On the Nature of Improvement – Serial Writing
For the past many months, I’ve been working on my serial, The Newspapers of Vision. While I am proud of the articles, I know that they aren’t the best writing. But, they have been my first start. The articles were the reason why I started this website in the first place. But, like all beginnings, it too must end. In a few months, the story of Vision will end and I will start a new serial. Hopefully, the new one will be better than Vision because, even though Vision will always have a special place in my heart, there were still some issues. How do I improve my serial writing?
Flaws with Vision
When advising new writers, someone will always say that the first thing you write will be terrible. And, while I think that some of my short stories were pretty good, there were many flaws, especially with The Newspapers of Vision. Mostly the flaws were caused by me trying to do things too differently.
I choose to write my first serial as a series of newspaper articles. This was partly because I had heard about newspapers during the french revolution. I thought it would be a good idea. And, while I am still proud of it, the format was probably a poor choice. For one thing, it means that I cannot focus on a main character. Though there are important and influential characters, Mordon Genette, Gareth Masou, Jamile King, none of them was the main character. I didn’t give them enough time to develop.
Also, some news articles were boring. Articles are designed to give information, not tell a story. They could have been used along with a narrative, not in place of one. I’m not saying that it’s wrong to experiment, just that I should have done it after I had gained more experience.
The Future
I’ve already started plotting my next serial. And, though I won’t give away the premise, I will say that it is going to be a sci-fi adventure about a distant world. I have learned from The Newspapers of Vision and will include main characters that you, the audience, will be able to connect with. The next serial will be more character-driven than plot-driven and the writing style will be more similar to my short stories. I hope that there will be some improvement in my writing in this next serial.
If you have comments about The Newspapers of Vision or want to give suggestions for the new serial, feel free to comment below!
