Why Sequels Suck
What should happen in the first book is pretty obvious. You start from zero, build a world that people care about. Characters they care about. And if they care about those characters enough, guess what: you get to write a sequel. I have this fantasy wherein I write a stand alone book but it’s never really happened that way; even The Prince’s Slave was originally released as a serial. Right now, I’m working on Prince of Darkness, the sequel to Book of Shadows, and it’s hard. Because I’m letting everyone read it as I write it but, moreover, because it is a sequel. Now, in my case, I know what’s going to happen throughout the series but…strangely enough, that doesn’t make things easier.
The first and most obvious problem is that the energy has got to be very different in a second book. If, you know, you’re doing it right. Because, well, the good news and the bad news are the same news: it’s a continuation of the story. Which means there’s a fine line between regurgitating the first book and writing a book that doesn’t feel like it belongs in the same storyline at all. If the energy is too different, it’s going to alienate your core readership. They don’t want, say, a romance that suddenly turns into a horror novel. Even if you’re going to introduce new elements–of plot and character–you’re going to have to do so in a way that honors what you’ve already created.
Then there’s the issue of pacing. A slow build, in a first book, creates tension. But unless you’re slowly building toward a completely new plot arc, and even if you are, in the second book “slow” tends to equal “boring.” Moreover, just like you can’t have the characters roaming around in circles, never developing, you can’t simply recycle the same plot arc over and over. Because guess what: what created tension the first time…it’s like watching an M. Night Shyamalan movie. That device is only going to work once.
There’s a lot of discussion out there about the evils of so-called “fan service,” but ideally a well-crafted book does give its fans what they want (while also staying true to its creator’s vision). That is, after all, the core purpose of entertainment. If your story isn’t appealing…then really, what’s the point? As much as you might like to (and, trust me, I’d like to) sit your readers down and explain why they’re wrong, you can’t. Because, really, they’re not. Liking something is something you can’t fake. The joy is either spontaneous, real, and there or it isn’t. Trying to force it in someone else is like commanding them to fake an orgasm.
Do people like Prince of Darkness as much as they liked Book of Shadows? I have no idea. It can be hard to tell, anyway, since not everyone shares their thoughts and the book is only a little over a quarter posted. So maybe it’s too early to tell–for me and for them. I certainly hope they do, of course. That they like it but, moreover, that one of the reasons they like it is that they, as a group, feel like I’m being true to the characters they’ve grown to love. That this is still Alex, and still Sepha, and still Lucie, maybe not doing exactly what they’d imagined–hopefully not, or things wouldn’t be very suspenseful–but being exactly themselves.
What about you? What makes a sequel bad or good for you? Let me know in the comments.
