3.3 KiB
[D] Rationally Writing 16 - Serial Fiction, Part 1
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Author: u/DaystarEld Pokémon Professor*
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Score: 12
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Created: 2016-11-14T04:24:27
Post:
Comments:
u/ZeroNihilist [+4] (2 hours later)
Minor point about "biweekly" being ambiguous: you can use "twice weekly" and "fortnightly" instead if you need clarity. Still listening to the rest.
EDIT: So, my thoughts on serial fiction:
Block fiction, or serial fiction with a more frequent schedule (like TV shows often being weekly), can get away with more when it comes to unpopular twists.
Say a fan favourite does something tremendously out of character; in the more condensed media the audience will encounter the payoff soon ("It was a bluff all along!"/"Oh, that set up this awesome scene."), whereas in monthly or erratically updated serials it may result in a part of the audience giving up.
This isn't as much of a problem when it's set up as a cliffhanger, since it's expected that the resolution will be forthcoming, but it is when it appears to have already been resolved (but not to the audience's satisfaction).
This is related to the key challenge of the medium: intensity of scrutiny. The fact that chapters are often short and that they're released to the entire audience at the same time means that it's possible for them to be dissected to a degree that doesn't really happen with block fiction except with truly engaged fanbases.
For example, /r/westworld is currently discussing multiple timelines and the like, going over every frame of the latest episode in search of evidence for their theories. This is only possible because everybody is at the same point at the same time, and there's a wait before the next update.
Block fiction like movies or novels doesn't have the same effect. Often people will view them at different times, and speculation occurs on the scale of the years between sequels. Rarely are people "on the same page" for discussion, except right after a new release.
/r/ASoIaF, the subreddit for the A Song of Ice and Fire series, is an interesting counter-example. There's a flurry of activity after every episode of Game of Thrones that is different in character from the normal background analysis of the books themselves, but people still pick apart individual passages from the first book, which is now 20 years old.
u/DaystarEld [+1] Pokémon Professor (2 hours later)
Thanks for the reminder :)
u/DaystarEld [+2] Pokémon Professor (a minute later)
Hey everyone, this week we discuss serial fiction's history, pros and cons, and how to navigate scheduling.
Stay tuned after the outro music for another book recommendation by /u/alexanderwales
If you have an iTunes account and a spare minute, a review would be greatly appreciated!
u/LiteralHeadCannon [+2] (18 hours later)
Very much looking forward to Part 2. Serial fiction is an interesting frontier, though my own experiences have left me convinced it's probably not the best route for me to take.
u/DaystarEld [+2] Pokémon Professor (19 hours later)
It's definitely not for everyone, and obviously most successful writers haven't gone this route :)