I’m revisiting this entry because I didn’t do a good job of explaining Penguin’s project. That’s because I couldn’t find a good explanation on the site. Here’s one I found by a blogger named “Melissa” at Central Region AA|RF Planners:
Penguin challenged 6 authors to create new forms of story telling for a digital platform. The marketer worked with alternate reality fame company “Six To Start” and had authors reinterpret classic stories. The first is Charles Cummings 21 Steps inspired by John Buchan’s The 39 Steps. Readers can click through the story onscreen while Google Maps traces the characters movements through the streets of London. Readers can follow the next story, Slice, through Twitter and the characters’ blogs. The last story will post April 22.
My original post:
Penguin UK launched its most ambitious digital writing project to date on March 18, We Tell Stories:
In collaboration with fêted alternate reality game designers Six to Start, Penguin has challenged some of its top authors to create new forms of story – designed specially for the internet.
Over six weeks writers including Booker-shortlisted Mohsin Hamid, popular teen fiction author Kevin Brooks, prize-winning Naomi Alderman and bestselling thriller authors Nicci French will be pushing the envelope and creating tales that take full advantage of the immediacy, connectivity and interactivity that is now possible. These stories could not have been written 200, 20 or even 2 years ago.
But somewhere on the internet is a secret seventh story, a mysterious tale involving a vaguely familiar girl who has a habit of getting herself lost. Readers who follow this story will discover clues that will shape her journey and help her on her way. These clues will appear online and in the real world and will direct readers to the other six stories. The secret seventh story will also offer the chance to win some wonderful prizes in addition to the prizes on offer on We Tell Stories, including The Penguin Complete Classics Library, over £13,000 worth of the greatest books ever written.