Sedlow Chronicles: A New Series

For both reading and writing, I'm particularly attracted to stories that are part of a series. The reason is simple. If I like characters enough to want to spend time with them, I'd rather not say goodbye after one novel. So far I've written five fanfic series—one in partnership with Penna and four solo series. It's been an evolving process. Arkham Files and Crossed Lines are both spin-offs of Caffrey Conversation. With Tales from the Library and Six-Crossed Knot, I ventured into other fandoms.

When I decided to write an original novel, the plot bunnies immediately encouraged me to think in terms of a series. Initially I resisted. Wouldn't that be overly presumptuous, given that the first novel was just a daydream at that point? In the end, I decided my basic rule still applied. If I was going to invest so much time on writing a piece of fiction, I should love the characters. And if were successful in that, I knew I'd want to keep them around. A second advantage to writing a series is that I can develop a long arc extending over multiple novels.

My new series is called Sedlow Chronicles. The first story in the series—Watling's Marsh—will be published beginning in mid-May. I will also continue writing my other series. No tearful goodbyes to any of the characters! In fact, at times I heard them whispering in my ear as I began outlining. Here are some of their ideas.

• Neal: found family, travel. Include New York and second chances.
• Sara and Elizabeth: romance, preferably slow burn
• Peter: a puzzle to solve
• Mozzie: liberal amounts of science fiction and fantasy or science fantasy. Mozzie has supplied a long list, including a request for conspiracies and hidden agendas. I drew the line at Hitler clones.
• Travis, Richard, and Myra: diverse, international cast
• Dean: classic rock and a classic car to go with it
• Lavinia: strong women
• Maia and Jack: pets and animals of all types
• Diana: female lead
• Arkham Neal: ancient lore and legends
• Klaus and Crowley: villains may simply be misunderstood or misguided

Over the next few posts, I'll explore some of the suggestions and highlight how they were adapted for Sedlow Chronicles.