The Serialists was a meme for writers and readers. It is no longer being done, but many of the participants are still working on their serials. I recommend that you click on the buttons bellow and visit a few.
What was it all about? The Serialists was a way for people who post serials on their blogs to connect.
What’s a serial? I have a very loose definition. A serial needs to fit the following:
1. It is at least partly fictional.
2. There are at least two posts. Posts should run somewhere between one sentence and 1,500 words long. No, I’m not going to stop and count, but please don’t put an entire book on one post.
3. Something connects the posts. It can be the same characters and/or same setting. I’ll consider the same tone.
That’s it. It doesn’t have to be a book in the making. It just has to be part of a set.
What counts as fiction?
I was generous with my definition of fiction, too. Some of the most interesting participants have had stories that walked the line between fiction and autobiography. So long is this isn’t simply a recounting of your day, a recipe, or something else that clearly doesn’t fit, but is an actual story or set of related stories, it counts.
Poetry was fine so long as there is a connection and a story is told.
When was it?
There was a new post up every Wednesday. This post can be reached through a link in my sidebar. The current entries are in that sidebar too. Whether you’re a writer or not, check them out.
If you wish to participate, you don’t have to post on Wednesday specifically. You can link to any series you have posted, so long as you don’t flood me with links. You can link to a maximum of seven episodes. After that, I start deleting links.
Do I Have to Be a Writer to Participate?
I prize readers. Big time. So much so that I am quite willing to feature the blogs of those who don’t write any fiction, if they leave comments on the participants entries. Be sure to say something in the comment stream of the current hub post so I know to watch for you.
What’s a Button and How Do I Get One?
When someone has been running a series for a while, I am likely to feature them in my sidebar in special way. To learn more, check out this post.
Ok, I have written and posted two parts of my serial. Now what do I do?
Simply paste the link to your episode in the Mr. Linky thing. You can put it either in the sidebar or in the post. It will show up in both places. Then go visit other participants and leave comments. We all want to know we are being read, don’t we? Keep in mind, the more you put into it in commenting on others, the more you are likely to get out of it.
Please, LINK DIRECTLY TO THE EPISODES, not just to your blog! You can find the link by pulling up the specific episode on your blog, then copying out the link from wherever it is your browser shows what web site you are on. In FireFox, it’s in the big field right under the tabs.
Although I LOVE link-backs, and would like for you to share this meme with your readers, I recognize how personal our serials are. I don’t expect you to put anything on them indicating you are a participant in this meme. However, if you’d like to put something in your post or sidebar, you are welcome to use this:
