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Today Janni tells talks to us about Creating a Series. Welcome Janni.

Creating a Series 
by Janni Nell

In the beginning all my manuscripts were stand-alone stories written in the third person. Then I started reading chicklit and fell in love with that humorous first person voice. Allegra Fairweather: Paranormal Investigator was my first attempt at writing in that voice. Apparently it worked okay because the manuscript was accepted for publication. Another first. Then the panic set in. I’d planned an Allegra series – if the first book ever got published. Suddenly I had to make good on that plan.

I already had an idea for the second book, but what about the third (gulp!) and the fourth and OMG I had a vague memory of mentioning ten books in all. Hadn’t thought that one through. Ten! Chosen solely because it was a nice round number. Could I do that many?

I started to think about each book as being a chapter in Allegra’s life. What would she learn about herself in that book? How would she develop as a person? Of course there also had to be a paranormal mystery – one for each book – and the development of her relationship with Casper.

So far each book has been set in a different country, and I expect this will continue. Where possible, I draw from that country’s mythology for the paranormal aspects of the story, but sometimes the mythology doesn’t lend itself well to an Allegra story. That’s when I get the chance to make up my own mythology, which is so fun.

For the development of the relationship with Casper, I was influenced by TV shows like “The Nanny”, where the relationship develops very, very slowly. Once the characters have sex in a TV show, the series is pretty much over. Of course, there are good reasons Allegra and Casper can’t have sex, but keeping their relationship bubbling along despite the lack of physical contact is an interesting challenge.

Creating a series means a lot of balls in the air and a lot of years of work. Okay, it’s fun too. Let’s not forget the fun – the absolute pleasure of beginning a story and seeing how it evolves.

Two Allegra Fairweather books have now been released. The third will be published in 2012. I’m currently working on book four.

So will I reach ten books? Who knows? But, no matter what happens, it’s a great ride. Better than I ever imagined.

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Thanks, Janni

Out now from Carina Press:
Allegra Fairweather: Paranormal Investigator
South of Salem

Visit Janni at www.janninell.com and www.facebook.com/janni.nell