There is something oddly satisfying about looking forward to a story.
Modern readers are accustomed to consuming stories all at once. Entire television seasons arrive on streaming services in a single day. Novels can be downloaded instantly and finished over a long weekend. Even social media trains us to scroll continuously from one piece of content to the next without interruption. Convenience is wonderful, but I sometimes wonder if we have lost a small part of the reading experience along the way.
For most of publishing history, stories arrived in installments. Readers waited for the next chapter in a newspaper, a magazine, or a serialized novel. They talked about the latest developments with friends. They speculated about what might happen next. They spent days, weeks, and sometimes months living with characters before learning how their stories ended. The anticipation was not an obstacle to enjoyment. It was part of the enjoyment.
That is one of the reasons I have enjoyed publishing The Summer Garden as a serial. Every Sunday, readers return to spend a little more time with Scotty and the residents of Mill Creek Community Garden. Rather than racing toward the ending, we are all taking the journey together. The story becomes part of the rhythm of the week, arriving alongside everything else life throws at us. Judging by the response the series has received, many readers seem to appreciate that slower pace as much as I do.
Which brings me to this Friday. Beginning this week, Credible Threat: Season One will join The Summer Garden as a second ongoing serial. The two stories could not be more different. One is a quiet story about community, friendship, grief, and second chances. The other is a thriller involving sleeper agents, conspiracies, and a family caught in the middle of events far beyond their control. Yet both benefit from the same thing: the pleasure of wondering what happens next.
Serial fiction asks readers to do something unusual in an age of instant gratification. It asks them to wait. Surprisingly, that may be one of its greatest strengths. When a story unfolds over time, the characters have room to settle into our thoughts. We notice details we might otherwise rush past. We become participants rather than consumers. Instead of asking how quickly we can finish the story, we find ourselves looking forward to spending a little more time inside it.
That anticipation is a rare thing these days. It is also one of the reasons I think serial storytelling still matters.
Now Serializing on Substack
The Summer Garden continues every Sunday. Read Episode One now.
Beginning this Friday, Credible Threat: Season One joins it with a new episode each week.
Prefer to binge? The complete first season of Credible Threat is available now from Stories Rule Press right here.
— Mark