Alright, so with the first draft of novel WIP#6 finished, and while I am in full head-rinsing time from my Belfast Ghosts trilogy, I have been re-reading The Buddha’s Bone as I gear up to outline a synopsis and chapter plan for the sequel. Easier said than done. The Buddha’s Bone was published in October 2021, so it has been two years since I last visited my characters.
When I wrote The Buddha’s Bone, I had intended it as a standalone novel. An idea for a sequel hadn’t crossed my mind, admittedly. Since then I’ve had a handful of requests for more of Kimberly’s story; some directly from readers who have DMed me, and a few in the reviews posted on Goodreads and Amazon. If even one person wanted more of a particular story, then that is enough motivation for me to start planning a sequel, but not quite enough to write one. As the author, I have to be excited enough about a story to invest a year, as a minimum, of my time to devote to writing a novel about it. I’m not prolific like a NaNoWriMo writer to crank out 50k words in a month. Reaching above 40k words, the minimum word count of a novel, takes at least 6 months for me, if not more.
Lucky for those readers hankering after more of Kimberly’s escapades in Japan, I have an idea for a sequel that excites me enough to put other novel ideas aside for the time being. Like The Buddha’s Bone, this one will also be a psychological literary fiction book, though I will also be drawing inspiration from Japanese folktales for some of my inspiration, particularly from stories such as those by Koizumi Yakumo (Lefcadio Hearn). Is that enough of a teaser, without bleeding into spoiler territory? Hopefully. Wish me luck with my chapter plan!
Leilanie Stewart 