Before such a loaded question can be answered, I think it's best to define "serial" as it's not a common term that many are familiar with. Even I'll admit, I only just learned about what it was a few years ago but I've been fascinated by the concept ever since.
I'm excited about the future of serialized fiction. In a time when attention is increasingly divided, it can provide a helpful bit of structure and external pressure to spend a few minutes reading. I'm currently experimenting with publishing an installment of 500-700 words every weekday, which should take 5 minutes or less to read. My pitch is that it's a less soul-sucking alternative to checking the news in the morning, but it could just as easily be a good way to end the day.
You bring up a point I've been wrestling with: How do we avoid alienating new readers as our backlog of content grows? Can long, serialized stories be crafted in such a way that readers don't feel obligated to catch up before they can read the latest installments?
I'm excited about the future of serialized fiction. In a time when attention is increasingly divided, it can provide a helpful bit of structure and external pressure to spend a few minutes reading. I'm currently experimenting with publishing an installment of 500-700 words every weekday, which should take 5 minutes or less to read. My pitch is that it's a less soul-sucking alternative to checking the news in the morning, but it could just as easily be a good way to end the day.
You bring up a point I've been wrestling with: How do we avoid alienating new readers as our backlog of content grows? Can long, serialized stories be crafted in such a way that readers don't feel obligated to catch up before they can read the latest installments?