History ScheduleSlip / Literature

* The main reason for the backlash against Creator/GeorgeRRMartin. The first three books of ''Literature/ASongOfIceAndFire'' were released in 1996, 1998 and 2000. The announced release date for the fourth book was pushed back several times, as the book grew longer, until Martin had no choice but to split it into two books. release date of the fifth book (the second part of what was supposed to be book 4) was also pushed back many times, and it was finally published nearly five years after the first projected date.

* Scott Lynch, author of the GentlemanBastard series, falls into this. The third book's release date has been pushed back multiple times. To give a sense of scale, the second book was released in July 2007, and the third book has slid to the end of 2012.

* TerryPratchett, is accused of this, but it's not really happening. His books are coming out on schedule; it's just that the schedule isn't what fans think it is. Fans tend to take any reference to a title he's toying with as being "the next book", only for the next book to turn out to be something completely different. This means ''Raising Taxes'' and ''Scouting For Trolls'' have been subject to "schedule slip", while he continues to produce at least one book a year. Producing books at this rate (and even more so in the middle of Pratchett's career, when 3 books was a normal year) means that at any given time, the book he's in the process of writing is unlikely to be the next one that actually appears in stores- that will have been written some time ago.

* Creator/DouglasAdams was famous for this, as seen in the page quote. Creator/NeilGaiman's biography, ''Don't Panic'', includes the text of a rather panicky sales kit for ''Literature/SoLongAndThanksForAllTheFish'', compiled long after the deadlines, and shortly before Adams had basically been locked in a hotel room by the publishers and told not to come out until he'd written something.

* IsobelleCarmody: There was a decade between the sequels books. Many of her younger fans have gone through high school and finished a degree in the intervening time when waiting.

* Creator/DouglasAdams was famous for this, as seen in the page quote. Creator/NeilGaiman's biography, ''Don't Panic'', includes the text of a rather panicky sales kit for ''Literature/SoLongAndThanksForAllTheFish'', compiled shortly before Adams had basically been locked in a hotel room by the publishers and told not to come out until he'd written something.

** ''Oblivion'' was finished and edited as of May 2012, and was finally released on October 4, 2012.

* The ever changing release date of Ben Aaronovitch's third ''Literature/RiversOfLondon'' book, ''Literature/WhispersUnderground'' is a case of this, giving fans a wonderful chance to rehash all those old VideoGame/DukeNukemForever jokes.

* ''The Assassin King'', Book 6 of the ''SymphonyOfAges'', was released in 2006. After ''seven years'' without any further word on the series, Book 7 is finally rumored to be scheduled for an August, 2013 release.

* The main reason for the backlash against Creator/GeorgeRRMartin. The first three books of ''Literature/ASongOfIceAndFire'' were released in 1996, 1998 and 2000. The less-than-well-received fourth book was released in 2005 and the fifth was released in 2011.

* The fourth book in ''TheWarAgainstTheChtorr'' came out in 1993, the fifth in 2011. 18 ''years''.

* The fourth book in ''TheWarAgainstTheChtorr'' came out in 1993, the fifth in 2011. In other words, this trope has literally been taken UpToEleven.
* IsobelleCarmody: A '''DECADE BETWEEN SEQUEL BOOKS IS TOO LONG!''' Many of her younger fans have gone through high school and finished a degree in the intervening time when waiting.
* Creator/JKRowling intended to release a new ''Literature/HarryPotter'' book once a year, and was successful for the first few years in keeping this up, but ended up with a four-year gap between books 4 and 5, likely due to the production of the films starting during that time. The so-called "three-year summer" is considered to be a factor in the massive boom in ''Literature/HarryPotter'' {{fanfic}} that began around this time.
** Referenced somewhat in the early part of the fifth book, when Harry feels like summer has been dragging on forever, and is eager for something to actually, finally, happen.
** This is somewhat justified as the series transitioned from relatively small books into [[DoorStopper door stoppers]] starting with ''Goblet of Fire'', requiring more writing time.

* Creator/AnthonyHorowitz is awful for this. The first ''Literature/GrooshamGrange'' book came out in 1988, the second in 1999, and there was a twelve year gap between books 3 and 4 of The DiamondBrothers. Thankfully, he seems to have got is under control with his more recently started series.
** In fairness to Horowitz, the first GrooshamGrange book was pretty much a standalone novel when he wrote it and the first three Diamond Brothers books were a self-contained trilogy; the fourth, fifth and sixth books in the series formed a second trilogy of novellas.

* ''Strange Fate'', the tenth book in the ''Literature/NightWorld'' series by LJ Smith, was originally slated to come out in the summer of 1998. This book was meant to introduce the final Wild Power and was slated to be the second-to-last book in the series. As of October 2012, Smith is ''still writing'' Strange Fate. Making Amazon's pre-orders for it in 2011 both confusing and frustrating. What makes this more frustrating was [[spoiler: the finale of the series included the Apocalypse, in which all four of the Wild Powers came together on January 1, 2000, to fight evil. Smith intended to finish the series before 2000 to make this scenario more plausible. When the year 2000 came and went in real time, Smith made the decision to ''scrap Strange Fate's storyline and rewrite it'' so that it took place ''after'' the Apocalypse. What's more, Smith had decided that because of the delays that Strange Fate ''will'' be the final book in the Night World series, cancelling the eleventh book idea that was meant to wrap up the series.]]

