> Authoring Magical and Surrealistic Works of Interactive Fiction
> By J. D. Berry
> 
> "Magic is surreal almost by definition and surrealism is dangerous."
-- Graham
> Nelson, "The Craft of Adventure"
> 
> Magic and surrealism are common themes in interactive fiction. They
excite the
> imagination, transforming the everyday into endless possibilities.
However, as
> Mr. Nelson suggests, when you write such a work, you play with fire.
If you're
> not careful, you'll get burned.
> 
> Endless possibilities in these genres suggest there's no one right way
to go
> about writing such a work. This article isn't a how-to manual. This is
a
> discussion of the nature of these settings and the issues unique to
them.
> 
> 
> Why write such a work?
> 
> "I had been wanting to write a game with weird language for a long
time. Partly
> this is because I don't trust myself to write memorably enough in a 
> normal vein;
> writing in a strange style evades that issue entirely." -- Dan 
> Schmidt, referring
> to his IF work "For A Change" (1999) in a SPAG interview.
> 
> Schmidt's work is widely regarded as a classic of Interactive Fiction.
His
> humility aside, the man can write. One doesn't win the Xyzzy award for
"Best
> Writing" without knowing a little something about the craft. Words
convey an
> author's ideas, in any type of fiction. A surrealistic setting does
not excuse
> poor writing, and few things will alienate your audience faster than 
> ineffective
> prose.
<P>
Tone question here: how conversational did you want to be?  '...the man
can
write' is quite informal.  It would help if you maintained a constant
tone
throughout the piece.
<P>
> 
> But Schmidt introduces a valid strategy, one that applies to many
areas of
> life-play to your strengths. With a surreal or fantastic setting, the 
> interactive
> fiction medium is itself a strength. Using these genres, you can
leverage what
> seems to be a constraint and make it work for you.
> 
> "When the game is written competently and sufficiently debugged, this
trick
> [making the PC some kind of unusual or non-human creature] often 
> works remarkably
> well, even better than its static fiction equivalent might. Why is 
> that? I think
> it's because IF has an advantage over static fiction in the area of
character
> identification. When you're reading a book, you may read third-, 
> first-, or even
> second-person accounts of a particular entity's exploits, and with
sufficiently
> effective writing and characterization, you may even identify with
that entity
> quite strongly despite its non-human traits, but no matter what you
are still
> watching that entity from a distance. IF, however, literalizes the
process of
> identification one step further. Not only does the prose put you in
someone
> else's head, you actually have to guide the choices of that someone.
I'd submit
> that when a reader is compelled to guide a character's actions,
especially if
> there are puzzles involved, that reader will try to think like that
character
> would think. When this happens, the identification process has reached
a place
> where static fiction can rarely take it." -- Paul O'Brian, from his 
> "Verbose" Web
> Page, reviewing "The Djinni Chronicles" (2000)
<P>
Yipes.  That's a pretty long quote.  Can you edit/paraphrase?
<P>
> 
> 
> The best part of writing a work that has a bizarre setting is that
nobody can
> tell you "Things don't work that way." Well, they can tell you, but
they'd be
> wrong. That is, if your world is consistent.
<P>
Perhaps you should expand on this topic: why is consistency important?
<P>
> 
> 
> How Interactive Fiction (IF) is similar to Static Fiction (StF).
> 
> * An underlying set of laws and operating principles (rules) apply in 
> the work's
> universe.
> 
> The author establishes these laws separate from the body of work, or
story.
> 
> When the setting is the modern-day, real world, there's not much the 
> author needs
> to do. He's already familiar with how the world works, its causes and
effects,
> its meanings.
> 
> With a magical setting, the author faces the "lazy medieval"
temptation.
> 
> "The commonest 'mythology' is what might be called 'lazy medieval',
where
> anything prior to the invention of gunpowder goes, all at once,
everything from
> Greek gods to the longbow (a span of about two thousand years). In 
> fact, anything
> an average reader might think of as 'old world' will do, the Western
idea of
> antiquity being a huge collage." -- Graham Nelson, "The Craft of
Adventure"
> 
> The author may think he gets the best of both worlds using a lazy
medieval
> setting. A) He has the freedom to add to his work whatever seems nifty
or
> expedient. B) He assumes the player will be as familiar with this
setting as he
> is with the real world. Even if these assumptions are correct, A plus
B doesn't
> equal C-a captivating world.
