Jessica Russell's Blog - Posts Tagged "standalone"
Be Careful With Those Sagas
Here’s a simple tip for your debut novel. Even if you are planning to write 10 more books, it might be better to release your first one as a standalone novel. Not that you have to put “standalone novel” on the cover. It’s more about leaving “Book One of the XYZ Trilogy” OFF the cover. The reason is that a lot of people are hesitant to take a risk on a new author, and if the title of the book they’re considering looks like it might have loose ends that require them to read the next one in the series, they may shy away from buying it at all.
Even if you plan to wrap it up tightly and not force the person to go on to a part two of any kind, THEY might not know that. A lot of people don’t want to commit to a series until they decide whether or not they like the author, so in my humble opinion, it’s always better to bill your first book as a standalone and then surprise your audience with a sequel once you’ve targeted a small fan base.
Believe me, if they like the first one, they’ll buy the second one, but if you try to shove three or four at them all at once, they may be hesitant to make that kind of commitment. Sometimes less is more, and not letting the cat out of the bag early on is often the best way to end up selling an entire series! Write on!
Even if you plan to wrap it up tightly and not force the person to go on to a part two of any kind, THEY might not know that. A lot of people don’t want to commit to a series until they decide whether or not they like the author, so in my humble opinion, it’s always better to bill your first book as a standalone and then surprise your audience with a sequel once you’ve targeted a small fan base.
Believe me, if they like the first one, they’ll buy the second one, but if you try to shove three or four at them all at once, they may be hesitant to make that kind of commitment. Sometimes less is more, and not letting the cat out of the bag early on is often the best way to end up selling an entire series! Write on!
