Let’s start by defining a serial.
Vocabulary.com has a couple definitions, but here’s the one that most matters to us right now: (n)a periodical that appears at scheduled times. It will be our baseline. However, consider also what a serial isn’t.
A serial is a kind of series, but it’s different from a series.
A series is a number of works coming out one after the other. A serial is, as stated above, a work that appears at a scheduled time. So, understand that a serial is a series, but the reverse isn’t always the case.
Some examples: HBO’s Game of Thrones is a serial TV series, which appears at regular intervals (weekly) for set times also at regular-ish intervals (yearly or so). The book series it is based on does not qualify, as each release arrives when it’s done. Many podcasts can be considered serials, as they have a fixed release date, along with most comic books, manga, and tv shows, all having very strict release schedules. They fit our basic definition.
We can be a little flexible here. Japanese light novels, webcomics, Youtube series, and a number of independent works come out regularly, but not always on a perfect schedule. My sense is, as long as it’s releasing as often or more often than what is traditional, it could be considered a serial.
If it doesn’t, it’s just a series. That not a value judgement, but what we will explore here is pulling off that special something called a serial, in written form. As such, fairly regular is vital, but exactly timed perfection is not.
Yet, there’s a little bit more. Maybe more opinion than definition, but I find them important points too.
First, we’re talking about a narrative. News programs, monthly community newsletters, or variety shows are not serials. They can teach us, they may use the same techniques we employ, and they may be fanatically reliable in their release schedule, but it lacks a narrative. A serial does not need to be fictional, but it must be a story.
Second, it’s a single story from the beginning to the end. It may change over time — perhaps drastically — but there is some unbroken thread that carries it through from beginning to end. The Simpsons is a great series, but there’s no throughline story. Almost every episode resets to the status quo. Not a serial, by our definition, here on this blog.
Third, many of the major conflicts start in one part and are resolved in another. Let’s look at Star Wars. It fits the second rule but not the third. In A New Hope, the conflict is the first Death Star, which is neutralized at the end of the movie. All three movies track Luke, Leia, Han, Darth Vader, and the Empire, yet each movie’s central conflict is almost entirely contained within it. Some points carry over, like Han being frozen in carbonite, but remember. He was hunted, and then captured, in one movie. It was decided to rescue, and then they did rescue, him in the next.
Conversely, look at . . . Look at Dragonball. Or Z. Or Super. Or whatever it is now. Fights begin in one episode, and end several episodes later. Things find a stopping point, but the actual conflict in the moment, and the ones at higher levels, both carry between steps.
Okay, one final caveat: a serial is usually many parts. It could be two parts; however, with such a short length, the whole thing gets muddy. We’ll say, it’s possible, but in general it should be many dozens of parts. Look at the series One Piece. At the time of writing, there’s 891 chapters, and 87 collected books of it… And it’s still going… And it’s still Luffy wanting to becoming the King of the Pirates. We may not be aiming for something as long as that, but it’s a much clearer picture here. It’s also more emblamatic as to what we, as writers, will end up producing.
Sure, sure, fancy definition. Super.
Why does this matter?
This is a way to carve out the space we’re working in.Next time, we’l be looking at what we can do with this to keep on track. We don’t want to be lost at sea, not knowing what we’re doing, but we can’t just drive the ship on shore. The definition is our lighthouse. That, plus a map (our techniques) and a compass (our criteria), will let us move freely.
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