Structuring A Series: The Serial

Anne Perry

Last week, we looked at the standard Trilogy format. This week, we will discuss the Serial format. 

A Serial is most often used for Thrillers and Mysteries. It can also be used for multi-generational dramas, or a Con, Heist & Prison Break series.

A serial can have as many books as the author cares to write. Anne Perry's Mystery series with Inspector Thomas Pitt has 34 to date and her William Monk series has 24.  Diana Gabaldon's Outlander is a long running serial.

The protagonist appears in each book and faces a similar overall story problem such as a murder, a dangerous threat to one or many, a family conflict, etc.

In each book, the main cast is introduced. The hero has special knowledge or a skill set to solve the problem at hand.

The antagonist is often different in each book. In some spy novels, the antagonist remains the same but there are different cases involved. The enemy spy is nearly caught, a major minion is apprehended or killed, but the case itself is resolved at the end.

Most mysteries are serials with a different crime to solve in each book. In the Sherlock Holmes mysteries, there is  a recurrent antagonist like Professor Moriarty, but each murder is solved at the end of each book.

Friends and allies are often a continuing thread, but it is possible to add and subtract cast members as the serial progresses. Focusing on different friends and foes in each serial leaves plenty of room for growth and offshoots.

The internal dilemma is usually the same throughout the serial, especially if it is a love interest. Their bond is tested as the books progress. 

The protagonist's internal dilemma can also be a sick family member, a child, or responsibility for another character that causes problems for him as he navigates the overall story problem. He may have a personal issue to solve: an addiction, an affliction, or an internal struggle.

The book covers follow a theme, but the titles can be unique. Anne Perry is a good example of how to keep naming a serial as it stretches out. It helps to have a subtitle such as "A Thomas Pitt novel."

Next week, we will take a look at the Relay series.

Related Topics:

Mystery Subgenres

Mystery Skeleton

Thriller & Suspense Subgenres

Thriller & Suspense Skeleton

Con, Heist & Prison Break Skeleton

Literary Subgenres

Literary Skeleton

Free tools and forms are available at www.dianahurwitz.com. You can also check out the Build A Plot Workbooks for Mystery, Thriller, Con, Heist, & Prison Break, and Literary Drama.

Structuring A Series: The Trilogy

There are several ways to structure a series. For the next few weeks, we will examine a few of them. We will start with the Trilogy.

The protagonist usually faces one powerful antagonist and his or her minions over the course of a trilogy. This is the typical format for Fantasy and Science Fiction for adults and young adults.

Book One covers the introduction of the cast, often with the protagonist learning they have powers or tools to defeat the antagonist. There is a central conflict introduced as the overall story problem with two or three turning points before the climactic engagement with the antagonist. This battle arc is completed, but the antagonist lives to fight another day. Friends and foes can perish or suffer. The hero and love interest live but may have been weakened and need to recoup and gather tools, information, or allies for the next book.

Book Two follows the second attempt to defeat the antagonist in the central conflict. There are two to three more engagements with the antagonist before the decisive battle. The antagonist lives to fight another day but may be weakened or appear to have the upper hand. Casualties on both sides often occur to add poignancy. The hero must gather more tools, skills, or allies for the final showdown.

Book Three is the final showdown with two to three skirmishes leading up to the deciding battle. The hero and his allies have all they need. They fight with everything they have. It may appear after the second or third skirmish that they could lose, but they rally at the climax and usually defeat the antagonist and his minions.

The hero's internal conflict can be the same for all three books or change. This can be a love interest, family member, or friend relationship. It can be a debt the character feels he owes, atonement for a past wrong, or an issue that sparked revenge. If a relationship is not involved, the internal layer can be the protagonist's struggle with responsibility for saving others or fighting a battle he didn't choose. He may pay a price, sacrifice something dear, or give up on the future he dreamed of.

Occasionally, there is a different antagonist in each book. In this case, there are several conflicts that lead up to the final confrontation where the next antagonist is revealed.

Friends and foes add interpersonal conflict. There are secondary characters with stakes and relationship issues. The tighter the cast, the more effective it is.

The external layer goal of restoring cosmic or paranormal balance to the story world is successful in most cases. If there is a second trilogy, the antagonist may appear completely defeated or retreat to rebuild his strength or a second antagonist emerges for the antagonist layer.

The covers should be similar with the series as a subtitle. It helps to note which book is number one, two, three, etc.

Next week, we will examine the Serial format.

Related topics:

Science Fiction Subgenres 

The Science Fiction Skeleton 

Fantasy Subgenres

The Fantasy Skeleton

Free tools and forms are available at www.dianahurwitz.com. You can also check out the Build A Plot Workbooks for Science Fiction and Fantasy.

Review: A Court of Thorns and Roses

Court of Thorns and Roses

I began reading Sarah J. Maas's A Court of Thorns and Roses while traveling. At first I thought, "Oh yuck, this is a remake of Beauty and the Beast." But I was trapped on a plane, so I gave it a few more chapters and it quickly deviated from that trope. I finished the book and have purchased the rest of the series.

Warning: Spoilers ahead.

Genre: YA Paranormal Fantasy/Romance

Protagonist first person point of view.

The main cast is kept small and tight. There is Fayre as protagonist, her father and two sisters as secondary motivating characters, Tamlin as love interest, friend Lucien, friend Alis, antagonist Amarantha, and Rhysand friend posing as foe.

The first half challenged me because I am not a huge fan of Romance as a genre. I don't mind it as a layer as long as it is well-crafted with believable points of connection and conflict. The first half of the book is about the protagonist and love interest overcoming their differences to form a bond and to suggest something is really wrong with the fae world that only Tamlin can fix. Fayre learns about the fantasy world and her misconceptions about fae. She overturns the fae's misconceptions about humans. At least she isn't Tamlin's "captive" per se. There are information repetitions I could have lived without, but on the whole the story kept advancing.

The protagonist, Fayre, is 19 and not a virgin, making the sexual part of the relationship more realistic. She is pretty-ish but not "perfect." Her secret weapon is her ability to hunt. Her personal motivation is to save her irritating, dependent family. Her critical flaw is illiteracy. I found that refreshing.

The love interest, Tamlin, is high fae who can shape shift into, I'm not quite sure what. The high fae are beautiful, naturally. He is a reluctant hero. Thankfully, Fayre's love doesn't transform him from his bestial state. There are enough believable points of connection to make their relationship work. And in the second half, Fayre is tasked with saving him rather than being a damsel in distress.

The timeline could have been tighter. There is lots of dead space. The months Fayre spends in Prythian in the first half are employed to make the relationship build gradually rather than using love at first sight. I appreciate that. But in the second half, waiting for the full moon for different challenges and nights of repetitive torture irritated me.

In terms of worldbuilding, there are different types of fae with Winter, Summer, Spring, Autumn, Dawn, Day, and Night courts, plus other kingdoms. The fae have varied physical appearances and abilities. There are magical powers like shapeshifting, glamours, and walking through walls. They are depicted as being rather evil and nasty on the whole and constantly at war with each other. High fae are immortal but can be killed with weapons made of Ash.

Many authors overwhelm the reader with info dumps, but here the lore and the layout of the world are successfully delivered as Fayre learns them. Being an artist, her depictions bring the world alive through color. Maas successfully incorporates music as well.

The antagonist, Queen Amarantha, is referenced but not introduced until the second half. I consider that a weakness. But she is evil enough to do the job. Tamlin is the only high fae powerful enough to defeat the antagonist, but becomes her slave in the second half.

Fayre must complete three challenges and solve a riddle to save Tamlin and manages to do so, but not without help from Lucien and Rhysand. Tamlin delivers the killing blow to the antagonist.

The end sets up a more interesting second book with Fayre transformed.

I recommend The Court of Thorns and Roses to YA paranormal lovers. Fans of Cassandra Clare's Shadowhunter series would enjoy it. There is a rumor of a movie. 

I could do without the graphic sex scenes, but at least Maas makes sure the protagonist has a good time and the sex is consensual. So many writers fail in that area. (See The Five Ts Sex Scenes).

I have finished The Court of Mist and Fury, the second book in the series. While I admire Mass's imagination, the cast list and number of kingdoms and foes are unnecessarily bloated.  There were too many to keep track of without notes. The antagonist makes a brief appearance, the whole plot gearing up for a final battle. She throws in one chapter with Rhysand's POV, which is unnecessary given he can communicate with Fayre telepathically over distance. 

Maas has several crutch words that became annoyingly repetitive. All of the characters (and some body parts) hiss and bark. And I'd be happy to never see smirk again.

Maas also starts off book three,  A Court of Wings and Ruin, with Rhysand's POV in a prologue, which confused me because it felt like a different story rather than a continuation. I went back to make sure it was number 3 in the series. Once she resumes Fayre's POV, the story flows well. 

I  have purchased the fourth book A Court of Frost and Starlight. 

The unique story world and characters I can root for have made this series hard to put down. I can easily finish them in a day or two.

I will also check out the Throne of Glass series. I read Hulu has plans to turn it into a television series.

A solid 8 out of 10.

Dark Places Story Skeleton Part 2 of 2

Dark Places

This week we complete the dissection of a Mystery/Suspense novel Dark Places by Gillian Flynn.

*** SPOILER ALERT *** 

If you have not read the novel or seen the movie and plan to, stop reading now.

Primary and Secondary Characters:
Protagonist (Survivor) 
Friend 1
Friend 2
Suspect 1/Antagonist (convicted killer), motive satanic sacrifice.
Suspect 2 Father of abused girl, motive revenge.
Suspect 3 Father of protagonist, motive greed.
Suspect 4 Cult member, motive payback for nonpayment
Suspect 5 Stranger, motive compassionate euthanasia.
Suspect 6 Girlfriend of Antagonist.
Victims 1, 2, and 3, possible 4th.

