Part One
A Tale of Two Stories
They’re Great!
Hang with me here (please), because I’m about to make one of my grand errors. I know I should open this post with an attention grabbing hook or an objectively witty zinger, but instead I’m kicking off with the third most boring opening I can think of: a definition (surpassed in drollness only by the cliché and the dream sequence (which I did in StrangetaleS)). I have some really great news to share too, but I’m not telling you until the end.
Serialized Fiction: a publishing format by which a large work, most often a work of narrative fiction, is presented in contiguous (typically chronological) installments. —Wikipeadia
–see, boring, right? I’ll try to elaborate, then explain why I’m telling you all of this to begin with.
I think the best examples of contemporary sterilized fiction are television dramas that feature an overall season (and mayhap series) long story arc. There’re a myriad of examples, shows like Lost, and Twenty-Four, and Breaking Bad, and (gasp) soap operas, but actually I’ve never watched any of those shows (I don’t really watch television). But I have watched Buffy.
Each season of Buffy the Vampire Slayer had a major bad guy doing bad stuff all through the season that would lead up to the climatic season ending battle between the big bad and Buffy. There were other bad guys along the way who’d show up for an episode here and there, but the larger story was building all along.
I’m not going to delve into a history lesson, but there’s nothing new about serialized storytelling. The Odyssey and the Iliad were serialized, as were the Arthurian tales. Pulp and dime novels did it, and there were the movie serials of the thirties, forties and fifties. I’m not actually old enough to have seen those, but one thing I liked about them was how each installment ended in a cliffhanger, leaving the audience on the edge of their seats, excited for the next episode so they could learn how their heroes faired (the sixty’s Batman television show deftly played up this comic book trope).
And now for the ah-ha: I currently have two serialized stories out and available for your eager consumption, PeeDee3, Intergalactic, Insectoid Assassin, and Jazz, Monster Collector. 
I’m a fan of writer, Michael A. Stackpole. And while I am a fan of his writing (I’m really enjoying the Crown Colonies series), I’m especially a fan of his writing and publishing advice. I don’t know of another working writer who gives so much to the writing community (thank you, sir). Several years ago, I heard him expounding on the positive future of serialized fiction in the ebook age. And, as usual, he made many compelling points (I particularly like Mr. Stackpole’s Trick Molloy serial). One was just how busy everybody is these days (I don’t watch television, remember; no time). With our limited free time, an ongoing story designed to be consumed in short bits (like on one’s commute, or lunch break, or in the waiting room) can fit nicely into a busy schedule. I also like how each installment drops right into my various electronic readers, just like a great episode being beamed directly into our televisions. And since I always have my phone with me, I’m constantly grabbing a few minutes to read here and there, and serials fit perfectly into that space.
As it so happened, I had already written several of the PeeDee3 stories and really had no idea where to go with them. Now PeeDee3 isn’t really a ‘proper’ serial because the stories (at least for season one) don’t follow in a chorological order, but hold on because there is a season arc building –we are going somewhere. So with some formatting and research and more formatting, I was able to bring my first serialized stories to the world, and I really enjoyed writing them. Naturally we want to do more of what we enjoy.
Almost immediately I had ideas for two other serials slam into my mind, one of which, about a surgeon in 1869 who bears a terrible curse, will be heading your way soon. But there was someone else, this young girl that kept nagging for my attention. She’d actually been in my mind for a long time, rattling the pipes and shaking the beams, but I couldn’t picture bringing her out yet, mostly because it would happen way, way out of chronological order. Finally, after I could no longer ignore her pleas for attention (meaning she kept slinging that Tazer-rang of hers against the inside of my skull) I had a realization—so what?
That was the beginning of Jazz, Monster Collector. And she’s going to be the star of Serilized Realized part two. For now I’ll simply say that she’s quickly become one of my favorite characters in the RyFTeverse, that Jazz, Monster Collector, is very much a proper serial, and that I think you’re going to like her too. 
And now the great news…both of my current serials are available to you for free, no charge, zero dinero, nada, absolutely nothing! I’ll jam a series of links below this, but nearly everyone, Smashwords, Kobo, Barnes and Noble, Itunes, has the stories for you to download with a mere click of your mouse, pretty much everyone except for Amazon. Amazon, you see, won’t let me post a story for less than ninety-nine cents. But you can help out with this. About halfway down the book’s page on Amazon is a hyperlink titled, Tell Us About a Lower Price. Click that link and let Amazon know that others list the story for free. In the meantime, Kindle readers (like me) can get the story free at Smashwords and it’s easy to do.
So read more serials, they’re good for you.
Tallyho, yo,
RyFT
The RyFT Smashwords Page with the FREE stuff
RyFT on Amazon Tell them to make it Free!