<P>
There seems to be something missing here from this paragraph.  You state
that
A + B might not equal C, but does that really give us any more
information than
we had before?  Moreover, earlier you mentioned consistency, and now
you're
bringing up 'captivating'.  I'm not getting into the flow of this
article yet.
<P>
> 
> The player, upon his realization that he's in a lazy medieval setting,
will
> attribute laziness to the author. The player may feel that he won't
experience
> anything new, and that the author substituted convention for
imagination. Even
> good writing may not overcome these attributions.
<P>
As a counterpoint, I don't think that Graham Nelson meant lazy in terms
of
indolence but, rather, in terms of a not-very-rigorous interpretation of
the
setting.  Something like 'generic'.
<P>
But your point is still valid.
<P>
> 
> The author of a work with a surrealistic or unique magical setting has
much
> thinking to do. Beyond a basic level of accessibility-a person at 
> least remotely
> comprehending what is going on-the author can take nothing for 
> granted in regards
> to how things happen and why.
> 
> Consistency is key.
> 
> "The truth is that good fantasies carefully limit the magic that's
possible. In
> fact, the magic has to be defined, at least in the author's mind, as 
> a whole new
> set of natural laws that cannot be violated during the course of the 
> story. That
> is, if at the beginning of the story you have established that your 
> hero can make
> only three wishes, you better not have him come up with a fourth wish 
> to save his
> neck right at the end. That's cheating, and your reader will be quite 
> correct to
> throw your book across the room and carefully avoid anything you ever
write in
> the future" -- Orson Scott Card, from "How to Write Science Fiction 
> and Fantasy.
<P>
The "That is..." and all the stuff after it can be left out without
changing the point behind the quote.
<P>
> 
> But all of this effort is not without reward. The more detailed and
thought-out
<P>
"this effort" -- you haven't yet defined it.
<P>
> the world's rules, the more support the story will have. These rules
spark
> creative ideas and suggest logical plot threads. They impart a feeling
of
> authenticity, that the world the reader/player experiences is real.
> 
> A tree can be only as tall as its roots allow. The deeper you dig into
your
> world, the fuller your work will be.
<P>
Yes, but must you put it so tritely?
<P>
> 
> * Gradual revelation of these laws in the context of a story. The
reader/player
> is not expected to read a 50-page rulebook before beginning a story. 
> Part of the
> enjoyment for the participant (reader or player) is learning bits at a
time as
> the story unfolds. The following text illustrates this:
> 
> "For A Change" -- "Under the High Wall (on the resting)
> Sweetness fills the shade of the High Wall to your east. Under this
sweetness
> lies a small expanse of fod. A mobile releases mildly to the west;
..."
> 
> "The War of the Worlds" -- H. G. Wells.
> "No one would have believed in the last years of the nineteenth 
> century that this
> world was being watched keenly and closely by intelligences greater
than man's
> and yet as mortal as his own; that as men busied themselves about
their various
> concerns they were scrutinised and studied, perhaps almost as narrowly
as a man
> with a microscope might scrutinise the transient creatures that swarm
and
> multiply in a drop of water."
> 
> "The Djinni Chronicles" - [opening screen]
> "A wish diminished me. I fulfilled my summoner's desire expending
Purpose. I
> returned to my container before I was lost forever."
> 
> 
> The reader/player gains some basic information about the world that he
is
> entering. He has a guess at what role he might take and at what he
might expect
> from his surroundings. This introductory text was not just a lecture 
> on the first
> few rules from the list, however. A story is afoot.
> 
> The rules of the world never change, but the reader/player's
understanding of
> them certainly may. Each new event--in the broad sense--presents an
opportunity
> to add a new rule or two. It is also the place to clarify a difficult
rule or
<P>
add -> teach, maybe?
<P>
> obfuscate one the reader/player thinks he has down pat.
> 
> Observation: The sun rises, arcs across the sky, and sets behind the
horizon.
> Initial Conclusion: The sun revolves around the earth.
> Later Clarification: The earth revolves around the sun.
> 
> The rule never changed, only the reader's perspective.
