When I was a kid and cable tv was shiny and new, The Banana Splits played on a station from Fort Worth, Texas every afternoon at 4pm.  Among the songs, skits and cartoons was an adventure serial called Danger Island.  I would rush to get my homework done so I wouldn’t miss an episode. 

(The ‘Bit’s version of the adventure serial is an imported anime called “Bleach“.  Similar format, but with Tivo we record the program so she doesn’t panic if she misses an episode.) 

This is not anything new.  Books and magazines were often printed as serials with the readers left on a cliffhanger after each installment.  Many radio shows were done this way as well.

A couple of weeks ago I found the ultimate online serial.  Or rather, online serial service.  Daily Lit is a free online reading service where you can get a few minutes of a novel in your email every day.  They have different excerpt sizes so you can tailor the service to your time needs.  I gave it a try and I really like it.  The reading is easy to fit into a busy day and if I miss checking email for a day or two the reading amount is still small enough for me to handle.  I am reading Norton’s Time Traders, but they have many genres of books available.

Checking out the site, they also have a blog, writing contests and other offers like a free poem a day.  They also have a paid subscription service for newer releases but I haven’t tested it.

- Kit