Another potential idea for an interactive story (Patreon)
Content
So in general it seems like the idea of a multichapter story that has some actual plot to it is a more popular idea with you guys than an anthology of loosely connected oneshots. As I thought more about it I felt like the alternating months schedule that we switched to towards the end of Interactive 8th Year probably isn't the best idea, and that it would be better to stick to monthly installments if I go forward with the multichapter concept. But I didn't want to take away either of the general prompt polls from you guys.
That's when I had a thought about potentially getting rid of the Themed polls I've been doing that are filled with my own prompts and putting a multichapter poll story in its place. If I did this, rather than having you submit options for how the story progressed I would present a poll at the end of each chapter with several different branches it could go into.
To give you an example: say we're doing a GoT story that starts with (Season 2 spoilers, if you've held out from the show/books for this long) Robb Stark going to treat with Stannis and Renly himself rather than sending his mother, which means he's there when Renly is assassinated. I would then put up a poll at the end of the chapter with several different options on how Robb responds, like:
A) He throws his weight behind Stannis' claim and prepares to help him take King's Landing
B) He attempts to forge an alliance with the Tyrells by wedding the widowed Margaery
C) He remains neutral and decides to concentrate on keeping Tywin cut off from the capital, etc.
Doing it this way would help me tell a tighter story with more of a plot to it as opposed to 8th Year, while also still letting you guys submit your nominations for the general prompt polls each month like normal. (Plus, if I'm being honest, most of the focus I put on thinking up options for the themed polls each month has been going into my Author's Prompt Commissions list recently.)
What do you guys think? Is this an idea I should consider going forward with? I'll probably gauge general interest from patrons at all levels before I lock this in, but I wanted to check in with those of you at the $5+ tiers first to see what you think, and whether you'd prefer something like this. As always, I'm open to any suggestions you might have or feedback you'd like to offer.