# I am worried my book won't please any readers who didn't read the last installment



## sunaynaprasad (May 5, 2016)

Two negative reviews so far have come. They are the only ones so far. One even made it to Goodreads. And what both readers have in common is that they didn't read the previous book. 
Now I had many editors critique the story. The first one to critique the final draft complained mostly about the grammatical errors and the not enough backstories to make it stand on its own. They generally found the story elements fine. After that, I added more backstories and cleaned up all the errors. The next editors said that they enjoyed the then manuscript overall. 
I don't know if it's just me, but is it super hard to please people with book sequels and who haven't read previous installments? This surprises me, because my writing and story telling skills have changed and improved a lot over the past three years.


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## Aquilo (May 5, 2016)

With any series, readers will come in at various stages. Some don't read in order. I'm on my fifth novel in one series of mine, and I'll get readers who start with the 4th novel, who then go back to the 1st. 

There are some things you can't control in fiction and this is one of them, unfortunately. 

On Goodreads, you can leave an author note on your review under the 2nd novel that it's not to be read as a stand alone (just don't rate your own work, or review it, leaving a note like: Recommended as not to be read as a stand alone, is okay). I did with one of mine (the 4th one). People still read out of order, though.


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## Book Cook (May 5, 2016)

I don't think authors should cater to those readers who start with reading the sequels, especially if there are many books in the series. Those who read from the beginning will be bored with constant throwbacks you'd have to make to keep the new readers invested, and IMO those readers that have been reading since the beginning are more deserving of content. 

Furthermore, I can't imagine myself diving into any series from a half-way point and expect to make heads or tails of what is going on, so I don't understand readers who do such things. If you want to read a story that spans over many books, why won't you pick the first one?

I remember picking up the second book of The Dark Tower series when I didn't know anything about The Dark Tower. I was perhaps 20 pages in when I realised that I was missing something. I leafed through the book and saw that it was Book II of the series. What I did was put the book down, found the first book in a bookstore and read it. What I didn't do was badmouth King and his work and certainly didn't write a negative review.


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## lvcabbie (May 5, 2016)

Every book in a series must be able to stand on its own.


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## sunaynaprasad (May 5, 2016)

True. When I added more backstories to my book and showed it to the last editor before I published it, they said that there was too much backstory. I decided that it was better to have too much than not enough. When I read the review on GR, though, the reader said nothing about it not standing on its own. She just said that she didn't enjoy it, but didn't state why.


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## Aquilo (May 7, 2016)

Where are the reviews, sunya? I can see ratings on Amazon for the 2nd novel, but they are five star. There's also 1 star on Goodreads, at 2 stars, but there's no review up yet. Ratings for your other novel are really good. :}0 I just can't trace the two reviews you refer too.


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## sunaynaprasad (May 7, 2016)

I saw the reviews on Amazon as well. They made me feel better and more confident.


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## The_Scribbler (May 9, 2016)

You're always going to have negative reviews. Even the most popular novelists get them. Opinions vary from person to person and not everyone likes the same thing. I'm more wary of books that have all good reviews. To me that makes it seem like the author only had friends review it. A mixed surpluss of reviews helps me learn what I like and what I don't. For instance, you said they didn't read book one, so didn't have enough backstory. I'd go back to check out book one as opposed to trying to buy book two. You generally still want every book in a series to have a beginning, middle, and end. You may still need backstory from the first novel, but the first novel in itself should be able to stand alone. Me, personally, if the story leaves off on a cliffhanger, I generally don't read them. There are people who love that though, however recently, I've noticed more people complaining about it than not in reviews. Still, you'll get good reviews, and bad. It's okay to be upset for a little bit, but don't let it totally pull you down. Keep writing. Make sure you're manuscript is as solid as it can be before publication. It can be the best novel in the world and you're still going to get negative reviews. It's just the way it goes.


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