@pholy, I see a big difference between a serial and a series, though I don't know if the definition is universally agreed upon. A serial installment sits somewhere between the beginning, middle and the end of a story. A true serial need never end (witness television soap operas with storylines that run decades). The four books in the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy trilogy (yes, four) each offered the complete standalone reading experience, so while they appeared in serial order, I wouldn't call them a serial. An author of a full length novel could also serialize the book into smaller chunks (per my example above).
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