To Sequel or Not to Sequel – It’s a Good Question

Hello to all the Archer’s Aim readers. Life has been a whirlwind lately but I’ve been making some progress on several writing projects. However, I wanted to pause and answer a question that seems to get bigger and bigger with each month:

Will there be another book to The Bow of Hart Saga?

Based on the number of these questions I’m getting, there likely will be another book but not as part of the core trilogy that is currently out. I know that I left the door open for another book or two and that was somewhat by design. I understand that, while I’ve wrapped up the series nicely, there are fans who want more. Honestly, the request for a sequel cropped up from my daughter who also asked for a prequel series. So, I left the saga with a bit of an opening to move toward a sequel as opportunity allowed.

 

Why not just write another book or two for the saga? There are several reasons not to write anything new immediately. One will become clear very soon. However, another reason is that I have several other projects in the works that are under proposal to publishers at the moment. I need to complete these as soon as I can. I’m also working on development of another series named The Broken Shield Chronicles

Yet, I have been getting the requests for more about Athson and Limbreth and I’m pleased so many people like these characters and want more from them. Since I’m getting these sequel requests, I’m happy to give readers more as soon as I can. I have begun consideration for at least a sequel and maybe another trilogy along with a prequel.

However, to provide a further taste of the world of Denaria, I’m also going to write a short series named the Goddess Veil. Each book should be short but will include some possible cameos from a few minor characters in The Bow of Hart Saga as well as a villain (readers can guess who it is). I just need some time to get this series and the sequel underway as fast as I can.

I suppose I never expected this debut series to do as well as it has so I never planned anything else except to finish what I started long ago (meaning several decades). Let me start the process now and ask readers a few questions:

Who are your favorite characters?

What do you see happening to some of these characters?

What questions do you still have about Denaria that you think would interest you in a sequel?

A few ideas have presented themselves to me so far, but I’d love to hear readers thoughts about what intrigues them so I can address them. Are you interested in learning more about Withlings? Do dwarves interest you? Are there other places you see on the big map that draw your attention? Do you want to know what happens in Hart? What will happen in Grendon?

There are any number of ways another book can go and I’m happy to consider suggestions. Please leave your thoughts in the comments below this post or contact me using my email address or other social media. If you would like to read some alpha or beta material, please let me know and we can set up a discussion group somewhere or you can join me in my Facebook or Goodreads private groups. In the meantime, look for a big announcement about The Bow of Hart Saga next week that should clarify why I’m waiting just a little while with the next editions and why I’m leaving the series in its current form as a trilogy.

9 thoughts on “To Sequel or Not to Sequel – It’s a Good Question

  1. I’ve always found the request for sequels a little uncomfortable. As much as I love hearing that readers enjoy some characters, I don’t always have more story to tell with them. There could be a few anecdotes, but nothing for a long story or even a short story. Part of me also worries that I’ll make the character stale or undo some of what makes them popular in the first place.

    1. Thanks, Charles. I agree that you can mess up the series if done poorly. You have to be honest with yourself. However, there’s quite a lot I can still cover with these characters that didn’t fit into the immediate trilogy.

      1. Maybe trilogies have that advantage over longer series. I can see how three books leave more open while a beast like mine covers so much ground that the heroes hit a point of retirement.

Leave a Reply