Writing Saturday; Sequels Part 4

3:00 AM



10 Things to Keep in Mind

1.      Keep the events of the previous book(s) fresh in your mind; after all, that is why there is a sequel.

2.      Make sure you keep the same style from the first book.  For example; if you let your reader see what the main character is thinking a lot in the first you should do the same in the next book.

3.      Don’t forget to show the changes that have happened between the books.

4.      If you think there ought to be a sequel but can’t figure out what you want to do with it, take a break for two weeks or so.

5.      "What would happen if…. " This phrase is a writer's best friend.  I you find yourself stuck, use it!  Come up with silly and wild ideas, you never know what is going to spark a really good idea.

6.      What has God been teaching you lately?  Could you hero or heroin use learning the same lesson?

7.      Change the setting; taking your characters somewhere new is always a good plan in a sequel.

8.      Have someone read your first book and then the sequel right after it so that they can catch any inconsistencies.

9.      Have fun!  Sequels should be as fun or more fun to write than the first book.

10.  Don’t be afraid of failure.


Join me next week for a Question time….

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2 comments

  1. Love this, Sarah!

    My favorite is 5, but I'm currently discovering that 9 is perfectly true (I must be missing those -ly adjectives that I cruelly cut from my manuscripts because they're popping up here!).

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  2. Ugh. I'm stuck! I am currently writing a trilogy and I have the first book done (It's written out on loose leaf and I'm 1/2 done typing it into my computer) and I know what I am doing with the second book (It's 1/2 way written). BUT, I have NO idea what to do with the third book! I had some ideas, but they didn't work out! :( Ugh.....

    Anyhow, wonderful post once again! I LOVE your writing posts! They are a HUGE help to me! :)

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