Serialization is any fictional work issued in small, consecutive pieces. Consider them literary TV episodes. Dissecting a book and publishing chapters isn’t easy. Each episode can be read separately, with common themes. Each section can be understood without reading it. Mobile media has made serial stories popular. No more searching stores for the serial’s magazine.
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1. Outline your story
Writing a serial is important since you don’t control the entire story. One part at a time. However, losing your tale is easy. Your story may quickly fall apart. When this happens, you risk unfavorable ratings and low audiences.
An outline guides your serial writing. It helps organize events, characters, and other information. You can change details later, but having a general storyline is important.
2. Continue your story
Each episode is a mini-story within your broader storyline. Each reader should change, which will urge them to read the next portion. Thus, you cannot simply write about events. Tension drives characters. No “passive” installment.
If your serial is a murder mystery, one episode cannot simply feature your protagonist (say a detective) discussing a crime with a colleague (unless it provides them with an epiphany in the case). They must search for clues, interview witnesses, and taunt the perpetrator to solve the crime.
Include these little story elements in each episode to keep readers interested. It alerts them to an event. It also keeps your stories from jumping from plot point to plot point without explaining how they got there
3. Avoid info dumping
An info dump occurs when you “dump” a lot of background or explanation on your reader instead of revealing it gradually. It rarely enhances story comprehension. It will annoy them or make them forget everything within a few pages.Serials must be well-paced because each episode can only hold so much information before becoming illegible. A chapter cannot contain a character’s history. It would be ineffectual compared to significant events and conversation.
Release information slowly. Use current events to maximize these disclosures. At an antagonist’s victory or defeat, expose their motivations and background. The relevance of the experience and finally understanding why the enemy performs the way they do cements the knowledge more than just presenting it.
Data dumps also prevent you from using later episodes to build tension. You may run out of important points. The following chapters will either be sparse or never contribute new information. Combining these two steps may cause an imbalance between your past and present chapters. Improvising new information may also cause narrative inconsistencies, which leads to the next argument.
4. Improvise
Writing is rarely consistent. Our edited and rewritten works are different from what we imagined. When your storyline has gaps or has diverged from your original idea, improvise. When you change paths, evaluate how it affects your tale and what should be changed. Create new information, characters, and events to fit your new approach without rewriting the story.
Filling plot holes is the easiest way to fix them. To achieve this, provide facts that add depth without changing the plot. They should blend without disrupting your story.
If you haven’t explained one of your character’s scars, the history you add should match their appearance. If your protagonist is a soldier, reveal that their mystery scar is from combat. Unless the character had a different job or an interest in food, you cannot say it was from cooking.
5. Be charming
Serials can be hard to make cohesive. Each area can only fit so much information. And you cannot just pour everything into one episode to ensure that your audience instantly understands the universe in which your characters inhabit.
Instead, fill out your characters to make them more approachable and memorable to interest your audience. Your serial will keep them guessing what will happen to their favorite characters. Characters must mature with each episode in serials. They cannot remain still. They’ll end your series.
6. Be consistent
Serials generate tension. To retain readers, capitalize on their curiosity. Maintaining a schedule raises reader expectations. Most anime, manga, cartoons, and other media were planned. This thrill keeps your tales fresh in their thoughts and consistently piques their attention. Make your readers excitedly anticipate your next release.
When you seldom publish, your readers get disinterested and may even abandon your work. Worse, they may believe you are leading them on and not giving them enough for their time.