I’m talking about writing about the
same characters here, not setting aside the keyboard and giving up on the
writing game completely.
I’ve finished two trilogies and
just about wrapped up a third, plus I have a fantasy detective series of
novellas that will be ready to add number eight in the series by the end of
this year.
When is it time to stop writing
about the same characters? You can become so involved with your favorite
imaginary friends that you don’t want to let them go. How many times have you
picked up a book by one of your beloved authors, discover it is number twelve
or so in a series, and upon reading, find a rehash of previous plots?
Some writers can pull this off. One
of my all-time favorites is the late Terry Pratchett. I never get tired of
reading his work, but unfortunately, writers of his skill are few and far
between.
When I completed “Dark Knights,”
the third in the “Dark Lady” trilogy, I took a deep breath and said, “Enough of
these people for now.” If I ever run short of ideas, I know there is a wealth
of material still lying there to be mined. There are minor players still alive
and kicking who could carry a series on their own. Let it be.
The same thing happened in the
recently completed “Queen’s Pawn” trilogy (Third book, The Queen’s Game”
arrives August 2nd.) Although the protagonists are still young and
healthy, I’d rather go on to something else. At least for now.
I feel, under the normal course of
events, three volumes is probably enough to carry a single story. You have to
develop book one so that it is a complete tale, but still leaves you wanting
more. In book two you have to avoid the dreadful problem of just marking time
and filling space until you can get on with the finale. Book three rises its
ugly head and cries out, please finish me off.
I take my toque off to writers who
can carry a story on for several volumes without losing the reader’s interest. But,
if you have built your world with care, and developed characters who grow a
feel, you will never have a shortage of material. You can always return to that
world, be it the familiar characters, their sidekicks, or their ancestors, and
run with the story again.
How do you know when it’s time to
stop telling the same story and move on?
R.J.Hore
www.ronaldhore.comwww.facebook.com/RonaldJHore
The Dark Lady, Dark Days, Dark Knights (a trilogy)
The Queen’s Pawn, The Queen’s Man, The Queen’s Game due August 2016 (a trilogy)
The Housetrap Chronicles (Volumes 1 to 7)
Alex in Wanderland,
Knight’s Bridge
We’re Not in Kansas
1 comments:
I know it's time to stop when a fan comes up and directly tells me to "Leave her alone, she's been through enough." Actually happened when a reader thought I was going to pick up on an existing series.
Post a Comment