> 
> 
> How Interactive Fiction differs from Static Fiction
<P>
But you haven't yet made the point as to how IF is the same as static
fiction.
<P>
> 
> Both IF and StF authors work from a set of "world rules." When the 
> StF author is
> ready to insert a story into his world, he writes. When the IF author
is ready,
> he writes and implements. Implementation is critical to consider
before diving
> too deep into a work.
> 
> This is not an article on coding techniques, design principles or
machine
> specifications. The implementation I'm talking about is "do-ability."
As a
> programmer, can you do (implement) the necessary code that enable a
player to
> experience your vision?
<P>
How about this instead:
<P>
 The added obstacle of implementation means that an IF author has to
 pre-plan *twice*.  Once for the story, and once for the ability to
 teach the computer how to tell that story.
> 
> 
> With an interactive environment, a player should be capable of many
different
> actions.
<P>
This sentence is probably unnecessary.
<P>
> 
> I'm sure most writers go through a compromise phase-that time of
planning when
<P>
Delete "I'm sure"
<P>
> you realize some things just won't work. In some cases, simple 
<P>
"most writers ... you" needs reworking
<P>
> deletion does the
> trick. But how to work around it when the story demands complex 
> elements? Fudge?
> Add? Rewrite? (I would like to tack on "writing" to Murphy's law on
sausage and
> legislation. If you like it, you should never watch it being made.)
> 
> With IF, there's not only the writing compromise phase, but there's
also an
> implementation compromise phase. One second after I conceived the 
> idea for TDC, I
> realized that there was no way I could implement the powerful djinni 
> we all know
> and love as a player character. Um, yeah... you can fly anywhere,
conjure
> anything, become anything, and wield the forces of nature with wanton
abandon.
> Oh, I'll be sure to provide a unique and intriguing story line for
each of the
> billion paths.
<P>
Unfortunately the ironic tone doesn't come through here all that well.
<P>
> 
> I liked the idea, though. So I got out my constraining net-yeah, the
black one
> with the cedar handles-and focused on how I could limit a djinni. Some
of these
> constraints were incorporated into the set of world rules. For 
> example, a djinni
> has only so much potential before it must return to its container. 
> But I handled
> other constraints in the writing. In the setting, you're in the middle
of
> nowhere. You'll run out of potential before you reach anything 
> noteworthy. In the
> plot, your goal encourages you to save your energies for only the 
> most important
> tasks. You certainly don't want to waste it turning into an elephant. 
> (And, OK, I
> certainly didn't want to implement that.)
> 
> Implementation compromise may blend with writing compromise. You can
reconcile
> implementation problems through your writing. It's a tool you can 
> use, and there
> are appropriate tools for every job. I have one rule thumb: if you 
> think it feels
> forced, your players will probably think so, too.
> 
> Don't shy away from implementing complex objects. Where would the
community be
> without some of the wonderful NPCs and gadgets we've encountered and 
> experienced
> in the last few years? Such creations can truly enhance a work of
interactive
> fiction.
> 
> Many articles within this IF Theory Book will tell you to practice
your craft.
> I'll mention here it, too. Experience gives you the knowledge of when
to
> implement and how to implement. It lets you know when and how to
integrate your
> writing with the implementation.
> 
> In StF, the author controls the story, the pace, and all of the
incidentals. He
> doesn't have to consider where or how the protagonist may deviate 
> from the plot.
> The author's responsibility to his reader ends at "be engaging at all
times."
> 
> In IF, the author and the player have a continuous, symbiotic
relationship. The
> author must consider where and how the protagonist may deviate from 
> the plot, and
> what effect that will have on the world.
> 
> In general, the player controls the pace actively, the author, subtly.
Subtlety
> is not of less importance. It is the river flowing gently in some 
> parts, rapidly
> in others. It forks and twists. It offers spectacular scenery. 
> Combining these to
> create an enjoyable experience is an art. But the player may get out 
> of the boat,
> take a wrong fork, or never figure out how to steer the canoe. So much
for the
> breathtaking waterfall located a few miles downstream.
> 
> This is especially important for a writer using a magical setting and
critical
> for a surrealistic one. A player may fumble around in a normal world,
let alone
> in one where his very frame of reference is askew.
