Six pointers for writers who are thinking of using the same
group of characters in a book series.
Prolific author, David Robinson, shares his expertise.
The Upside
·
You
don’t spend hours thinking up your key characters’ names, ages, appearance, etc.
·
You
have the opportunity to fully develop the characters over several books.
·
You
can hit them with life-changing matters (e.g. divorce, serious illness, death
of a loved one) and test their resolve.
The Downside
·
You
have to be sure that every action is in character.
·
You
need to check that all your vital data is consistent from book to book. Other
than in a prequel, you could not, for example, have your heroine aged 45 in Book 1, and 27 in Book 2.
·
You
are faced with a constant struggle to find new situations, problems and
solutions for your characters.
David Robinson has produced several series, but the most popular are the light-hearted whodunits of the Sanford 3rd Age Club Mysteries, published by Crooked Cat Books. Visit the Sanford 3rd Age Club Mysteries website HERE
.
2 comments:
Oooohh... "have your heroine aged 45 in Book 1, and 27 in Book 2."
David, happens all the time - it's called plastic surgery. ;-)
Great post. I must remember each character's quirks when I start writing part 2 of The Anarchy Series. My word...
I hear there are more SATC mysteries in the pipeline?
I've often thought about re-using my favourite charcters and people have asked me if the same ones will be in the next book BUT I have enough trouble keeping track in one book and am a little prone to the blue eyes/brown eyes syndrome... If I'm not careful!
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