How do I pick back up story in the next book without recaping?

[BJ Swabb]

Hello all! I am brand new here. My name is BJ or Bre if you perfer. I wanted to ask your opinions on how to start the second book of a series when you are dealing with picking back up right where you left off at the end of the first volume?

 

[Finchbearer]

A recap like in a tv series? I don’t think that’s necessary with books - with series the reader will already have been invested in the previous book. Many authors also choose to write a series that can also be read as standalone books.

 

[Prince of Spires]

3 options:
- add a "what happened before" chapter before starting the story.
- write your second novel as a "stand-alone" novel and simply explain anything from the previous book as it comes up the same way as you would explain something new
- assume your reader has read the previous novel and just continue writing as if that's the case.

all of them work. Which you pick depends on your personal preference and your story.

 

[pmmg]

I would just start writing it, and assume the reader has already read book 1, or they would not be reading book 2.

 

[Phori Stone]

I've seen authors mention in the description that it's either a stand alone or meant to be read in order, so I'd give your readers a heads up for whatever you decide.

 

[A. E. Lowan]

It depends on who's brain you're trying to refresh, yours or your readers'? I'm our team's drafter, so all the details and throwaway lines that turn into major foreshadowing (or signposting, as I like to call it) and descriptions are all me. So, I really need to be on the ball when it comes to the nitty gritty. I do a combination of a few techniques before launching into any new project in our long-running Urban Fantasy series. I'll reread. I'll keep extensive notes in OneNote, which is a lifesaver. I'll start taking those notes often very early on in the development stage, anything from ideas about how the book's plot feeds into the metaplot to how tall everyone is and their eye colors. I know them all, and now so will you.

If it's your readers you want to tickle the memories of, you'll need to use exposition. This can be a huge pain and I personally dislike writing it, but when you need it, you really need it. You'll want to drizzle out the exposition as it's needed to further the plot or to hint at a signpost. You may also consider having what's called an 'exposition character,' someone from outside the situation who needs to be informed and caught up as to what's happening. Beware the infodump. That's when you riff on background for page after page about things that may be plot important, but we don't need to know it all right this very minute.

The second book is always the hardest, because we have all the time in the world to write Book 1. Book 2 now has expectations of releasing sooner than that. They're often rushed and often inferior to the first-in-series, but that can be mitigated by keeping in mind how you accomplished an awesome first book and work to make Book 2 even better.

This is what our OneNote looks like. It's a series bible and my lodestone when drafting. I highly recommend.

 

[Demesnedenoir]

I'm working on book 4 in big epic, it'll be years between releases, and I want it to kinda sorta stand alone... meaning I don't want it to be absolutely necessary to have read 1-3 in order to read 4, plus I want to refresh brains after a hiatus. So! Instead of doing a what came before blah blah blah, I'm framing the beginning of the novel in the POV of a new character who will learn of what came before in an entertaining (hopefully) fashion.

 

[The Dark One]

Assume the reader has read book one but, where necessary in the opening chapters, make the odd brief reference to what went before.

This is broad brush strokes - not lots of detail. You'll get the feel for it with experience.

 

[K.S. Crooks]

Have some of the characters talk about the most important consequences of decisions or actions that took place in the first book. They can talk about how things have changed and their feelings regarding their new situation,