Sequel Writing Quotes

Many years ago, I was actually hired to write the sequel to 'Independence Day.' And I wrote a sequel. And they paid me a boatload of money to go write this thing. And after I wrote it, I read it and I gave them back the money and I said, 'Look, this is an okay movie I just wrote. But it's not worthy of the sequel to 'Independence Day.'

The first sequel thing I wrote was this 'Forever Dawn' thing that will never get out, because it's horrid. But it's a really good outline for 'Breaking Dawn' - it's very similar. I knew what I was doing, which is good, because I think if I hadn't, there might have been a lot of pressure.

The biggest difference in writing a sequel is that now there are expectations. But also - and this is the awesome part - now there are fans, too!

I did not want to write one of those sequels that famous first-book authors get into where everybody says, 'Oh yeah.'

But, George and Steven asked me to write the Indiana Jones sequels, and I didn't want to.

I never actually plan sequels. They demand to be done.

When you're writing for a sequel and there's a movie that's been deemed sacred ground by the fanbase that's the predecessor, you cannot do anything to tread on that, so it's a bit trickier than just being able to sit down and write something.

I would happily have done any of the 'Bourne Identity' sequels. There are good sequels, but I'm not good at making them.

I'm not one of those people who had a burning passion for 'Peter Pan' all my life. Although I can't remember a time when I didn't know the story, I didn't carry around with me an ambition to one day write the sequel.

Now that I understand how publishing schedules work, I can understand why many authors have the sophomore slump. A year is a long time to wait for a sequel, but it's a short, short time to WRITE a sequel.

In 'Twilight,' you're setting up the world. You're introducing the world, and I was also writing in a vacuum because I didn't know who the actors were going to be. Now you're going to 'New Moon' and 'Eclipse,' and I could write specifically to them in my mind. So it becomes a more comfortable world.

'Would I mind if someone wrote a sequel to one of my books?' I asked myself, and I decided that I wouldn't, providing that the writer was respectful, had read my book first, and wasn't drunk when doing it.

I think in some ways, you end up with more interesting storytelling with series, because if you've written yourself into a corner with something in book 1, you have to be cleverer to get out of it.

I'm not the guy to ask to write a sequel.

I really don't know why Scarlett has such appeal. When I began writing the sequel, I had a lot of trouble because Scarlett is not my kind of person. She's virtually illiterate, has no taste, never learns from her mistakes.

My favorite part about Mare Barrow is her almost selfish survival instinct, as well as her increasingly gray morality. Her character arc in 'Glass Sword' is a lot deeper and more emotional than before, so I'm glad I got to write this sequel and that people want to read it.

Undisputed ends when I return to the WWE in 2007. There is already 3 ½ years of material including the 3 best years of my career. Undisputed is going to do even better than A Lion's Tale, there is no reason to not do #3. The material I have for #3 is just as good as the first 2. I still have a few years to go before I write but I would definitely like to write another one. But it is not about the numbers, it is about the quality. If I don't think it would be as good, I won't do it