I Write Stories (and Codes)

I write stories. I write PHP, HTML, CSS, and JQuery codes, too. These are my assignments for Iversity's "The Future of Storytelling" online course. You can join the MOOC movement, too! Visit this link here, yo! https://iversity.org/my/courses/the-future-of-storytelling

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Yey! Thus ends the course. I'll take all the lessons learned to heart. Here's to more storytelling!

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Output: The Future of Storytelling - Chapter 7

YOUR TASK IN GENERAL

Go transmedia! Go wild! We are a huge community, so let’s make use of that and do some collaborative storytelling. Let’s create a transmedia project together.

HOW? Meet Aunt Renie.

Renie is a little, elderly lady, who’s always enjoyed lots of company. When her best friend dies, she decides to not be sad but instead use the time left to travel the world and explore as many new countries and cultures as she can.

YOUR TASK IN DETAIL

Help Renie travel the world:

Write, draw, compose, film, design Aunt Renie little adventure in your neighbourhood. Tell a day in her life in your hometown, write down a recipe she has collected, or paint the contents of her suitcase.

You are absolutely free in regard to what medium or format you use to tell your story. Just make it about Aunt Renie and her adventures.

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Her name was Aunt Renie. She was soaked with rainwater when I met her at my apartment's guardhouse last weekend. 

"I'm sorry I couldn't pick you up. I had to do a million things at work since, you know, I'm going on leave this coming week."

Her smile was as warm as ever. "It's alright, my darling. Thank you for having me here. We shall have lots of fun these next few days."

I held my bright red umbrella over her head, tapped my access card to open the steel gates, grabbed hold of her well-worn luggage, and led her in.

It was Mangangarap who told me that I should invite Aunt Renie over. Mangangarap said the elderly lady was a globe-trotter. Her best friend died recently, but she decided to live each of her remaining days on earth to the full, instead of living inside a bubble of melancholy.

"Oh you will not believe what a grand time I had in Cambodia. And Thailand. Their temples are amazing! Everything was so... pointy."

I chuckled. "Well, Aunt Renie, everything here in Malaysia's going to be so... curvy," I said, thinking of all the bridges and mosques.

"How darling!"

"You better get some rest, Auntie. Tomorrow's going to be a big day. We're going to see the Twin Towers first."

And so we spent the next five days touring. 

In Kuala Lumpur.

At Bukit Tinggi, a French Village near the capital.

In Melaka, two hours south of the city.

In Penang, five hours north. (We spent two days there).

We had great fun, though the driving tired me out a bit. And we took lots of pictures. I took lots of pictures of her, rather.

"Darling, we don't have a single photo together!"

"We don't? We should have one, then, before you go."

And so a friend of mine took this shot, outside a coffee shop where we spent time before I sent Aunt Renie off to her next destination.

See you around, Aunt Renie! Jumpa Lagi!

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Output: The Future of Storytelling - Chapter 6

YOUR TASK IN DETAIL

The Basics: 1. Pick 3-5 locations in a two mile radius that you know very well. (e.g. a tree, a building, a church tower, …, whatever you like) 2. Take the character you created in Chapter #3 (or create a new one if you prefer). 3. Use both, the locations and characters to tell a little site-specific, location-based story. (One example is shown below.)

The Complete Package: 4. Go out and lay out the traces at your chosen locations. 5. Just post a logline (a summary of your game in just 1 line/sentence) here/on the web together with a description of your starting point, so others can actually find and play/follow your location-based story/game. 6. Play & experience! : )

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I've been dreaming of eagles again. But then again, what's new? When I woke up this morning though, I thought one of them got out of my dreams, paying me a visit in real life. But then I realized it was only a picture book a friend of mine, Alice, lent me from her library. 

Alice, this is it. This is the moment you’ve been waiting for. She swept her hands along the top of the chestnut table. It was bare, so she laid a few items on top to give it life and color — a vase overflowing with cheerful daisies, a book on bats, another on eagles, her pink record book, and a homemade pencil holder filled with blue, red, green, purple and orange markers. Her heart swelled with anticipation. Stars twinkled through her large blue eyes and a pretty blush spread across her freckled cheeks.

