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I remember a popular diversion from my high school days that could possibly light a fire in today's relationship scene. There was a series of books generically called “Write Your Own Adventure”, wherein the hero (you) would set out on a Dungeons & Dragons-style adventure at the beginning of the book. As you finished each page (“You find yourself at the bottom of a deep well. There is a door to the southwest, lit by a single torch”), you would be presented with perhaps three choices (“You climb up and out of the well and go home”; “You grab the torch and accidentally set yourself on fire”; “You go through the door and enter a large, crystal-lined cavern...”).
Depending upon which choice you made, you would then be directed to a specific page (“If you go through the door, turn to page 27”), where your adventure would continue until you either died or were victorious. Someone must have burned a lot of midnight oil to come up with these things, but they were amusing in their way.
But now, 30 years later, I'm thinking, “Hey, Self” ('cause I'm talking to myself), “why don't you come up with a “Write Your Own Relationship” book?” I played around with the idea a while, and this is a rough sketch of what I came up with...
Page 1. You are a man shopping in the local Winn-Dixie when you encounter a stunning red-haired woman. She smiles warmly at you for a long moment.
A) If you scream “Mommy!” and run away, turn to page 75.
B) If you smile back, then turn around and keep shopping, turn to page 47.
C) If you jump her bones while yelling “Clean up in Aisle 3!”, turn to page 5.
Page 27. You are a woman jogging in the park on a sunny Sunday afternoon. You see a handsome young man jogging toward you. He stops, bends over and ties his shoelaces.
A) If you ignore him and keep jogging, turn to page 72.
B) If you whistle and bat your lashes at him, turn to page 43.
C) If you smack his butt and yell “Beefsteak!”, turn to page 17.
Page 45. You are a man having a torrid affair with Barbara, your secretary. In the middle of a make-out session at the office, your wife walks in carrying a large ax.
A) If you say “Hi, hon - been chopping wood?”, turn to page 84.
B) If you say “Um...Barbara, we'll pick this up later”, turn to page 13.
C) If you jump up and run, yelling “You can't catch me, I'm the gingerbread man!”, turn to page 81.
I remember those books. I think you could make a fortune. I do this my head all the time. I think many people do. Its like a what if I would have .......instead of.....then play out the scenario using your imagination of course.
I remember a popular diversion from my high school days that could possibly light a fire in today's relationship scene. There was a series of books generically called “Write Your Own Adventure”, wherein the hero (you) would set out on a Dungeons & Dragons-style adventure at the beginning of the book. As you finished each page (“You find yourself at the bottom of a deep well. There is a door to the southwest, lit by a single torch”), you would be presented with perhaps three choices (“You climb up and out of the well and go home”; “You grab the torch and accidentally set yourself on fire”; “You go through the door and enter a large, crystal-lined cavern...”).
Depending upon which choice you made, you would then be directed to a specific page (“If you go through the door, turn to page 27”), where your adventure would continue until you either died or were victorious. Someone must have burned a lot of midnight oil to come up with these things, but they were amusing in their way.
But now, 30 years later, I'm thinking, “Hey, Self” ('cause I'm talking to myself), “why don't you come up with a “Write Your Own Relationship” book?” I played around with the idea a while, and this is a rough sketch of what I came up with...
Page 1. You are a man shopping in the local Winn-Dixie when you encounter a stunning red-haired woman. She smiles warmly at you for a long moment.
A) If you scream “Mommy!” and run away, turn to page 75.
B) If you smile back, then turn around and keep shopping, turn to page 47.
C) If you jump her bones while yelling “Clean up in Aisle 3!”, turn to page 5.
Page 27. You are a woman jogging in the park on a sunny Sunday afternoon. You see a handsome young man jogging toward you. He stops, bends over and ties his shoelaces.
A) If you ignore him and keep jogging, turn to page 72.
B) If you whistle and bat your lashes at him, turn to page 43.
C) If you smack his butt and yell “Beefsteak!”, turn to page 17.
Page 45. You are a man having a torrid affair with Barbara, your secretary. In the middle of a make-out session at the office, your wife walks in carrying a large ax.
A) If you say “Hi, hon - been chopping wood?”, turn to page 84.
B) If you say “Um...Barbara, we'll pick this up later”, turn to page 13.
C) If you jump up and run, yelling “You can't catch me, I'm the gingerbread man!”, turn to page 81.
