Post #158 February 25, 2019

“Update on Time Jumpers and Do’s and Don’t’s of Serial Writing”

My first episode of Time Jumpers was uploaded successfully on 1 February.  To date, there have been 87 downloads (as of this writing).  It seems the series is off to a decent start.

Why write a serialized story?  I did other posts about this, so let me remind you of some of the reasons why this is a good idea, at this point in my career.

1. Serialized stories engage the reader more quickly and more directly.  The stories come out faster, on a schedule.  Readers can get their “fix” more often.  If they like the stories and the author is doing his job, they can provide quicker feedback and even have an impact on how the overall story proceeds.  It makes the reader feel like part of the story-telling process and helps the writer go where his readers want him to go.  It also helps the writer feel like he’s not writing in a vacuum…that there are readers out there and this is how they feel about the story.
    
   One writer, Jane Friedman in a column at Writer Unboxed, wrote this about serial fiction:
   For purists, a serial is a work that the author writes in progress, releases on a specific schedule or deadline (close to the time when the writing gets done), and is produced without a preconceived middle or ending. Such serials often involve reader engagement and may incorporate reader feedback that helps the author mold the story along the way. Bestselling science-fiction author John Scalzi launched his career on a serial, Old Man’s War, and of course everybody knows and even loves shows like All My Children. The soap opera is classic serial storytelling.
    
2. Serialized stories can help build an audience.  There aren’t a lot of paying markets for serials today, so many writers (such as me) do this for free, as a way of building an audience for related or later work.  In my case, I have 7 novels published through Smashwords.com that are part of a series called Tales of the Quantum Corps.  I have another series of 5 sf novels entitled The Farpool Stories. One of my goals in doing the Time Jumpers serial is to help establish a greater audience for both of these series through a common theme, characters, settings and stories. 
    
3. There are several advantages to writing serials.
    
   Robin Rivera, of writeonsisters.com, had this to say about the advantages:

• You can take every episode in a new direction. Explore opposing viewpoints of the same events. You can kill off characters or rapidly change their character arcs. In fact, the more you shake things up, the better your readers will like it!
• You have the luxury of being able to revisit the same world building and characters as many times as you wish. The story can go on for years, evolving and taking new directions while filling many seasons of serials.
• The pressure to finish the big story arc isn’t hanging over your head the way it is with a novel. A serial writer can go on chasing the same villain forever, as long as the smaller stories are exciting and there are enough clues to the larger plot mission to make the readers want to stick around for the ride.

1. But there are also disadvantages as well.  Robin goes on to say:

·         Slow, atmospheric writers need not apply! The market is competitive for all writing, but the pressure to create a knock-the-reader’s-socks-off opening episode for a series is huge. You must have memorable characters and a setting that feels real from the first installment. Being unforgettable is critical, because the reader needs to feel they can pick up the story after a break without missing a beat.

·         Action is the king of all serial fiction, and only the tightest writing works. The hook needs to come in fast. Each story installment must have some resolution to the current problem while also leaving something unresolved to encourage the reader to read the next installment, namely it needs a cliffhanger.

·         The serial format is not good for a writer challenged by deadlines. One of the most important aspects for building a serial readership is getting the next installment out quickly and when you’ve promised you would. If you establish a plan of releasing once a week or once a month, you need to keep with it until the season is done.

I’ve found both Robin’s experience and Jane’s thoughts to be both true and relevant to my own experience and I’m pretty new to this.  Especially the part about tightly knit writing and lots of action.  I’m thinking the experience of developing, writing and uploading my serial Quantum Troopers (about 8300 downloads so far with this serial alone) on a tight schedule made me a better storyteller.  Here’s hoping….

For the next post to The Word Shed, coming on March 4, I’ll provide an excerpt for an upcoming episode of Time Jumpers and we’ll look more closely at what makes good adventure and action writing.

See you then.

Phil B.