stand-alone book first

All Things Writing
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So, I have been writing the first book of a series that is very near and dear to my heart for a few years now. I’m just about to start the third draft, and while I don’t intend to give up on it, nor stop working on it, I have realized that it’s so much easier to debut as an author when your first book is a stand-alone. So, I figure I should write a stand-alone book while I am also working on my main series, and then publish that stand-alone book first.

However, I do wonder, because I have no desire to stick to one specific genre, if it still matters what genre of story I publish first. Because my main series is going to be a science fiction though, should I make sure my first published stand-alone book is also a science fiction, just so it helps people gravitate towards the series when I publish it too? Or, since I plan to explore many different genres throughout my writing career, should I just publish whatever I have inspiration for first with no limitations on genre selection? What are your thoughts?

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are you self-publishing?

in that case, do what you want. maybe it’s a bit unusual, but at the end of the day, it’s you who’s writing the book, you who’s marketing it, and you who’s controling what you do. if you try to force yourself into a box, then you’re gonna get burnt out realllllyyyy quickly.

and if you’re traditionally publishing? well, then you should consult Professor YouTube on the general conventions of the trad publishing world. there’s a lot of good people who will go over their publishing journeys, etc, and it should give you a lot of info to think about in that direction.

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