We Tell Stories
Encyclopedia
We Tell Stories is an alternate reality game
launched in March 2008 by Six to Start in conjunction with Penguin
publishers. Six authors have contributed stories to the project, one each week, which are displayed on the site using interactive internet media. Penguin are offering a prize of 1300 books to readers who can answer a series of questions based on the stories.
The site received nearly 50,000 unique visitors in its first week. In March 2009, at the SXSW Web Awards, We Tell Stories won the Award in the experimentation category and the overall Best of Show Award.
Alternate reality game
An alternate reality game is an interactive narrative that uses the real world as a platform, often involving multiple media and game elements, to tell a story that may be affected by participants' ideas or actions....
launched in March 2008 by Six to Start in conjunction with Penguin
Penguin Books
Penguin Books is a publisher founded in 1935 by Sir Allen Lane and V.K. Krishna Menon. Penguin revolutionised publishing in the 1930s through its high quality, inexpensive paperbacks, sold through Woolworths and other high street stores for sixpence. Penguin's success demonstrated that large...
publishers. Six authors have contributed stories to the project, one each week, which are displayed on the site using interactive internet media. Penguin are offering a prize of 1300 books to readers who can answer a series of questions based on the stories.
The site received nearly 50,000 unique visitors in its first week. In March 2009, at the SXSW Web Awards, We Tell Stories won the Award in the experimentation category and the overall Best of Show Award.
The six stories
Each of the six stories is inspired by a Penguin classic novel.- Charles CummingCharles CummingCharles Cumming is a British writer of spy fiction. The son of Ian Cumming and Caroline Pilkington , he was educated at Ludgrove School , Eton College and the University of Edinburgh , where he graduated with 1st Class Honours in English Literature...
, The 21 Steps; based on The 39 StepsThe Thirty-nine StepsThe Thirty-Nine Steps is an adventure novel by the Scottish author John Buchan. It first appeared as a serial in Blackwood's Magazine in August and September 1915 before being published in book form in October that year by William Blackwood and Sons, Edinburgh...
by John Buchan- In this fast-paced thriller readers follow the protagonist, Rick, on his journeys by the medium of Google MapsGoogle MapsGoogle Maps is a web mapping service application and technology provided by Google, free , that powers many map-based services, including the Google Maps website, Google Ride Finder, Google Transit, and maps embedded on third-party websites via the Google Maps API...
.
- In this fast-paced thriller readers follow the protagonist, Rick, on his journeys by the medium of Google Maps
- Toby LittToby LittToby Litt is an English writer, born in Bedford in 1968. He studied at Bedford Modern School, read English at Worcester College, Oxford and studied Creative Writing at the University of East Anglia where he was taught by Malcolm Bradbury....
, Slice; based on The Haunted Dolls’ House by M R James- A troubled American girl is brought to London by her parents to make a fresh start. The story unfolds through LivejournalLiveJournalLiveJournal is a virtual community where Internet users can keep a blog, journal or diary. LiveJournal is also the name of the free and open source server software that was designed to run the LiveJournal virtual community....
, WordpressWordPressWordPress is a free and open source blogging tool and publishing platform powered by PHP and MySQL. It is often customized into a content management system . It has many features including a plug-in architecture and a template system. WordPress is used by over 14.7% of Alexa Internet's "top 1...
and TwitterTwitterTwitter is an online social networking and microblogging service that enables its users to send and read text-based posts of up to 140 characters, informally known as "tweets".Twitter was created in March 2006 by Jack Dorsey and launched that July...
accounts.
- A troubled American girl is brought to London by her parents to make a fresh start. The story unfolds through Livejournal
- Kevin BrooksKevin BrooksKevin Brooks may refer to:*Kevin Brooks , American basketball player*Kevin Brooks , former Dallas Cowboys football player*Kevin Brooks , writer of Candy*Kevin Brooks...
, Fairy Tales; based on Fairy Tales by Hans Christian AndersenHans Christian AndersenHans Christian Andersen was a Danish author, fairy tale writer, and poet noted for his children's stories. These include "The Steadfast Tin Soldier," "The Snow Queen," "The Little Mermaid," "Thumbelina," "The Little Match Girl," and "The Ugly Duckling."...
- This interactive story allows readers to input information and make "choose your own adventureChoose Your Own AdventureChoose Your Own Adventure is a series of children's gamebooks where each story is written from a second-person point of view, with the reader assuming the role of the protagonist and making choices that determine the main character's actions and the plot's outcome. The series was based on a...
" selections to create their own personalised fairy tale.
- This interactive story allows readers to input information and make "choose your own adventure
- Nicci FrenchNicci FrenchNicci French is the pseudonym of English husband-and-wife team Nicci Gerrard and Sean French, who write psychological thrillers together.-Personal life:...
, Your Place and Mine; based on Thérèse RaquinThérèse RaquinThérèse Raquin is the title of a novel and a play by the French writer Émile Zola. The novel was originally published in serial format in the journal L'Artiste and in book format in December of the same year.-Plot introduction:Thérèse Raquin tells the story of a young woman, unhappily married to...
by Emile ZolaÉmile ZolaÉmile François Zola was a French writer, the most important exemplar of the literary school of naturalism and an important contributor to the development of theatrical naturalism...
- A story about two people, Terry and Laurence, that was typed in real time, from 7 to 11 April 2008. During this time readers observed the trains of thought of the two as their relationship changed, and saw how their opinions of the situation differed. In the end Laurence ends the relationship, though both sides believe it to be for different reasons.
- A story by Matt MasonMatt MasonMatt Mason is a poet based in Omaha, Nebraska born in 1962. He has published eight chapbooks and one full-length work of poetry as well as two anthologies. Mason has written about relationships, religion and the Bible, and themes of Midwest and Great Plains life...
; based on Hard TimesHard TimesHard Times - For These Times is the tenth novel by Charles Dickens, first published in 1854. The book appraises English society and is aimed at highlighting the social and economic pressures of the times....
by Charles DickensCharles DickensCharles John Huffam Dickens was an English novelist, generally considered the greatest of the Victorian period. Dickens enjoyed a wider popularity and fame than had any previous author during his lifetime, and he remains popular, having been responsible for some of English literature's most iconic... - Mohsin HamidMohsin HamidMohsin Hamid is a Pakistani author best known for his novels Moth Smoke and The Reluctant Fundamentalist .- Biography :...
,The (Former) General in his Labyrinth; based on Tales from the Thousand and One Nights