Is there interactive fiction out there?

February 15, 2011 12:39 PM

With the invention of eReaders and iPads I thought I would come across more fictional books online that are more interactive. The latest example of this that I read was Corey Doctorow's free PDF of Little Brother, which I loved becuase it hyperlinked to maps, destinations and really brought the neighborhoods and events to life. It also was great for reading at work, since I was viewing a PDF. I also saw this type of merging of fiction and references with our own Mefite Dobbs, who back in the day had a amazing email communication called Victory Shag, which were these weekly emails he would send that were about "his" fictional love life that often times had musical tracks and maps and neighborhood references embedded in the interactions. There must be more options out there. I don't own a eReader or an iPad, but just thought that that I would come across more talented writers that use more interactive oppurtunities. I might be out of the loop though, so suggestions would be much appreciated.
posted by brinkzilla to Writing & Language (5 answers total)

It might not be as interactive as you'd like, but several years ago (on the recommendation of fellow MeFite Jacquilynne) I got into The Daughters of Freya. It's basically just a series of e-mails that form the story, but I believe there are a few extras built in there, such as maps, etc. Still, it was pretty fun.

(I think the author tried doing another one, but it just didn't work as well for me.)
posted by Madamina at 12:45 PM on February 15, 2011 [1 favorite]

Take a look at the offerings from Eastgate Press, the venerable granddaddy of interactive fiction. I don't know the status of some of the titles (the two best ones, Patchwork Girl and Victory Garden were authored in Storyspace), but there may be pieces online.

If you extend fiction to poetry, the Electronic Literature Organization has just released ELC volume 2.

Odds and ends: The Company Therapist, CityThreads.

And you should absolutely be following Inanimate Alice, which is an immersive ongoing story that's very popular in multimedia classes right now.
posted by media_itoku at 4:22 PM on February 15, 2011

The Mongoliad may be of interest to you in terms of its form I am not following it because of the cultural politics but that's me

I hear good things about Robb Sherwin's work.
posted by Sidhedevil at 5:35 PM on February 15, 2011

I haven't read all of it yet, but J.R. Carpenter's CityFish is this kind of work - it includes linked maps and video, and the arrow signs bring up more related material embedded in the work.
posted by kyla at 10:13 PM on February 15, 2011

Best answer: The Yuletide archive which was linked on the blue this Christmas has a story called Read This One First which includes - amongst many other things - an alternative timeline concealed in the footnotes and an associated Gmail account to which readers are invited to log in.

It's fanfiction about the members of Monty Python, but if that doesn't put you off it's worth checking out. The author really finds some interesting way to incorporate the "bonus content".
posted by the latin mouse at 2:14 PM on February 16, 2011 [1 favorite]