I can’t believe it’s been 10 years since I first published my debut novel, Bird. Looking back now, it feels strange to think about how much has grown from that one story and how much I’ve really started to understand myself as a writer.
If you’ve read previous blogs of mine, you might know that I never expected to write a sequel to Bird, let alone a trilogy. And I certainly never planned for there to be a fourth and fifth book. But when you fall in love with your characters, it’s hard to let them go.
When I originally sat down to write Bird in 2015, I had an idea for a story and it felt all resolved to me at the end. The fact that people believed the ending had been left open for a sequel surprised me. In my mind it was just how the story should finish. But people started to ask when the sequel was coming out, and so I decided to write more. It was lovely to know that people wanted more, and I had ideas, so why not write them?
But my ideas were expansive. It naturally became three books, just so I could tell the story I wanted to tell. There was a lot of stuff that I wanted to put Beth and Simon through!
When I finished the third book, it felt good. It felt complete. But I also felt sad. I’d spent years living in these characters’ shoes. I have loved writing all of my books, but often when the final proof read is done, I’m normally already thinking of the next book. I’m ready to move on. This has never been the case for the characters in my Bird trilogy. There was something about them that felt like family and I’ve never quite been able to let them go.
Shortly after ‘Free as a Bird’ (the third book) was published, I had an idea for what could happen next. I didn’t mean to. It just sort of jumped into my mind. I made some notes and I decided that maybe in the future I’d come back to it. And finally, in 2020, I did.
Writing the Fourth Book
Writing a fourth book in a series isn’t easy. Especially when it’s been a few years since the last book. I’m always making notes on future stories, and I had dozens of ideas for book four, but that wasn’t enough. I needed to remind myself of everything that had happened so far – to be consistent – and I had to get into the characters’ heads again so I could write them in the same way. This meant I had to re-read the trilogy and do some serious planning. I plan every book I write, but this was going to take that little bit extra.
In the summer of 2020 (luckily, I had time), I spent days catching up on the adventures of Beth and Simon. I was quite happy (and relieved) that I enjoyed re-reading the books so much. Bird will always be one of my favourite stories. As it came from an idea I had when I was a child, it’s sort of been there with me for most of my life. And I’m proud of the final product. Just as I’m proud of the whole series now.
“The Dark Nest” (the fourth book) is much darker (as the name suggests!) than the previous novels. It wasn’t a strictly deliberate decision. The idea that I had just took the characters to a dark place, and I knew I’d have to rock the boat quite substantially to keep upping the ante from the previous books. The nature of my idea also meant that this is less of a romance than the previous books.
But if you’re a sucker for romance like I am, don’t fear. If you’ve read The Dark Nest, you’ll know it ends on a cliffhanger. I once again had too many ideas for just one book. So I am now already drafting up the fifth and final instalment in Beth and Simon’s adventures. And I am getting back to some romance. Although it might not be in the way my readers hope…
With a Twist
Looking back over the last 10 years, I think one of the biggest things I’ve realised is that I’ve found my genre. I love writing love stories, but never in a straightforward way. I’ve always been drawn to adding something darker, something unexpected or something that shifts the balance.
I like that readers now know what to expect from me. Or at least, they think they do. I certainly like to keep them on their toes with my hard to predict endings.
Some of my favourite reviews are the ones that say I’ve taken the humble love story and done something different with it. I just wrote a first book that I really wanted to write, and now I make a point of adding a twist to a love story to give it more punch. It’s what I plan for now.
I’m releasing my 10th novel this year (watch out for news soon), and I love that it’s worked out to be my 10th novel on my 10th year of publishing. I have another 10 books already planned out for the next decade. There’s plenty more to come if you like my weird imagination!
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