Milking That Cash Cow – Why We Need to Stop Complaining When Authors Write More in the Same World

Let us talk about something I have been guilty of as well in the past. Accusing authors of milking that cash cow when they announce they are writing more books in the same world. I often see the indignation when there are announcements.

While I browsed Twitter a few weeks ago I spotted that Ransom Riggs was going to continue writing in the world of Miss Peregrine. I imediately pulled a face, rolled my eyes and wondered if that was really nessecary. Cassandra Clare often gets more backlash about continuing to write in the Shadowhunter world and is often accused of not having any true creativity. Or my favorite, milking that cash cow. Some people really get angry.

Yet we beg Leigh Bardugo to continue to write in The Grisha verse. And we were all excited to hear that Maggie Stiefvater might be working on a Ronan centered trilogy. Let us also not forget Rick Riordan and his demigod universe that currently has 5 series and counting. And have you seen how long J.D. Robb’s In Death series is? I realized this when I got excited for these authors future works. How was that any different from Ransom Riggs and Cassandra Clare? Why is it okay for one author to do it but not the other author in our eyes? In my eyes sometimes too?

I think a lot has to do with how one feels about the book and the author. Let us be honest and say that Cassandra Clare has some negativity in her past that have made a lot of readers dislike her. I feel that a lot of that spurs a lot more negative comments to whatever she does, like continuing on with the Shadowhunter world. And if I look at myself as to why I pulled a face at the news of more books in the Miss Peregrine universe, I think it has to do with the fact that I was not hugely fond of the first book that I read and never continued on with the series. I couldn’t understand why there would be a need for more.

But just because I am done with a world doesn’t mean that other people have to feel the same way. Some of us can accuse authors of milking that cash cow, but often there are still plenty of readers that WANT to read more books in that world. Because they aren’t done with that world or those characters.

And hey, authors can write how many books they want with certain characters and in a certain world. Why shouldn’t they milk that cash cow if there are still readers that want to read and they still have all the ideas? It is their job. It is what pays their bills. When it comes down to it, authors will write what they want to write. And they have every right to do that up to a certain point (for example excluding harmful and offensive things).

We can all have an opinion on it. Sure. You might feel that a story is done but if the author doesn’t feel like  that (and perhaps others readers don’t either) then we have to accept that. But stop accusing certain authors of milking that cash cow and turn around and get excited about another author doing the exact same thing. I just don’t think it is fair to them.