A Stand Alone Novel With Sequel Potential

In one of my favorite writing podcasts, Writing Excuses, they often have Q & A sessions. In one of their episodes there were a few questions about writing endings, series, and in particular the question came up, "How do you write a stand-alone ending with sequel potential?"

There are really two questions here.

1. How do you write a stand alone story?

Writing a good stand-alone story is not the same as writing the first novel in a series. A stand-alone story requires a satisfying ending that resolves all of the important questions in the plot. Your story should not require a sequel to complete it. You are not writing the first part of a series. You are writing a stand-alone novel. You are not writing The Fellowship Of The Ring, you are writing The Hobbit.

It might be useful to think of the opposite of a stand alone story. In the TV show, The Flash, each episode has a story. Many of the episodes are linked together, but they always (especially early episodes in the series) wrap up with the bad guy being defeated by The Flash. The problem is presented, explored, and then resolved. They start out as stand-alone, or episodic stories. They have an ending. But as the episodes go on, you start to have story elements that tie between two or more episodes. Captain Cold doesn't get caught, and so we know there is more story. Not just because a bad guy is on the loose, but because we see a scene showing Captain Cold getting a new partner to fight The Flash. "Hook" scenes like this clue the audience in to the fact that there is more to the story.

If Captain Cold had just gotten away, we could have accepted that as the end of the story. Untidy endings are pretty compelling sometimes. But because we see Captain Cold planning to fight The Flash, we know that it's not really the end.

Books that are a part of a series use "hooks" like this to carry the reader through multiple plot arcs. Sometimes the overarching story actually plays out over more than one book. The Fellowship Of The Ring ended with the fellowship reaching the river where Boromir dies. It was a satisfying end to their flight from the shire and across/under the mountains, but we knew the story wasn't over. They hadn't completed their quest. It's a good book, but it wasn't stand-alone.

So, to create a stand-alone, you need to be ready to tell your whole story. Don't get caught up in writing clues about future books or adventures. If you do have something you plan on using later, make sure that it doesn't make the reader expect another book. If the emperor is going to be resurrected, let the heroes be satisfied that they defeated him. You can hint toward a "magic stone" that has the power to restore life, but don't say, "As soon as the emperor dies, his second in command will just bring him back to life." If you do, the reader will know that there is more to this particular story. A stand-alone is not afraid to end. Think of a movie rather than a TV show.

2. How do you create sequel potential?

Now this is where the answer gets fun. Short answer: make your world big enough to have more than one story.

Long answer, well as Delia Sherman says in the episode, any good story has sequel potential. Let's consider some types of sequels. Necessary Sequels - These are the sequels that are required to complete the plot arc of the first book. This is the book that someone picks up knowing before hand that they are getting into a series. A reader must be ready to commit to this story, and they can't pick it up in the middle because they'd be totally lost no matter how good the writing is.

• Perpetual Sequels - I stopped watching Arrow, and countless other american style TV shows because they never reached a satisfying ending. They aren't planning on ending until the ratings drop. LOST had this problem. These stories avoid answering any question completely. Instead they keep stringing you along by "showing" not "telling" and make you think that every situation is important. Soap Operas also use this technique. Most modern TV dramas do as well.
• Episodic Sequels - These are sequels that include the same main characters, and events from one book/episode will carry over into the next. But the reader won't need to know the first story at all to enjoy the second. Star Trek: The Next Generation is a great example of this storytelling method. They didn't have the luxury of knowing that their audience would buy whole seasons on VHS, DVD, and then watch them all on Netflix. Every episode had to be enough to attract a new fan who could pick up that episode and then start watching from there.
• World Based Sequels - These are sequels that take place in the same world, but don't necessarily include the same characters. If you liked Star Trek: The Next Generation, chances are that you gave Deep Space Nine and Voyager a shot.

Next, let's look at some of the reasons people will want to read another book.

