Today I am very happy to welcome author Cari Z to Joyfully Jay. Cari is here are part of the Storm Moon Press 3rd Anniversary Blog Tour. She also has details on a great blog tour giveaway! So please join me in giving Cari a big welcome!

So, here we are in a brand new year! Now that the fireworks and champagne have worn off, it’s time for me take a look at my resolutions and reevaluate their potential for success.

1. Lose those last 5 pounds.

Yeah… maybe.

2. Fight my chocolate addiction.

Aw, my subconscious is so well-intentioned, but I’m afraid this one is doomed to failure. It’s not looking good for resolution #1.

3. Try something new with my writing.

Success! My big something new is already in the works at Storm Moon Press, which is going to be offering up serial stories this year for the first time. One of those serials will be Cambion: Dark Around The Edges, which is a six-episode serial novel based loosely on a story I did for Goodreads’ Love Is Always Write event last year. Think of it as a spy-style thriller that has demons, angels, and magic worked in with the guns, glamor, and intrigue.

I could tell you about the format of Storm Moon Press’ serial stories, what it will cost (not much, especially for the first episode), when those first episodes will be released (February for the first two of them) and all the ways you have to enjoy them, but K. Piet and S.L. Armstrong have already written extensively on the subject here and here. I can’t improve on that. But I can tell you some of the good stuff you’re going to be getting with these stories.

Serialized novels are hardly new. Charles Dickens used this format to publish everything from Oliver Twist to Great Expectations, to great effect. The popularity of serial fiction dropped way off for decades but is experiencing a resurgence now in digital media, with some publishers, including Kindle, offering up exclusively digital serial lines. Even Margaret Atwood is publishing a serial novel called Positron, in fifty-page episodes, with Byliner. Why bother, though? Why not write the entire thing and get it out there so that people can enjoy all of it at once? Where’s the benefit to an author or reader?

Speaking for myself, part of the benefit of writing a serial novel is the fact that I can take a little more time with it. I don’t have to have a leviathan done and ready to go all at once; I can write it in very manageable fifteen-thousand word episodes. Another benefit is getting feedback from readers fairly early in the process, so that if I’m writing Episode Four, and I get a bunch of comments about Episode One telling me that Character A is insufferable, I can choose to take those into consideration and modify the arc of the story if I want to. Also, it’s nice to have something consistent to present to readers, so that people who like my work aren’t waiting months for the next new release, they’re only waiting a matter of weeks. I’ve been writing serial fiction on my blog for close to three years, and I love the sense of connection I get from readers checking in every week to read the next piece of the story. It’s not an all or nothing approach to writing; it’s slow and steady and satisfying for me as a writer to produce something that people keep coming back to.

For readers, getting into a serial novel offers up a lot of choice. You can read the first episode and, if it’s not your thing, stop reading there instead of spending the money for an entire novel. You have the option of picking it up again later if you hear that things get better. Plus, it’s exciting! New episodes offer the opportunity for cliffhangers that will intrigue instead of frustrate, because you know resolution in some form is coming pretty soon, and not whenever a vast sequel can be written and published. It’s a lot like your favorite TV show that way. And if you don’t like something, or you really like something, you can speak up and make your presence known.

Storm Moon Press is one of the first contemporary erotic romance publishers to embrace the new potential of serial fiction. They’ve meticulously planned their particular approach so that readers and authors both can get the best possible deals out of serial novels. This is a big new step for them as well as me, because Cambion won’t be the friendly, self-edited thing I’ve got going on my blog: this is a well-planned, highly polished, and very hopeful project. If you’re looking to try something new, this is the year! Come and see what Storm Moon Press has to offer.


Giveaway Opportunity!

This guest post is part of Storm Moon Press’ 3rd Anniversary Blog Tour! Comment on this post or any other post on the blog tour with your e-mail address, and you’ll be entered for a chance to win the Grand Prize of receiving 1 FREE e-book each month of 2013 from that month’s new releases for a total of 12 free e-books! Runners up will receive a $25 gift certificate to their choice of Amazon or All Romance eBooks. For more details and to find out about our 3rd Anniversary, head over to Storm Moon Press’ Official Blog. Thanks for joining us!

Please be sure to LEAVE AN EMAIL ADDRESS to be entered for the giveaway! Â