Publishing Order · 4:54am Jan 7th, 2021
If you have a series of stories (10 in this case), what order should you publish them in?
- The order written
- Chronological (when the story takes place)
- Some relational order (for example, where sequels are published together even if they take place far apart in the chronology)
- Some other logical (?) order
And then what order should the reader read them?
- Published order
- Chronological
- Some other order
A classic example of the choice in viewing order is the first two Star Wars trilogies. Do you watch them in release order (4-6, 1-3) or in chronological order (1-6)? For the first-time viewer, the most obvious difference is if one of the greatest reveals in cinematic history is spoiled or a surprise. One might argue that a first viewing should be in release order, with subsequent viewings being chronological. It gets more complicated when you add in the two stand-alone movies that squeeze in between the first two trilogies.
The Quicksilver Chronicles has a similar, although less dramatic, choice to be made. I want to start the series out with some fun action/adventure stories. So that means publishing stories #2 and #3 first. Then I'll fill in the drama/slice-of-life backstory which is #1 in the chronology. So the published order is not the same as the chronological order.
This doesn't impact readers following the stories as they're published. But those coming in later, or someone re-reading the series will have a choice to make. Choose wisely grasshopper.
Next week: Story Teasers
