The story I'm working on is a six-book fantasy series (I didn't plan it that way, it just kind of grew into it). The first four are self-contained stories, while the last two are kind of a duology (I'll explain more below). There is a single overarching plotline, and the stories follow each other in time. The problem is, this story takes place all over the world, so the books take place in different parts of the world too, and the first four have different protags. Before I get into the explanation, I have lay a little groundwork: A lot of the mages in my world belong to the Order of Elemental Wielders (the Order); there's a group in the Order (they have no formal name, but I call them the Faction) that seeks to reform/overthrow/tear down the Order (it's a cellular organization, so they have a wide variety of views). They're affiliated with the real antags, the Infused - a group of people whose souls are trapped in elemental constructs. Some of them chose to be that way, but most of them didn't; their goal is to become mortal once again. So, on to the series... Book 1 follows Sabetha, who's an inspector for the Order (a cop who investigates and prosecutes crimes committed by Order members). The antags in this book are a Faction cell, but at the end of the book, the leader drops hints that there's someone further up the chain giving him and his people orders. This book takes place over the course of about six months. Book 2 takes place a few months later in the island nation of Tenemakoro. I haven't fully ironed out the plot yet, but I've got the gist of it. Strannik owns a huge horde of atharite, a crystal that the Infused need, and which he sells (think of it like diamonds, and he's DeBeers). They offer to buy a huge amount of it, he says "hell no", and they make plans to steal it from him. As a result, he gets involved in the whole matter and sets about finding a way to crush their plans. This book takes place over the course of about three months. Book 3 starts around the same time Book 2 ends. It follows Kari, a young Wielder who's going to train at one of the Order's academies. Along the way, she discovers she's a hybrid (she can use two elements); for reasons that would take too long to explain, hybrids are hunted down by the Order because they become a threat to themselves and others. She gains the attention of Strannik, who sends her an invitation. This book takes place over the course of about two years. Book 4 starts a year after Book 3 does. It follows Rayad, another Wielder at another academy, which also happens to house the Order's R&D facilities. Members of the faction steal a prototype, and Rayad and some friends stumble across a meeting between them and the Infused. They're hunted down and killed one by one; at the end, Rayad manages to expose the members, but he's still afraid they still want him dead. Along comes Strannik - he wants Rayad too. This book takes place over the course of one year. Now things (finally) start to come together. Book 5 starts with Kari and Rayad arriving at Tenemakoro. Strannik has a task for them: deliver a package for him, and he'll give them money and aid to avoid capture by the Order, the faction, and the Infused. The offer is a feint, though - he manipulates them into joining a hunt for various artifacts the Infused are also seeking (technically, he's not lying - they're constantly on the move, which makes them harder to catch). He wants them to draw the Order's attention, because they have first-hand knowledge and they'll gather evidence along the way that will convince the Order to get involved. Book 6 begins after they contact the Order and lay out the whole plot. Again, I haven't fully nailed things down, but at this point, it doesn't really matter - it's the last book, and by the time I get around to writing it, I'll have a good idea what's going on. It's been bugging me for awhile, but I never really thought about it until I wrote this: if I were reading this series, I'd probably wonder what the author was thinking. Is this a viable model? I intend to put dates at the beginning of each volume so the reader can be oriented in terms of the timeline - along with a brief explanation of what's going on - but will it be enough to avoid losing the reader's interest? If not, what can I do to have it make more sense? I know I'm leaving out a LOT of detail, but this would be 5-10 times as long otherwise. I'll be happy to answer any questions you have, though.
I don't know how helpful this'll be, but as with so many things I think this is down to execution for more than concept. It definitely can work, the structure sounds similar to the later parts of Charles Stross' The Laundry Files. As long as the first 4 stories are truly self-contained it sounds fine - even if they're best read in sequence. As a reader I'm going to be pissed off if you drop a cliffhanger at the end of book 1 and then don't pick up any of those plot threads until book 5.
Yeah, no cliffhangers, just hints of a larger plot. I guess I'll just go with it and see how it works.
