Do You Read Series?

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Readers tend to love series. But you may not know that there are more than one kind. Here are the basic types:

Dynamic Series – follows the same character or group through the series as they try to accomplish a large goal. The story arc is too big for one book and is fleshed out over multiple books.  Think: The Hobbit, or Harry Potter.

Static Series – each book is more an individual event or installment in the characters’ lives than a series of related events. Think: Sherlock Holmes, Murder She Wrote, or Babysitters Club. You know, Cozy mysteries.

Anthology Series – tied together by a world, a setting, or character relationships. The series can be made up of dynamic and/or static series. Think: Marvel or Hogwarts.

That ends the education part of the post, promise.

I only write the last type – mostly because I’m not smart enough for the first two! I’ve written three small town series – they’re popular and especially well adapted for Westerns.

But my very first series is different – because I didn’t mean to write a series! The first book I ever sold was The Sweet Spot,  a reunion story about a divorced couple with a ranch that supplied bucking bulls to the bull riding circuit. In the divorce, he got the bulls, she got their valuable semen. It won the Romance Writers of America RITA award for best first book that year (I’m still squeeing!).

But it sold in a 3-book series. I freaked out. I’d never written a series. I didn’t even know about the types of series above. So I followed the old adage, ‘Write what you know’. If you’ve been reading my blogs here, you know that what I know is bull riding.

So I wrote a series set in the world of professional bull riding. 

The second book, Nothing Sweeter, was about a woman on the run from her past, who ends up taking a job as groom on a remote, failing cattle ranch. She talks them into raising bucking bulls as a way to turn the bottom line to black. Oh, and falls in love with the curmudgeon owner. 

The last book, Sweet on You, is a road trip story. A combat medic veteran can’t stand witnessing soldiers’ pain any longer. She returns stateside, and takes a job as a member of the medical team that cares for injured bull riders at the PBR events – figuring she could do the job, since she had no respect of spoiled athletes. You guessed it, she falls for one.

I’m proud of their overall average star ratings of 4.6-4.8 on Amazon, but I have another reason for bringing them up today:

They’re on SALE!!

The Sweet Spot is $0.99, the other two are $1.99! Not sure how long the sale will last, so check them out soon!

What is your favorite type of series? Your favorite one?

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Laura Drake is a New York and self-published published author of Women's Fiction and Romance.
Her romance series, Sweet on a Cowboy, is set in the world of professional bull riding. Her debut, The Sweet Spot, was a double-finalist, then won the 2014 Romance Writers of America® RITA® award. She’s since published 12 more books. She is a founding member of Women's Fiction Writers Assn, as well as a member of Western Writers of America and Women Writing the West.
Laura is a city girl who never grew out of her tomboy ways, or a serious cowboy crush. She gave up the corporate CFO gig to write full time. She realized a lifelong dream of becoming a Texan and is currently working on her accent. She's a wife, grandmother, and motorcycle chick in the remaining waking hours.

41 thoughts on “Do You Read Series?”

  1. Good morning. I love series, especially one that the 1st kind you put up, Dynamic Series. The characters are the same & each book is more drama they are engaged in. Sometimes authors write about characters then move on to other main characters in the next book and it’s short changing us readers & you authors’, after spending so much time writing to make them so real to us all. We want more of them and get to know them even more. When we love the 1st characters, it’s just so sad to lay them aside.

  2. Lassoed in texas & montana marriages both written by Mary Connealy were all the characters come together in the final story in the montana series.

  3. I like anthology series. I like to read about different characters but have the ones from previous books pop up in scenes as an update to them, but not a new story about them. I like each story wrapped up at the end of the book.

  4. I’m a series reader, I live visiting new places, new people and following them through other books in the series. To me series books give me a sense of coming home, you learn the silent pain one person may suffer only to have them meet that special someone that will help them see their true value. I’m actually reading a series now by Brenda Minton called Mercy Ranch for wounded veterans. I’m the strange reader that can pickup any book in the series and read it, I don’t have to follow the 1 2 3 order.. I actually read book 6 of this series first and has taken months to track down through libraries/ book stores to find the others as I love paperbacks book. I read my kindle but love books. I will definitely be checking out your series as I’m also a rodeo fan thanks to Kari Lynn Dell books.

