We are currently in the process of writing our debut novel which is set to be released some time next year. On top of this we are writing two short stories which I guess you could call an extended back story for the protagonist and the antagonist.
Although the threads from all three books are intrinsically intertwined, they also work as a stand alone piece, so one is not needed to make sense of the other (if that makes any kind of sense at all).
What has stumped me is the order in which I should release the books. It seems like such a simple question but I really want to release them in a way that is going to generate maximum interest.
Here are the strategies that I have pondered -
1) We release the novel first, and then release the short stories afterwards, giving the readers more depth to the characters that they already know (and hopefully love).
2) We release the short stories first, familiarising the reader with our characters. Then shortly after we release the novel, a sort of 'what happened next' full blown adventure for the reader to indulge in.
3) We release all three at once, hoping to hell that at least one of them will attract some sort of attention.