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Q&A Why are 'Episodic' books so uncommon

The vast majority of fictional books are one continuous story, which are closer in style to what films are in a visual medium. I was thinking about why we don't see more books that would be closer...

2 answers  ·  posted 7y ago by MissingPear‭  ·  last activity 5y ago by System‭

#3: Attribution notice added by user avatar System‭ · 2019-12-08T06:52:45Z (about 5 years ago)
Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/q/29681
License name: CC BY-SA 3.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/
#2: Initial revision by user avatar MissingPear‭ · 2019-12-08T06:52:45Z (about 5 years ago)
The vast majority of fictional books are one continuous story, which are closer in style to what films are in a visual medium.

I was thinking about why we don't see more books that would be closer in style to a tv show, where each section has a problem or event which is mostly wrapped in 40 minutes and there is some slower arc progression in the overall setting.

Qualifications for "Episodic" works of fiction:

- Unlike short story collections, the episodes take place in the same setting with the same cast.
- The episodes are generally self contained, and mixing the order will not leave a reader confused if they are familiar with the cast.
- Each episode is a suitable length to read in one sitting.
- The stories are collected in a single volume, rather than smaller novellas.

In short, what factors create the environment where most fiction is written as a single tightly cohesive narrative?

#1: Imported from external source by user avatar System‭ · 2017-08-10T19:03:01Z (over 7 years ago)
Original score: 10