  6. I read all series. My favorite is JD Robbs’ In Death series. Have read all that have been published.

  8. Good morning. I didn’t know the types of series but I do love series! If a first book is outstanding and I’m invested in the characters I do not want the end of the book to be the end of the story. I love murder/mystery/thrillers based around a Detective and all the crimes they solve with their life story mixed in like J.D. Robb’s “In Death series. I also love series like Linda Broday’s “Men of Legend”, I never want the Stoker families story to end. I love books likes these that could easily be made into a tv series or movie. The funny thing is that these two examples are complete opposites. J.D. Robb’s series is futuristic and Linda’s is Historical Western Romance. I guess I have a very wide range of likes when it comes to books.

    • Wow, we could start an ‘In Death’ fan club! And the other series I recommend is The Virgin River Series by Robyn Carr – and they DID make that into a TV series! Also, of course, can’t go with out mentioning Longmire!

  9. I love a good series and some authors have 15-20 books in them – fine by me – getting to revisit with the characters is a plus for me!

  10. Oh yes…yes…yes! I love reading series. When going on road trips in the spring and fall, we used to search out used bookstores to fill whatever we were reading in our series. It was fun! Still is! Thanks for the tip on the good deals on Amazon. I’ll check it out.

  11. I like all kinds of series, although I will point out that The Hobbit is in fact a single book which was turned into a dynamic series only for the movies. 🙂

    • Actually the movies came from the Tolkien series – The Hobbit, The Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers, The Return of the King.

      Yeah, I’m a Tolkien nerd.

  12. One of my new favorite series is by C J Box, Joe Pickett series about a game warden in Wyoming. I’m addicted to it. I have my husband addicted as well.

    • Tonya, I’m a huge Joe Pickett reader. I just love him! All he wants to do is count baby pronghorns but oh no, always with the dead bodies turning up.
      HEY, this was no grizzly bear accident! This man was murdered! 🙂
      Let it go, Joe. Case closed. But of course Joe can’t let it go, and then people start trying to kill him.

  13. I guess I qualify for Static Series. I read lots of suspense/drama/police procedural.
    I love Nevada Barr’s Anna Pigeon series. I’m currently rereading it. Possibly the premiere female character in all of fiction.
    Michael Connelly’s Harry Bosch
    John Sandford’s Lucas Davenport and Virgil Flowers
    Vince Flynn’s assassin for the good guys, Mitch Rapp
    Of course Lee Child’s Jack Reacher Series.
    Have you ever read the Pendergast series? By Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child? Truly weird and fun.
    David Baldacci’s got five series going that I love. The Camel Club is probably my fav but I read them all. Currently on Memory Man book…what? Five? Seven?

  15. I’ve read series which are by one author, connected through several authors, and in anthologies with a similar theme.

    I enjoy series and standalone.

    denise

  16. I love series and like all 3 kinds but really like the 1st kind you talked about, Fern Michael’s Sisterhood series, but also like about an area, family, event and previous characters pop in. And if I love it, I will keep reading until the series is over.

  17. Now I know why the book I have at my editor’s was so doggone hard to write. I wondered. Other than its an ensemble romance, much like “Love Actually,” or “New Year’s Eve” ensemble romance movies. My “Lonesome Buzzard Ranch” series is dynamic, static, and an anthology series, all rolled into one. Heavens! Who knew that’s what I was doing.
    Thanks for the much-needed analysis and info, Laura Drake, and your books sound awesome! Great prices, too. Must add that to my share!

  18. Laura, I had no idea series came under these three categories. Your Sweet on a Cowboy series sounds really good. I’ll be sure to take advantage of the sale!

    Recently, I read books from three different series. I hadn’t been looking them, but all three were on sale and mentioned in the authors’ newsletters. Well, I enjoyed them so much, I purchased the entire Kindle editions of all three! They are Parish Orphans of Devon by Mimi Matthews, Legacy of the King’s Pirates by MaryLu Tyndall, and Chronicles of the Kings by Lynn Austin. After I read you blog, I was trying to decide what series categories they fall under. I would say Mimi’s and MaryLu’s are Static, and Lynn’s is Anthology.

    Thank you for a great blog, Laura!

  19. I love series. Static series are a favorite. They are bit like visiting a favorite place. You are familiar with the location and see friends while there. Anthologies are good, but should only be 3 or 4 books long. When I read these, I like to have all the books first , then binge read them. That way the story arc and characters stay fresh. I like following characters and settings, but rarely have the time to invest in a dynamic series.

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