In recent years we’ve seen several book series become very successful and even go on to the small or big screens.
Examples:
- The Sookie Stackhouse Novels by Charlaine Harris
- by Stephenie Meyer
- Twilight series by
- 50 Shades of Grey series by E. L. James
- Hunger Games series by Suzanne Collins
- Harry Potter series by
J. K. Rowling
And, let’s not forget:
- The James Bond series by Ian Fleming
- The Little House on the Prairie series by Laura Ingalls Wilder
These are just some examples I could think of without straining my brain too much. As readers we know why these series work. We get to follow the exploits and adventures of beloved characters for longer than we could do if they only “lived” in a single novel.
Why Write a Series?
- You can reuse and build upon established characters and settings.
- You have the opportunity to develop secondary characters easier than you usually can do in a single novel.
- You can build an audience that will theoretically grow over time with a series versus the audience that one novel is likely to attract because each book has the potential to draw a reader to the other in the series.
- A series is easier to promote, market and sell because:
- You can offer special prices, bundles or giveaway early books from the series to increase sales of new books in a series.
- Readers hooked on the first books in the series are going to want to buy the new books.
- It may be easier to get book reviewers who liked the earlier books to review the new books.
- You can potentially sell all the books in your series for not much more effort than selling a single novel.
- You can establish your brand because:
- Your book covers can carry over certain recognizable cover and interior design characteristics making them easy for readers and buyers to distinguish.
- Your website and social media accounts can carry over design aspects and colours from your books.
Do you have any suggestions to add to the list? If so, tell us in the comments.
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