LOL I remember those books - never the same adventure twice...when I was younger (before I could read) I thought it was a magical book that was being written as I made my choices I'd love to read the grown up version - get to writing
LOL I remember those books - never the same adventure twice...when I was younger (before I could read) I thought it was a magical book that was being written as I made my choices I'd love to read the grown up version - get to writing
Oh, that's right! I forgot about the "Never the same adventure twice" thing they used to advertise
Not a bad idea, but it's something that would take a hell of a lot of work.
Think about this, the average author spends a lot of time writing a book, and then four times as long just editing it. Imagine taking a "write your own adventure" book and editing it so that EVERY story in the book makes sense.
For example, and I'll change this to illustrate a simple mistake:
Quote:
Page 1. You are a man shopping in the local Winn-Dixie when you encounter a stunning red-haired woman. She smiles warmly at you for a long moment.
A) If you scream “Mommy!” and run away, turn to page 27.
Page 27. You are a woman jogging in the park on a sunny Sunday afternoon. You see a handsome young man jogging toward you. He stops, bends over and ties his shoelaces.
Quick sex change operation, anyone?
So, sure, you can handle the editing.. but what about characterization? Storyline? POV's? MRU's? Message? etc.. Even though it is a "write your own adventure" book, it still has to have all of those things done right.
Alright, so you can handle all that.. now to sell your idea. How? Most first time authors don't even get a chance to glimpse a shadow of daylight unless they have something truly astonishing.
If you're not looking to make money on this - or that much money, there's a lot of alternative ways to publish this. Ebooks, for one, are so popular now that many traditional authors have gone to writing nothing but ebooks. You can go through a self-publishing house - although, most of the time only your friends and family will end up with copies, while you'll be stuck with 1000 or more of them.
Ok, enough of all that.. just some reality - unfortunately.
I'll say this though - it's an excellent idea! And you're right, if something was done like that then I think it'd help a lot of people out.. You could also even throw in some advice at the end of the book(s) based on the route that the reader chose.
Not a bad idea, but it's something that would take a hell of a lot of work.
Think about this, the average author spends a lot of time writing a book, and then four times as long just editing it. Imagine taking a "write your own adventure" book and editing it so that EVERY story in the book makes sense.
For example, and I'll change this to illustrate a simple mistake:
Quick sex change operation, anyone?
So, sure, you can handle the editing.. but what about characterization? Storyline? POV's? MRU's? Message? etc.. Even though it is a "write your own adventure" book, it still has to have all of those things done right.
Alright, so you can handle all that.. now to sell your idea. How? Most first time authors don't even get a chance to glimpse a shadow of daylight unless they have something truly astonishing.
If you're not looking to make money on this - or that much money, there's a lot of alternative ways to publish this. Ebooks, for one, are so popular now that many traditional authors have gone to writing nothing but ebooks. You can go through a self-publishing house - although, most of the time only your friends and family will end up with copies, while you'll be stuck with 1000 or more of them.
Ok, enough of all that.. just some reality - unfortunately.
I'll say this though - it's an excellent idea! And you're right, if something was done like that then I think it'd help a lot of people out.. You could also even throw in some advice at the end of the book(s) based on the route that the reader chose.
Just a thought.. Good luck with it!
Hi Urban!
I agree with your view that it would be a lot of work - I'd like to research how the original authors did it. I have a sneaking suspicion that computers were involved somehow...
And while I do appreciate your pointers on publishing, I already have several books out (only one from a traditional publisher; the rest are self-published). Having seen my royalties trickle through for years now and having lost much of the control of my work, I don't think I'd ever go through a house again, unless I happened to write the next Harry Potter!
Actually I've used a company named LuLu (lulu.com), which is a POD or Print On Demand service. After initial set-up fees (which are quite reasonable), you pay on a per-book basis. That way, you know ahead of time what they'll cost, what your margin is, etc. Also I've done a couple of ebooks, but since I was off the Net for a year things came crashing down with that. Time to rebuild.
There are several PODS now, and they're becoming quite popular. They appeal to the "vanity press" market but without the high fees of regular self-publishing houses, which are basically fancy printers.
I have to thank you folks here - I started out just kidding around with this idea, but now it's starting to show some possibilities.
I agree with your view that it would be a lot of work - I'd like to research how the original authors did it. I have a sneaking suspicion that computers were involved somehow...
