a place for writing a series before book 1 is done. That said, I put aside my series to write a standalone in a different subgenre that (hopefully) will be more commercial. That does mean that if it sells, the series would get pushed back even further while I have to somehow do two or three more that are contemporary fantasy, but that's okay too; I can quietly work on my series in the background and regardless of what happens with the standalone, hope to pitch the series to the agent eventually.

I am also happy to self pub my series later down the road if need be, and if I do that they need to be written in advance for rapid release.
 

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I think about this in a different way to all these actually published authors here.

When I finally got on with writing my MS, my aim was to actually accomplish something that I always thought I could do i.e. write a book. It quickly transpired that one book alone was not enough to tell the story I dreamed of, and so the bare bones of the 2nd and 3rd books were fleshed out as MS1 was being completed. I'm unlikely to query MS1. I'm writing a query and synopsis for it as a learning experience, but I personally feel my writing style isn't good enough to send it off. However, after a short break from writing I'm at the start of MS2. I'm desperate to continue with the story. I love the characters and the world I built so I want to conclude the story threads still hanging from book 2.


So I would say - if your aim is to definitely have it published, and you mention you want to "maximize your chances for success", then it could be considered "a waste of time" to write a sequel before you know if book 1 sells. But if you really feel like you have a story that needs to be written, and you don't really care if it's published, not to mention the benefit to your own writing of actually... you know... writing, then just do it :).
 

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My novel got rejected from every major UK publishing house, and the feedback was almost universally 'really like the story, well written and researched, but no market for ancient Egypt right now'.

A bit of a sidetrack grumble here, but really--if they're not publishing anything set in ancient Egypt, how do they know there's no market for it? The public can't buy what isn't there. Markets are created, and that means there always has to be the book that breaks ground. /grumble


I sympathize with how demotivating it all must be. I hope you can break out of the rut soon and hit on something that inspires both you and the publishers.
 

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Write what you're driven to write. Worry about selling it later.
 

CalRazor

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So... Here are my random thoughts in no particular order.

If you sell book 1, publishers will likely be wanting a series or more similar books in that vein, and even if it is a standalone many contracts have a first look clause (they get first peek at whatever you produce next). Having a series or similar books in mind, isn't all terrible.

Lots of sff are series sales.

Books written together make for a stronger series (you can revise book 1 based on later additions to the series; less continuity errors). Think about Assassin's Apprentice and all the continuity flaws it contained because Robin hobb was not able to write them together. (OTOH, it didn't hurt her sales.)

I think there is a place for writing a series before book 1 is done. That said, I put aside my series to write a standalone in a different subgenre that (hopefully) will be more commercial. That does mean that if it sells, the series would get pushed back even further while I have to somehow do two or three more that are contemporary fantasy, but that's okay too; I can quietly work on my series in the background and regardless of what happens with the standalone, hope to pitch the series to the agent eventually.

I am also happy to self pub my series later down the road if need be, and if I do that they need to be written in advance for rapid release.

Yeah, self pubbing is something I might consider down the road. So having a series already written if you choose to self pub is a bonus, and like you said, writing them together helps to maintain continuity.

Going to at least try traditional publishing first, though. Just want to give it a decent shot.

Genre is also a concern of mine and might help me with my decision. I've only told people of the synopsis, which apparently gives off a horror vibe. So I'm going to have to get some beta readers to confirm. One other possibility is psychological thriller, but not sure if that fits either. But if the book consistently reads as "horror" not sure if that will make querying agents more difficult.
 
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Harlequin

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Honestly, query it as whatever you think you can get away with, and stick it down at the bottom along with other housekeeping. Give agents a chance to be intrigued by query first, enough to read pages, rather than putting them off straight away. Janet Reid talks about this a little bit--she repped two novels which she considered thrillers, but were technically speculative fiction. Because she read the query first, she then went on to read pages; if she'd seen "speculative fiction" at the top, she says she might have passed it by instead, on the assumption it's a genre she doesn't read.

Re the self publishing thing, I suppose I was talking about in terms of hybrid publishing--so, even if I get other things published but still can't sell this series (that happens) I would still self pub it, and try to utilise any platform I've gotten from the trade stuff (hah! all this is a pipe dream atm). In other words, if you can't sell the series, don't self pub it yet; try writing/selling something else, and then see where you are and maybe brush the dust off your trunked novels.
 

lizmonster

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Yeah, self pubbing is something I might consider down the road. So having a series already written if you choose to self pub is a bonus, and like you said, writing them together helps to maintain continuity.

Going to at least try traditional publishing first, though. Just want to give it a decent shot.

FWIW, the term is "trade publishing." (I know a lot of folks use "traditional" colloquially, but it's inaccurate. Among other things, self-publishing is also traditional. :))

Genre is also a concern of mine and might help me with my decision. I've only told people of the synopsis, which apparently gives off a horror vibe. So I'm going to have to get some beta readers to confirm. One other possibility is psychological thriller, but not sure if that fits either. But if the book consistently reads as "horror" not sure if that will make querying agents more difficult.

Plenty of horror agents out there. :) But you do want to nail your genre. Read widely until you find some decent comps - they can help with your query, too.
 

Gillhoughly

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One of my first signings had me sitting next to a Big Name Writer who had a layer of attitude you could scrape with a dull knife. He ignored me, hard to do at a shared table, but I said hello to be polite and did not bother him. He got the lion's share of autograph seekers, but a few enthusiastic readers gushed over my three little paperbacks, which was a delight.

His curiosity finally got him to ask me about my publishing experience and how I sold my first book. I was proud to say that when the editor who'd read it asked if I had anything else, I was able to answer that I had finished two more books in the series. She liked that reply. After two years and 2 dozen rewrites I landed a multi-book deal with a major house.

Snooty Big Name Pro said, "Why did you bother writing two more books while you were shopping the first?" He looked at me as though I was the dumbest person in the world.

I returned the favor. "Because I couldn't NOT write them! They were in me, I had to get them out!"

Big Name Pro didn't get it, which told me that I need not bother reading any of his books. He didn't have the fire in the belly. Maybe he never had it.

If you have the fire in the belly then write whatever book is inside you that's demanding to get out. Doesn't matter if it's a sequel or a whole different genre. Figure out what excites you and DO it. Don't let insecurity wimp you out. GO FOR IT!

You may be tired from the effort of finishing the first book, and that's normal. That's when you take a breather, run to the library, and read the hell out of it. When you're ready, you will start the next one and you will LOVE it!
 
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BethS

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If you have the fire in the belly then write whatever book is inside you that's demanding to get out. Doesn't matter if it's a sequel or a whole different genre. Figure out what excites you and DO it. Don't let insecurity wimp you out. GO FOR IT!

Yes, yes, yes.