Welcome, my name is Gregah and I think with the sudden influx of interactives it's time that someone writes a guide on how to do a good interactive. And in times when you think someone should do something, it's most of the time you who should do it.
So here it goes, with what you need at first to create a successful interactive ;
[b]Dedication.[/b]
Being dedicated is the biggest thing that differs a successful interactive from a failed interactive. It's dedication that decides whether an interactive finishes (this can differ a lot depending on the type of interactive, but most of the time finishing an interactive means reaching some sort of preset goal the creator of the interactive made in the OP) or if it fails and dies because the OP abandons the thread.
Doing an interactive thread is a long commitment that can take from a couple of weeks to years depending on the style of the interactive, how often the thread is updated and how far it takes to reach the goal set by the OP. The first thing you have to ask yourself before doing an interactive is...
[b]Is this something I can see myself doing in three months?[/b]
As I've mentioned before, an interactive takes a lot of your time and it will occupy your life for some time. Being able to know what your schedule might look like in the future can be hard at times (especially if you work or are looking for a job), although a couple of minutes every day can usually be spared. If you're at school it can be a lot easier to know how much time you might have at hand, and can plan accordingly.
When you get an idea for the interactive you should wait before you post it. Not only does this help you build up some material for your OP but it can also give you a good hint on how much you really like your idea. Wait a month before you post the interactive, draw up some story to help make it easier for you to track the progress. If you are just as eager to do that interactive after a month then you'll definiatly have the will to do an interactive.
[b]So you have this awesome idea and you've given it plenty of though and got all the necessary stuff to start this, what more could I possibly need?[/b]
A few things should be asked by this point. Them being ;
[i]x) Is this interactive in any way original, or interesting?[/i]
Being able to tell an interesting story is important to grab the attention of your audience. Having an original story to boot can also grab the attention. I'm going to repeat this a lot because it's important and that is an interactive takes a lot of time to work on and having a solid ground to build your story upon is extremely important. You're doing a story that the viewers can interact with (as hinted by the name, interactive) but this should not stop you from having some sort of backthought.
Most interactives fail on this point because every update is made at the spur of the moment, which makes the story predictable and in the end, boring. And even though it is in fact interactive it is still you who are the author, and you're making a story that is supposed to be interested. Having you decide the outcome at times makes it interesting and unpredictable, and that is the point of a story, is it not?
[i]x) Would I read or follow it if someone else had posted this?[/i]
Another question that is quite important. Would you personally follow the story you're doing? An interactive is doomed to fail if you, the author do not like it. The interactive (and yes, I am a broken record player, how could you tell?) is something you are going to spend a lot of time with and if you do not like it, then chances are noone is and it will only end as a failed interactive.
[i]x) Does it look at least decent or have any other redeeming factor that can negate the poor art/story?[/i]
A story is nothing without good pictures or text that describes what's going on. Not everyone is as talented as rembrandt or orwell and nobody expects you to be able to be as good as them. However, people will notice if you're not atleast trying your best. Extremely hilarious people can usually do even with shitty art if they are so hilarious they can make dead people laugh, but this is a really rare extempt. [b]TRY YOUR BEST[/b] at least, and spend time on what you do.
[i]x) Am I doing this interactive for my own pleasure, or am I doing it in an attempt to get internet fame?[/i]
In the end, you are doing it all for yourself. You do not create art to become famous, you create art because it tells a story closely connected with your feelings in some way and because it's fun, not because you want people to rub your e-peen or stroke your ego. If you're only doing it for the fame then you are definiatly heading for failure. You want to enjoy what you do, do you not?
[i]x) What am I hoping to achieve with this interactive?[/i]
This is closely connected with the previous question. The answer should hopefully be something in the style of you hoping to do something for fun and to tell a story and hopefully have other people enjoy it too. But in the end, it should all be about you, and for your enjoyment.
[b]Some other things you might want to think about.[/b]
There are obviously a lot of ways you can do an interactive. The most common one is you portraying a story with a character you've created in a world you've created, and having the audience decide what to do. Another way to do it is to do the above but narrow down every option into a few set of actions they can do. This type of interactive is called Choose your own adventure, or CYOA. This one requires more work because you've got a story already made but it still lets the audience take part of the decision-making.
The third type (I'm sure there are more) is when you have a story, but have others make their own character that they put in your world. This is a style of interactive that requires every participant to help out but can be extremely rewarding not only for you, but for others too. Each type of interactive have their own pros and cons obviously.
