Barbara Schading, Ph.D. - Sequel Complications

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Non-Fiction, Military

A Civilian's Guide to the U.S. Military

"...An indispensible introduction to the world's greatest military." W.E.B. Griffin, best-selling author of The Corps and other military series.

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Closure

An inexperienced journalist assumes the inquiries of a recently-deceased investigative reporter who specialized in unsolved murders, unaware the dead man is a ghost who must solve his own murder.

Disclosure

Fraud in the legal industry and canine guards send Carey on a terrifying chase to right several terrible wrongs.

The Intentional Error

Co-authors of a thriller series with their own secrets to hide must assume their character’s super-sleuth qualities to survive when they inadvertently purchase a rug specifying a 911-like attack in London.

Letters at the End

Dying woman writes letters to people who've influenced her life.

But I Digress

Wacky chick lit tale of beachlife insanity!

Novella

Naked Came the Flamingo

"Move over Travis McGee. The Flamingo has Landed."

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Sequel Complications

January 1, 1970

I'm finally working back on the sequel to Closure. It's called Disclosure and I've been busy with so many other things I haven't been able to get back to it for what seems like ages. Part of the difficulty in returning to this episode is that the first episode, Closure, is so complicated. In Closure, there's the mystery of who killed Davis, and why. Then there's two missing coeds, and also a banker's wife who got killed while he was out at a benefit. There's a killer who's killed a bunch of young women in the middle of all this.

And that's just the mystery bit. The cast of characters includes a whole gang from the newspaper where Carey works, with a range of personalities, motives and actions. There's an equally diverse bunch who frequent a New Age bookstore and meeting place called Vero Horizons. There's even a quartet of card-playing ladies who cheat at every opportunity but are game to come to Carey's rescue. Some of their family members are rather, well, odd. And speaking of family, Davis's parents, uncle, brother and sister are players in the tale, too. Some of them may have their own dark secrets to hide, don't you think?

Oh, yes, naturally in Disclosure, there's new victim(s) and suspects for the crime Carey is working on in addition to trying to figure out who killed Davis.

So I'm trying to keep this all straight in my head while developing a new story, one that is unique in its own right but that draws upon all these characters. And I must follow the structure of the first episode so that readers are not disappointed with an about-face in style when reading the sequel. And then I must also keep in mind clues, red herrings, and plot points that will be featured or come into play in the final episode.

Since this is a series, and the "main" problem is "Who killed Davis?" (think "Who killed JR?" and you get the strength of my story, right? a whole season's worth of potential episodes until the answer is revealed...), I've got to be sure to keep clear in mind who actually did kill Davis, and why, and know how to bring about the complete, perfect solution to his dilemma. I do have this in mind, I'm pleased to say; I know "whodunit." The question is, do my readers?

But I'm back into Disclosure, and have reviewed and revised my first three chapters and now I have four with good progress and hopefully, the same kind of flow that worked for Closure. I've posted teh beginning of Disclosure and Closure as well, so check them out. Let me know what you think!

Happy reading!