Kelly McErlean - Interactive Narratives and Transmedia Storytelling: Creating Immersive Stories Across New Media Platforms

The book is aimed at storytelling creatives who are looking to develop and deliver interactive narratives and transmedia titles using new technologies and distribution platforms. It is a synthesis of storytelling strategies and related theoretical concerns with regard to interactive content creation. It considers many of the current questions regarding interactive storytelling and is intended to guide and inform the readers knowledge and to promote ideas generation. A key concern of the text relates to story navigation: how will storytellers resolve the difficulties in creating interactive points within a plot to encourage a natural, rather than forced, story interaction? Who and where is the intended audience for interactive content and what issues are anticipated or currently experienced in targeting and then delivering to particular demographics? Does an interactive content audience need to have access to specific (perhaps the latest) technologies, do they need to have interactive story experience, a history of social media engagement, platform awareness or particular software application experience? What are the most appropriate skillsets and previous experience of an interactive story developer? Which elements of the traditional storytelling experience can be exploited within these new narrative paradigms? Sound design and music are considered within a broad storytelling context to look at their potential to fully realise narrative worlds and to promote audience immersion and engagement. The future of interactive storytelling is explored, and artistic and commercial projects, completed and in development, are considered. Throughout the book I have avoided taking a technocentric approach. The emphasis is on the creation of engaging stories which (through trial and error) take advantage of the most innovative yet appropriate modes of delivery to effectively communicate story ideas across multiple platforms. The book includes the most useful content that I have identified over many years teaching this subject in universities and colleges across Europe. You will note that there are many references to the works of traditional artists. I have made observations on their workflows when I considered them to be relevant to the development of interactive and transmedia stories. I have drawn on existing best practices from traditional media, to identify and give insight into creative works that are both experimental and engaging and to synthesise complex theories to make them accessible to a wide audience.