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New Mediums?

As technology revolutionizes media their are endless ways to release material. What I would like to know is what you guys think about releasing stories in blog format. I think it could be a good way to build an audience for future physical works and I have been contemplating starting a project on wordpress.
 
I have actually been thinking that exact same thing. I've only barely started the process of programming and animating clips and stuff that would complacent a project like this.
 

TWErvin2

Auror
Releasing stories and serials through blogs is nothing new, and a viable option.

To build an audience, consistent posting of new, interesting material, be it stories or other items, is necessary, not only but to maintain regular visitors.
 

A. E. Lowan

Forum Mom
Leadership
We use our blog to showcase character profiles, brief descriptions of our preternatural races, and we also have a short short up there. I'm even currently working on a blog post about *gasp* writing. So far our readers enjoy the content we've got up. You can do whatever.
 

Svrtnsse

Staff
Article Team
I'm doing this at the moment. The link in my signature goes to the page on my wiki where I put up every new scene I write for the novel. I also put up short stories I write there and I've put up a large number of articles detailing various aspects of the world I have created (the world came before the stories).

What I haven't done (much) is promote the site. It's in the link in my signature. I've asked people here on MS to look at it and I post about it on my personal Facebook page now and then when I make a bigger update.

I believe this is something that can - potentially - be a pretty cool way of providing a story. The first, unedited, draft of my novel so far is available for free for anyone to read and more keeps getting added. There are options for people to comment on every page and I can lock story pages so that others don't go making strange edits in my scenes. If someone has a question about something I can link to something else on the site where I've written about it.

It's a bit of work and since I'm a slow writer and updater it's taking its time and not much is happening. As a concept/idea I think it's good though. I just need to more time... :p
 

Penpilot

Staff
Article Team
This is how John Scalzi started. He put up Old Man's war up on a blog in 2002 and got discovered and Old Man's war was published in physical book format in 2006.
 

Bansidhe

Minstrel
I've found that releasing flash fiction on my blog works very well indeed. So does non-fiction content. However, keep in mind that if you're planning publish the same content traditionally or charge for it on a self-publishing platform you may end up coming up against walls, as there is no (or little) reason a publisher will pick up the same content that can be had for free online. Because why pay for it otherwise?

However, if you're talking about separate material as way of building readership, then it's an excellent idea. I say go for it!
 

Greed

Acolyte
I've tried it, down to putting up chapters as podcasts read by a friend of mine who has a particularly good reading voice. It was a sci-fi piece which involved the internet in the story and, after editing it and creating all of the glitchy background noises, it really made sense to put it up as audio files on a blog. I think there are lots of interesting ways you can use the medium of a blog to change the way the narrative unfolds, in an post-internet version of the epistolary novel, for example.

As for posting work online just as a story, not in a meta-fictional kind of way, it is certainly something that I've done. I'm not sure if it helped bring in much more of a readership. Has anyone experienced a lot of success with this? I find that I often end up taking work down so that I can submit it for publication or competitions.
 

Hagan

Dreamer
I'm writing a fan-story for Star Citizen on my blog and posting each update every week on the RSI site, and so far its seems to be working out alright. I use it largely for writing practice, something to kick me into touch and get something written each week (around 1500 words) though I have noticed that it does generate traffic (and thanks to site stats you can see which pages and content are bringing people to you site so I know its the story that does it).

Even over the Christmas break I had on average three to five more visitors a week (not much, but better than nothing) looking for the story, most notably looking through the earlier posts before moving on to the later sections posted more recently. Just be wary what you post. Anything you post will likely be rejected by a publisher on the grounds that its freely available elsewhere, even if its just a teaser (advice given to me by authors and a few agents I met last year).

If there is stuff you don't feel you could sell or otherwise flog to a publisher but feel is good enough for public consumption (Or like fanfic, could legally sell anyway) then go for it, just make sure credit is given to the relative parties first (Copyright infringement etc). If its original work, make sure your copyright is on the site, visibly and prominently displayed on EVEN PAGE (more advice from those Authors and Agents, mentioned quite a bit during those workshops) so no-one can say 'I didn't see it'. Make sure you keep it up to date too. In fact, I'll leave it there as I've just realised I haven't updated the blogs copyright notice, brb.
 
I use my LiveJournal page if I want to show off some random tidbits of writing to friends. And I'm currently in the process of uploading the work I've done that I'm actually proud of (and believe is good) to DeviantArt. Since a good portion of my writing uses pop culture references, or is just downright fanfiction (of my own MMO character, but still) publishing is unlikely.
 

buyjupiter

Maester
I've tried it, down to putting up chapters as podcasts read by a friend of mine who has a particularly good reading voice. It was a sci-fi piece which involved the internet in the story and, after editing it and creating all of the glitchy background noises, it really made sense to put it up as audio files on a blog. I think there are lots of interesting ways you can use the medium of a blog to change the way the narrative unfolds, in an post-internet version of the epistolary novel, for example.

As for posting work online just as a story, not in a meta-fictional kind of way, it is certainly something that I've done. I'm not sure if it helped bring in much more of a readership. Has anyone experienced a lot of success with this? I find that I often end up taking work down so that I can submit it for publication or competitions.

I work around that by only posting back story events that are referenced within a larger work. It might be driving my followers a bit nuts now that I think of it, but I was very clear at the outset of the project that it would be like this. I have put up full short stories and chapters, but the short stories are not really marketable and the chapters need a major overhaul (and a book to go in).
 

Jabrosky

Banned
I've just started a Wordpress blog to host some of my stories, essays, and other writings. It was actually my Mom's suggestion.
 

Mythopoet

Auror
I've played around with blogging here and there. I had a pretty successful blogspot blog for a while, but then I stopped posting at all for a long time. I've tried to start up again every once in a while but my life is always too chaotic to be regular about it. Still, I do want to have a website presence ready for when I start publishing so I'll probably post irregularly to the new blog in my signature. I don't usually post fiction. Mostly I tend to write long winded "deep thoughts" about writing and fantasy and mythology and such.

Oh, Jabrosky, I book marked your site and commented on one of your posts. I've been wondering for a while why all your Egyptians look African rather than the way the Egyptians represented themselves. Now I know. Not sure if I agree though. ;)
 
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