Do you remember the old Choose Your Own Adventure books from our youths? I remember loving them and reading them over and over again, making different selections each time to come up with a new outcome. Nostalgia may have to take a break for a moment, as the folks over at Underland Press have come up with the updated next generation version of the beloved books, and they call it a wovel.
What is a wovel? A wovel is a web novel, of course! Victoria Blake, formerly of Dark Horse Comics, has set up an innovative and interactive way to present fiction over the web. Installments of stories come out each Monday, and at the end of each installment there is an opportunity to vote for what will happen next. This is not only fun but is perfect for the folks out there who have ever read a book and asked themselves, “Why did the main character go there? I would have done this instead.”
With declining book sales and smaller publishing houses and book stores going out of business, it’s important for the book industry to update with the times. That is exactly what is happening over at Underland Press. For those of us who only get snatches of time in between work and hectic schedules, the few minutes it takes to read the stories is a fun break from daily monotony. Authors involved with this project include: Brian Evenson, Jeff VanderMeer, Will Elliott, Escober, Kealan Patrick Burke and Jemiah Jefferson.
This project is a new way of approaching the original periodical release of science fiction, with a taste of a childhood favorite. WIth more and more books becoming available in an electronic format and available on the web, this is clearly the natural progression of the publishing companies. While this interactive format may be a novelty now, it will be interesting to see what its future will be.
