Pitfalls of Writing the Second Book In A Series

The Pitfalls Of Writing The Second Book In A Series…
(Suffering from the Second Book Syndrome)

It has been nearly seven years since Eye of Saturn Book One was published.
Many setbacks attributed to me not finishing and publishing the second book
of my four-book series in the time-frame I had set.  Although the third
book is completely finished and the fourth and final book is halfway
completed, the second book has proved to be the most difficult.
I planned and plotted everything out, but the problem is the second
book is such a departure from the first book. For starters the book has
gone through many title changes. I still have not finalized the title. Secondly, I’m
still learning the craft of novel writing. Learning is an on-going and
never-ending process of being a writer. I believe the second book
in the Eye of Saturn series will certainly show my homework has paid off.
I’ve created my own unique style and voice that sets me apart from
other horror writers. Thirdly, I had to create a seamless story-line
and bring the story back full circle, to lead it logically to book three. 
Fourthly, because the book is such a departure from the first book, did
I want to make it a stand alone? I decided not to.
 
Each book in the Eye of Saturn series needs to be “Same But Different.” I
wanted to give readers more of what they loved, but from a different
perspective. Fans loved the action, "magick" and the unique love story
presented in the first book, so I continued that in the second book, but
raised the stakes.
With that being said, what makes writing the second book so darn hard?
For me, I spent so much time promoting the first book, it was hard to
get off that high. My book launch was successful and I had a blast
promoting the book. But in the back of my mind, I wondered if I could
write and promote the second book with as much energy as I did the
first one?  We’ll see.
 
Don’t suffer from dreaded second book syndrome.
For those of you who have never heard of the second book syndrome, here’s
a brief definition: A writer fails to write a second book that will live up to
the first one and the book falls flat. Or writers go off the deep end and the
book loses the magic of the first one. Pretty much like movie sequels that
fail to live up to the first movie.
Here's a few tips I would like to share to help any writer struggling with
finishing the second book or sequel:

1. Plan and plot out the book or book series
2. Have a hook
3. Have a great beginning
4. If it’s a sequel don’t be afraid to raise the stakes, but not so much
5. you over do it.
6. Include as many elements as possible from the first book
7. Don’t be afraid to create a second lead character
8. Invest in your secondary characters and develop them fully
9. Have character cameos
10. Create a seamless story-line
11. Don’t force anything into your story-line that just doesn’t fit. Be
12. true to your story and characters.
13. Set a schedule time to write
14. Have fun and create