The Experiment

We've already seen where the novel has been. 

Now, let's check out where it is going:

• In 2006, 93% of books that were published sold less than 1,000 copies. 
• Over 3 million Kindles have been sold as of 2011 
• Over 40 million iPads have been sold since 2011 
• JK Rowling, author of the Harry Potter series (sold 450 million copies as of this year), launched the interactive media site Pottermore, which not only offered a digitized and personalized version of the setting and stories from the books, but also included exclusive, not-yet-revealed content from the book series. This website obtain over 1 million "sorted" users as of earlier this year (being sorted involves taking a lengthy multiple choice test). 

So what am I getting at? Our society is heading toward a digital future at a faster rate every day. There is obviously a product, and there is also obviously a demand. So how does this affect the novel?

According to a report done by Alexandra Alter for the Wall Street Journal, novels are heading down the same digital highway as other types of media. Not only are they available in e-book format, but the e-book format itself is now under revision to become more interactive and visually complex. Marketed as a novel, the new enhanced e-book Chopsticks is described as a book and an app.

 It includes a functioning story and narrative, but the narrative is achieved through mostly images, videos, and music, with very little actual reading. According to Alter's article, other more prominent authors such as Stephen King have attempted enhanced e-book versions of their novels in some sort of capacity, including author commentary and other bonus features, but the traditional version did much better in the marketplace. Visually stunning, and creating an interactive reading experience like none before, enhanced e-books are nevertheless very expensive and time consuming to create, almost like producing a movie. Other concerns such as copyright of music and visuals included make the enhanced e-book a difficult product to make. With little demand and high cost production, few authors are ready to jump on this bandwagon just yet. However, the idea is circulating, and with so many people already owning devices compatible with this new novel format, it is assumed that it will only be a matter of time.

Now, on to the experiment

I wondered to myself, what would happen if you took a piece of classic English literature and turned it into an enhanced e-book? 

In the following two tabs, you will find first, an excerpt from Jane Austen's Emma, and then my clumsy reproduction in enhanced e-book format. Not having a cool $10,000 on hand and 3 months at my leisure, it is definitely a crude prototype, but I think it makes a clear point. Enjoy Emma and Emma 2000 and then meet me back at The Future of the Novel to talk about what these differences mean.