A common discussion among writers is whether to write a standalone novel (a single-title book) or a series of books featuring the same characters or world. My opening response when entering these discussions is to write the story how you see it. I give that same advice to every author I work with.
Yes, a large majority of avid readers adore series novels and will continuously devour them. However, I believe if you asked them for a list of their favorite books, you would more often than not also find a standalone on that shelf.
As an avid reader, my list of favorite authors isn’t a short one these days, and it continues to grow as I give new-to-me authors a read. Most of the authors on that favorites list have a number of series in their book bag, as well as a respectable selection of standalone novels, and I’ve enjoyed them all.
Some of my all-time favorites are part of a series, and many are not. As a matter of fact, I can think of some novellas (17,500–40,000 words) on my favorites list as well.
This brings up another dilemma of some newbie authors who panic when the story they’re writing comes to an end before their word count reaches that magic number of novel-length. Again, my response is always: Write the story how it should be told, and you’ll be fine.
It’s not uncommon to begin writing a story you fully intend to be a standalone, and then at some point along the way, you discover these characters have a lot more to say than you realized. On the flip side, it’s also not uncommon to write a standalone that is so good your readers beg you to make it a series.
That happened to me as an author with the one standalone I have on my “published” list. My readers wanted more of the characters I created in that book, but I just haven’t envisioned more for them. Their story was told, and I’m happy with leaving it at that.
One of the secrets to writing a good story is: don’t force it. Don’t add fluff or drag out the ending just to increase your word count. Your readers will notice, and that only turns a good story into a disappointing one. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard someone say, “I was really enjoying that book until…”
In fact, there is a book that used to be on my shelf written by one of my favorite authors that I simply couldn’t finish reading, and although it hurt my soul to do so, that book was long ago donated to the local library.
Why couldn’t I finish reading it? Well, as a surprise to me—because, as I said, this author is one of my favorites—she continuously repeated the same personal information about the two main characters’ feelings and motives. Sometimes, the wording was the same and other times, she switched it up a bit, but the message was the same. She also kept filling half a page or more with detailed descriptions of the main characters’ profession—how it worked, what equipment they were using, the dangers, etc. It got so monotonous I started skimming over long sections. I began to wonder if this story came out at novella length until her publisher told her to make it longer, and adding all these unneeded words was her way of doing so. The result was a book I gave up on after about fifty pages.
Getting back to the subject of a series, this same secret holds. Don’t force it. Whether your series consists of two books, five books, or more should totally depend on the story to be told. Don’t let anyone (yourself included) convince you that you simply must have a certain number of books in the series just because.
I have several duologies (that is a series of two) on my shelves. And yes, I have read them more than once and will most definitely read them again. One of my absolute favorites is written by Julie Garwood, The Bride and The Wedding. If you like medieval romance with lots of humor, I highly recommend them.
Another of my favorites is Julie Garwood’s fourteen contemporary thrillers, each listed as a standalone with connecting characters, which is another type of series if you ask me. I never got tired of them and always wanted more. I also believe that writing them as standalone novels was a very wise decision on her part, as there would never have been any “jumping of the shark” because each book was a story all its own.
Returning to that particular secret to writing a good story, you need to know when to write that last chapter—close the book and start something entirely new. Don’t “jump the shark,” as they say in television land.
I don’t have the leisure time to watch weeknight sitcoms anymore, not since I started writing and editing and mentoring full-time, but once upon a time, I was a TV-holic, and I followed a number of sitcoms religiously. That is until the writers jumped the shark and ruined the story by dragging their storyline on for far too long. That's when I turned them off and never tuned in again.
When writing your story and deciding how it should be told, you should also keep in mind that there are three types of series and even series including subseries, like J.K. Rowlings’ Harry Potter books, just to name one.
The first and most common type of series is a Dynamic Series. This is where every book features the same main character or a group of characters with one main goal in mind. Think Hunger Games, written by Suzanne Collins. The storyline concludes when the main characters have reached their goal, setting the world back on its axis, and in doing so, those same characters have changed significantly.
These books are not standalone novels, as each book that comes before the final book in the series ends on a cliffhanger, pulling the reader forward to the next book in the series.
Then there is the Static Series. Each book in a static series revolves around the same main characters, although each story consists of a storyline all its own. These books are typically not written linearly and contain a new set of side characters with a completely new plotline.
You will most often find this type of series in the mystery or thriller genre. Some highly successful and well-known series that fit in this category are Sherlock Holmes, Nancy Drew and The Hardy Boys, just to name a few.
In a static series, the main characters typically do not evolve personally, although the main characters are the flame that attracts readers to keep coming back. It’s more a day-in-the-life-of type of series, where a character or group of characters whom readers have already come to love are solving a crime or resolving a major dilemma. And these books typically do not need to be read in order.
The third type of series is defined as an Anthology Series. These stories all take place in the same world, although they may not follow the same main characters. An anthology series may even consist of a subseries like the Harry Potter books, as mentioned above.
An anthology series can often be made up of a mix of dynamic and static series, such as the original Harry Potter books and the Mysterious Beasts subseries (or spin-off) created by J.K. Rowling.
However, don’t think this type of series is limited to fantasy just because that’s the only one mentioned. There are many well-known anthology series under the genres of science fiction, historical fiction and romance as well.
Whatever type of series best tells your story or stories, remember that your main goal is to create characters, worlds and storylines your readers will love. Make them crave more so they’ll keep returning to the series for the next book.
Lastly, for those who might want to know, I thought I would add the definitions for the number of books in a series, which you’ll find below.
Write on, authors, and get creating! We all need more awesome books to read.
A series of 2 books is called a Duology
A series of 3 books is called a Trilogy
A series of 4 books is called a Tetralogy
A series of 5 books is called a Pentalogy
A series of 6 books is called a Hexology
A series of 7 books is called a Heptalogy
A series of 8 books is called an Octology
A series of 9 books is called an Ennealogy
A series of 10 books is called a Decology
A series of 11 books is called an Undecology
A series of 12 books is called a Dodecology
A series of 13 books is called a Tridecology
A series of 14 books is called a Tetradecology
A series of 15 books is called a Pentadecology
A series of 16 books is called a Hexadecology
A series of 17 books is called a Heptadecology
A series of 18 books is called an Octodecology
A series of 19 books is called a Nonodecology
A series of 20 books is called an Icosology
Great information, Gina, including a few potential titles for my next book(s): Dopecology, Icksology, Awkwardology, etc. Thank you for the inspiration.