* TerryPratchett, sort of. Fans tend to take any reference to a title he's toying with as being "the next book", only for the next book to turn out to be something completely different. This means ''Raising Taxes'' and ''Scouting For Trolls'' have been subject to "schedule slip", while he continues to produce at ''least'' one book a year.
** Producing books at this rate (and even more so in the middle of Pratchett's career, when 3 books was a normal year) means that at any given time, the book he's in the process of writing is unlikely to be the ''next'' one that actually appears in stores- that will have been written some time ago.

* Creator/JKRowling intended to release a new ''Literature/HarryPotter'' book once a year, and was successful for the first few years in keeping this up, but ended up with a four-year gap between books 4 and 5. The so-called "three-year summer" is considered to be a factor in the massive boom in ''Literature/HarryPotter'' {{fanfic}} that began around this time.

** Producing books at this rate (and even more so in the middle of Pratchett's career, when 3 books was a normal year) means that at any given time, the book he's in the process of writing is unlikely to be the ''next'' one that actually appears in stores- that will have been written some time ago.

* Occurred and was even lampshaded in Creator/CharlotteBronte's somewhat-unknown earlier work ''Caroline Vernon'', making this OlderThanRadio.

* IsobelleCarmody: A '''DECADE BETWEEN SEQUEL BOOKS IS TOO LONG!''' Many of her younger fans have gone through highschool and finished a degree in the intervening time when waiting.

* The main reason for the backlash against Creator/GeorgeRRMartin.The first three books of ''Literature/ASongOfIceAndFire'' were released in 1996, 1998 and 2000.The less-than-well-received fourth book was released in 2005 and the fifth was released in July 2011.

* TerryPratchett, sort of. Fans tend to take any reference to a title he's toying with as being "the next book", only for the next book to turn out to be something completely different. This means ''Raising Taxes'' and ''Scouting For Trolls'' have been subject to "schedule slip", while he continues to produce at ''least'' one book a year.

* The ever changing release date of Ben Aaronovitch's third ''Literature/RiversOfLondon'' book, ''Literature/WhispersUnderground'' is a case of this, giving fans a wonderful chance to rehash all those old VideoGame/DukeNukemForever jokes.

* The ever changing release date of Ben Aaronovitch's third ''RiversOfLondon'' book, ''WhispersUnderground'' is a case of this, giving fans a wonderful chance to rehash all those old VideoGame/DukeNukemForever jokes.

* ''Strange Fate'', the tenth book in the NightWorld series by LJ Smith, was originally slated to come out in the summer of 1998. This book was meant to introduce the final Wild Power and was slated to be the second-to-last book in the series. As of October 2012, Smith is ''still writing'' Strange Fate. Making Amazon's pre-orders for it in 2011 both confusing and frustrating. What makes this more frustrating was [[spoiler: the finale of the series included the Apocalypse, in which all four of the Wild Powers came together on January 1, 2000, to fight evil. Smith intended to finish the series before 2000 to make this scenario more plausible. When the year 2000 came and went in real time, Smith made the decision to ''scrap Strange Fate's storyline and rewrite it'' so that it took place ''after'' the Apocalypse. What's more, Smith had decided that because of the delays that Strange Fate ''will'' be the final book in the Night World series, cancelling the eleventh book idea that was meant to wrap up the series.]]

* Creator/AnthonyHorowitz is awful for this. The first GrooshamGrange book came out in 1988, the second in 1999, and there was a twelve year gap between books 3 and 4 of The DiamondBrothers. Thankfully, he seems to have got is under control with his more recently started series.

* ''Literature/{{Abarat}}'' fans were told that ''Absolute Midnight'' would come out in 2004 and are still waiting.
** The date has been set; September 2011. Seven years after the second book.

* The fourth book in ''TheWarAgainstTheChtorr'' came out in 1993, the fifth is scheduled for 2011. That's an eighteen year wait in case we just broke your brain.

** Referenced somewhat in the early part of the fifth book, when the titular character feels like summer has been dragging on forever, and is eager for something to actually, finally, happen.

* The ever changing release date of Ben Aaronovitch's third ''RiversOfLondon'' book, ''WhispersUnderground'' is a case of this, giving fans a wonderful chance to rehash all those old VideoGame/DukeNukemForever jokes.
* Every series DianeDuane has ever gone anywhere near.

* The ever changing release date of Ben Aaronovitch's third ''RiversOfLondon'' book, ''WhispersUnderground'' is a case of this, giving fans a wonderful chance to rehash all those old VideoGame/DukeNukemForever jokes.

* AnthonyHorowitz is awful for this. The first GrooshamGrange book came out in 1988, the second in 1999, and there was a twelve year gap between books 3 and 4 of The DiamondBrothers. Thankfully, he seems to have got is under control with his more recently started series.

** This is somewhat justified as the series transitioned from relatively small books into DoorStoppers starting with ''Goblet of Fire'', requiring more writing time.

* ''Strange Fate'', the tenth book in the NightWorld series by LJ Smith, was originally slated to come out in the summer of 1998. This book was meant to introduce the final Wild Power and was slated to be the second-to-last book in the series. As of May of 2011, Smith is ''still writing'' Strange Fate. What makes this more frustrating was [[spoiler: the finale of the series included the Apocalypse, in which all four of the Wild Powers came together on January 1, 2000, to fight evil. Smith intended to finish the series before 2000 to make this scenario more plausible. When the year 2000 came and went in real time, Smith made the decision to ''scrap Strange Fate's storyline and rewrite it'' so that it took place ''after'' the Apocalypse. What's more, Smith had decided that because of the delays that Strange Fate ''will'' be the final book in the Night World series, cancelling the eleventh book idea that was meant to wrap up the series.]]