What was I thinking?

So, I've been promising this post for a couple of weeks now, and finally, I'm going to deliver. I'm going to be discussing my experiences and issues and joys with the wonderful world of serialization. As I've mentioned before, I am publishing To Tread the Narrow Path as a serialized novella. A couple of weeks ago, the last installment of Book II went live and brought the novella to its halfway point. I'd like to take the time today to talk about what brought me to this place and the process I've used to publish the novella.

First, though, I've got to give a little bit of history. If you aren't familiar with the serialization process for literature, its very common amongst what would be considered classics. For example, much of Dickens' works were published as serialized segments in newspapers as well as Alexandre Dumas (*please note, I am not making a comparison of myself to these two authors, as I would pale in such a comparison). The serial publishing format basically involves the work being split up into parts, chapters, books, or any other distinguishing segment, and being released as installments in a media form. During the time of Dickens it was done through newsprint. Recent writers have traveled the serialization as well, like Stephen King and Orsen Scott Card (*again, not meant as a comparison, just stating the facts). The rise of the internet and social media makes this avenue of publication an even more viable route to get stuff out there.

That brings us to me.

Earlier this year I took an old short story of mine and began the process of turning it into a novella. The short story, titled The Narrow Path, was a little over 5000 words. I had written it one night in 2002 for a creative writing class, and let it sit on my hard drive for over a decade. As I began the process of fleshing out the world of the story and expanding the narrative, I started to read articles about how serial storytelling was making a come back. There were writers publishing segments on their blogs, using services like the Kindle Serials program, and other social reader sites.

The more I thought about it, the more attrictive this process became. I started looking into my options and researched various websites and routes to make this a reality.

Finally, I settled on publishing through the Amazon marketplace. I got in touch with the people over at the Kindle support to find out the logistics and away I went.



Available now on Amazon (*wink wink*)



The first segment, all four parts of Book I, were published and available on the Amazon marketplace in February of this year. The idea was that people could purchase the first segment of the novella and receive all future installments for free as an auto update to the book on their Kindle device. Between February and now, I have published the next four installments of the novella bringing the book to its midpoint.

It's been a lot of fun bringing this story to life this way. The unpublished pieces have a way of changing based on the input of readers. It's fun to have a give and take in this way. Currently, I'm working on Book III and getting it ready for the light of day. Once all of the installments are out, I'll format the book for print and publish it as well.

So, that is the story of how I came to be publishing my novella in serialization on the Kindle. Now, I'd like to share the part of the story in which I ask myself, "What was I thinking?"

Don't get me wrong, I love the concept and the practice, but the challenge of writing, editing, rewriting, getting an outside edit, and publishing is a grueling process. Also, the auto update function of the Kindle is not working as promised from Amazon. That has been glitchy at best and I have had to deal with some very frustrated readers because their Kindle won't update the most recent installment without an email to customer support.

All that being said:

It has been a great experience. I'm enjoying the journey and looking forward to the end of the line. To Tread the Narrow Path is very dear to me and this process has allowed me to grow it and shape it in  ways that I would never thought of had I not published it as a serial.

Would I do this again? Maybe, but not for a while. My next WIP, Lighthouse on the Edge of Forever will be 100% complete before I send it out into the world. I won't be returning to serialization for a long time, I think.

For me, this spurned me to finish something, and at the time that's what I needed. I would encourage you that if you are feeling hangups on finishing something you've started, whatever it may be, find the motivation or influence to push you past the hangup. I needed this to push me to finish and I couldn't be happier about it. It has been a hard road, but rewarding and I would do it over if given the chance.

Thanks for reading. I hope you enjoyed. Please like, shrare, +1, etc...

Please join me next week for an excerpt from one of my WIPs.

-Anthony