Many a moon ago, when I was many moons younger, I told you I’d be doing more fiction. Then I forgot all about it and posted zero fiction, apart from the occasional “totally true story.” That’s because I’m an unreliable, untrustworthy asshole who will never amount to anything and also smells funny. My mom was right!

Jokes aside, I’ve been slow on the fiction front, so I’m trying once again to rectify this. To that end, allow me to introduce to you—Nano.

What’s a Nano?

Nano is one billionth part of something, and…wait, wrong notes. Nano is potentially a novel. At this stage, there’s only a single chapter. Consider it a sort of “pilot episode” for a TV series. If people like it, it may continue. If everyone hates it, I’ll cry like a baby and call everyone “poo-poo heads” and other evil names. I’m not above that.

Nano‘s first (and, so far, only) chapter came about as a result of a random writing session—a fully “pantser” happening. I had it written up in the middle of last year, then didn’t do anything more with it. Now I am. I have no overarching plot in place and no clear idea of where it’s heading. It’s just a something that may turn into a something bigger. There.

On the plus side, it has a sort of eBook cover, so you know it’s legit:

Why the chapter-by-chapter approach?

Because writing a whole novel is like, really hard, you guys. Seriously, I have the attention span of a rabid rabbit. I can’t possibly focus on one book long enough to push out a complete work. I’m no Carrie Rubin, with her fancy concepts like “outlines” and “writing tools” and “actually knowing what the hell the novel is about.”

So instead I’m pushing out a single chapter, to see how that goes. Maybe I’ll get some ideas from the readers. Maybe I’ll be able to gauge the response and get motivated to write further. Maybe the chapter will sink into the bottomless void of self-published strings of words, never to be seen again. The sky’s the limit.

Earlier this year I submitted the chapter to JukePop Serials, and I’m happy to say they’ve accepted and published it.

What’s JukePop Serials?

JukePop Serials is a website that publishes curated serials from different writers. It’s free to sign up and read the stories. Try it.

JukePop Serials is one of the few places on the Internet that is attempting to rekindle people’s interest for serial fiction. Readers get to follow their favourite stories as they develop. Authors get exposure and compete for cash prizes by collecting votes. Personally, I’m in it for the chance to construct a novel with reader involvement and feedback.

What can I do?

You can go read the first chapter of Nano, for starters.

If you don’t like it, no harm done. Walk away from it silently and pretend we’ve never spoken before. I have your IP address and know where you live, but don’t let that worry you.

If you like it, awesome. I’d be happy if you gave the chapter a “+” vote, because that’ll help me get visibility and encourage me to write more chapters. If you have constructive criticism, bring it on. I’m thick-skinned, so don’t be afraid to hurt my feelings—I’m a soulless monster and have none. Ha. Haha. HAHAHAHAHA!

If you love it, you’re my new best friend. I’ll call you Besty McFriendster, because I’m mentally five years old. You’re always welcome to leave a comment, or even a mini-review, directly on the JukePop Serials site. This could be super valuable for when I develop things further.

In conclusion: Please join me on this wondrous journey as I stumble forward in a blind attempt to slap together a semblance of a novel. Read the first chapter here.