Greetings My Friends !
...Among many other things in his essays regarding Superman in mass literature, Eco analysis the phenomenon of the “periodical novel”, using the extraordinary example of Eugène Sue’s The Mysteries of Paris. [Umberto Eco - Il Superuomo di massa (1976)]
There has been lots of talk on the origins of the French novel of the 19th century: Stendhal, Balzac, Dumas, Gautier, Sand or Hugo. One often forgets Eugène Sue. Still, The Mysteries of Paris occupies a unique space in the birth of this literary genre: it entranced thousands of readers for more than a year (even illiterates who had episodes read to them) and was also a major work in the formation of a certain form of social consciousness. One often hears that the 1848 revolution was partly born in the pages of the Mysteries of Paris or, more appropriately, that the Mysteries of Paris helped create a climate which allowed the 1848 revolution to occur.
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However, it wasn’t just a work in the formation of a social consciousness. As Eco presents it, it was also a more or less conscious form of social, we’d say today - collaborative/collective, work. During years of writing his novel, Sue himself transformed from shallow bigot into the devoted socialist and working class hero. After the eye-opening accidental meeting with local worker, Sue left his house yelling “Je suis socialiste” and started to write this serial novel regarding the situation of the lowest class in Paris. He created an intriguing plot, colorful, morally confused personas (workers, prostitutes, priests, bourgeoisie etc.) and established an emotional roller coaster that any respecting itself soap opera wouldn’t be embarrassed of. It was only a matter of time before the novel started to live its own life, inspired by thousands of letters and suggestions from fascinated readers. Of course the main author remained the same, but weekly publishing form encouraged readers to start some initiatives, to share their insights and desires.
In his essay Eco partially explains how to build a plot that creates curiosity of a contemporary mass, but it’s not a time to focus on that.
Briefly speaking, using Sue’s story as an inspiration, I activated a creative thinking process and came up with an idea so original and fresh, as Dr. Ronald Chevalier an author of all ten harpies’ trilogies , would say: „that as though the atomic bomb has gone off in my brain.” [BTW - I highly recommend the movie „Gentlemen Broncos” to all of You who has a secret desire to become a geek]
…but now
...without further ado I’m a glad to present you an…
Interactive participatory novel (idea)
At first, I thought I discovered it myself, but come on! Let’s be realistic. As far as I remember I was inventing stuff which was already existing, so why it should be different now? And of course:
The interactive novel is a form of digital fiction. While authors of traditional paper-and-ink novels have sometimes tried to give readers the random directionality offered by true hypertexting, this approach was not completely feasible until the development of HTML.
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Thank You God for a gift of HTML.
However… HOWEVER ! It’s not only hypertext which seams innovative.
This fiction allows readers, who can also become writers, to explore the novel from a list of characters given at the site. The novel is intended to be read randomly, as the reader chooses to follow various directions.
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Alors ! What we have here it’s a classic reader-writer situation taken from the simple fan letters, forum discussions and transformed into the real possibility of collective creation. Maybe I didn’t invent the idea, but still why couldn’t I at least try to redefine it for my personal purposes. I guess, not thinking about it would be like saying “no you cannot write a book, because someone already did it”.
Why I want to take this road, you may ask. Especially, why I am so stuborn to pursuit my dreams using the tool which is sooo 90s?
Well, my dear readers, that's a completely different story saved for another occasion, but since we're all here maybe you can share with me your comments, questions, insigths?
Well, my dear readers, that's a completely different story saved for another occasion, but since we're all here maybe you can share with me your comments, questions, insigths?
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