I am in the running to write a story set in someone else’s fictional sci-fi world, in this case, continuing an existing series working with a well-known author.
While I can’t give any details right now, it’s been a fascinating experience. I’ve read the existing books in the series, and I’m now going back through them with a fine tooth comb to create my own series bible. There was an existing one, but unfortunately didn’t have all the little details I would need to know to continue the story with consistency, and without missing important story arcs and character quirks.
Each person in the story has their own history, and a set of attributes, experiences, and relationships within the story to date, including places they have been, other characters they’ve interacted with, and physical and emotional details that don’t come through in a regular chapter by chapter summary.
So I’ve taken a deep dive into these books, extracting everything I can and putting all the information into a format that I can use going forward.
It’s an interesting process, especially since I don’t know where the previous co-authors and the primary author intended to take the story. There are so many loose threads that can be picked up and woven into something new, and I’m sure the primary author has some ideas about that. But there’s also an extraordinary opportunity for me to create something brand new from those dangling storylines.
Working through this tale has also given me a newfound appreciation for just how dense worldbuilding can be. There are so many apparent throwaway lines that might mean absolutely nothing, or might be woven into something amazing in the next book. Little hints and ideas that are just waiting to germinate under the careful hands of the right gardener.
I’ve also been making notes about things that interest me, issues that need to be resolved, and where I might go with the story arc.
They are some interesting gaps and issues in the story – ideas that look like they were missed, and timelines that are a bit loose. For instance, by my account in the last book, we were up to day ten in the story, But then a couple notes in the text indicated that it was actually day 27. Somewhere in there, one of the previous authors either lost count, or assumed a series of uneventful days between chapters that were not apparent in the story itself.
I’m sure some of my own books have similar issues.
In any case, I’m enjoying myself, and look forward to pitching my version of the next book to the primary author. I’ll give it my own spin, and hope that he enjoys what I put together.
If nothing else, this whole thing is giving me more insight into how other writers craft their own worlds, and some new ideas for my own.
I’ll keep you posted when I have more news!