For as long as she could remember, Alice McDonald had dreamed of becoming a primary school teacher. When her year two teacher asked her class what they wanted to be when they grew up, the little redheaded girl’s hand had shot straight up into the air. “I want to become just like you, Mrs. Knuckey,” she had said very proudly. For indeed, the little girl saw how stirring all her teachers were — they pushed Alice to be all the best that she could be and they made her happy inside the classroom walls. She too wanted to inspire children the way those very people inspired her.

Hmmm. I wonder how she is now? Perhaps the book held a clue.

Open the book.

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Output: The Future of Storytelling - Chapter 5

Please think about which digital game fascinated or impressed you most up to now and tell us why!

No matter whether it’s the story, the interface, the design, the game mechanics, or else ... tell us.  And keep in mind: you’re not restricted to text as an answering medium. Either use whatever you feel most comfortable in. Or: use the exact opposite, try some new media form if you like.

_____

I was a Final Fantasy fan girl. I spent much of my high school years swooning over Cloud Strife, Squall Leonhart, Zidane Tribal, and Tidus Besaid. I squealed over each giddy moment with their love interests - Aeris and Tifa, Rinoa, Princess Garnet, and Yuna. Well, okay, not really. But it's true that I did play a lot of Final Fantasy.

I have a younger brother and our bonding moments (during my teenage years) consisted of fighting over the Sony PlayStation (and later, PS2) control. We had games like Spyro, Tekken, NASCAR, etc. but my favorites were RPGs (Role Playing Games) like Kingdom Hearts, Chrono Cross, and - of course - Final Fantasy.

What lured me into the Final Fantasy series were the graphics, gameplay, and the underlying story line. My brother and I started off with FFVIII. Then FFIX. Then FFVII and when we finally got a PS2, FFX. I remember loving the CG cut scenes in FFVIII. Irvine Kinneas was so, so handsome!

With each Final Fantasy, the graphics kept improving. By the time FFX came along, it was already hard to differentiate CG cut scenes from non-CG cut scenes. 

Gameplay was awesome, too. There was the main story and then there were side quests that kept us occupied for hours when we felt like putting off the final battle(s) with the big boss(es). 

Not only that, FF had compelling stories, too. The PS games spanned four discs - yes, it took four discs to let the whole story unfold. I think FFIX had the best story line. I liked the futuristic medieval setting, the intriguing characters (gah, Princess Garnet's mother was so... ugh), and the fan-girl-squeal-inducing ending. I think kept a special slot in the memory card which took off at the save point just before the big boss fight just so that I could watch the ending over and over again (after defeating the boss over and over again, yes).

It would be nice to play a Final Fantasy game again. I don't really have to time to do any sort of gaming these days. But if there's an App for the iPad... Hmmmm. Recommendations, anyone?

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Output: The Future of Storytelling - Chapter 3

Last week we have dealt with character profiles for characters that already exist. This week we build on exactly this task by using your knowledge about how to create fictional characters to create a new fictional one. This character can be entirely your own creation, for example created for a story you’ve already written or a character that you’re just inventing – or – if that’s too difficult – you can vaguely base it on a classic fictional character from Lady Macbeth to Sherlock Holmes – … it doesn’t matter as long as the character is unique and yours, with it’s own original name.

_____

My Darling,

I met a young dreamer today. She didn’t give me her name, so I shall just call her “The Little Dreamer.” I think that name suits her. She’s such an interesting character. She dreams of eagles. Mountains, too. She said she’s on a journey up the one with the walls made of words and glistening color.

I think you’ll like her. She has an inquisitive soul. I can see that she’s persistent. I can see that she’s quite stubborn, too. I know she’ll get far.

