The full definition of a serial is any continual publication appearing under a single name, separated from its brethren by a volume number. According to this definition newspapers and magazines are serials. This is not the type of serial I'm talking about. I'm thinking along the lines of the old science fiction serials like Flash Gordon, Buck Rogers, or even radio serials like The Shadow. Today, many authors offer their works in a serial format, revealing one chapter at a time. This is not what I mean when I talk about a serial. What I call a serial isn't merely a story broken into sections; it is a deliberately structured piece of fiction--fast paced, action oriented and filled with twists, turns and cliffhangers. I've had three serials run on the Internet over the years. In fact, my very first work to be displayed on the Internet was The Adventures of Alaric Swifthand . If some of the names of the serials look familiar, it's because I often add to serials and republish them as ebooks after they've run their course.
Tag Line: Never has a hero been less prepared to save the day!
Alaric debuted on October 7, 1997 on a page called Dragonsclaw--a role-playing game page. I had visited the page on a friend's recommendation. It offered gaming news and reviews in a functional but unappetizing manner. I felt the page would be more successful if it had something that drew people back month after month. Naturally, that meant having something by me on the page. I emailed the webmaster with the idea, who asked to see a sample of my writing. At the time I worked in a computer store in Brooklyn, New York. As soon as I received his email, I sat down and, off the top of my head, wrote the very first part of The Adventures of Alaric Swifthand . I hadn't plotted it at all; I just wanted to give the webmaster a sampling of what I could do. A few minutes after I sent it off, he emailed me back wanting to know what happened next. I told him if he wanted to find out, he'd have to host the serial. So, Alaric Swifthand was born.
We agreed to a six issue test run. I started writing. The problem
was, I wrote myself into a corner by creating a murder mystery without any
possible solution. At least no satisfying one. There I was, writing on the fly,
often finishing an installment the day it was due, with no idea at all of how to
end it. When I wrote part five, I still didn't know. Part Six was hailed as
brilliant by most of my readers, but it wasn't careful planning they were
seeing; it was last-minute desperation.
I received so much fan mail for
Alaric that the webmaster asked me to continue the story. Book Two of Alaric
Swifthand ran seventeen installments, right up to part twenty-three. Then, in
November of 1998, more than a year after its debut, the last episode of book
two went up. Amidst some small protest, I retired Alaric, at least for the time
being.
Later, when I became
involved with epublishing companies, I wrote Alaric Book Three, combined it with
the first two and released it, first from Crossroads Publishing and later from
Twilight Times Publications, where it resides today. Alaric is still available
as a download and is also available in print as part of Fantasy
Cereal
, a two-novel trade paperback from
Zumaya Publications.
Alaric Book Four is started, but it will likely be a while before I find the time to complete it.
Tag Line: Being a servant can be just as dangerous as being a knight.
While browsing around the net one day, I chanced upon a page called Trolls Eye Reviews. The site was looking for content to review, so I took a chance and sent them the information about Alaric Swifthand, which was still running at the time. I received a very nice review from Trolls Eye (my first review), and Jason Laseman (the owner of Trolls Eye Reviews) and I became friends.
Later, when he told me he was planning on starting an online zine of his own, I was anxious to get involved. I offered him another serial. It came to me while I was talking to him about it, and by the time the conversation was done, Reflections of a Recovering Servant was born.
Unlike Alaric, I had a fair idea of where this one was heading
(even though it still managed to surprise me from time to time).
Reflections debuted on April 1st 1999 in The Wandering Troll Ezine. It ran thirteen installments,
the last of which was posted to the site on March 1,
2000.
Reflections was a far more ambitious serial than Alaric, and to
this day remains one of my favorite stories. It's also worth mentioning that my
wife discovered the first issue of Reflections online two days before we met in
a 3D chat program. If that's not fate, I don't know what is.
Tag Line: What happens when the veil between worlds no longer exists?
Confronting the Void is the serial that took me the longest to write. I began it sometime during my second marriage, but never found a page to host it, and so I lost interest. In truth, I love the idea of writing on the fly, being forced to meet that deadline. Admittedly, I didn't try to push it very hard, possibly because it was science fiction and I was far more comfortable with fantasy.
After a divorce, and a transitional relationship that lasted three years, I ended up moving from New York City to Hobart, Tasmania, where I reside to this day. I finally decided to find a home for Confronting the Void and I did--a site called The Writer's Hood, which I'd had dealings with before.
Again I ran into a problem. I had had, at some point, an idea of
where the serial was going. I could no longer remember my plans. I had to start
mid-story and figure out what was going to happen. When I failed, I took the
story in what was almost certainly a new direction, though I love the way it came
out.
Confronting the Void has one of the most twisted plots I've ever
conceived, which in my book makes it okay.
The Writer's Hood had problems staying with a schedule (even though I was always on time), but eventually the entire thirteen installments were posted. I've since contracted Confronting the Void with booksforabuck.com, and expect it to be available as an ebook in the not too distant future.