Innovative Books: I am looking to compile a list of the most innovative uses of the book format. Books that break the mould in their layout and design, perhaps books that use online systems to extend their content value or push their form into new places. I am most interested in narrative and theory, but any book that is interesting (artist books etc.) would be really appreciated. [more inside]
posted by 0bvious on Nov 1, 2009 - 29 answers

Help me brainstorm! I need a story about a person who has an uninspiring job but does it in a way that makes a difference people's lives. [more inside]
posted by Pater Aletheias on Sep 16, 2009 - 28 answers

Looking for multi-threaded narratives in film and video games, such as Pulp Fiction or Go. [more inside]
posted by ga$money on Sep 11, 2009 - 51 answers

Please recommend some smart, nifty-looking, story-heavy Xbox360 games for an relatively artsy, overly cerebral, 30-something newbie. [more inside]
posted by palmcorder_yajna on May 8, 2009 - 22 answers

What is the name for the narrative technique whereby you start in media res in the middle of the story and then jump back to the beginning to tell the story in a nromal linear fashion? [more inside]
posted by ninebelow on May 8, 2009 - 17 answers

What is the first example, some of the earliest examples, or some of the best examples of the "Club Story" narrative cliche? [more inside]
posted by LucretiusJones on Apr 28, 2009 - 15 answers

Is it possible to write a story with no hint whatsoever of any other being but one? [more inside]
posted by dnial on Apr 23, 2009 - 22 answers

Please tell me of good novels you have read where the story all takes place in one day. [more inside]
posted by jammy on Mar 23, 2009 - 34 answers

How does your creativity work? [more inside]
posted by archagon on Feb 8, 2009 - 30 answers

I'm looking for narratives (books, movies, games) in which the protagonist is dead, dying or unconscious, and discovers they are not in the 'real' world at all, but Hell, heaven, purgatory, a coma, a nightmare, memory, or similar. Examples which contain spoilers below the fold. [more inside]
posted by unSane on Mar 28, 2008 - 63 answers

I'm looking for fictional intragenerational incest narratives -- books, film, television, etc. -- in which the relationship is presented as a tragic love, doomed to failure. I'm not interested in the probably more common (and more realistic) pure trauma narratives. The relationship need not necessarily be physically consummated. [more inside]
posted by nobody on Mar 25, 2008 - 49 answers

What books have you read that handle the mechanics of an expansive timeline well? [more inside]
posted by deCadmus on Feb 17, 2008 - 25 answers

I am interested in the mimetic and narrative capacities of artefacts, how cultural remnants transmit information through time and how meaning is translated once an artefact is re-appropriated or examined from a new perspective. I have several avenues of study at the moment (a list in extended explanation), but would like some more ideas. Areas of critical theory, linguistics, evolutionary psychology and poetics are all relevant. [more inside]
posted by 0bvious on Jan 27, 2008 - 12 answers

What are some famous stories that don't have a proper ending, like the series finale of the Sopranos? [more inside]
posted by lunchbox on Oct 23, 2007 - 62 answers

New York Creative Writing/Critical Theory PHD: I am currently undertaking an MA in Creative Writing and Critical Theory in London, and plan to go on to PHD after I finish. I would ideally like to go to an East coast USA/New York university to do this (for several reasons). I'd like some help with finding a good list of possible institutions... [more inside]
posted by 0bvious on Oct 16, 2007 - 26 answers

Help me remember this independent Canadian film! [more inside]
posted by SassHat on Sep 5, 2007 - 2 answers

What is the narrative represented in the most media? [more inside]
posted by underwater on Aug 10, 2007 - 21 answers

Looking for good books with alternating narration. [more inside]
posted by mustcatchmooseandsquirrel on Apr 25, 2007 - 43 answers

I'm looking for scholarly research and writing on the topic of experience mediated through recording devices, with an emphasis on cell-phone still/video cameras, point-and-shoots, etc -- casual, frequent media gathering activities performed by nonprofessionals in support of blogging and other personal storytelling. [more inside]
posted by Alterscape on Mar 26, 2007 - 4 answers

English majors? I'd like to read about how elements of narrative are categorized and labeled [more inside]
posted by nanojath on Dec 19, 2006 - 9 answers

Do you have any recommendations for solid creative non-fiction magazine columns or the like? [more inside]
posted by loiseau on Dec 5, 2006 - 4 answers

Can anyone point me in the direction of stories involving specific battles of Greenpeace, (and Greenpeace members?) I'm also interested in stories involving Greenpeace splinter groups. [more inside]
posted by np312 on Nov 6, 2006 - 2 answers

Examples of movies, books, where the narrator lies to the audience as they tell their story? [more inside]
posted by scallion on Sep 10, 2006 - 63 answers

Could someone please explain to me what narrative level 'The Great Gatsby' is in [more inside] [more inside]
posted by MoralAnimal on Apr 20, 2006 - 12 answers

Web Drama Filter: I liked Broken Saints. What else would I like? ( I'm not looking for web comics so much as long-form dramatic pieces, with sound, 2D and 3D animation and possibly video.) Is there anything else out there using the web as a platform for viewing and distribution?
posted by chocolatepeanutbuttercup on Jan 23, 2006 - 3 answers

Fiction usually comes in two flavours: 1st person narrative or 3rd person description. What short stories or novels have been written in 2nd person perspective (i.e. from the reader's viewpoint)? Also, are there any movies shot entirely from this angle?
posted by 0bvious on Jan 17, 2006 - 63 answers

Are there any approved U.S. patents in which the patent application is itself an instantiation of the patented invention? [more inside]
posted by nobody on Nov 4, 2005 - 1 answer

I really like novels written in a squirrely first person voice such as Vernon God Little, Jernigan, and even Poe's Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym. Any recommendations?
posted by xmutex on Oct 31, 2005 - 16 answers