Tuesday Tip: 15 Ways to Craft an Unforgettable Book Series

Certain book series become popular for a reason.

This might seem like a “duh” kind of statement, but do you ever think of why?Every author loves their story and thinks it’s the next big thing, but very few actually become the next hit series. Once again, why?  What is the difference between what isn’t published, what is and what is offered a movie contract?

Well, I’ve been doing some casual research, and in doing so I’ve discovered reoccurring ideas and trends within popular series. However, please note that this is just my perception, so not all series do or should follow this list. Like some might say, rules are made to be broken.

Without further a due, I give you 15 fun ways to rock a book series.

1.The reader grows up along with the characters.

Very few series seem to do this, and it’s no question why. Starting a character off at a young age and following them through their life and growth is no easy task. When you write a young character, then view them again after a huge span of time, they’ve changed so much that they often hardly seem like the same character. This may be difficult, but allowing the reader to grow up beside the reader has huge benefits. Take Harry Potter for example. We first meet Harry at age 1o, before his 11th birthday, and through the books we travel with him year by year until age 17. This style and pattern of a book equaling another year is part of what created the Potter Generation. An entire group of young kids started reading Harry Potter when it first came out, and grew up with Harry, Hermione and Ron through the books and movies. This created the attachment and lifelong HP love that you see around the world today. What if we hadn’t started Harry’s story so young, but still had 7 books? The books and the following would probably look quite different.

2. The book’s world is an escape from our dull reality.

Not every series has to be sci-fi/fantasy, but most of them are. As readers, we read to travel to a new world unlike our own. We want to experience things we can’t experience anywhere else, not the same monotonous aspects of ordinary life. You can have a realistic fiction series, but it’s often harder to build the world because one is already built for you with rules, laws and constraints that you (and your characters) have to follow. Great series either build their world to be something entirely new in comparison to typical human life, like the intergalactic battles of Star Wars. Or perhaps they use things like science and technology to create a different kind of world, like the one in Divergent. Or maybe, there’s a world hidden in plain sight within our own, such as in The Mortal Instruments. This is why creativity and originality is becoming a harder and harder feat as a writer. Magic, space, science, tech, myths, legends, etc., are in a sense “off limits,” because it’s already been done. So the question is, how can you build a new world for your book that’s exciting? One that the world has never seen before? Well that’s for you to decide.

3. Make room for merchandise. 

Can you buy your very own Katniss arena outfit online? Yep. Can you order your own Harry Potter wand? Sure can. Can you –    but I don’t need to continue. You get the point. There’s something to be said about the role that merchandise plays in books. After all, books are publishing and publishing is an industry. Industries are all about making money. If one book can not only provide paper and ebook sales but also scores of book-based merchandise to adoring fans, multiple people are in luck. Readers love diving head in into a story. Oftentimes, they want that world to become their own. Readers engage in the world by buying the merchandise. I’ll admit it. I’m guilty… I have everything from a HG Mockingjay pin to a HG blanket stored away somewhere in my room.  But there’s something about wearing a piece of something we love that’s powerful, and not to mention, free advertising. So when you write your series, keep this in mind. What original, creative and physical things that you can weave into your work for later on? What is marketable? If you see an imaginary item’s sellable potential, then I bet that prospective agent or publisher might see it too.

4. One word: Fandom.

There should be room for the fan following, or as many say, the “fandom.” You should be able to “ship” characters. This point isn’t so much a specific point, qualification or something to deliberately create, but rather something that happens on its own as a result of having a great series. So yes, it doesn’t exactly fit in on this list, but a great series does not exist without its fandom.

5. The power of symbols (in this case, not the literary kind!) 

Please don’t get me wrong, literary symbols will be on this list, just not right here. What I’m talking about are actual, visible symbols such as the Mockingjay pin, Faction symbols, runes, the Deathly Hallows, etc… This goes back to the wearable merchandise argument again, but there’s a simple idea behind it too. Readers want to feel engaged, and something about being able to draw a symbol from the book or wear a pin or necklace makes the story come alive. Like the ‘escape from reality’ point, physical symbols are another way to make the world seem real.

6. Let’s eat! – fictional food that isn’t as fictional as it seems. 

Before the first Hunger Games movie came out, I had a little HG themed party with a few friends. And what do parties need? Food. Yep. I recreated the foods described in the book. It was fun, and of course pretty tasty too. Another example of this is our good friend Percy Jackson. Who didn’t want to eat blue food after that? And of course, the example of all examples…. butterbeer. Need I saw more? Good series love good food. When writing your series, get creative with your own favorite foods and tastes. Make up recipes and dishes and serve it to your characters (and readers). It’s fun for readers to copy and recreate on their own.

