Discworld Series by Terry Pratchett
I don’t know if the number is right, but I think Discworld by Terry Prachett is 45 Books long. Xanth by Piers Anthony is in the 30’s. Wheel of Time by Robert Jordan is 15 Books. Legends of Windemere by some idiot on Amazon is heading for 15 too. The point of this is that fantasy has always had the looooooooong series, which is no longer a common practice. It seems most of what you find are 3-7 books. Why did it change? Well a friend just said it’s because of shorter attention spans of readers. Whatever it is, there are a lot of ups and downs to writing a series. I’m going to touch on a bunch of points from different aspects here. Remember that this is for the big series:
Massive World Building
This is one of the hardest, but most rewarding aspects of doing such a massive series. You really get to create a lush world with multiple continents, hero parties, and time periods as the series progresses. You can shake up the world as things move along and give your books a realistic feel. It’s no longer a setting that events happen in and then the reader goes off to the next thing. Now it’s a living, breathing, changing organism where every addition adds into it. It doesn’t even have to be the same series, but simply using the same world for everything can forge something that will exist longer than the author. Am I saying smaller series don’t create evolving worlds? No, but I will say that the longer the series, the more depth and space you can give your world.
Consistent Sales
At the beginning, I thought high sales was the goal. This became harder and harder to do as the series went on. People would drop out while others joined in. Other readers fell behind, so they wouldn’t be part of the debut month sales. So you really can’t do anything about this because it’s the nature of the beast for those without a massive following. So the goal shouldn’t be about quantity, but consistency. If all of the books are selling every month then it means new readers are coming into the series and old ones are moving along. There’s no way to really tell what is going on unless a reader notifies you that they started reading your series or are dropping out. I’d say switching to this mentality around Book 2 of a trilogy or Book 3 of a longer series is smart because it takes a lot of the edge off when nature takes its course.
Xanth by Piers Anthony (Drop in the Bucket of this series)
Knowing What’s Coming
I’ve mentioned this a few times. At least in comments. One of the biggest ‘downs’ for writing a long series is that the author knows or at least has an idea for the endgame. A reader sees everything without the final context, so some events won’t be immediately clear. The longer the series, the more foreshadowing and ‘shaky’ parts one will find as they move along. Something that seems so ridiculous and unnecessary in Book 5 might be part of the game-changer of Book 9. The unfortunate part is that the reader won’t know unless they continue reading or demand spoilers, which can ruin the entire event. So there’s no winning on this one. You either make everything clear and make the foreshadowing idiot proof or you stick to your guns and trust that more people will keep reading than drop out of the series.
More Exposure to Readers
This is an odd downside that I recently started thinking about. The longer a series goes, the more an author is open to criticism of the story. For new authors, this can be an unseen obstacle and influence. The needling remarks can cause one to slightly turn away from a plot line, remove things, or even do something more. It really depends on the author’s mentality. Once the series is done, everything is locked in stone and changing something requires rewriting more than one book. Very few authors would be willing to do that. So a newer author with a long series really does run a high risk of being influenced by the criticism, which brings up the infamous question:
DO YOU WRITE FOR YOURSELF OR OTHERS FIRST?
(Hmmmm. That ended on a weird note. Eh, I’ll let it stay.)
Legends of Windemere 
Interesting stuff. The very idea of a long series is overwhelming to me. I respect how much thought has to go into this.
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Thanks. It really does require a lot of planning and forethought. Also a reminder to return to previous locations. Also weird when a city gets only one use and it’s supposed to be a hub of the world.
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Sounds like a ton of work. This is very interesting to me.
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It is, but it’s fun work. 🙂
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It takes a great deal of confidence to start writing a very long series. I think most authors would worry about the #’s being there in the end. I see shorter and shorter works (a mistake, I believe), but authors who don’t want to risk too much in the beginning.
Really, I like to read series with intriguing, fully-developed worlds. They aren’t easy to find. And the longer the series, the pickier I’ll be as a reader. It’s a big commitment. But I think when the world is just that good, word will spread and the series will make.
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I see a lot of shorter works and more calls for it too. I think it’s related to a growing lack of attention span. We get things so quickly that a lengthy book is daunting.
Good point about the commitment. The author and the readers need to be ready for the long haul.
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I’ve never thought of this from the author’s point of view. I absolutely love Piers Anthony and Terry Pratchett, although I see that Anthony takes a lot of really bad hits with his reviews – I don’t understand why. Personally I’d rather die before my sci-fi and fantasy series loves do though – when I heard that Pratchett had Alzheimers I was devastated – you totally become a little besotted about the person behind the pen. I’m really looking forward to the whole Windemere series till the end – don’t do anything likely to endanger your health!
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Never read any of his reviews. Curious what people say.
I’ll do my best to stay around. I plan on leaving enough notes for others to continue the tales. Though I also wouldn’t mind if Windemere becomes a playground for future authors like the Forgotten Realms. Nothing that would alter my stuff, but other heroes tackling challenges. It’s a hard call actually.
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The Discworld books were not really a series, only a few are, in fact, part of a sequel-like series, the rest are stand-alone stories. For me, the world and some characters that appear in the stories make up the biggest part of the enjoyment value 😀
I read Robert Jordan’s books up to v.11, but have to admit I was going off the series by v.8 and only stuck longer with it in hope the story would improve (it didn’t).
Your friend is probably correct about attention spans, but there again, loyal fans can be found for long series stories.
Take Downtown Abbey Series (someone PLEASE) – I can’t stand it, so didn’t watch it beyond the second episode, but there are people who are bearing arms and marching to the studios in protest at it coming to an end (soon I hope).
