A to Z Challenge asks bloggers to post every day except Sundays during the month of April on a thematic topic–nothing else. This year, I’ll be covering writing genres.
Today’s genre:
Definition
a serial story will be divided into short sections released at regular intervals, like once a week or once a month.
Tips
- The first three chapters are the anchor for your story. Develop them carefully.
- Have an overarching plot, characters, and setting that tie all the installments together. Have well-considered chapters and/or section breaks that build the drama and crises.
- Each installment should resolve an issue while setting up for the next (so readers come back).
- Serial fiction is light on subtlety. It gets lost during the roll-out.
- You can write serial fiction in groups as long as your co-authors understand the framework.
- A lot of serial fiction writers prepare thorough outlines first so they can see the long game on their series.
- Be prepared to publish weekly–monthly at the slowest.
- Don’t simply break a novel into sections and call that serialized. A novel has a beginning, middle and end. A serial has elements which motivate readers to keep reading.
- You might treat your serial fiction like vignettes–separate stories wrapped around central characters, setting–or comics or a space opera.
- Serial fiction is well-delivered as podcasts, not just ebooks.
Popular Books
- The Pickwick Papers by Charles Dickens
- Sherlock Holmes by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
- Whitehall by Liz Duffy Adams, Delia Sherman, Barbara Samuel, Mary Robinette Kowal, Madeleine Robins, and Sarah Smith
- Bookshots by James Patterson
- Bookburners by Max Gladstone, Margaret Dunlap, Philip K. Dick, Brian Francis Slattery, and Mur Lafferty
- Belgravia by Julian Fellowes
- The Innkeeper Chronicles by Ilona Andrews
- Indexing by Seanan McGuire
- The Virginians by William Makepeace Thackeray
More S Genres:
Click for complete list of genres
Jacqui Murray is the author of the popular Building a Midshipman, the story of her daughter’s journey from high school to United States Naval Academy, and the thriller, To Hunt a Sub. She is also the author/editor of over a hundred books on integrating tech into education, adjunct professor of technology in education, webmaster for four blogs, an Amazon Vine Voice book reviewer, a columnist for TeachHUB, monthly contributor to Today’s Author and a freelance journalist on tech ed topics. You can find her books at her publisher’s website, Structured Learning. The sequel to To Hunt a Sub, Twenty-four Days, is scheduled for May 2017. Click to follow its progress.
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Good list, but did you just completely skip over web serials? There’s original fiction being serially posted in seduction communities; it’s where almost all of modern serials reside.
I mean, where is serial fiction without John McCrae’s Worm? Pirateaba’s The Wandering Inn? Nobody013’s Mother of Learning?
It’s extremely niche, and very few people know web serials are a thing. However, speaking as someone who has read well over a thousand books, I can confidently say that the serials I have listed above are in my top ten list.
Really, I advise you to check this out.
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*web not seduction
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🙂
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Actually, I was concentrating on the almost-defunct genre of serials that were popular fifty years ago but you make a great point. I’m looking for a W genre for next year and now I’ve found it–Web Serials.
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You’re awesome! I’ll look forward to that!
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Oh my gosh – yay! My reader is working. (previously Mrs Z) What a pain setting up my new site has been – all my fault I’m afraid. I am loving this A-Z thing you are doing Jacqui. Hope this works … I haven’t been able to comment so here goes …
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Welcome back! I wondered where you went. Your last post (I think) was about housework. Sure, that can be time-consuming. I’ll go visit your new blog.
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People seems to really like serials. I had to laugh at myself – when I saw serial in your title my brain went to “soap operas”! lol
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Well, they are–a specific kind. And they always end on a cliffhanger so we watch the next show.
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They do indeed! lol I spent several years watching one when I was young.
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Hey Jacqui. When I was on another blogging site I did a 40 part serial like this and it was an interesting ride. I did not conquer all of your tips however, so I can see lots of value in your list. Thanks for your research and hard work with this A to Z Challenge.
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I like serials. I think when I get through my TBR pile, I’d be open to adding a few serials.
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Sherlock Holmes is the perenial favourite in this genre; cant think of any other to rival it!! Though I am low on patience and hate to wait 😉
A gorgeous Summer Palace in Bangalore
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Love him, and all the series about him. And the movies. Yeah, he’s a winner.
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Your tips on writing serial fiction has piqued my interest. While writing a segment each week would be daunting, a person could write all or most of the installments before beginning to post/publish to relieve pressure.
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Yes–and I think it’s not that different from what is often recommended for chapters: end on a cliffhanger.
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I enjoy serial fiction but I think it’s really obvious that it was written to be read in chunks when you read it all in one sitting. I’ve found that with both The Pickwick Papers and the Sherlock Holmes stories.
Cait @ Click’s Clan
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That’s interesting. I hadn’t thought of it like that.
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I get addicted to serials and I tend to write them.
‘Enjoyed reading. Happy A to Z Juneta @ Writer’s Gambit
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I can see that happening. They do demand lots of plot movement to be effective.
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Interesting, Jacqui. I tend to think of my series as serials because they don’t wrap up neatly at the end of each book but lead into the next and must be read in order. And other than timing and size of the release, I do follow the rules, such as outlining the whole thing in the beginning. One reason I release them at once is because I do like subtlety and that would be lost if readers had to wait 6 months between. Most fantasy “series” are a single long story broken up into separate books. Series or serial? Hmm. I’ll have to think about this. 🙂 Love this A-Z challenge!
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Great point. A lot of authors are doing that now, which works on people like me. I like reading books in order and all at once.
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Me too!
