Writing a Book Series

The pros and cons of writing a series

There’s a lot to be said for writing a series of books. If it’s successful, it can keep you on the shelves for years, even decades. If your first novel in the series is good enough, publishers will be more likely to accept it than a stand-alone novel.

Another advantage is that you already know your character, or you should do. It can also allow you to see your character develop and grow as the series progresses. Not only your main character, either, but his or her sidekick, family, and any other recurring figures.

A successful series can be lucrative, and it can write your name in the echelons of the great.

On the other hand, maintaining a series, writing about the same character year after year can burn up your creativity. It can suck the life out of other projects you may want to work on. It can also put a lot of pressure on you to churn out book after book to feed your publisher and the reading public.

If you think this is something you would like, despite the difficulties, you need to make some decisions. Here are some questions you should ask yourself:

What sort of series do I want?

There is the Harry Potter type, in which one novel follows from the one before, and sets up events in the ones that will follow. There is also the type of series which contains the same characters, but each book stands on its own. Think the Agatha Christie Hercule Poirot or Miss Marple books. There are also the types of book that focus on a different group of characters each time, but events are linked from one book to the next. Think a series that might, for instance, be based on the White House. Each volume focuses on a different president and his family and staff, but the staff of the building remain the same (perhaps one might be your point of view character).

Who is my main character?

It helps to give him or her the sort of personality that attracts the reader. He might be a serial killer but also a caring father. Or a little old lady with a mind like a steel trap. Ask yourself why some of the most successful characters keep their readers coming back even a century after their creation. Yes, some people love James Bond for the danger, but his devil-may-care attitude undoubtedly helps. Sherlock Holmes’s dry sense of humour is as appealing as the mysteries he solves. What is appealing about your character?

What’s the hook?

Bond is a spy; Charlie Daniels is a private investigator; and Kathy Reichs’ heroine, Temperance Brennan, is a forensic anthropologist. Having an interesting profession can help, but you also need an interesting character. Perhaps your hero / heroine is a movie buff, or a taxidermist. Maybe they drive a vintage Rolls Royce, or live on a boat. Whatever interesting element you give him or her, it has to be sustainable. After all, you’re planning on writing several books, not just one. Be careful not to make your hero too much of a cartoon. Don’t tell the Christie fans, but Poirot’s obsession with his little moustache always felt faintly ridiculous to me.

You may feel differently, but I fairly quickly lost interest in Anne Perry’s William Monk series. The first book tells us he is a Metropolitan policeman in 1850s-60’s London. He has had an accident which left him with amnesia. Great hook, right? I thought so too, but as the books progressed, there really wasn’t anywhere to go with it. His job changes a few times, and the stories themselves are (mostly) engaging, but I lost interest about five books in.

What’s their motto?

No, you don’t have to write it in your book, but it should be evident from the way your character behaves. We could speculate that Bond’s motto is, Live fast, die young, leave a beautiful corpse. Miss Marple’s unshakable belief in good and evil suggests her motto is something like Edmund Burke’s “The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.” Give your hero / heroine a motto and reveal it in how they live.

Who or what is their nemesis?

Bond, though he faced a number of villains over his illustrious career, had a specific enemy in SMERSH, the villainous organisation behind many of his enemies. The Men from UNCLE faced THRUSH. Poirot, Miss Marple, and many other detectives face a variety of different villains. You need to decide which way you want to go with your stories. I prefer the individual enemies because it allows for more variety. The same good guy–bad guy conflict going on for 20-something books is going to get pretty stale, unless you’re very creative.

Who are the others in the hero’s orbit?

Where would Sherlock Holmes be without his Boswell, ie, Dr Watson? Poirot had Hastings, and even Bond had M, Q, and Miss Moneypenny. Inspector Wexford, in the Ruth Rendell series, is a family man with a wife and two daughters as well as a partner.

Giving your hero (or anti-hero if you want to go that direction) a world to inhabit makes him more real. It can also provide conflict and support depending on how you want it to go.

Is it for you?

If you decide to go for it, it can bring many rewards. On the other hand, the costs are equally high. Is it for you? Only you can say.

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