Greetings fellow Turbo Monkeys,
It’s me Craig and I’m here to talk to you about Trans-media.
Another buzz word trending up? For most people that’s all it is, but for me it’s something I have been expecting for decades.
So is trans-media simply ebooks and video games? No.
Trans-media is the release of specific story elements across many outlets including books, movies, TV shows, games and webisodics. But it’s not the retelling of the same story. Each type of media offers it’s own contribution. The comics for character origins, games for action conflict, TV series for the main unfolding story arc. In essence, deep immersion into that world. Just like my project, The Goths. The Goths Trans-media project
Disney has been creating Trans-media for decades. The Lion King animated film spawned video games, picture books, a spin off TV series called Timon and Pumbaa and a hit Broadway musical.
The requirement of diverse and technically advanced outlets might lead you to think only large publishers or movie studios are able to produce trans-media. But I am here as proof that trans-media is not just for the Spielbergs, Disneys, Warner Brothers or Random Penguin Houses.
Now what does this mean for you writers? Build a world. Don’t just tell a thin line of story. All the history of your characters, their childhood dreams, their most traumatic experiences or their most influential friend will be required to produce the vast, lush, distinct yet connected stories necessary for trans-media productions.
Trans-media has been around for years. It’s just that now we know what it looks like and what to call it. Write prepared my friends.
