I love the ways web writers can plug into communities and create interactive works. I've tried (with varying degrees of success) to use these new tools to tell stories...Still, two things made me think about webby storytelling in new ways this week. First, check out this Publish.com article about Wikipedia's response to Ken Lay's death.
It's fascinating to watch how Internet historians wrestle to tell stories about the Enron CEO's death. Sometimes, the web makes it harder to figure out what really happened:
"Wikipedia, an online encyclopedia that anyone can edit, added news of Lay's death to his online biography shortly after news outlets began reporting it at around 10 a.m. EDT (1400 GMT). At 10:06 a.m., Wikipedia's entry for Lay said he died 'of an apparent suicide.'"
Secondly, check out got a shot of inner fuel, Jecklin's new experiment in blogged fiction. He's using digital publishing, clipped blog style, and postmodern convention-shattering techniques to tell a suspenseful story.
I applaud his idea, and the project needs more feedback. It's beta-version storytelling, and users comments will help the story evolve...
"This is a serialized fiction blog maintained by Jecklin. It’s brand new, so everything is still up in the air. So far, I can tell you this much: I’m happily married with 3 too many cats. I await your words. If you have any suggestions, story ideas or critiques, please email me: gotashot (at) gmail (dot) com."
So now, I gotta ask you: Does the web make stories easier or harder to understand? How in the heck are we supposed to tell stories now?
Jason, thanks for the post. I'm asking myself those very same questions, and I'm very interested in hearing what other people think.
I've promised myself to see this thing through to the end, even if I turn into nothing more than a burned-out pulp fiction blogger.
Thanks again!
Posted by: Jecklin | July 11, 2006 7:03 AM | Permalink to Comment