And Now for the Sequel…
Writing Series Fiction for
Children
By Nikki Tate
Children become great friends with the characters they read about, so if an
author can write several books in a series, the sale of one book usually means
repeat customers for additional volumes. But writing series fiction is easier
said than done. It's hard enough to write one decent novel but there are all
sorts of challenges facing a writer who chooses to spread a character's story
over three or more books.
Continuous Storyline?
Whether or not to continue the storyline from book to book is one of many
decisions the series writer must make. Each novel might use the same characters
and have a similar plot structure but there may be no overall continuity. There
are some series where each new novel starts at the beginning of the summer or
during a never-ending fifth grade year. The characters do not get older or
develop from book to book. Instead, each novel is a self-contained story that
doesn't bring forward information from previous books. The advantage of this
format is that the characters are not likely to outgrow their readers-- rather,
the readers will eventually outgrow the characters. By choosing this format, the
author avoids the prickly issues of what to do when protagonists hit
adolescence, become interested in dating, or develop drinking problems.
Not All Linear Development is Equal
Another option is to structure the series so the books are sequential, the
characters do age and develop over time, and some information is carried
forward. If time passes from book to book, the author must decide what the
pacing will be over the course of the whole series and how much development will
occur for each character, both within a title and across multiple novels. If the
series covers a period of several years (or generations), where does the first
story begin? And, where will the last one end? Before starting to write the
StableMates series, I knew I did not want my main character to age beyond the
end of grade seven. If I decide to continue the books after that, I will either
have to find a new main character, one closer in age to most of my readers, or
begin a new series.
Point of View
Some authors prefer to stick with one main character and all the novels in the
series are written from the same character's point of view. In other cases, each
book in the series features a different character. The characters know each
other, but of course, each has a unique perspective on the goings on in the
stories.
Since the young reader must be able to identify with the central characters in
the books, lengthy, multiple-generation series often choose an appropriate child
from each generation to become the main character for new stories.
Historical Context
The author must also decide on the relative importance of the historical period
in which the books are set. Obviously, in the case of historical fiction, it is
critical to keep track of the changing historical context as time passes. But
for a series that takes place in a generic contemporary period, it is not so
important to identify the exact year in which the story takes place. Beverly
Cleary's Ramona books have been written over a period of many years, but because
their focus is on the everyday interactions of a child and her family and
friends, there is no need to identify specific political or historical events.
Unless such events are critical to the novel's plot, their inclusion can date
the book and make it more difficult to keep the series as a whole current and
appealing to new readers.
Seed Planting
One of the great advantages of writing series fiction is the way an author can
plant the seeds of future story ideas in early books. Various minor characters
can be set up to have full stories at a later date. For example, in all of my
series, I've set the scene for various supporting characters to play larger
roles in future books. These possible stories develop in a non-linear manner and
are initially tangential to the main plot. The evolution from side-bar to main
plot reflects the non-linear nature of story in society: life is, indeed, a web
of interconnected stories.
By writing a very long piece (a story that may stretch over ten to twelve
books), the author has a chance to explore many alleys, turnoffs, and forks in the
road that aren't possible to include in a shorter book. It just isn't practical
to write a nine hundred-page novel for eight-year-olds, but by the time a child
has read six or seven books in a series, the author has had a chance to create
and explore inner and outer landscapes far more complex and subtle than is
possible within a single novel of 40,000 words.
A Cast of Thousands
Working on such a large scale, the author has access to a very large cast. While
this certainly allows for many sub-plots and the ongoing exploration of all
sorts of interpersonal dynamics, a cast of thousands can be hard to keep track
of. I use a set of index cards-- one for every character. Each contains some
sort of visual reference (a picture from a magazine, a photograph, or a rough
sketch), a list of characteristics, quotes with book and page references, and
important family, friend, and pet relationships. Each animal also gets a card to
ensure I don't accidentally change the color of someone's cat between books
three and seven!
