Storyworld Tagline The storyworld tagline, like the transmedia project tagline, is a single sentence that hooks potential users into the storyworld. The storyworld tagline should be closely related to the transmedia project tagline and, in the case of a project with a single storyworld, may be the same. Transmedia projectsContinue Reading
A variety of story structures are possible with this storyworld framework. For example, Freytag’s Triangle (with or without flashbacks) (see Figure 1) can be represented with this storyworld framework. Selecting existents, events, and settings from some point in the story time’s past makes it possible to create flashbacks and flashContinue Reading
A common technique in serial television narratives is the use of layered stories or plotlines. (Porter, Larson, Harthcock, & Nellis, 2002). This multi-layered story structure can be maintained using this framework (see Figure 1). Scenes or other elements of the main story can alternate with the sub-plots or sub-stories. TheContinue Reading
Ryan notes that events provide a temporal dimension by creating a history of the changes that occur in the time span framed by the universe (Ryan, 2011). This temporal dimension allows for the development of dynamic storyworlds rather than static text worlds. A disadvantage, however, is that if every sequenceContinue Reading
The second level of design tasks occurs at the storyworld level (see table below). At this level, the storyworld is created, level of user engagement and degree of user agency determined, and high level transmedia narrative’s interactions are documented. Design at the storyworld level is an iterative process in whichContinue Reading
One of the key aspects to understanding how to create transmedia narratives was developing an understanding of the many different elements that went into a transmedia narrative. Equally important was understanding the relationships between those elements. The result was an ontology.An ontology is a description of objects, entities, and conceptsContinue Reading
Deciding whether a transmedia narrative involves a single story told using multiple media (intracompositional) or multiple stories told using multiple media (intercompositional) will shape the structure and focus of the narrative. The Matrix is a frequently cited example of an intercompositional transmedia narrative. Three films, several video games, a seriesContinue Reading
Transmedia narratives provide users the opportunity to engage in more active roles (user agency) than traditional narrative forms. Some examples of user agency include spatial navigation, problem solving, incorporating game play within narratives, and traversing links in hypertext narrative. Computer and console games that incorporate elements of narrative have capturedContinue Reading
Knowing how your audience accesses content will also shape the structure of your transmedia narrative. The experience of watching an episode of your narrative on a big-screen television is very different from watching the same episode that has been downloaded to a smartphone. One of the most interesting new devicesContinue Reading
Knowing the audience demographics and psychographics is not enough when designing a transmedia project. You also need to understand how your audience “consumes” your transmedia narrative and what they want out of it (user gratifications) should be identified early in your project. Content Consumer Type The type of content consumerContinue Reading