You also need to think about how much control you want the audience to have. You can't let the audience do everything because it makes it too predictable and people will lose interest, but not giving them enough can have the same effect.
[img]http://static.facepunch.com/fp/ratings/winner.png[/img]
[b]How to be a succesful contributor to an interactive.[/b]
An interactive feeds of its audience. A bad audience can bring down even the greatest of interactives and as requested, a guide on how to be a good poster in an interactive is now written :
[img]http://static.facepunch.com/fp/ratings/heart.png[/img]
[b]Be mature in your suggestions.[/b]
Having everyone propose that the character in the interactive is going to masturbate or have sex gets tiresome and is on no way as original, creative or funny as you might think it is. It can work if being done extremely rarely when a situation is perfectly set up for such an opportunity, but they are as mentioned rare and should not be the first thing that comes to mind.
Be mature, and propose rational or creative ways to solve the situation the character(s) are in, it's common human deceny and it shows that you actually care about the interactive, and the one holding the interactive will actually feel obliged to update.
[img]http://static.facepunch.com/fp/ratings/rainbow.png[/img]
[b]Don't feel disheartened if your suggestion isn't chosen for the update.[/b]
Sometimes your clever and witty ideas just aren't good enough, and is either ignored or disregarded because of a better option is available. Don't feel a grudge against the one leading the interactive and try to come up with a better idea next time instead.
[img]http://static.facepunch.com/fp/ratings/palette.png[/img]
[b]Try to keep your suggestions short and to the point.[/b]
I think this one is quite obvious, don't overdo the suggestions and try to keep it coherent so that the one doing the interactive knows what to do, and makes it easier for others to either agree or disagree with you.
[img]http://static.facepunch.com/fp/ratings/information.png[/img]
[b]Derailing can be a good thing.[/b]
This one is probably going to confuse a lot of people since derailing is a bannable punishment, so let me clarify what I mean with this.
An interactive with very few posts from the audience can disheartening for the author, and it also makes every page extremely picture heavy, which can make it a nuisance to scroll through, both for the audience itself and for the one who is making the interactive. Don't shy away from keeping the thread active, even if it means you start discussing something that is not completely on topic.
An active interactive is a healthy interactive, and you want the interactive to be healthy, don't you?
[img]http://static.facepunch.com/fp/ratings/wrench.png[/img]
[b]If you want to complain about something, then do it in a constructive way.[/b]
Another thing that should be common human decency is that if you want to complain about something, then do so in a way that tells what you think is wrong and how it can be improved. Just yelling at the person isn't going to help anyone and can be counter-productive. Point out what is wrong, and how it can be solved.
[b]Look over what you're about to post.[/b]
Is your post in any way contributing to the interactive, or extremely hilarious? If you can't answer that question then maybe it isn't such a good post, and either go back and redo the post or don't post at all.
Sticky it. make gregah a mod, done.
Incredibly useful, yet another amazing thread from Gregah.
[QUOTE=Crossu88;27314369]Sticky it. make gregah a mod, done.[/QUOTE]
Haha, thanks for the vote of confidence, I don't think they give away modship because of a simple guide though.
[QUOTE=WolfeClaw;27314500]Incredibly useful, yet another amazing thread from Gregah.[/QUOTE]
Aw, you're too kind :3:
This is lovely! Very nicely written. I've been doing a lot with MS Paint lately that I haven't been posting, and I've been using critiques meant for others to better my own work- your words included.
I think somebody should sit on his dick for this.
Gregah taking charge as always.
Time to pop out of obscurity for a moment.
Gregah, this is amazing. one thing you might want to add, is the MSPaintAdventures site, which basically does this all day.
It's chock full of good examples and bad examples for interactives.
[QUOTE=xxfalconxx;27317190]Time to pop out of obscurity for a moment.
Gregah, this is amazing. one thing you might want to add, is the MSPaintAdventures site, which basically does this all day.
It's chock full of good examples and bad examples for interactives.[/QUOTE]
Tell you what, why don't you stuff that fucking site where the sun don't shine. They ban over there for spamming so fuck them and their shitty site. We already locked the MSPA thread in this area because of the dumb, spam bumps to get their boards more traffic.
Theres an active thread in the GD and at least 2 other areas on these forums.
MSPA is a shit site, fuck them, fuck their shitty comics, armless characters and /rant
They actually overhauled it recently, now there's a time-removing infraction-based punishment system for things you really shouldn't do anyways, like spamming or being cruel to another member. It's really nice now. I don't know when you went there.
