Alex asked Michael J. Sullivan:

I know that the Riyira Revelations were all completed before you started publishing them, and you've said that really helped you make sure the overall story arc fit well and each book built on the last. How do has it changed the writing process for you to write the Riyira Chronicles or Hollow World without being able to hold them back?

Michael J. Sullivan Hey Alex, thanks for asking. I actually have continued my tradition of writing all the books before publishing the first. In the case of The Riyria Chronicles I turned in the two books as once, as those were the only stories that I was 100% sure would be part of the The Chronicles. In fact, I wrote book #2 first, then realized I didn't go back in time far enough and hence The Crown Tower was born.

For Hollow World, well that was designed as a standalone book. I do have some ideas for further stories in that world and with those characters, but I have not determined if I'll write those tales.

My most recent project, The First Empire, is a multi-volume fantasy series. I've written the first three and will have the fourth completed before the first one is published.

Writing all the books before releasing the first is not a technique that I recommend for most authors, but it is one that works well for me. Being able to adjust previous books when a great idea comes up late in the series is one of the things that I really love about series work. Hopefully, I'll always be in a position to do that. We'll see what the future brings.

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