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I’ve been playing with this idea. I have a novelette to lead as a freebie, but from there I’m uncertain whether to continue with novelettes or to expand into novellas.
I originally wanted to do all novelettes because that seems more like the pacing of a TV show, but I’m not certain if my painting skills are up to that many covers that fast. Ten is a lot of covers for just a season. Maybe twenty weeks, tops. I’m not sure I’m that quick. And I’d have to pay a designer to do font for all of them, and then I couldn’t charge more than 99 cents since novelettes aren’t long.
On the other hand, though, I’ve never written a novella. I’m not sure I can nail the length.
*shrugs* I’m hoping the answer will come to me in a blaze of light if I think about it long enough.
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I use Canva for my non-fic covers that sell only digitally. It does a good enough job. I’m never embarassed.
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Here’s a link to my non-fic site. Most of what you see on the resources are my covers
http://structuredlearning.net
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Thanks, Jacqui! 🙂
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I always loved as a child reading the next section – waiting was the hardest part.
Thanks for your visit – one week left.
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I tweaked all of my final posts last week. That Sunday post almost felt like a step too far!
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The description of serialization is not what I expected, but then this is the one genre in which I have not read one book on your list. Yikes! I couldn’t write this genre either. One story a week? More yikes! Sounds like it is one adventure after another and would be exciting to read.
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It’s not too different from TV series that spill into the next week. Like 24, or even Blacklist lately.
I wouldn’t mind writing this way. when I have time!
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You’re well enough organized, I can see you writing a series very well. Me, I’m kind of a free for all.
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I haven’t listened to a single podcast…yet. I believe there are some really good ones on writing craft.
Is serialized fiction popular? Or is it a seasonal genre?
I know that lots of writers use Wattpad for this genre.
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You are so much cleverer about serial fiction than I! I like the idea of podcasts–of course. They’re audio books, serialized. It makes a lot of sense. I’ll have to look at Wattpad. I thought it was for publishing a novel.
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Me, clever when it comes to serial fiction? I’m not too certain about that… 🙂
I don’t have experience on Wattpad, but lots of writers use the platform to publish their fiction work, as a means of ‘testing the serialized waters’, for story feedback and, hopefully, to attract new fans to their work.
But I haven’t done so. I don’t think that writing serialized fiction is for me.
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My A to Z challenge is a serial story – although most of it is there to read in one go now! Nice post.
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I think that’s a great approach to A to Z. I’ve seen several like that.
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Hi Jacqui – I didn’t know about the Julian Fellowes ‘Belgravia’ serialisation – I must check it out sometime … this concept must have been brilliant in the 1800s – because people would be prepared to wait then … I guess one could incorporate something like this into a blog … that would hurry it along … cheers Hilary
http://positiveletters.blogspot.co.uk/2017/04/s-for-sheep.html
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I suspect you’re right–we aren’t as patient these days. This is the time of the Twitter novel, after all!
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Most of the classics today were serials back in their times. But I never really related it to podcasts though, it really makes sense! Thanks for sharing.
S’s for Starry and Saanwariya.
Theme: Weaving Cinquains.
Blog Post: http://haneenwrites.blogspot.com/2017/04/ss-for-starry-and-saanwariya.html
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They were and it’s a factoid we’ve lost over time. A lot of students would feel comfortable writing a piece of a long novel before they take on the entire banquet.
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I don’t think I would write serial fiction because of the loss of subtlety and the need to bring things to a head in every episode. Too much drama for me.
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Yes, those are needed. Definitely not for everyone.
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That sounds like a fun one to write.
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I think this is an excellent choice for schools, to teach writing. The chunks are manageable. You can even do them collaboratively. I’ve seen it work quite well, especially with middle schoolers.
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Great idea.
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I’m also impatient – I want it now or not at all … i.e. with regard to serial fiction. Interesting though, that it can be podcast …
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I didn’t expect that of you (shows how much I understand Jung). I’m not patient either, especially in my reading.
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I loved the Pickwick Papers. The serialized story is now popular as a podcast, especially with younger folks (now that I’m over 50, everyone seems to classify as younger!) Thanks for the work that you’re putting into your blog. I found you through the A to Z Challenge. http://www.dianeweidenbenner.com
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I didn’t know that. Do you have a link for Pickwick Papers, as a serial? I’d love to share it on my tech-in-ed blog.
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I’m always impressed by authors who can write serial novels or series. I’m not that good at planning things. I’m also not very patient about waiting for the next part of the story.
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Writers are being pushed to end every chapter with a cliff hanger. I suppose that isn’t a log different from serializing it.
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I love a good cereal, er serialized story. This genre seems to go in and and out of fashion. A number of bloggers are using it today and in the past some great authors, like Charles Dickens, used it to publish what we now list as classic literature.
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So true. It has great potential, not the least of which is in teaching writing. I nice change from the traditional.
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Not a fan…like to finish in one shot overnight or nights or days 🙂 and haven’t read much of it in English. There are Bengali (my mother tongue) literary magazines which use serial fiction as a staple, but the quality of writing is way below the standard of non-serialised fiction…just reinforces sticking to one-shot stories 🙂
Nilanjana.
Madly-in-Verse
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I suppose it’s like watching 24 (the TV show). Nothing ever finishes until the end. I was surprised to find Sherlock Holmes on this list. I’m a huge fan of his.
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I’ve never been big on this genre, Jacqui. I don’t like to wait for the next installment. 🙂
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I’d have to wait for all the pieces to be published. I hate it when my favorite TV shows end the season on a cliff hanger. It almost makes me angry!
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