Series v. Stand Alone Book

1. 60

   Tina Glasneckposted 11 years ago

   Series v. Stand Alone Book
   
   I am an author contemplating developing a series based on a character in my first book, THOU SHALL NOT. I personally love a great series, but I've heard of people not liking them because it is a continuous story instead of one complete ending. With that in mind, I wanted to ask your opinion. Do you prefer a stand alone book or a series?

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2. 91

   Georgie Loweryposted 11 years ago

   I like a series if it's done well. Too many writers will take a semi-successful book and stretch it into three or more and the story suffers for it. If I do read a series, I'd rather start on the first book after all the others are published. I seriously hate to wait for a sequel, but that's because I'm impatient.

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   1. 60

      Tina Glasneckposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      Thanks. I think you are correct and it depends on the quality of the story and should not rest on the quantity of books in a series.

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3. 74

   Jenn-Anneposted 11 years ago

   Some of my very favorite books are parts of series. As long as the material and storylines are strong I think a series is fine. It is possible for each book within a series to be self-contained so that it is complete story in itself. Then you don't have to worry about leaving the readers hanging until the next book. Of course, if the story is really good most readers won't mind waiting.

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   1. 60

      Tina Glasneckposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      Thanks! Between books in a series, readers usually have to wait at least a year for the next installment. I agree with you that the material and storyline have to then warrant an additional story and not just be a stretching of a thin plot.

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4. 65

   Veroniquebeeposted 11 years ago

   I think that definitely depends.
   
   If the series is, let's say, three books - oh, cool. The books are expensive - not to mention that books from longer series can be also damn diffficult to get your hands on.
   
   But I can't stress enough how much I hate when I pick up a book in a bookstore, thinking "oh my, this one looks interesting!" only to find out it's book eleven out of twenty-five. I think we all want to read books, not start following a book soap opera. Not to mention that books from longer series only rarely keep the same quality of writing.

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   1. 60

      Tina Glasneckposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      Thank you for your answer. I think the hardest part is determining the number and making sure that each book has a purpose in the entire story.

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5. 69

   hubsyposted 11 years ago

   It depends on the stand alone. Some books can stay by themselves and be perfect. If the ending of your book is already definitive then don't continue it because that's just annoying and unnecessary for the reader. If it's a kind of unfinished story then continue it. Series are awesome and I perosnally prefer them to stand alone. However, again, it's really annoying when stand alones are dragged out for no reason.

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