Post History

Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/38242
License name: CC BY-SA 3.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

If your “series” is one story told in parts, then the answer should be obvious.

You, however, are telling multiple stories set in one world. Here is what you need to keep in mind:

- If you do not make clear the fact that the stories are mostly stand–alone, then your readers will think otherwise when they see the same headliner on the cover. 
  - Choose your first five stories to be ones which are distinctive as possible. The first one can be that coming–of–age, melodramatically tragi-comedy. The second can be an espionage thriller. The third is a wild adventure and the introduction of the recurring maverick rogue. Et cetera.  
**Do not** publish in any chronological sequence — either make them simultaneous or select stories which occur at scattered points in the history of the world.
  - Optionally: Do not emphasize the shared world anywhere in the titles. Maybe you can let the publisher add that somewhere on the jacket flaps or small print on the paperback's aft cover.
- These stories, though they share the same world, will appeal to different people. Some readers will not like some of them.  
Separate the stories as much as the plots allow. Reward your dedicated readers with inside jokes and the sense of a rich world demonstrated by thorough continuity and crossovers — but, allow each story to stand alone well enough. You don't need to do it quite like television — and probably shouldn't, because by that I mean insular stories with same theme, genre, and characters.
- Cover art: it goes a long way towards informing prospective readers as to the theme of a story. Use it to emphasize the distinctions between books.

If all else fails, then  
• use the other authors to write or co-write the stories of widely differing genre. Put their name above yours if the two of you wish to share credit.

Original score: 3