Poll: Do you LOVE or HATE serialized ebooks? - Page 3

DuskyRose · 06-07-2010, 11:51 AM

As for people here saying that they'd never read a serial you are missing out on some very good stories.

And you know what? They'll be just as good, and even better for me, when I can sit down and read them as complete works.

Waiting until they're done solves a lot of problems I have with serials. I'm not about to dive in again when waiting means I'm a lot happier than I would be otherwise. I'm especially not paying for something that's not complete, and may never be.

MaggieScratch · 06-07-2010, 11:52 AM

How about "Would consider reading a serialized ebook, don't hate the idea, but wouldn't particularly seek them out?"

(I wrote a serial, published online, a couple of years ago. It was great fun. No idea how many people actually read it. I keep meaning to turn it into an ebook.)

ETA: Should probably point out that lots of people read fan fiction, which is often serialized as it is posted.

Carl246 · 06-07-2010, 12:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DuskyRose

As for people here saying that they'd never read a serial you are missing out on some very good stories.

And you know what? They'll be just as good, and even better for me, when I can sit down and read them as complete works.

That's fine too DuskyRose, but I was referring to people who miss them out completely. At the end of the day, the only thing that will improve serialization are guidelines. Rules if you like, that set out to give the writer a clear picture as to what is expected of them when writing a serialization.

Carl

Amalthia · 06-07-2010, 01:55 PM

My experiences in reading fan fiction have taught me to hate Works-in-Progress and to avoid the completed story where the author posts a chapter a week. It's way too much work to keep track of and if the author dies you'll never get to read the end! I read a lot and I tend to forget to go back and finish the story. Also every time a reader leaves the story there is a chance they may not come back to finish it.

That authors would want to go this route in published fiction boggles my mind. People use Charles Dickens as an example but times are different now.

Smashwords · 06-07-2010, 02:16 PM

Great discussion, everyone. A few of you have commented I should have offered a middle ground option in the poll, such as, "I'm indifferent, it depends on the writer." You're right, in retrospect, I should have. Maybe at the conclusion of the poll someone will see fit to post another poll. In the meantime, biased or not, I think it's interesting how dramatically the results skew to the right. I had expected to see more interest in serials (and frankly, was looking for justification for us to do more with them at Smashwords). The message I'm hearing here, as well as from emails I've received from Smashwords customers, serials are more likely to frustrate or anger readers than satisfy them. Thanks, everyone, for sharing your insights, pro and con.

Jake_Drake · 06-07-2010, 03:08 PM

Like most other people in here, I don't read serialized books. Books that are part of a series is another matter, as long as they are complete in and of themselves. If I see a book that is serialized I pass it on without a second look.

ardeegee · 06-07-2010, 03:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MaggieScratch

ETA: Should probably point out that lots of people read fan fiction, which is often serialized as it is posted.

Ugh. Fiction by people who lack the talent to create their own characters. Pass.

Wayne Watson · 06-07-2010, 03:12 PM

I did serialize my first book on a blog, but folks coming in at the middle of the story found it a chore to read, having to backtrack through blogger!

I wouldn't even think of serializing until I had a finished story- I go back and change things around too much.

Elfwreck · 06-07-2010, 03:42 PM

I don't like serials:
1) Don't like twenty small files/books/whatever instead of one compilation.

2) Don't like the risk of missing the next issue, which is not particularly likely with an ebook but past experiences with physical media have soured me on the idea. (If the local store runs out of that magazine before I get there, I miss a segment of the story.)

3) Don't enjoy having to remember character names & other details after days/weeks of not thinking about the story.

4) Don't like the risk of it never finishing, either due to disaster or author boredom.

5) If it's certain to finish--it's completed before posting, and someone will take over if the author is unavailable--see pt 1; I'd rather read it all at once. I can wait.

There are people who like them. Who enjoy the little taste of a story rather than the full-immersion experience (or in addition to); who don't mind enjoying a story that might never finish (apparently, a lot of people watch soap operas). Shrug. I'm not likely to pay for something I know is a serial until it's done, and not likely to pay more for the pieces than I would for the whole thing, which means the pieces would have to be very modestly priced.

alecE · 06-07-2010, 03:47 PM

Loathe & detest serials. If really pushed *might* read a serial appearing in a magazine, *if* there were other more useful content which would be my primary reason to buy said magazine.