When I begin work on a new book within a series, I pull out the cards of the
characters to be involved in the main storyline and sit them around me on my
desk. I physically arrange them in a way that makes sense in the story (Jack and
Emma are best friends-- they sit side by side-- whereas Jessa and Cheryl, who
are fighting at the beginning of the novel, sit as far away from each other as
they can). As the story develops, I add notes to the character cards so they are
up-to-date when I begin the next novel.
Keeping Track of the Details
Keeping track of time is best done with a calendar. Banks and insurance
companies are a great source of free calendars and each January, I collect a few
of these for time-keeping in my books. Each new book gets a calendar where I
record dates of final exams and Halloween dances, birthdays, travel days, and
details like the number of days required for anti-depressant medication to kick
in (no point in having the depressed mother smile when she would still be hiding
under the covers with the curtains drawn). Each series also gets an overall
calendar that tracks the progress of the characters across books. This is
particularly important to make sure all references to birthdays and other
milestones are consistent from book to book.
Geography is another thing that must be consistent from one book to the next.
The obvious solution here is to keep maps and make sure they are updated
whenever new place references are made in each book. Somehow, I forgot to write
down the name of the street on which an important barn is located in the
StableMates series and, as a result, the street name references made in two
different books were inconsistent! The mistake was discovered when an artist was
hired to draw an official map for the series. We had to move the farm so it is
now flanked on one side by Street X and on the other by Street Y. Avoid
embarrassing mistakes like that by carefully recording every place name on your
master map!
In a fantasy series, the number of things to track grows exponentially as the
author can assume no prior knowledge by readers embarking on a journey through
imaginary lands. The Estorian Chronicles is a fantasy series steeped in a
mythology and history all its own. I have a filing box filled with cards for
mythological creatures as well as a hardcover journal where I carefully record
all kinds of details about the flora, fauna, and landscape of my made-up world
as well as many anthropological notes about the various tribes that live there.
Though it may take many years to write a number of books, keen readers can
devour them in a single long weekend and any inconsistencies become painfully
obvious.
Reader Expectations
For better or for worse, readers bring expectations to the latest book in a
favorite series. The series author treads a fine line between allowing
well-loved characters to grow, change, develop, and face new challenges without
reaching too far beyond what their committed readers will accept.
When a child picks up a StableMates novel, he or she expects plenty of
horse-related action. Though many teachers, librarians, and parents feel that
Return to Skoki Lake (StableMates #6) is a strong novel about facing the
challenge of being diagnosed with diabetes, a number of younger readers have
complained that the focus of the book strayed too far from the horse-centered
adventures they were used to. Knowing this, try to develop central characters
and a series premise in the first book that will allow plenty of scope down the
line.
So, How Do You Know?
It's not always easy to know whether your juvenile or YA novel is going to be a
one-off wonder or the first book in a new series. If you are the kind of author
who finds that each main storyline spins off a dozen new plot ideas, if you are
constantly cutting out subplots that are threatening to take over your novel, if
you have no trouble writing a list of ten possible plots using the same
characters, or if you never seem to get to the end of a character's story, then
you may just have a knack for this particular writing niche.
If, on the other hand, you worry that you've put all the good stuff in the first
book or keep being tormented by new characters who want nothing to do with the
cast you've already created, then perhaps you are better off starting over,
rather than trying to stretch your one really great novel into a
less-than-satisfying series.
Nikki Tate is the author of four fiction series for young readers: The
Estorian Chronicles, The Tarragon Island Series, and the StableMates novels (all
with Sono Nis Press) and the historical novels Jo's Triumph and Jo's
Journey with Orca Book Publishers. Her current project is a series of
non-fiction Behind-the-Scenes titles with Fitzhenry and Whiteside. Nikki has
also written hundreds of magazine and newspaper articles, reviews, and opinion
pieces published in the U.S., Canada, and Japan. She lives on Vancouver Island
in British Columbia with a menagerie that includes goats, ponies, horses, cats,
dogs, birds, koi, and a pot-bellied pig called Mikey.
