In for a Penny ... in for a Pound! Paul's List of Series Based on the Author's Returning Character!

Lots of modern authors (and a handful of earlier authors) make their careers based on the escapades of a single returning character. The plot of each story is different, to be sure, but the back story, the protagonist's character, the world in which the character lives, the character's family and relationships, and so on ... they're all lovingly built up over a series of novels sometimes stretching to as many as 10, 20, 30 or more for the most successful characters like Sherlock Holmes or Hercule Poirot! The novels in this list are the author's debut for the character. How many have you read? How many of the series are you hip deep in and you'll buy a new entry as soon as it's published (like me) and how many of those main characters can you name just from the title of the novel??