> 
> "For descriptive language, where I couldn't be completely mysterious
because it
> would leave the player without a clue, I mostly tried to keep one step
of
> metaphorical distance from whatever I was describing. So if something 
> was rising,
> I'd instead say it was getting larger, or gaining, or something." 
> --Dan Schmidt,
> "For A Change"
> 
> 
> In general, the author controls the story actively, the player,
subtly. Nothing
> can happen in an interactive work that the author doesn't script. The 
> player may
> come up with an ingenious solution or a clever rejoinder, but it 
> won't matter if
> the author didn't anticipate it. However, each player will have his 
> own approach
> and his own thoughts as he plays. Each player will experience the work
> differently.
> 
> In a normal world setting, a player can usually fill in the blanks-the
places
> where the author did not anticipate. But a writer of a magical or
surrealistic
> work must take greater care. When an author fails to account for
something, a
> player in his world will do one of the following:
> 
> o He won't be able to fill in the blanks at all.
> o He will fill the blanks in from a normal world perspective.
> o He will attempt to piece things together based on his limited 
> knowledge of the
> world.
> 
> If you're creating a work of surrealism, one of the above may be just
the
> perspective you're looking for. But deliberate use of them demands 
> tight control.
> You have to be consciously aware of how you implement them and the
overall
> effects they will have on the player.
> 
> "I had to cut back on the weird language in some places. For example,
darkness
> was originally described without any reference to the lack of light;
it was
> described as the lack of thought, thought and light being somewhat 
> synonymous in
> the game's word. But that just confused the hell out of people, so I 
> had to take
> it out." -- Dan Schmidt
> 
> 
> I see each work of IF as its own unique pas de deux, an intricate
dance between
> the author and the player. The author is the ballroom dance
instructor. But the
> dance studio here adds challenges. The instructor can't dance directly
with the
> player, so she must lay out the footprints of the dance steps on the
floor. She
> can't maintain an active dialog with the player, so she must
anticipate his
> problems from start to finish, leaving a recording of her advice at
each step.
<P>
OK, but I think I lost the thread here.  How does this relate to magic
or
surrealism in a game?
<P>
> 
> The pupil learns as he dances, most likely making mistakes. But he 
> must feel the
> soul of the dance before he becomes discouraged.
> 
> Creating unique magical IF is a pas de deux with a deaf player. I
don't mean
> someone who is physically hearing impaired, but rather one who chooses
not to
> hear because he's heard it before. The pupil sees everything he needs 
> to do, but
> the instructor's commands are lost. The instructor must provide visual
clues
> beyond the numbered footprints, at least at first.
<P>
Ah, OK.  Maybe you can set this up differently above so I understand
what you're
trying to do without getting 'lost' in the meantime.
<P>
> 
> Creating surrealistic IF is a pas de deux with a blind player. The
pupil learns
> nothing from the numbered footprints on the floor. Because the 
> instructor cannot
> directly communicate in IF, she must impart the feel of the dance
exclusively
> through her descriptions.
> 
> IF authors have beta testing at their disposal. Through this, you will
discover
> how well your dance instructions encourage, clarify and entertain.
> 
> 
> Conclusion
> 
> If form truly is liberating, what more could you ask from the IF magic
and
> surrealism genres? You get a form within a form within a form. Have 
> you ever felt
> so liberated?
> 
> Seriously, though, the magic/surreal form allows you to focus your
raw, unique,
> wildly creative ideas into a medium that may be a perfect fit.
Interactive
> fiction is a relatively young field, and many possibilities are 
> unexplored. There
> certainly will be a considerable amount of work involved in
implementing your
> ideas. But what masterpiece demanded anything less?
> 
> 
> 
> --
> Bibliography
> 
> "For A Change", (c)1999, a work of Interactive Fiction by Dan Schmidt
> 
> The Society for the Promotion of Adventure Games (SPAG), (c)2000,
Issue # 19,
> Paul O'Brian, editor
> 
> "War of the Worlds", first published in 1898, by H. G. Wells
> 
> "How to Write Science Fiction and Fantasy", (c)1990, Orson Scott Card,
ISBN
> 0-89879-416-1
> 
> "The Djinni Chronicles", (c)2000, a work of Interactive Fiction by J.
D. Berry
> 
> 
>