[arg_discuss] White Paper: ARGs in Publishing

[Kim Plowright]

In the history section, you might also be interested in the London  
treasure hunt riots of 1904
http://www.planetslade.com/treasure-hunt-riots1.html

On 3 Aug 2010, at 13:35, David Varela wrote:


> Hi Michael,

>

> I'm sure they're too modest to jump in here themselves, but you should

> probably mention the work of Six to Start with Faber & Faber,  

> Penguin and

> Puffin Books.

>

> Specifically, you could talk about 'We Tell Stories' in the ARGs as

> Storytelling section - http://sixtostart.com/we-tell-stories/ - and  

> 'Young

> Bond: The Shadow War' in the ARGs as Promotions section -

> http://sixtostart.com/the-shadow-war/.

>

> Hope that helps,

>

> David

>

> www.davidvarela.com

>

>

> On Tue, Aug 3, 2010 at 1:11 PM, Michael Andersen  

> <mandersen at argn.com> wrote:

>

>> Hey all,

>>

>> A while back, Brooke mentioned it might be a good idea for people  

>> writing

>> sections of the upcoming white paper to post their ideas for  

>> feedback and

>> suggestions.  That seems like a fairly awesome idea to me, so below  

>> is a

>> rough sketch of what I intend to be discussing with the section on  

>> ARGs in

>> Publishing.  I figure we're more likely to provide thorough and  

>> (probably

>> even more importantly) concise coverage if we're not operating in  

>> silos

>> with

>> this.

>>

>> *An ARGish History:* this section will serve as a brief look back  

>> at a few

>> projects that embraced the ARG aesthetic prior to *Cathy's Book*,  

>> where the

>> ARG term started getting used for it. This isn't intended to be a

>> comprehensive history, but I'll refer to Dennis Wheatley's Murder  

>> Dossiers

>> from back in the '30s and armchair mysteries like Kit Williams'

>> *Masquerade* (which

>> I didn't read, but saw referenced in the NYTimes article on *We  

>> Lost Our

>> Gold*).

>> *

>> *

>> *ARGs as Storytelling: *this section will focus on the use of ARGs  

>> in the

>> publishing world as an integral part of the storytelling  

>> experience. I'll

>> be

>> looking at implementing ARGs in publishing through the use of  

>> evidence

>> packs

>> (as previously mentioned, this idea goes at least back to the Murder

>> Dossiers), along with the trend of utilizing paired media with a  

>> central

>> social platform (Level 26).

>>

>> I'll also be discussing how the current trend skews for this type of

>> storytelling working exceptionally well with children's  

>> literature / YA

>> materials and as a franchise builder since the audience is a bit  

>> more media

>> savvy and the transmedia elements help bridge the publication gap  

>> between

>> books.

>>

>> *ARGs as Promotion:* I'll also discuss how ARGs have been used as

>> promotions

>> for the book's release, looking at how ARGs can drive behavior,  

>> reward

>> existing fans, and introduce the story.

>>

>> *Concluding Thoughts on Ownership: *this section will briefly  

>> describe a

>> growing trend I've noticed (and analyzed in a bit more depth  

>> elsewhere)

>> towards corporate ownership of these ARG/transmedia book projects.

>>

>> Each section will be discussed in light of particular properties,  

>> and I

>> plan

>> on referencing *Cathy's Book*, *Personal Effects*, *Skeleton  

>> Creek*, *Level

>> 26*, *Clock Without a Face*, *39 Clues*, *First Among Sequels*,  

>> *Therapy*,

>> and *The Whisperers*. When possible and as space allows, I plan on

>> including

>> a brief description of media used and a short walkthrough of how  

>> readers

>> interact with the book ARG type projects, incorporating statements  

>> from the

>> people behind the projects (gleaned from past interviews, TED  

>> speeches, and

>> articles).

>>

>>

>> So...any thoughts? Concerns? Glaring omissions? Praise?  

>> Recriminations?

>>

>> -Michael

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>>

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