Trials and Tribulations of Trilogies
They say that readers don't much care for the behind the scenes workings that produce books. I'm not so sure, given how often writer interviews crop up in the glossy Sunday supplements, and one thing that I certainly was in need of myself a few years ago was an idea about how to tackle trilogies. Writing a standalone book is quite an undertaking, but it's self-contained, not part of some larger story arc. Many series work the same way, with each book effectively independent of the others. Trilogies though (and their more manic younger siblings, duologies) are very different. When I was looking for advice, I even did what I vowed I would never do, and asked a published writer for their thoughts. They never replied. I don't blame them (though some writers, like Joe Abercrombie, often respond to pathetic questions on their blogs). Anyway, having laboured through a trilogy, here are my thoughts on the task, as much for my own benefit the next time I try it. I've kept them, appropriately enough, to three.
1) Have an idea where it's going. I am not a planner by nature, I am a 'pantser' (I hate that term, not least because in British English 'pants' is a) underwear, and b) a derogatory term applied to stuff that's rubbish), which means I go with the flow. That said, I did have an idea where I wanted the Tethys Trilogy to end. I think having an ending in mind is important, not because you'll get there exactly - I didn't write the ending I'd been planning all those years ago - but just so you have some idea that the books do actually finish up somewhere. As you go along, that 'somewhere' may well change - which brings me to my second point.
2) Listen to the story and the characters, and let them take you along with them. I've seen some authors describe their characters as tools; Joe Abercrombie (him again, but he is open about these things) describes his characters as 'nails'. I've found that to be true to some extent. The characters have jobs to do, and you should use them for that purpose. But, when you're writing, sometimes a character will take charge. Once you're inside their head, seeing the events from their perspective, you see different options, or you realise that they themselves would never do what you'd planned: it would be out of character. So when that happens, go with it. It may take you somewhere interesting, and even if it doesn't make the final cut, you've had an opportunity to evaluate different outcomes. Listen to your pants.
3) Keep going. This applies to every book ever, and maybe finishing Thalassa: Fire and Flood was exceptionally difficult given the concussion that kept me out of writing for 12-18 months and still bothers me know and then, plus the pandemic and its effects, but a trilogy is a long haul. There are things I would certainly change if I rewrote it, and I suspect that a revision of book 1 in light of work on book 2 is a good idea before book 1 is released, but the important thing is to carry on. Snags crop up along the way, and at those times it's handy to write around them. You can always go back. A case in point: in my final revision of Thalassa: Fire and Flood I spotted what you might call 'an error of omission', not something major affecting the plot as a whole, but an incident that had served to get one character from A to B and then vanished from the scopes, literally as well as metaphorically. Revision 15 and I realised it was unrealistic that this incident would not be mentioned again, so I worked it in as an explanation for another previously unmotivated action. Unknowingly, I'd written past the problem, and the more stuff you have to work with, the easier those solutions become. If all else fails, go through the story again and just see whether you need to straighten out an earlier kink that will set your subsequent events on a different course.
1) Have an idea where it's going. I am not a planner by nature, I am a 'pantser' (I hate that term, not least because in British English 'pants' is a) underwear, and b) a derogatory term applied to stuff that's rubbish), which means I go with the flow. That said, I did have an idea where I wanted the Tethys Trilogy to end. I think having an ending in mind is important, not because you'll get there exactly - I didn't write the ending I'd been planning all those years ago - but just so you have some idea that the books do actually finish up somewhere. As you go along, that 'somewhere' may well change - which brings me to my second point.
2) Listen to the story and the characters, and let them take you along with them. I've seen some authors describe their characters as tools; Joe Abercrombie (him again, but he is open about these things) describes his characters as 'nails'. I've found that to be true to some extent. The characters have jobs to do, and you should use them for that purpose. But, when you're writing, sometimes a character will take charge. Once you're inside their head, seeing the events from their perspective, you see different options, or you realise that they themselves would never do what you'd planned: it would be out of character. So when that happens, go with it. It may take you somewhere interesting, and even if it doesn't make the final cut, you've had an opportunity to evaluate different outcomes. Listen to your pants.
3) Keep going. This applies to every book ever, and maybe finishing Thalassa: Fire and Flood was exceptionally difficult given the concussion that kept me out of writing for 12-18 months and still bothers me know and then, plus the pandemic and its effects, but a trilogy is a long haul. There are things I would certainly change if I rewrote it, and I suspect that a revision of book 1 in light of work on book 2 is a good idea before book 1 is released, but the important thing is to carry on. Snags crop up along the way, and at those times it's handy to write around them. You can always go back. A case in point: in my final revision of Thalassa: Fire and Flood I spotted what you might call 'an error of omission', not something major affecting the plot as a whole, but an incident that had served to get one character from A to B and then vanished from the scopes, literally as well as metaphorically. Revision 15 and I realised it was unrealistic that this incident would not be mentioned again, so I worked it in as an explanation for another previously unmotivated action. Unknowingly, I'd written past the problem, and the more stuff you have to work with, the easier those solutions become. If all else fails, go through the story again and just see whether you need to straighten out an earlier kink that will set your subsequent events on a different course.
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