I read an article on Screen Rant the other day about how the newest installment of the Predator series brought the viewer closer to the original movie than any of the other movies in between.

I have to admit, there have been a lot of them.

And when you toss in all the Alien movies that fall into the same category of watering down the original you are practically buried.

Honestly, I have to agree with the take Ben Sherlock presents. The original two movies in each series were iconic. They were both different takes on the same general story. With the Alien movies you had the tense survival game in Alien and the guns blazing, hoo-rah space marines in Aliens. With Predator and Predator 2, you have the same battle with different settings and more amazing Predator doohickies.

After the first two installments of each franchise things lost their edge. Viewers wanted more of the original while the writers and directors felt they needed more backstory to add gravity to the series.

I’ve been thinking about this take since reading the article.

I agree.

As I thought on the matter, it dawned on me that it doesn’t just apply to movies. Series fall into the same category, as to books.

A lot of longstanding book series have their low points in regards to individual books. In fact, I would posture that every series has that problem.

How do you find the balance? How to you retain the spirit of adventure or mystery or romance that caught the readers in the first book while maintaining an overarching storyline that makes the reader want to come back for more.

Do you go the Reacher route and have each book be stand-alone or do you go the Robert Jordan route where each book builds on the previous? Perhaps the best approach is a Jim Butcher, each book is a separate adventure that ties into the longstanding storyline?

As an author with a series, these decisions weigh on me.

Should characters return in later books? Will people get sick of the main characters and need to have them cycled out periodically? Where is the balance of action and story that will keep things from bogging down?

I have to chuckle to myself as I write this. I’ve presented more questions than answers. But I suppose that’s life.

Every day when I write, I search for that balance.

In other news, last weekend’s giveaway was a roaring success. Not only did I give away hundreds of copies of Genesis, I’ve also started to sell copies of Trinity in follow-up. Thank you all for spreading the word and helping me get things moving.

While we all wait for book three, keep on reading, keep on enjoying the change of leaves, and keep on flying the Black.