NRuhwald
Scribe
So, all my books are (or will be) set in the same universe, and many of them have overlapping characters. Some more so than others. The first five or so novels I'm planning to write are all centered around a particular magic cult/secret society called the Inner Circle, with one chapter existing on Earth, and one in my fantasy world, Desylvar.
The novels aren't a series in the traditional sense in that the main character of one book might be a supporting character in another, or only mentioned, or make a brief cameo. I'm currently planning on self-publishing the books, so I'm wondering if I should market them as a series or not. The order in which the books will be written is not set in stone, but I've given them in chronological order.
Here's a rough description of the books and how they intersect so you have a better idea what I'm talking about.
Book A: Set in Desylvar. Main characters are Corvin and Laia. Main antagonists are members of the Desylvar chapter of the Inner Circle.
Book B: Set in Desylvar and Earth. Main character is a snarky maid working for Laia's family, who briefly appeared in Book A. A few supporting characters from Book A appear, but not Corvin or Laia although they will be mentioned. Main antagonists likely to be members of the Inner Circle from Desylvar and Earth, but not neccesarily the same ones from Book A.
Book C: Set in Desylvar. Has some of the same supporting characters from Book A. Main character is a relative of Corvin. Main antagonist is Corvin's father, who appears in Book A. Also features another secret society, called the Crescent, working against the Inner Circle. The Crescent is suggested in the vaguest possible terms in Book A.
Book D: Set briefly in Desylvar, but mostly in a strange pocket universe. Main character is Sarah, a college student from Vancouver. Corvin is a supporting character who is now working for the Crescent. Antagonists are the inhabitants of the pocket universe, and a mysterious person Sarah brought with her when she accidentally traveled to the pocket universe.
Book E: Set on Earth. Main character is Sarah's sister, Meghan. Main antagonists are members of the Earth chapter of the Inner Circle, so there may be some overlap of characters from Book B.
I'm planning on writing these books so they stand alone, that is, so you don't have to know what went on in any of the other books in order to understand the one you're reading. Although that may change as I write them. But that's the intent, anyway.
So yeah, is this a series? Could I just add a tagline "an Inner Circle novel" without numbering them? Most importantly (just kidding, but not really) will Amazon have a problem if I do that but don't number them?
I'm sort of hoping I don't have to market them outright as a series, because the market for books 2,3 etc are generally limited to people who have read book 1. And since book 1 with be my debut novel, that may not be all that many people. Plus, as I said, the books are related, but it's not exactly a conventional series.
The novels aren't a series in the traditional sense in that the main character of one book might be a supporting character in another, or only mentioned, or make a brief cameo. I'm currently planning on self-publishing the books, so I'm wondering if I should market them as a series or not. The order in which the books will be written is not set in stone, but I've given them in chronological order.
Here's a rough description of the books and how they intersect so you have a better idea what I'm talking about.
Book A: Set in Desylvar. Main characters are Corvin and Laia. Main antagonists are members of the Desylvar chapter of the Inner Circle.
Book B: Set in Desylvar and Earth. Main character is a snarky maid working for Laia's family, who briefly appeared in Book A. A few supporting characters from Book A appear, but not Corvin or Laia although they will be mentioned. Main antagonists likely to be members of the Inner Circle from Desylvar and Earth, but not neccesarily the same ones from Book A.
Book C: Set in Desylvar. Has some of the same supporting characters from Book A. Main character is a relative of Corvin. Main antagonist is Corvin's father, who appears in Book A. Also features another secret society, called the Crescent, working against the Inner Circle. The Crescent is suggested in the vaguest possible terms in Book A.
Book D: Set briefly in Desylvar, but mostly in a strange pocket universe. Main character is Sarah, a college student from Vancouver. Corvin is a supporting character who is now working for the Crescent. Antagonists are the inhabitants of the pocket universe, and a mysterious person Sarah brought with her when she accidentally traveled to the pocket universe.
Book E: Set on Earth. Main character is Sarah's sister, Meghan. Main antagonists are members of the Earth chapter of the Inner Circle, so there may be some overlap of characters from Book B.
I'm planning on writing these books so they stand alone, that is, so you don't have to know what went on in any of the other books in order to understand the one you're reading. Although that may change as I write them. But that's the intent, anyway.
So yeah, is this a series? Could I just add a tagline "an Inner Circle novel" without numbering them? Most importantly (just kidding, but not really) will Amazon have a problem if I do that but don't number them?
I'm sort of hoping I don't have to market them outright as a series, because the market for books 2,3 etc are generally limited to people who have read book 1. And since book 1 with be my debut novel, that may not be all that many people. Plus, as I said, the books are related, but it's not exactly a conventional series.