And while I do appreciate your pointers on publishing, I already have several books out (only one from a traditional publisher; the rest are self-published). Having seen my royalties trickle through for years now and having lost much of the control of my work, I don't think I'd ever go through a house again, unless I happened to write the next Harry Potter!
Actually I've used a company named LuLu (lulu.com), which is a POD or Print On Demand service. After initial set-up fees (which are quite reasonable), you pay on a per-book basis. That way, you know ahead of time what they'll cost, what your margin is, etc. Also I've done a couple of ebooks, but since I was off the Net for a year things came crashing down with that. Time to rebuild.
There are several PODS now, and they're becoming quite popular. They appeal to the "vanity press" market but without the high fees of regular self-publishing houses, which are basically fancy printers.
I have to thank you folks here - I started out just kidding around with this idea, but now it's starting to show some possibilities.
Now see, I didn't know that.. That's awesome that you've been published! That's something that very few writers can say, and more important, man, that's just something to be proud of.. Congrats on that!
I've known a few people that's used Lulu, but never tried it myself. I'm not big on self publishing, as I've heard so many horror stories about it.. Still, that seems to be one of the better companies out there. I have a good buddy of mine that uses it religiously and seems to do quite well. Maybe, one day, when I get the time, I'll give them a try myself. But yeah, it's a tough world..
I hope you get things rolling with the e-books again. You have an amazing voice when it comes to writing.
Back to your idea.. I remember reading something about that a long time ago. If I remember right, most were collaborative projects. I looked around, but I couldn't find that interview online. I always thought it was an intriguing idea myself, but never cared for the whole childrens genre.
A lot of excellent books started as silly ideas. By now, I think that most adults remember reading those books, and remember how much fun they were. Thing is, you could go so many different ways with the idea. My thought is that it could be a self-help series - like role-playing a real relationship. Everytime a bad choice is made and things end up in disaster, outline what went wrong and how that person can change things for the better. Give them an opportunity to see the outcome of different scenarios... could be done with relationships, dating, friendships, etc..
Man, I think that if you have the time, and are interested in it, ya should give it a try.. I mean, seriously, what could it hurt?
Now see, I didn't know that.. That's awesome that you've been published! That's something that very few writers can say, and more important, man, that's just something to be proud of.. Congrats on that!
Thank you!
I think I've also succumbed to the ego monster in all of us - after you shop an idea around for a while and collect enough rejection slips, you start to investigate other ways.
Quote:
I've known a few people that's used Lulu, but never tried it myself. I'm not big on self publishing, as I've heard so many horror stories about it.. Still, that seems to be one of the better companies out there. I have a good buddy of mine that uses it religiously and seems to do quite well. Maybe, one day, when I get the time, I'll give them a try myself. But yeah, it's a tough world..
That's funny - a good friend of mine just published 3 of her works through LuLu, and she was totally happy with the results.
The only thing I've ever found disconcerting is having to pay for the bloody ISBN; it's one of those "hidden expenses" that the traditional publisher always picks up for you. But I also understand that without it, the outlets won't give you the time of day, so I paid.
Quote:
I hope you get things rolling with the e-books again. You have an amazing voice when it comes to writing.
Gosh, that was the nicest compliment I've had in a long time - thank you.
Quote:
Back to your idea.. I remember reading something about that a long time ago. If I remember right, most were collaborative projects. I looked around, but I couldn't find that interview online. I always thought it was an intriguing idea myself, but never cared for the whole childrens genre.
A lot of excellent books started as silly ideas. By now, I think that most adults remember reading those books, and remember how much fun they were. Thing is, you could go so many different ways with the idea. My thought is that it could be a self-help series - like role-playing a real relationship. Everytime a bad choice is made and things end up in disaster, outline what went wrong and how that person can change things for the better. Give them an opportunity to see the outcome of different scenarios... could be done with relationships, dating, friendships, etc..
Man, I think that if you have the time, and are interested in it, ya should give it a try.. I mean, seriously, what could it hurt?
Right?
Wow, you're really getting me thinking about this now. Problem is, I just took on a position as general manager of a fitness center that's in dire need of total restructuring, so my focus the last month has been on that (and posting silly things here, of course ). But I'm sure I can find the time to at least do a "feasibility study" on it - thanks for the link.
With my usual luck, someone will be reading this thread, grab the idea and run 98 yards for a glorious touchdown.
Meh - such is life. I'll keep you guys informed, and of course you'll all get free copies!
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I'd love to read the grown up version - get to writing