DaringNovelist · 06-07-2010, 05:11 PM

This thread has opened my eyes to something interesting. Two things really:

1. Clearly the definition of "serial" has changed, and there has been a LOT of posting of bad, chopped up, rough draft fiction in the name of serials. A serial is not a story chopped into bits (especially not a rough draft). A serial is a series. It's just a particular style of series.

2. Television, of course, is built on serials. Sure, there are some series which don't develop from story to story at all. (Although The Simpsons is the only series which intentionally has NO story arc, where one plot could end with everyone dying, and the next will have them all back where they were before.) And at the other end of the spectrum are series like LOST or 24 - a continuous story, where each episode ends with a cliffhanger and if you miss an episode you're, well, lost.

But there are plenty which actually follow closer to the formula of the old time serial. Stories like CHUCK or BURN NOTICE - where there is an ongoing story too, but each individual story is whole in itself. If you miss an episode you may kick yourself, but you don't screw yourself - you can still follow the storyline.

Camille

Barcey · 06-07-2010, 05:53 PM

If you paid me $5 per installment to read a serial novel I wouldn't. I already have too much to read.

I keep hearing how pushing installments to cell phones is all the rage in Japan but I don't understand why. I can understand if you want to experiment with it but I'd suggest setting up a separate website for the installment model. If I'm buying an ebook I don't want to have to check if it's complete or not.

dgillette.rm · 06-07-2010, 06:11 PM

I guess I do not know what to do with this poll. Can someone explain to me why "The Lord of the Rings" is not a serialized book? What about David Weber's Honor Harrington series or Robert Jordon? I will agree that I do not want to end up paying $20 for a $7 book because it came out in 10 installments of $2 each. On the other hand, I refuse to pay Baen $15 for their advanced ebooks that they eventually sell for $7 if you wait.

DaringNovelist · 06-07-2010, 06:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Smashwords

The message I'm hearing here, as well as from emails I've received from Smashwords customers, serials are more likely to frustrate or anger readers than satisfy them. Thanks, everyone, for sharing your insights, pro and con.

It sounds like a lot of people have been burned by amateur efforts.

You may want to keep the idea open for something more like "subscriptions" and "series" as opposed to "serial." A subscription implies a guarantee, for one thing. (And you already have people publishing things like series.)

As I mentioned above, I'm playing with a serial blog as a promotional thing (and I'm only putting up works that are FINISHED, and are or will be available as a whole unit) - I'll let you know if it seems to take on any level of success.

Camille

BillSmithBooks · 06-07-2010, 07:15 PM

I am generally a believer in the wisdom of crowds, but in this case I strongly disagree.

Eliminate serials? So basically the argument is that the story must be full and complete in the original publication...

That means that Smashwords wouldn't publish, let's see...Lord of the Rings, Wheel of Time, the Shannara series, the Chronicles of Narnia, Burroughs' Tarzan and John Carter series, Conan...

No Green Mile, no Hitchiker's Guide, no shared-universe stories like Wild Cards or Forgotten Realms

No Ender's Game series, no sequel to Mote in God's Eye, no more Rama novels, no 2012

No Star Wars novels, no prose version of Babylon 5 or Lost or Battlestar Galactica or Dr. Who or 24 or Buffy or Angel or any television series with a story arc for that matter.

No prose versions of comic books: no Spider-Man, Batman, Superman, X-Men...

No freakin' Whedonverse!!!

All because these stories are serialized.

They say people vote with their wallets. The wallets show that this poll is grossly inaccurate.

