tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1847902007209931042.post8970041397745117119..comments2024-01-05T05:46:30.140-08:00Comments on Angie's Desk: Serials, or, How to Make Your Readers Hate YouAngiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11920578701763415331noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1847902007209931042.post-78485025643558515812013-02-17T15:00:09.147-08:002013-02-17T15:00:09.147-08:00Suzan -- I've had this argument too. I find i...Suzan -- I've had this argument too. I find it kind of boggling that there are writers who don't get this. We're all readers, right? Unless you're independently wealthy, I don't get how anyone can not get what the problem is here.<br /><br /><i>Readers will leave 1- or 2-star reviews saying it's too short.</i><br /><br />This might be where the confusion is. Readers don't always know how to express a problem clearly when it comes to writing. The issue probably isn't that the story is too short, in terms of wordcount, but rather that it stops before it gets to the end of the <i>story.</i> We can see where they're coming from saying it's "too short," but actually it's a structural problem. If an entire story were contained within the exact same wordcount, those same readers might have been satisfied with both the wordcount and the price. But to the reader, the story stopped before its end, therefore it's "too short."<br /><br />As writers, we need to be able to look past the words used when someone is critical, to see the actual problem. Your friend doesn't seem to have figured this out yet, and it's causing her to misinterpret the complaint.<br /><br />AngieAngiehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11920578701763415331noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1847902007209931042.post-45363714636113952232013-02-17T12:23:20.590-08:002013-02-17T12:23:20.590-08:00I've had this same argument with another write...I've had this same argument with another writer (more than once). She'll put out a 20K romance book that is only half the story. Readers will leave 1- or 2-star reviews saying it's too short. She doesn't get that the real complaint is that the readers feel cheated out of their HEA by her non-disclosed serialization method.<br /><br />Then she'll berate me for publishing stories with far smaller word counts based on HER PERCEPTION of reader complaints.<br /><br />Not only do I not get complaints, I get very suprised compliments about how a reader doesn't have to start at the beginning of a series to enjoy the middle book they've read.<br /><br />I totally understand how readers feel ripped off by overpaying for a story. I DEFINITELY would! A writer or publisher has to treat their readers/customers with respect. I wish more folks on the producer side of fiction understood this.Suzan Hardenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04600258874634909988noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1847902007209931042.post-61817219836123742562013-02-17T09:15:06.980-08:002013-02-17T09:15:06.980-08:00Charles -- I agree, I wouldn't either. Althou...Charles -- I agree, I wouldn't either. Although I'll admit that a few years ago, before the serial thing really got going, I got suckered into buying three short story sized chunks of a longer story, before I realized what was going on and stopped buying them. And I <i>do</i> feel suckered. That story ended up with ten parts, which makes the total cost for a story about 45K words long (estimating from info I can find on half the chunks, then doubling that to approximate the total), if you purchased all the parts together right now, over twenty dollars. Insane. [sigh]<br /><br />And looking at how many people shelved each part on Goodreads, they definitely lost readers as time went on. It's a shame; it wasn't a bad story at all, at least what I read of it. It's just how it was marketed that turned me off, and clearly a lot of other people as well.<br /><br />AngieAngiehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11920578701763415331noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1847902007209931042.post-81623280628267708562013-02-17T08:16:06.626-08:002013-02-17T08:16:06.626-08:00What amazes me a bit is that some people actually ...What amazes me a bit is that some people actually go ahead and buy the next installment despite these kinds of things. I just wouldn't buy it. There are many great stories and books waiting to be read. A serialized story that treats me fairly, on the other hand, I met well buy.Charles Gramlichhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02052592247572253641noreply@blogger.com