Point of View Characters:
1) Protagonist First Person
2) Antagonist (protagonist’s brother) Third Person Close Up
3) Secondary Character (protagonist’s mother) Third Person Close Up
4) Suspect 5 (hired killer) Third Person Close Up


Chapter 21: POV Protagonist. She now worries that Antagonist/Suspect 1 committed more than one crime, the murder of Suspect 6/Victim 4. Red herring introduced. She also receives a note from Suspect 3 saying he knows who the real killer is. False accuser shows up and recants her story. Eliminates Suspect 2.

Chapter 22: POV Secondary Character. Mother learns of false evidence planted by Suspect 6. Further points the finger to Antagonist/Suspect 1. Has a run in with Suspect 3 and raises the question of his motive. Places weapon 1/gun  at the scene.

Chapter 23: POV Protagonist. She goes in search of Suspect 3 and finds a lead as to his location. Raises motive for one of the murders, but dismisses it.

Chapter 24: POV Antagonist/Suspect 1. He continues the backstory which reinforces motive for Suspect 3 and introduces motive for Suspect 4.

Chapter 25: POV Protagonist. She finds Suspect 3 who accuses Suspect 4. Reveals secret about Suspect 6.

Chapter 26: POV Secondary Character. Mother continues backstory which reveals more evidence that points to Suspect 1’s guilt. Finds false evidence #3 that makes the false accusation look true. Brings weapon #2 into the crime scene. Has a meeting with Suspect 5.

Chapter 27: POV Protagonist. She escapes from Suspect 3 and goes in search of Suspect 6. Visits Antagonist/Suspect 1 and he denies Suspect 6’s involvement and the suspect’s secret.

Chapter 28: POV Antagonist/Suspect 1. He suggests Suspect 4 and Suspect 6 have access to weapons identical to the murder weapons and engage in violent behavior. Finger points to all three.

Chapter 29: POV Protagonist. She finds evidence pointing the finger to Suspect 4’s guilt and possible murder of Suspect 6. Suspect 4 and Suspect 3 both had alibis, but she questions their validity. Victim 1’s death seemed different that the rest. Could there be two murders?

Chapter 30: POV Secondary Character. Mother hints that her problems will be over soon.

Chapter 31: POV Protagonist. She looks up Suspect 4 who tells them Suspect 6 isn’t dead and offers key to finding her.

Chapter 32: POV Antagonist/Suspect 1. He continues his narrative and puts himself and Suspect 6 at the scene and reinforces their motive.

Chapter 33: POV Protagonist finds and confronts Suspect 6 who points the finger at Suspect 3.

Chapter 34: POV Antagonist/Suspect 1. He continues narrative of what happened and reveals  and reason for False evidence 3. Found false evidence 2 missing. Reveals Suspect 6 killed Victim 1.

Chapter 35: POV Protagonist. She realizes Suspect 6 had access to belongings from Victim 1.

Chapter 36: POV Secondary Character. Mother narrates the backstory and reveals plot to kill herself (Victim 3) using Suspect 5 who ends up killing Victim 2 and uses both weapons.

Chapter 37: POV Protagonist. She escapes Suspect 6.

Chapter 38: POV Antagonist/Suspect 1. He continues the narrative. They left Victim 1 and found Victims 2 & 3. They obscure the crime scene to make it look like someone else committed the murders. Suspect 6 wants to kill the Protagonist, but can’t find her.

Chapter 39: POV Protagonist. She puts the pieces together. Suspect 6 killed Victim 1 and Suspect 5 killed Victims 2 and 3. Evidence puts blame on Suspect 5.

Chapter 40: POV Suspect 5. He ruminates on what happened.

Chapter 41: POV Protagonist. She finds a key piece of evidence that convicts Suspect 6. She visits Suspect 1 in jail.

Chapter 42: POV Antagonist/Suspect 1. He ruminates on gaining his freedom.

Chapter 43: POV Protagonist. She gains closure and can now face what happened and move on.

By analyzing books chapter by chapter and movies scene by scene, you get a feel for story structure. You don't need an MFA to be a successful writer, but you should learn the basics of sound story architecture. Then you can make alterations without weakening or destroying the integrity of your stories.

Continue reading: Dissecting The Crooked House by Agatha Christie.

Dissecting Christie Part 1 of 6

Dissecting Christie Part 2 of 6

Dissecting Christie Part 3 of 6

Dissecting Christie Part 4 of 6

Dissecting Christie Part 5 of 6

Dissecting Christie Part 6 of 6

For more about how to craft plots using conflict check out, Story Building Blocks: The Four Layers of Conflict available in print and e-book and check out the free tools and information about the series on my website.