7. Grouping. Everyone loves Buzzfeed quizzes and feeling like they are part of a team. 

I highly doubt you’ve never taken a quiz to determine your house or faction. You might have even pictured yourself in a certain district in Panem. While this piece isn’t as common, it does have a huge appeal. Fans love to take quizzes and choose a team or group to identify with. It’s what we do as people. We like to feel apart of a certain group or team for that feeling of family. With a common group, readers can identify with strangers. This common or mutual understanding is a fun aspect to play around with, and obviously a great addition to a series if it can be done in a new (key word) and creative way.

8. Characters who are fictional, yet we all know “that person.” 

This really goes for all books, but is only intensified with series. We all know a bully, snob, know-it-all or class clown in our own lives. These characters may be fictional, but they are utterly real. But being able to watch these characters grow and change over the course of multiple books within a series, readers somehow learn more about the people around them, too. Through series we see these people in a deeper and more detailed light, which helps open the eyes of readers. It helps cultivate understanding to those who live and act differently. Seeing characters just like those in our own lives helps create compassion to treat those as we would like to be treated.

9. Quotable phrases. 

This one is also a no-brainer, and like the fandom point, with a good book or good wring, it just happens naturally. However, that doesn’t mean you can’t be conscious of it while you’re writing. Try to craft the type of phrases that people remember long after they finish the book(s). Something that in just a sentence, reminds them of the overall meaning of the entire series … always.

10. The protagonist has clear, obvious faults. 

I’ve already talked about this to some extent (and will again) but this time I want to talk specifically about the protagonist. Successful series are carried on by powerful and memorable leads. And even more so, these main characters are very faulted, just like the reader. Even better, the character’s faults propel and carry the plot forward so the reader can see the main character grow and change over the course of time.

11. Often there’s a fictional government/ruling power with no rules to play by.  

One of the best things about fiction, especially fantasy, is that there are no rules. Yippee! Authors of series seem to take advantage of this most with the creation of a fictional governments. With real governments like our own US government, there’s limits to what can be said and done, even though it’s fiction. With your own made-up government, there are no rules. The government can be as tyrannical, corrupt, etc. as you would like it to be. It frees up your ability to write without restraints while also giving you an exceptional amount of plot for multiple books.

12. And of course… literary merit. 

This one is a personal favorite. I love (literal) symbols, themes, allusions, allegories… you name it. Maybe it’s just my English Lit. brain, but I think others would agree with me. There is nothing like literary merit to add authentic deep to your work or another layer for your readers to discover. When I say literary merit, I’m talking about two different kinds. The first would be the use of figurative language in general, and the second would be the use allusions, symbols and themes that write you into the literary tradition. Allude to other literature. Who knows why everyone is all about this, but I think it has something to do with credibility. An example? There’s countless. Some of my personal favorites tend to be Biblical allusions/allegories, such as in The Chronicles of Narnia and Harry Potter. 

13. Appeal to boys.

There’s no hiding that most YA authors these days tend to be women, who write female protagonists. While these stories are fantastic, not very many appeal to boys. Unfortunately, when writing a series you need to keep this in mind, such as how JK Rowling specifically went by initials instead of her name to hopefully have her books appeal to more boys. Another great example is actually a personal example. When I think about appealing to guys, there’s an image I still remember to this day. In my high school choir class, there was one athlete who was not the type of person you would see just casually reading a non-school book. Low and behold, I’ll never forget the image of him sitting in choir powering through all three Divergent books (keep in mind that we weren’t exactly supposed to read during class). He was hooked. This story reminds me of what I often forget in writing. If you only write to appeal to girls, you are missing out on half the market. It’s as simple as that. As a young woman, I can tell you first hand that it’s easier to “write what you know” but sometimes stepping out of your comfort zone can have great rewards.

14. Make room for excessive backstory! 

I LOVE this one. I once heard somewhere that you should write up a backstory for all your characters, even if it never makes it into any books. Why? It creates your own deeper understanding of your characters and authenticity. Maybe it will someway work it’s way into the plot.

15. And lastly, write the things that matter. 

Above of all else, make the writing authentic. Make it relatable. Pack it with universal themes. Make the fiction come alive in a way that feels real. Create something that readers will love, cherish and remember forever.