Writing update

I'm a plotter overall, especially with a series like Forgotten Worlds, but I allow room for surprises and flexibility to change things as necessary. No idea is perfect in its planning.

That's why as I've been writing Book 15, I've been revisiting Books 13 and 14. I left something unfinished in Book 14 which gives me a good subplot to wrap up in Book 15. And that also gave me a new idea for an extra end scene for Book 14, which teases a big question that could make things more complicated for me but add tension to the overall series.

While I try to keep each book as a standalone episode with its own beginning, middle, and end, I also have the overall series arc to consider. There are some things that get carried on for some time before being resolved, as readers have now discovered. My notes are long and complicated, and it's getting to the point that I may need a better format for tracking all these connections. I just don't have the time to sit and make up charts of what happens when and what else it affects, nor the inclination. I have too many other things to do in my day than to reorganize my notes.

Right now, I am happy to report that Book 15 is up to 7000 words. Considering I broke from it yesterday in a sidetrack of ideas that came to fruition in an extra scene at the end of Book 14 to tie into what developed for Book 15, I've still maintained a decent pace of writing. And this just re-emphasizes the need to stay two books ahead in writing of what I'm publishing. 

The biggest challenge is always to keep the stories exciting and interesting and largely complete episodes with lead-ins to what's to come.

It's getting more exciting with some major events (and HUGE revelations) to come!

beginning again... Forgotten Worlds Book 15 started

Coming Fall 2022

It took me some thinking and consideration of what has happened in the Forgotten Worlds series to date, but I decided what Book 15 would be. I just released MESSAGES, and have SOUL SHADOW and UNBROKEN BONDS aside for editing.

I read through SS after releasing MESSAGES and then started reading UB. When I was nearly at the end of UB, I finally figured out how to coordinate what happens next for Nya and her friends and figure out what happened in between the stories, which would have been no real story of its own and worked out well as a narrative summary. The story has become a bit more complicated since I now have established rules of how things work, tech, cultures, etc., but I anticipated that going into this series. I kept the first half relatively basic with independent adventures that didn't always involve the series plot but still built on it, and those stories made sense for the characters to grow together as friends/companions and form a cohesive team. The goal is always for each story leading to the next and for the growth of the characters and advancement of the over-arching plot. It's the subplots that get to be trouble, so I had to wrap up some of those in UB before I go any further.

Coming Winter 2022-2023

Book 13 is the background of L'Ni, revealing the Feri culture quite in-depth and how they betrayed L'Ni. In Book 14, an important romance comes to fruition, and L'Ni is taken from the celebration of Ann and Nik's wedding, which is mystifying in itself until you learn how it was down (pretty basic really but a realized threat to Ethalian security). I also wanted to wrap up the question of what the mirror meant in the Vault of the Celestials trials and reveal another hint of something big that I've been developing, something that I introduced way back in The Rule of Yonder. I didn't have the answer then but it did come to me a few books later and I had to be careful to sprinkle in hints of that as the series has continued. Writing two books ahead of publishing allows me a chance to use an idea and go back in editing those previous books and add whatever I need. That's why I always have two of these stories waiting in the wings when I start a new one.

I have the rest of the series planned and probably have too many ideas already, but I came up with something else for Book 15 to get back to a bit of a side adventure again. I know. I know. I need to stick to what I have and quit expanding this more. That's easier said than done with a series like this, but I do want to finish it. I may not develop some of the ideas I have into full-blown stories if it gets too long, but they're all good, and now that I have a countdown to doomsday for the series, I have some time to fill and details to develop.

So, there's what I'm up to and some of my thinking on this series. If you ever have questions or even an idea, feel free to contact me by commenting here or by completing the form at https://melanienilles.com/contact/. I'd love to hear from you.