Sizzling Serials
By Liz Everly
One of the exciting markets wide open for writers is serial fiction. Serial fiction has ebbed and flowed in popularity over the decades—but the internet and digital publishing have really enhanced things further. Publishing a series of stories that are linked or a novel that leaves your reader hanging on and wanting more is a great way to engage with your readers and to stay in touch with them between books. One of the things my readers want? More books—and yet, even if I could write them faster, my publisher can’t publish them any faster.
Some writers are publishing stories for free on platforms like Wattpad, gathering interest in numbers. The idea behind it, of course, is the same as the freebie books offered on Amazon, BookBub and so on. If readers like your free stuff, they will buy your other books. That has worked for a lot of writers. Will it continue to work? It remains to be seen.
But for Hannah Jayne the author of a paranormal romance series, the “Underworld Detective Series “, as well as young adult thriller novels, Wattpad has been amazing.
Sourcebooks, the publisher of her YA books “Truly, Madly, Deadly” and “See Jane Run,” helped to set her up on it. For See Jane Run, they published a chapter a week before the release of the book. For free. She’s not sure yet how this is translating to sales but she’s had close to 2 million reads on Wattpad and fans write her daily and tell her they read her stuff there, but bought the book anyway. She’s also had fans come to signings who knew her from Wattpad.
Hannah Jayne loves the platform. ” I’m crazy about it and the fan interaction is invaluable. Spurned ideas for my next two books,” she said.
I’ve not dipped my toes into the Wattpad water—I’ve only looked around a bit. It seems invaluable for certain types of fiction—young adult, primarily. I did not see any erotic romance, but I’m going to check into it further.
Where I have dipped my toes is into publishing serials on Amazon. Like almost all of my publishing forays, it’s going well, but slower than I had hoped. I published the first of my series awhile back and now, I’ve published the second one in the EIGHT LAYS AROUND THE WORLD series. This one is set in Hong Kong, with a gorgeous Asian man on the cover. (We’ve talked about the lack of Asian men in romance here and here on Lady Smut and I just wanted to do my part. Grin.)
I’m offering it for free from now to the end of the week. So take advantage of it—this one is very short. And if you’re into YA, check out Hannah Jayne’s work. I’m a big fan of her “Underworld Detective Series. ” Young women characters that kick ass, anyone? Unfortunately, Hannah Jayne doesn’t write erotic romance–yet. Wink.
Have any of you played around with Wattpad? Or published serials?