• Character - Let's face it, if you get to know a character, and you like them, you'll probably want to read about them again.
• World - If you have created a great world, then people will want to read more about it. Think of Terry Pratchett's Discworld.
• Relationships - This is similar to characters, but if you have a relationship that your readers want to see more of, they'll ask for another book even if there isn't one planned.
• Persistent Conflict - If there is a bigger conflict that your story takes place in, then your readers will want to find out more. If your character's parents died mysteriously as part of their backstory, readers will want to find out about that, but since it's backstory they won't expect it to be resolved in the first novel.

Here are some other tools you can use.

• Job - If your character has a job that will present opportunities for drama/conflict, then readers will probably be willing to check out another book. Superheroes have villains. Doctors always have new patients. Detectives will have new crimes to solve.
• Backstory - Give your character a backstory that is unresolved.
• Conflict - create a persistent conflict. Your character has an arch enemy who he puts in jail (e.g. the joker) or who flies off in a space ship (e.g. Darth Vader). Your hero saves the day for one town, but the bandits are now one town over.
• Exploration - This could fall into the Job category, but Dr. Who is a time traveling explorer. He has great episodic stories, but we always know he's going to explore something new next time.

Be careful not to make your first story dependent on future story arcs. Don't set "hooks", but give Easter Eggs. When a reader reads your second novel, you want them to be glad they read the first, but the first book has to be solid on its own.

In the end, any good story has sequel potential even if the sequel takes place 2,000 years later after the end of civilization. You just have to make your world big enough to hold it.

Becoming a Better Writer

How do we improve as writers?

As a writer you've probably gone through several cycles. At some points you were impressed, or at least liked your own writing. At others, you wondered what made you ever think you could write because of how bad your writing was.

These are natural cycles, and fortunately they mirror (to some degree) the learning process. That means you will naturally learn just by writing. But just writing isn't all that's needed.

When we learn, we need to be both humble enough to recognize our weaknesses and confident enough to use our skills. We will always be at some level between where we want to be and where we once were. If this all sounds a bit confusing, let me try to clarify.

To become a better writer, you will need at least two steps:

1. Learn writing skills.
2. Practice writing skills.

But these steps are not the kind you leave behind. You need to jump back and forth between the two, or to use an analogy, you need two legs to climb a ladder. Which is a useful analogy because one of the developmental psychology principles at work here is called scaffolding. It works because I said ladder and scaffolding uses ladders to...never mind.

When you learn writing skills, there are only certain concepts within your grasp. When your teacher in third grade said, "You should always use adverbs that end in -ly. They really help your story." She (or he) was right. For most third graders, -ly adverbs will increase their ability to express ideas. How did the boy go into the room? Sneakily. Hurriedly. Noisily. If you've ever read elementary school papers, anything to help the kids express themselves is an improvement. The 3rd grade you starts plopping -ly adverbs into every sentence possible.

Cut to a writing group 15 years later and your group members are saying things like, "Do a word search for -ly adverbs and delete them. They're terrible and you should never use them." You immediately cut -ly adverbs out of your writing vocabulary.

Cut to 5 years later and you have a new realization. Was your 3rd grade teacher wrong? No. -ly adverbs do have a place in writing. What your writing group is probably trying to say (whether they know it or not) is that -ly adverbs incompletely, though concisely, express how an action is done, but they don't draw your readers into the scene. -ly adverbs compress the action of the story into a single word. Instead of letting the reader experience the boy loudly walking into the room, you are simply conveying information. Now you are wary of using -ly adverbs, but you recognize that there are times where they are appropriate.

At each stage of your development, you took the information as you could and applied it. You were humble enough to make a change in your habits. Then you went forward and applied that change. Only after you applied that change could you even understand the next stage. You must have experience to build on.

But how do we use this knowledge?

To grow as a writer, you've got to write, then learn more about writing, then write some more, get feedback and be humble enough to recognize your weaknesses, and then write some more. Luckily, it is simple enough to break down into three continuous steps:

1. Write - Be confident in your current abilities. Write as well as you can, knowing that you're still improving but you're doing your best.
2. Get feedback - Share your writing. Listen to people who love it, hate it, don't understand it. Writing is communication. It's important to know how well your message is getting through to your audience.
3. Learn about writing - Read blogs, attend conferences, take classes, study books. There are many people in the world who are better than you. If you want to become their peers or surpass them then you need to hear what they say about writing.

It's easy to neglect one of these steps. Don't give in. Keep writing. Keep learning. Be humble, and be confident.

Moving Forward

When I was in high school, I ran on the Cross Country team. In Cross Country we ran five kilometer races (that's just over 3 miles). I guess it's not a long race compared to an ultra marathon, but 3 miles is plenty long for me.

I've found there are many comparisons that can be made between distance running and writing. Both are endurance events, both require dedication, and a little bit of insanity. Here are a few more.

Beware of the rabbits: 

At the beginning of the race, there were almost always runners who we called rabbits. Rabbits were runners who started out at a dead sprint. Sometimes they were just inexperienced runners, but sometimes they were sprinting on purpose to mess with our heads. What happens in a race, when you're competitive, is that you want to win. So when someone else is running faster than you, you might be tempted to feel bad, compare yourself to them, or even try to beat them. Don't be fooled.

Here's what always happened in the races - the inexperienced runners would try to keep up with the rabbits. The'd disappear around the first corner. And then they'd reappear on the second or third stretch, then I'd pass them.

Healthy competition can help you improve. But when you're writing, you've always got to go at your own pace. I'm sure you've met a writer (or someone working on another project) who started out strong and then just stopped. When you're writing, learn your pace. Push yourself with your goals, but beware of setting unobtainable goals that will discourage you. Don't be afraid to ignore the rabbits and write at your own pace. Just make sure you write.

Keep Your Eyes Fixed:

Another thing about long distance races is that they're long. If I started thinking about the ending, (e.g. "I will be sooo happy when I'm finished.") then I would often find it harder to motivate myself. I'd find myself thinking more along the lines of, "It's sooo far," and I'd be tempted to give up. If, on the other hand, instead of looking at the end goal I concentrated about 50 yards in front of me, then I always knew that I could make it. Even if I'm tired I can force myself to run 50 yards.

In writing, we sometimes get caught up in wanting to be finished. Sometimes that can distract us from where we are now. I like to set checkpoints for myself. In fact, before I write I sit down and mentally prepare myself just for the scene that I'm writing. I forget the end of the story (not really) and concentrate on something I know I can write. Like many of you, I've got a full time job. I work all day and only get about 1 hour to write on weekdays. If I am always concentrating on the cool thing that will happen in chapter 34 or wishing that I could just be done, then I start to lose my nerve. Instead, I periodically check in with my end goals while focusing on the immediate scene or arc that I'm working on right now. I have confidence in my writing ability. When I get to chapter 34, I'm confident I'll be able to handle it. But right now I'm on chapter 5 and I need to write it before I can get to chapter 34. (Exception: Sometimes I actually do write chapters ahead of where I am if they are so compelling that I can't get them out of my mind. I write them, and then when I get back to that point in my regular writing, I use what I've written and adapt it to any changes I may have made along the way.) Don't look too far ahead. Be aware of your ultimate goals, but remember to keep your eyes fixed on the next thing.

Don't Give Up:

Last of all, writing is hard. There's a saying, "It takes ten years to become an overnight success." Most writers write for many years before they get published. There are exceptions, but no matter what it's a lot of work. Running a distance race it's easy to get discouraged. Your body is tired. Your muscles want to stop working. And mentally you are at your limit. Think of your writing as a master's degree. You've got to refine your talent, hone your skills, and get tons of words out on paper. Put in the work. Try to get to the end soon if you can. But don't get discouraged. Writing, like running, takes determination. Don't give up. Even if you're not going as fast as you wanted. Even if you have to stop running and walk. Keep moving forward. In the end that's the only way to finish a race or a book.