John S.
Interactive fiction writer
John S. writes branching stories and plans every one as a map of boxes and arrows before a single scene is drafted.
His guides here cover structure, choices that carry weight and the scenes every path has to pass through.
Articles by John
How to write a choose your own adventure, from napkin map to first playable branch
How to write a choose your own adventure story: find a premise with a fork in it, map nodes and endings, then write one playable branch and test it.
7 min read
Branching story structure: the five shapes behind most interactive stories
Branching story structure explained: the time cave, gauntlet, branch and bottleneck, open map and state tracking, with a worked example and a use for each.
6 min read
Interactive CYOA: what the term means and where the good ones live
Interactive CYOA explained: how digital choose your own adventure stories work, and where to find good ones, from Choice of Games to IFDB and IFComp.
6 min read
Choices that matter: writing consequences a reader can feel
How to write choices that matter in interactive fiction: delayed consequences, state, callbacks, failing forward and signalling weight without spoilers.
6 min read
CYOA books for adults: nine branching titles worth a shelf
CYOA books for adults, each title checked: interactive romance, comedy, memoir and thrillers, plus two classic gamebook series that still hold up for grown-ups.
6 min read