View Poll Results: Poll: Do you love or hate serialized ebooks?
I never read serialized ebooks	96	57.83%
I try to avoid serialized ebooks if I can	55	33.13%
I prefer serials	15	9.04%
I only read serials	0	0%
Voters: 166. You may not vote on this poll

06-07-2010, 11:52 AM	#32
MaggieScratch Has got to the black veil Posts: 542 Karma: 2144168 Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Southeastern Pennsylvania Device: Kobo Aura One, Kindle Paperwhite 2	How about "Would consider reading a serialized ebook, don't hate the idea, but wouldn't particularly seek them out?" (I wrote a serial, published online, a couple of years ago. It was great fun. No idea how many people actually read it. I keep meaning to turn it into an ebook.) ETA: Should probably point out that lots of people read fan fiction, which is often serialized as it is posted. Last edited by MaggieScratch; 06-07-2010 at 12:09 PM.

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06-07-2010, 11:51 AM	#31
DuskyRose Guru Posts: 751 Karma: 9209502 Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Virginia Device: Boox Note Air3, Palma, K-Scribe, Eclipsa 2e, & Libra 2, Ipads	As for people here saying that they'd never read a serial you are missing out on some very good stories. And you know what? They'll be just as good, and even better for me, when I can sit down and read them as complete works. Waiting until they're done solves a lot of problems I have with serials. I'm not about to dive in again when waiting means I'm a lot happier than I would be otherwise. I'm especially not paying for something that's not complete, and may never be.

06-07-2010, 01:55 PM	#34
Amalthia Wizard Posts: 1,180 Karma: 32196 Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Anchorage, AK Device: Sony Reader PRS-505, PRS-650, PRS-T3, Pocketbook HD2	My experiences in reading fan fiction have taught me to hate Works-in-Progress and to avoid the completed story where the author posts a chapter a week. It's way too much work to keep track of and if the author dies you'll never get to read the end! I read a lot and I tend to forget to go back and finish the story. Also every time a reader leaves the story there is a chance they may not come back to finish it. That authors would want to go this route in published fiction boggles my mind. People use Charles Dickens as an example but times are different now.

06-07-2010, 02:16 PM	#35
Smashwords Connoisseur Posts: 64 Karma: 4999999 Join Date: May 2008 Location: Los Gatos, CA Device: iPhone	Great discussion, everyone. A few of you have commented I should have offered a middle ground option in the poll, such as, "I'm indifferent, it depends on the writer." You're right, in retrospect, I should have. Maybe at the conclusion of the poll someone will see fit to post another poll. In the meantime, biased or not, I think it's interesting how dramatically the results skew to the right. I had expected to see more interest in serials (and frankly, was looking for justification for us to do more with them at Smashwords). The message I'm hearing here, as well as from emails I've received from Smashwords customers, serials are more likely to frustrate or anger readers than satisfy them. Thanks, everyone, for sharing your insights, pro and con.

06-07-2010, 03:08 PM	#36
Jake_Drake Enthusiast Posts: 27 Karma: 30000 Join Date: May 2010 Location: Olympia, WA Device: Kindle	Like most other people in here, I don't read serialized books. Books that are part of a series is another matter, as long as they are complete in and of themselves. If I see a book that is serialized I pass it on without a second look.

06-07-2010, 03:12 PM	#38
Wayne Watson Junior Member Posts: 3 Karma: 10 Join Date: Jun 2010 Device: none	I did serialize my first book on a blog, but folks coming in at the middle of the story found it a chore to read, having to backtrack through blogger! I wouldn't even think of serializing until I had a finished story- I go back and change things around too much.

06-07-2010, 03:42 PM	#39
Elfwreck Grand Sorcerer Posts: 5,187 Karma: 25133758 Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: SF Bay Area, California, USA Device: Pocketbook Touch HD3 (Past: Kobo Mini, PEZ, PRS-505, Clié)	I don't like serials: 1) Don't like twenty small files/books/whatever instead of one compilation. 2) Don't like the risk of missing the next issue, which is not particularly likely with an ebook but past experiences with physical media have soured me on the idea. (If the local store runs out of that magazine before I get there, I miss a segment of the story.) 3) Don't enjoy having to remember character names & other details after days/weeks of not thinking about the story. 4) Don't like the risk of it never finishing, either due to disaster or author boredom. 5) If it's certain to finish--it's completed before posting, and someone will take over if the author is unavailable--see pt 1; I'd rather read it all at once. I can wait. There are people who like them. Who enjoy the little taste of a story rather than the full-immersion experience (or in addition to); who don't mind enjoying a story that might never finish (apparently, a lot of people watch soap operas). Shrug. I'm not likely to pay for something I know is a serial until it's done, and not likely to pay more for the pieces than I would for the whole thing, which means the pieces would have to be very modestly priced.

