UK Amazon Kindle Forum discussion
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Interactive Book Project
Do you mean a book like the ones where it gives you a choice of the next step to take? I used to love those!
Sounds interesting...but how does it work exactly?
I remember those when I was a kid. The eBook format is absolutely perfect for them.
Presumably in an ebook you could link to the correct page to stop you having to flick back and forth?
Simon, I considered using that site when I was writing my novella, The Heist as I was considering making the story interactive, but decided to just make the end puzzle lead to a text based online adventure instead.
I have fond memories of these as a kid. Count me in.
Simon carefully opens the old oak door just a crack. He hears noises the other side, draws his sword and considers what he should do next...a. Crashes the door open and kill everything...(view spoiler)
b. Quietly opens the door...(view spoiler)
c. Skulks away...(view spoiler)
I've done them for a magazine as a promo insert to give away, this was some years ago.It had 40 'events' you might pass through.
From experience I think you want your rough outline first. At this point you'll probably have to tot up what genres you want as well
Then you want someone to plot it out as a document, and actually write a one line summary of the events.
Then you can turn it over to the writers who each get a number of events (which might in no way be connected. ) They have the one line summary which tells them what happens, so they fit properly into the whole.
When it's done, then each bit has to be edited, proof read, etc.
Final stage would be to have someone then put it in the proper electronic format, do links, that sort of thing.
I happily volunteer to be a proof reader!
I don't mind helping with something :)
Yeah, if anything comes of it, I'd like to be involved if possible.
I'd be delighted to write a couple of scenes, if anyone wanted me to. Keep me posted.Cheers
MTM
Without the use of Active Content we couldn't have any random or memory-held events, so it would all have be done through unchanging links. I don't think people will want to be getting out a notepad, pencil and a pair of dice...So not a game, but a story with branches. A connected "anthology" to provide alternate storylines to display different genres and authors.
As I mentioned on the other thread - magic, time travel or space travel would need to be the mechanism.
Perhaps we could, to jump on the bandwagon, look to some of these recent TV dramas set over multiple time periods.
Working out how to keep it simple workable and yet, ultimately, interesting (and re-readable) will be the trick...
Ok, so who's volunteering to put the masterplan together?
Well, certainly not me, but I wouldn't mind having a go at a bit of the writing, whatever the masterful all-overseeing organizers would give me to do...I am happy to be a cog in the great edifice about to be constructed...
First, before some poor sap goes away and does the master plan, we need a rough outline of a story, what is going to happen?(In the very sketchiest terms)
Could it be done with simple hypertext links at the bottom of each section? Obviously when the new format comes out it would look a bit old school but might work for practice.I have no idea in practice how we are going to build this collaboratively....
Better get a beer and think about it....
I can probably do a chapter and some reading through of other chapters but I am not sure I can commit to more.
Alexandra wrote: "I can probably do a chapter and some reading through of other chapters but I am not sure I can commit to more."I don't think that we're really thinking of 'chapters' as much as 'episodes' of roughly similar length
I used to love the fighting books as well when I was a youth, but one of the main problems was cheating. If you made a wrong choice, you could always flick back and choose the other option. If there was a feature that locked your choice in place and stopped your cheating ways, that would a great thing IMO. I may be interested in contributing.
R.M.F wrote: "I used to love the fighting books as well when I was a youth, but one of the main problems was cheating. If you made a wrong choice, you could always flick back and choose the other option. If ther..."I suspect there isn't really, html links might help but you can still press the 'back' button on the browser
Brilliant idea! I remember these from when I was little, and I have been looking for new versions for my 12 year old with little success.
I would be willing to be the organiser as well as a contributer, although we need a volunteer for the mastermind of the basic structure.
Maybe we should pin some more things down before anyone volunteers to do anything.I would suggest, for starters, that the book be aimed at the 12+ market.
Did anyone see Labyrinth (or read the book (by Kate Mosse))? It may hold some ideas as to what could be done...
I still think it should be called Dino-Riders of Avalon and include a picture of Saturn on the cover, whatever it's actually about.
So fantasy with space and dinosaurs? sounds awesome;)
No. It needs a squid on the cover.
Isn't KF8 available in the UK? I'm sure I have some KF8 comic books (with the pop-out panels...)
Patti (It's a grape life) wrote: "Is lovecraft like porn?"It could be, but although even I have a line that should not be crossed.
I'm not sure KF8 is relevant for the mechanics. It's just HTML, no? Active Content is required for the mechanics, and that's not in the UK (it's why you can't buy the Fighting Fantasy Kindle game books in the UK).We'd have to do it with links only...
Yeah, I wanted to try one of those - they look really neat.
I started one of these a while back as an experiment. I managed to tie myself up in knots before Lorelei Nutcruncher had even got to the end of the High Road (the Low Road taking longer). The options just screwed with my head. I loved writing the spoofy pages, but the mechanics were mental. I am happy to participate on a pisstake writing level.
Seems to me (as someone who doesn't know what they're talking about really) that this looks like it might most resemble a computer game in set up...
Now this is interesting. Looks like Inkle (thanks for the link!) is not only free, but they offer a Kindle conversion service for £5...http://www.inklestudios.com/inklewrit...
I've done them before. Therefore, if no one else fancies the job, I don't mind doing the basic outline.But first what's the story and what's the genres to be included?
Someone needs to stick their neck out to do that.C'mon, don't be shy.
Well, that depends upon the device and authors ;)I used to write a lot of text adventures on my old Spectrum 48K, with lots of branches ;)
I'm having a go with Inkle. Looks like it might be wise to use it, as it will be easier to structure. It has some other features, though I'm not sure how they'd export those over into a Kindle file...
It'd also need to be written in second-person, so contributing authors would need to bear that in mind.
Although time-travel might work, I think the device should be limited - i.e. not a machine you can control, otherwise the story will lose sense inasmuch as the reader will be wondering why he's going to be limited in the use thereof. Something paranormal, or enchanted, might work better.
Probably best to keep it focused on a single character.
One character and the characters choices take them through the different genres. The clever bit will be to make sense of the move from one genre back to another :-)
D.M. Andrews (GoodReads Author) wrote: "Maybe we should pin some more things down before anyone volunteers to do anything.I would suggest, for starters, that the book be aimed at the 12+ market.
Did anyone see Labyrinth (or read the b..."
Thought you were talking about the David Bowie version of Labyrinth. :)
I've tried my hand at writing these books before - it's not easy. Plan plan and plan more is my advice.
I think a dream, or maybe playing through different memories of the main characters life. There would be different endings depending on what choices were made.
Agree (with both of you (RMF and Jim)!)I quite like this Inkle. I'm going to do my own book regardless, but it'd be fun to do a collaboration. I need to understand what this software can do first...
If we're aiming for children/YA then maybe something like the idea of the 'Booksurfer's' series would work - they get transported into a book and have to do something the bad guys want them to - but with genres and not necessarily the bad guys forcing them! Think that makes sense......
Maybe whatever they use to transport them is broken giving them limited control - just the choice of two or how ever many options?
Are we aiming at children/YA?I wasn't advocating 'erotic content' but I assumed adult
Doesn't need to be children's, but we might be cutting out too many potential readers if we make it for adults only, especially as younger people would probably enjoy (and seek out?) this sort of book...
I have found this site : http://www.inklestudios.com/inklewriter
which seems to allow the building of such books.
The whole thing was started in the 80's by Steve Jackson and The Warlock of Firetop Mountain....
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Warlock-Firet...
I'm not sure whether the format has any legs in 2013. Perhaps online gaming is too readily available and this format will look a bit dated....
Anyway what do you all think?