MSPA isn't even an interactive now. He removed the suggestion box so long ago.
The forums there still are.
Would you say my interactive lives up to the guidelines you have suggested Gregah?
Daijitsu, get this shit stickied
This is a good guide, it focuses more on motivation and planning than the actual plot, and doesn't tell people exactly how they should do it.
[QUOTE=ConvolutedLogic;27315688]This is lovely! Very nicely written. I've been doing a lot with MS Paint lately that I haven't been posting, and I've been using critiques meant for others to better my own work- your words included.[/QUOTE]
I'm glad that I can be of help with my critique, and that the critique I give others can still be helpful to others.
[QUOTE=xxfalconxx;27317190]Time to pop out of obscurity for a moment.
Gregah, this is amazing. one thing you might want to add, is the MSPaintAdventures site, which basically does this all day.
It's chock full of good examples and bad examples for interactives.[/QUOTE]
You're too kind xxfalconxx, MSPaintAdventures is a site I'm extremely divided on what I think about it but it's a good idea ; Having a few good interactives in the OP could be helpful to show how a succesful interactive can be made.
[QUOTE=DanRatherman;27318900]Would you say my interactive lives up to the guidelines you have suggested Gregah?[/QUOTE]
That's a question only you can answer. :)
[QUOTE=wewt!;27321810]This is a good guide, it focuses more on motivation and planning than the actual plot, and doesn't tell people exactly how they should do it.[/QUOTE]
Thanks, yes I first wrote the guide but it was too focused on how to do it so I rehauled it and focused more on the personal aspects (such as motivation and planning) and less on how to do it. There is no golden rulebook on interactives and anything goes storywise really, it's just a few aspects that needs some focus such as planning and knowing that it can(will) take a lot of your time.
Even I was like, what the hell man. I made an interactive when there were merely 1 or 2 others... Now look at this place :v:
Also, I agree on the matter of including the current, active interactives into this threads OP.
Can we have a guide for replying to interactives too?
[b]1. Stop asking for sex[/b]
[b]2. See 1[/b]
[b]3. Seriously very few people are likely to draw that and it won't be as funny as you think, and lack of useful suggestions bring the story grinding to a halt painfully fast and then you blame the author[/b]
[b]4. Don't repeat things that you suggested that weren't used because obviously the creator is not going to use them if he already rejected them[/b]
[b]5. That basically means stop asking for sex[/b]
[QUOTE=Metal Chao;27331795]Can we have a guide for replying to interactives too?
[b]1. Stop asking for sex[/b]
[b]2. See 1[/b]
[b]3. Seriously very few people are likely to draw that and it won't be as funny as you think, and lack of useful suggestions bring the story grinding to a halt painfully fast and then you blame the author[/b]
[b]4. Don't repeat things that you suggested that weren't used because obviously the creator is not going to use them if he already rejected them[/b]
[b]5. That basically means stop asking for sex[/b][/QUOTE]
I noticed this in the IPWs in the Pixel wars section, every other person says to masturbate.
It happens on every interactive anywhere.
I bet that before he removed the suggestion box and made it into a webcomic, Andrew Hussie was inundated with "Jade: Sex", "John: Sex", "Dave: Sex with Past Dave", "WV: Repopulate Planet/WV: Sex with Firefly" requests.
SUPRISINGLY none of them made it into the comic!!!
[QUOTE=Metal Chao;27331795]Can we have a guide for replying to interactives too?[/QUOTE]
I fucking broke my mouse when clicking agree so hard...
I swear to god, some followers just don't get it that if I skipped your decision, it's as good as gone.
Yeah, a replying to interactives guide is needed far more.
I think it says a lot about the demographics on facepunch when common courtesy has to be written down into a guide.
[editline]11th January 2011[/editline]
Adding the guide to being a good contributor to the OP.
[QUOTE=Metal Chao;27331795]Can we have a guide for replying to interactives too?
[B]1. Stop asking for sex[/B]
[B]2. See 1[/B]
[B]3. Seriously very few people are likely to draw that and it won't be as funny as you think, and lack of useful suggestions bring the story grinding to a halt painfully fast and then you blame the author[/B]
[B]4. Don't repeat things that you suggested that weren't used because obviously the creator is not going to use them if he already rejected them[/B]
[B]5. That basically means stop asking for sex[/B][/QUOTE]
I know that this drew Nyaa crazy, it's the reason why she stopped making her second interactive and decided to never make an MSPaint interactive again.
Bum bum... BUUUUUMP!
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