The Future of This Site and Serials
I struggled with myself over when to write this blog. Part of me, perhaps not the bravest part, wanted to wait until the last chapters of Super Powereds and B&B were posted, then swing through with this news. But that would put a sour tone on what I’m hoping will be a fun, exciting finale, and that’s not fair. Not to the readers, and not to the story. I think it’s better if I tell you now, as things are clearly starting to build once more to the last few arcs. This way everyone has time to process the news properly, and by the time we reach the end of the books they’ll have had a chance to make peace with it so they can hopefully enjoy the endings as they are. I’m still stalling, aren’t I? Fuck. Well, no more of that. Here’s my big news:
There will not be any new serials to replace Super Powereds or Blades & Barriers when each one wraps. Those two will be, at least for now, the final web-serials on DrewHayesNovels.com.
Now I’m sure you’ve all got lots of questions about why I’ve made this choice, and I’m going to do my best to answer them further down, however before that there are some site-based issues that have to be tackled first. So, what does this mean for the site?
1) This will only impact the serials, everything else will continue. For those who like my drinking videos, blog, yearly Halloween event, Authors & Dragons, and so on, rest assured that none of that is going anywhere. I still intend to keep this site active with those forms of content, and perhaps some new ones as time goes on. Only the serials are coming to an end.
2) Year 4 and Blades & Barriers will both finish on here. I don’t want you thinking I’m yanking away the last bit and telling you to buy the book. This tale started as a web-serial and it will end as one. To do anything less would be ungrateful to all the wonderful readers who have helped make this story a success.
3) I’m going to leave the Patreon up for those who want to keep getting the behind the scenes stuff, but I understand and expect that lots of folks will pull their pledges when the central focus of the site ends. That is perfectly fair and I don’t begrudge you it one bit. I just don’t want to take the perks away from the folks who enjoy them, so I’m leaving the option up.
4) This doesn’t mean that the Super Powereds world is closed forever and that no more spin-offs will be written. I’d go so far as to say there probably will be a few some ways down the road. I’m only ending the format, not the story-world itself.
5) Some of the older books will have to rotate into Kindle Unlimited as the launch for Year 4 draws near. I’ve written longer blogs explaining the need for this, just wanted to remind you all that it was coming. As before, I’ll try to work it on a rotation so that they can live on for free on the site some of the time, however once the final book is coming out I’ll have to promo the older ones, there’s no way around that.
With the logistical stuff out of the way, let’s get down to the more existential question: why? Why is an author who constantly talks about his love of web-serials not starting any new ones? Well, the simplest answer is that I might again, one day down the line; however for right now I need some time away from them. Since 2009, I’ve written over a million words of Super Powereds, and that’s not counting spin-offs. When I tell people getting into web-serials to brace for a long-term commitment, I mean it. And in that time I’ve done 2 – 4 chapters per week (depending on spin-offs and bonus chapters) without missing a single scheduled chapter. That doesn’t seem like a lot per week, but over time the effort builds up.
Even with that effort, I’ve loved doing this serial, having this community, and I know without a doubt my career wouldn’t be where it is without your support. But, as time goes on, there are other projects I want to tackle, other books I want to try, and it’s hard to find space for them in the schedule when so much of my time goes to keeping up the buffer on these serials. It’s time to open up that schedule and try new things. Some will crash, I’m sure, but some might turn out to be as much fun as I want them to. That’s okay; failure is a part of this job. Trial and error comes with the turf. As an author, you can’t let the unknown scare you away from things you want to do. Starting my first serial scared the piss out of me. Giving them up is fucking terrifying. But it’s what I know I need to do next, so I have to push on.
It’s strange, I feel like I’m writing this as a goodbye letter even though there are still months of new chapters ahead. And even once that’s done, I’ll still be here, posting blogs, doing shots, and putting up random ideas that pop into my head. Still, there’s no denying that this does mark the start of the finale of a very real, very huge chapter in my life. This series got me out of the corporate world and into a job I never actually thought I would have. You all spreading the word, buying the books, leaving reviews, and just generally supporting the effort, you literally changed the course of my life. I hope I’ve written stories you liked well enough to return the favor, but rest assured I’ll keep on trying either way for a long time to come.
I suppose the best way to close a blog like this is by saying thanks, to everyone who has read and will read these stories. I never could have imagined when I started with the seeds of this series what it would grow into, in terms of both the tale itself and how big a part of my life it became. On top of the thanks, I’ll just add one thing: I’ll still be here if you need me. Need to kill some time at work by reading ridiculous fake-office memos, need to get through a rough night by watching me make an idiot of myself drinking on camera, or need some advice about your own writing journey (my email is still on the right-hand side of the site). Even if you don’t have the same reason to come visit multiple times a week, I’m still around when the occasion demands, and that’s one thing that won’t be changing any time soon.