06-07-2010, 03:47 PM	#40
alecE Evangelist Posts: 412 Karma: 546196 Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: UK canal boat Device: sony prs505, prs650, kobo Glo HD liseuses	Loathe & detest serials. If really pushed might read a serial appearing in a magazine, if there were other more useful content which would be my primary reason to buy said magazine.

06-07-2010, 05:11 PM	#41
DaringNovelist Addict Posts: 197 Karma: 1010202 Join Date: Mar 2010 Device: iPod Touch	This thread has opened my eyes to something interesting. Two things really: 1. Clearly the definition of "serial" has changed, and there has been a LOT of posting of bad, chopped up, rough draft fiction in the name of serials. A serial is not a story chopped into bits (especially not a rough draft). A serial is a series. It's just a particular style of series. 2. Television, of course, is built on serials. Sure, there are some series which don't develop from story to story at all. (Although The Simpsons is the only series which intentionally has NO story arc, where one plot could end with everyone dying, and the next will have them all back where they were before.) And at the other end of the spectrum are series like LOST or 24 - a continuous story, where each episode ends with a cliffhanger and if you miss an episode you're, well, lost. But there are plenty which actually follow closer to the formula of the old time serial. Stories like CHUCK or BURN NOTICE - where there is an ongoing story too, but each individual story is whole in itself. If you miss an episode you may kick yourself, but you don't screw yourself - you can still follow the storyline. Camille

06-07-2010, 05:53 PM	#42
Barcey Wizard Posts: 1,531 Karma: 8059866 Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Canada Device: Kobo H2O / Aura HD / Glo / iPad3	If you paid me $5 per installment to read a serial novel I wouldn't. I already have too much to read. I keep hearing how pushing installments to cell phones is all the rage in Japan but I don't understand why. I can understand if you want to experiment with it but I'd suggest setting up a separate website for the installment model. If I'm buying an ebook I don't want to have to check if it's complete or not.

06-07-2010, 06:11 PM	#43
dgillette.rm Connoisseur Posts: 95 Karma: 10072 Join Date: Apr 2008 Device: sony	I guess I do not know what to do with this poll. Can someone explain to me why "The Lord of the Rings" is not a serialized book? What about David Weber's Honor Harrington series or Robert Jordon? I will agree that I do not want to end up paying $20 for a $7 book because it came out in 10 installments of $2 each. On the other hand, I refuse to pay Baen $15 for their advanced ebooks that they eventually sell for $7 if you wait.

Advert

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06-07-2010, 07:15 PM	#45
BillSmithBooks Padawan Learner Posts: 243 Karma: 1085815 Join Date: May 2009 Location: www.OutlawGalaxy.com, Foothills of NY's Adirondack mountains Device: My PC...using Puppy Linux (FBReader, Calibre, Kindle Cloud Reader,	I am generally a believer in the wisdom of crowds, but in this case I strongly disagree. Eliminate serials? So basically the argument is that the story must be full and complete in the original publication... That means that Smashwords wouldn't publish, let's see...Lord of the Rings, Wheel of Time, the Shannara series, the Chronicles of Narnia, Burroughs' Tarzan and John Carter series, Conan... No Green Mile, no Hitchiker's Guide, no shared-universe stories like Wild Cards or Forgotten Realms No Ender's Game series, no sequel to Mote in God's Eye, no more Rama novels, no 2012 No Star Wars novels, no prose version of Babylon 5 or Lost or Battlestar Galactica or Dr. Who or 24 or Buffy or Angel or any television series with a story arc for that matter. No prose versions of comic books: no Spider-Man, Batman, Superman, X-Men... No freakin' Whedonverse!!! All because these stories are serialized. They say people vote with their wallets. The wallets show that this poll is grossly inaccurate.