My advice to any author is; always write for yourself first, don’t depend on making a living out of it and enjoy the experience.
😀
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The tales do happen in the same world, right? That’s what I was aiming more for than an on-going story through all of them. To me, it is still a type of series like how Marvel or DC comics have multiple ‘stories’ in the same world that can affect each other.
I heard about the Robert Jordan issue happening around Vol. 8. A few friends said it picked up a few volumes later. I wonder if a long series typically has a few low points. Those books that are good, but lacking something from the previous stuff that returns when the finale is approaching.
Never saw Downtown Abbey. Didn’t look like my thing.
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Robert was getting more and more I’ll , eventually dying, v 12 onwards (based on his notes) are published by his family…
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Do you think that altered the series a lot? For better or worse?
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I don’t know because I’ve not read them Charles.
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I love Terry Pratchett! Thank you for sharing him today:)
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You’re welcome!
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Definitely for myself, but when I started editing my high fantasy, others opinions mattered a great deal more than they needed to, and in the end it frustrated me.
So I stopped asking for opinions 🙂
High Fantasy is my life, but I don’t know how those authors spent so much time on 20+ books! I open the front of books to look for a count and wonder how in the heck they do it.
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I’ve been there. I still listen to some opinions, but I go with my gut before those these days. Otherwise, I’d get a mighty mess that takes years to clean up . . . again.
I have my own take on how to focus a lengthy series. It’s introducing new heroes, moving through time, and treating your characters like growing beings with twists and turns. Always having a plan to go on without a character helps too.
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At least elves live for a long time, I’m really attached to my band of eight. Taking stories through their lives as they age together, and eventually take over their respective realms, have kids and such… and then skipping ahead maybe? It’s hard to drop your favorites off after knowing them so intimately for so long.
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I plan on ‘demoting’ the survivors to cameo status within other series. So I can revisit them when I get the chance.
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That is also a brilliant idea. A Horse And His Boy comes to mind, in that while your main characters live their lives of duty and responsibilities, the rest of the world is moving around them.
Trying out a story that involves background characters, or characters from other places…. hmmm, I must do this.
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Haven’t read that book in a while. Curious about the background characters story.
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If you keep introducing new characters and new magic/weapons it seems to last longer than three or four books. I have been reading some series, not fantasies, but about book three or four I lose interest and start feeling board if nothing fantastic happens.
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Introducing new heroes and villains definitely help. I think have contained quests in each book can help in fantasy. The over-arching story continues on, but the ‘episodic’ danger gets resolved to grow the characters. That’s the tough part with a long series. Eventually, you need all of your major players in action and at least a book or two to give them some growth.
I remember a video game where one of the main character is introduced so late that they seem to have no connection to the main plot. Always felt sorry for the guy.
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I know I talk about her a lot because I love her writing style, but Anne Rice carried her witches and vampires forever and is still writing about them forty years later. The way she strings and interconnects her series’ is interesting and writing the individual character’s stories as full length novels gave a deeper insight to their place in the series.
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There are a few fantasy authors that have been using the same characters for decades too. Not sure of any younger authors that are showing that type of project. A lot of reboots and retellings these days.
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Hi! This is an awesome post! I see that you’ve been following my blog for a while and wanted to let you know that I’m now on:
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/8600970-justina-luther
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and Google+ as well: https://plus.google.com/b/108156421942933074710/108156421942933074710/posts
If you’d like to follow me on those I’d love to see you around. I update them regularly. Keep up the awesome blogging!
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Good luck on the sites. Still haven’t figured Google+ out yet.
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I loved where you ended up (write for others or yourself). Unless you have a couple of hundred fans who will turn all Misery on you it has to be for yourself.
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Yeah. That is a fear for authors. Sledgehammers are scary.
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I only ‘publish’ on my blog. Sometimes I delete the more personal posts – once the rant has helped me. But…
My poetry and my fiction are written by me for me and, hopefully, will be meaningful to others. It’s so censoring to wonder – in the creative moment – what another might think of the piece.
Ellespeth
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Never really thought of it as censoring, but I write my stories for myself and a living. So I do have to consider how things will be taken by an audience. There are some storylines that I drop because they’re too messy outside of my head.
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I wrote a four book trilogy, which, I suppose, answers the question about whether I write for others or myself (myself, although I hope other people will enjoy it too). What I am discovering is that, as I write more about one particular place, I want to explore it further. So, is there a fifth book in what I have now re-named the K’Barthan Series? Yes. There will be. But while events in any future books will change the landscape and develop various characters, they won’t end on cliff hangers or be parts in one continuous adventure like the first four… well obviously the fourth doesn’t end on a cliff hanger, it ties things up. There is plenty of potential for a prequel though, as well as seeing how everyone gets on in their brave, new, post book 4 world. 😉
Also, I wonder what part publishers play in the shorter series we are seeing today? As in, did the publishers of Anthony and Pratchett tell them, ‘this ain’t broke so stick with it’, or conversely, are publishers today telling authors ‘the market prefers shorter series’? I don’t really know but it’s an interesting topic for thought.
Cheers
MTM
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So it’ll be a new adventure in the same world? If I read that correctly.
Not sure about the publishers. I think it’s more of a reaction to shorter attention spans.
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Yep, so I’ll probably do what Pratchett does, and do a few books about one bunch and then zoom in on someone with a bit part who interests me. The first one will be about the same group of characters but then it will move away or concentrate only on a couple of them.
Cheers
MTM
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