Perhaps you’d like to know what she looks like. She’s pretty. Like a doll. Dark brown hair bobbed up to her cheeks. Large, black, expressive eyes framed with the longest lashes you’ve ever seen. Petite. She looks like she’s a headstrong person who is an introvert at heart.

I can’t really tell what country she comes from. She seems to be a world traveler like me. From what I know, she is now up and about. She did give me her twitter account. @mangangarap. Let’s follow her as she continues her journey, shall we?

I’ll see you soon, my darling.

Much love,

Aunt Renie

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Output: The Future of Storytelling - Chapter 2

Please pick any existing serial protagonist that you know very well, and use the attached PDF/the form below to create a character profile. This profile should include his or her most important traits…

This is helpful because… a) …you can compare this profile to that of other protagonists. b) …you can learn how serial characters are built and why some characters work better than others.

_____

Gender: Male. Previously thought to be asexual. Age: Thirties Physical Description: Wrangly. Or is it gangly? Tall with brown hair on top of an egg-like head. Personality/Nature: Obsessive compulsive. Germophode. He isn’t crazy though. His mother had him tested. Ambitions/Desires: He already has it all. To win the Nobel Prize in Physics, maybe? Is mostly seen as: An antagonist. Sees himself as: Smarter than anyone else in the room. Loves: Trains. Believes in: String Theory. Trusts: No one. Fears most: That bird. Fights for: Himself. Hates: Anybody sitting in his spot. Most important event in life up to date: His birth. Most influenced by: Spock. Best friends: His roommate. Worst Enemies: Wil Wheaton. Relationship/Family Status: In a boy-girl relationship. Social/Ethnic Background: Southern. Occupation: Scientist. Education: PhD. He took up his doctorate when he was 14. Hobbies: Comic books, gaming, driving people insane. Special Skills/Talents: Sings “Soft Kitty” really well. Flaws: He has flaws??? Disabilities: Can’t drive a car. Special Behaviorism(s), quirks: Bazinga! Style: Geeky. Wears colorful long sleeves underneath his tee-shirts

Name: Sheldon Cooper Nickname: Shelly TV Series the Character is in: The Big Bang Theory

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Output: The Future of Storytelling - Chapter 1

Please think about which story you have read, seen, listened to, played or experienced has impressed you most in your life. … Which story can you still very well remember? Write down both, the summary of this story (what you remember of the story, not what Wikipedia says.. :) and – on the other hand: – what made it so special to you that you can still remember it.

___

Darkness

An uncreated Being all alone.

Light Oceans, mountains, rivers, animals and finally a being created – One of His own.

A serpent.

A tree.

Spiritual death to all humanity.

A mission to get His children back.

A chosen people Men and women falling Yet Rising Up Again.

Finally. A Messiah, A Savior to all.

New life to those who believe Abundant grace Fullness Victory over sin and The grave.

A second coming A new world An era where tears are but a distant memory Pain and suffering are but fragments Of a strange dream.

A new world One reigned by an uncreated Being And children He calls His own.

Originally posted in: http://mariscribbles.com/2013/04/26/post-a-week-the-story-never-grows-old/

This was one of my attempts to summarize what is said to be the central theme of The Bible, my favorite book - or rather book of books. I originally wrote it as part of a writing prompt challenge but I thought it would be nice if I also used it here.

I have always loved Bible stories. I grew up hearing and reading about David and Goliath, Jonah and the Big Fish, Samson and Delilah, Adam and Eve. Every Christmas, we would be reminded of the Nativity; every Easter we would be told about the story of the Cross and the Resurrection. I had always treated those tales as completely separate entities but later I learned that a common thread wove through them all.

The separate stories in themselves are remarkable but knowing that they speak of an even greater story made them all the more memorable to me.

——

From Iversity: 

This CREATIVE TASK is meant to make you think about what you remember most about stories. What is is that creates an emotional impact? Only if we look at/read/watch/listen to/… stories that we really like, we will be able to know what it takes to create our own great stories. Learn from the masters, so to speak. ; ) Have fun and please share!