All right, I've now decided whether to write a sequel or not. I said previously that I wasn't sure whether I could write one because of increasing real-life pressure, and time issues.
But, to come to the point, I'm going to write one, but it's going to be considerably shorter than HP and the Maw. Granted, it's still going to be around 150,000 to 200,000 words, but it's not going to be the monster that the Maw was. To ease my workload, the chapters are going to be MUCH shorter, the average being about 5,000 words. This'll give more frequent updates, as well as help me out.
Anyway, the sequel is going to pick up where The Maw left off. The plague is going to be very much a big issue, and the 'villain of the year' is going to be someone who was introduced in HP and the Maw. Gates will be playing a background role for the majority of the fanfic, the reasons for that being obvious (he's not going to be up to too much while he's incapacitated). Another change is that the sequel (planned title: Harry Potter and the Nexus) is going to be less darker than The Maw.
The main thing is that I want to make sure that anyone can read the sequel without being confused. I'll be going over the main plot points again, so the first few chapters might be a bit dull, but other than that, everything will be fresh. The old concepts and ideas I used in HP and the Maw (think of the Occlumency Anomaly and other such stuff) will be ignored, with fresh ideas to replace them.
For those of you who want a broader view of the sequel, the main themes explored will be time, immortality, and life and death. Some of these themes (especially the last one) will be expressed through the new DADA professor, whose identity I'm going to keep a lid on (though much more important would be his supposedly former occupation).
The central plot is going be designed differently from the Maw as well. It's no longer going to be a whodunnit type of story, but there will be questions that won't be answered till the end.
I should also mention that there will be main cannon character deaths.
And for those who MUST know, the main 'ship' of this story won't be changing. I certainly can't warp it around this late in the game, so it's staying like it is.
Also, if there is anyone out there willing to beta for me (I need someone with a good eye for spotting my infamous inconsistencies) email me or contact me in some way. My email can be accessed through my profile. Background in beta'ng is recommended, but certainly not required.
When will it be released? I have no idea. Sometime in August.
Lastly, here is the summary I'm planning to use:
Harry Potter and the Nexus: It's Harry Potter's seventh year at Hogwarts, and Voldemort's power is growing despite the Order's best efforts. An unstoppable plague has been unleashed by Voldemort upon both the muggle and wizarding worlds. Not only that, but a corrupted Seer with his own agenda has been hired by the Dark Lord to try what Voldemort has been so terrified of attempting personally: killing the Boy-Who-Lived.