Topic: Anyone else working on a sequel?

[yellow_submarine]

Hello everyone!

I'm about 15,000 words into my first ever sequel (also my first experience of writing a novel under contract -- eek!). It's funny; I've drafted so many manuscripts I've lost count, but until now they've all been standalones. I’m realizing now that a sequel is an entirely different beast.

I'm terribly afraid of disappointing my editor, so it's reassuring to hear that others have gone through similar periods of self-doubt! I'd love to resurrect this thread if anyone else is currently drafting a sequel and fancies a chat about the process.

[rab]

Hey, yellow-sub! I just turned in a "stand-alone companion book" on Monday, the second that I've done. But it was writing under contract that I found way more stressful than the fact that it was a follow-up book. What are you finding the most difficult? Since I was writing fantasy, it was a relief in some ways that I'd already done so much of the work of creating the world and now I could focus other things. You know, like plot and character!

[yellow_submarine]

Hi rab! Congrats on turning in your latest MS; it must be such a satisfying moment to finally hit "send."

That's an interesting point about world building in sequels. My MS is fantasy too, but I really love world building at the start of a project, so perhaps that's what I'm missing this time around. Hmmm…

Honestly, I think my major concern is recapturing the voice/ tone of my protagonist. It's been over a year since I wrote the first instalment, and the book is in 1st person so nailing her voice is pretty crucial.

Over the last day or so, though, I've started to feel more confident. I think the words are flowing more naturally now, so hopefully that continues. My narrator can be quite a stubborn character, so perhaps she just took a while to warm up again! 

[Christy]

Hey! Wanted to chime in here. I'm scratching away at a sequel. It hasn't been bought yet but it's a book I just need to write whether or not it will get picked up or not. It's weird to actually start a book where I already know the characters!

[ohmylorelei]

Ha.  Just updating that the companion book I was working on when I posted to this thread almost TWO YEARS AGO is still being revised.  We had to push the deadline back twice, and it's killing me.  A huge part of what made the book hard was in the connections to the first book.

But finally we're discussing covers, so I guess it's safe to assume that I will finally slay this beast, and Seven Stories Up will enter the world in 2014!   Good luck to all you sequelers!

[Christy]

Laurel- what a story. I'm so impressed that you haven't given up on it.

[Hélène Boudreau]

Hooray, Laurel! You must be so relieved.

I just finished the third book in my mermaid series and in retrospect can say the second book was hard but the third was the hardest. Making connections from the first to the second to the third book while still giving each book its own story arc is like writing with one hand tied behind your back (because of the constraints of the world building you've created so far) but it's also as though your remaining hand grows five more fingers (because of all the delicious possibilities as the story continues to unfold).

However, it takes MUCH more effort to type with a ten-fingered hand! lolz

[yellow_submarine]

Well, I just sent Book II off to my agent! (She wants to look at it before we send it to my editor.) I'm really nervous about this… I hope it's not a disappointment. 

It hasn't been bought yet but it's a book I just need to write whether or not it will get picked up or not.

I think that's a great attitude. I felt the same way about this sequel when I originally finished Book I, but forced myself to move onto another project because it seemed too risky to write an unsold sequel. Now I wish I'd written it when I was first inspired to do so!

But finally we're discussing covers, so I guess it's safe to assume that I will finally slay this beast, and Seven Stories Up will enter the world in 2014!   

Oooh, congrats! I hope all goes well for the rest of SSU's publication process; things can only get easier from now, right? 

I just finished the third book in my mermaid series and in retrospect can say the second book was hard but the third was the hardest. Making connections from the first to the second to the third book while still giving each book its own story arc is like writing with one hand tied behind your back (because of the constraints of the world building you've created so far) but it's also as though your remaining hand grows five more fingers (because of all the delicious possibilities as the story continues to unfold).

However, it takes MUCH more effort to type with a ten-fingered hand! lolz

Heheh, I love that analogy! Congrats on finishing Book III and I hope your poor fingers are now taking a much-deserved rest.

[dewsanddamps]

I wrote the middle book of a trilogy while revising the first for my agent. Love the characters, the period--just had a lot of fun writing both books.

Then my agent retired abruptly. Crap.

Instead of writing the third book, I've written something with which I can query. (Dear Lucky Agent: Since you didn't like Book 1, would you like to see Book 2?) And I know future editorial input could change Book 2, so I really shouldn't write 3 now.

But it itches all the time.