It used to be that a good story was posted a chapter or two at a time and I got sucked into the story and invested in the characters; then without warning, the story was abandoned. That doesn't bother me so much any more. There seems to be very few of them that have had that happen.
No these days it's the posting schedule or lack there of. There are currently about five serials that I'm avidly following. Believe me, I understand about fickle muses. Mine waltzes in and gives me a bit of the story and then remembers that there beaches she hasn't visited in an age and pats me on the head, and leaves for parts unknown. I'm stuck trying to cobble something lucid out of what she's given me and build on it a little. Usually with little success. So I'm trying not to be critical.
Of the five I'm following, only one seems to have a genuine posting schedule the rest turn up in the story queue like hidden treasure found when digging in the sand to make a sand castle.
Emma Tate is amazingly prompt in her posting schedule. I bless her for that. Note I'm only following five serials and also reading interesting solos; I'm retired and have loads of time to read. So Emma posts on Monday and gives me twenty minutes of riveting story and I'm now adrift until Monday or when one of the other gems pop up.
Please disregard all of the as the ramblings of a curmudgeon.
Trust me. I really do appreciate the efforts of the fine authors who share their works with here on BCTS. Keep up the good works. :o)
Comments
Seconded
There are various problems with serialised stories, and for some years I haven't read them at all - though I might dip in to something part-way through just to look at the writing style.
The unfinished stories are aways a huge disappointment and the ones that head off into 'different' territory can be a problem, too. For example, a relationship or situation turns abusive, implausible, incestuous, or starts showing crude racial stereotypes and I realise, with regret, that it's time for me to bail. Nowadays, I don't bother. Unless I'm workshopping, pre-release, with an author I know well, I'll wait until the whole story is published before I read it.
Serials raise questions in terms of storytelling, too: a person who publishes part of a story loses the ability to 'retcon' a new idea into the story, because they've already set things in motion... and the need to finish each episode with a cliffhanger (like those old 'Flash Gordon' short films) can make a serial feel formulaic, and diluted. There are only so many times the tension can peak, in a real book.
I'll echo Patricia's awe of people who can write to a schedule. Not merely in stories (because like I said, episodic servings aren't my thing) but in a column: the writer who can commit to "every Tuesday and Thursday" or whatever is the one who builds a loyal readership. If you want hits, you have to step up to the plate, every time. All (?) writers of TG fiction are amateurs, so it's particularly hard to maintain that level of consist output, at a quality. Obviously, building up a 'buffer' of material would help a lot, and it's possible since we aren't usually writing about current affairs. The "muse" thing shouldn't be a problem.
I don't consider it curmudgeonly to have opinions. They're your eyeballs, Patricia, and in an increasingly busy world, you still have the right to point 'em where you wish. Those who bemoan the lack of engagement with their writing might want to think about what you said.
Bx
Sugar and Spiiice – TG Fiction by Bryony Marsh
Hostile Readers
Bluntly, some of the readers fancy themselves to be paid editors, or are just someone wanting to lash out at something. Recently I posted a chapter of 1000 words and indicated that I would write more if there was interest. I am getting too old to put up with much BS, and writing seems to take a lot more effort. Therefore, it is doubtful that I will post anything else. I have a half dozen rough drafts that lie unfished. That is it. Dropping the microphone.
Gwen Brown
Having
A nigh on 20 year career of posting on BC, I’ve long ago stopped posting incomplete works here. Oh there are stories/series which do not reach a conclusive end but if I’m posting for example a new Gaby book, it is complete, the book published, serialised release goes back to Dickens at least.
A daily/weekly serial is something different, it can be reactionary, writing on the fly is a whole other thing, a magazine if you like. The problem arises when what started out as a short takes on a life of its own- there are plenty of examples here. Yes they often get distracted/warped from the original premise and often not for the better and with no conclusion become difficult to continue reading.
There are quite a few stories I’ve started, become frustrated with and abandoned, others I’ve not even looked at but each to their respective preferences.
Madeline Anafrid Bell
Real Life
For me, as an author, it is Real Life that is the ever-pressing problem.
When I started out on this craziness, oh, 17 years ago? I was young(er), relatively fit and had fewer demands on my time. I could easily turn out a 6,000 word chapter every week and I did so. I am one of those who can write and post while my story is incomplete, but I know that others work in different ways and would have problems doing that.
(mumble) years later, I have suffered two fairly serious medical interventions and have somehow gained two grand-daughters. Time? Don't be silly! I do what I can but I have to accept that I cannot work in the way that I was once free to do. I will add that the changing climate is something I didn't have to deal with that long ago; leaving my servers on 24/7 in this heat is a no-no these days, which means no writing. (Alternatives being explored.)
I still fully intend to finish what I have begun, assuming I last that long. I will add that I have a number of other smaller projects (don't we all?) which I plan to finish before posting, but they inevitably have a lower priority - and that is part of the problem. Lower priority means less attention and, when I do get around to them, I have to do some re-reading to establish where and what my characters are doing.
I do understand when readers say they won't start something that isn't complete. But you'll have to wait a good while longer for Bike to be complete, I think! Sometimes that plan means you will miss some seriously good stuff. Against that I, too, get miffed when a good story suddenly stops abruptly. Well, sometimes that means that the author has 'been promoted' and, maybe, can't post any more of an already-completed story because they are no longer with us.
As Garia was once told, we have to deal with the world we live in, not the one we'd like to live in.
Penny