Hi, Everyone. Ariadne’s been getting quite a bit of attention, so I thought I’d post some information and about the program, especially where it is at the moment.

Version 1

At the moment, Ariadne is really a diagramming tool, allowing you to create pictures showing how all the plots in your story tie up. It’s a great way to get an overview of the story. One thing I’ve found is that a lot of people can go great guns through their story until about chapter three or four, and then things fizzle out. When people talk about this effect, I mainly hear that people lose track of the details, or that they aren’t able to steer the story properly. Ariadne’s diagram is one part of keeping track of the whole picture.

Version 2, and 3, and 4…

In the future, though, it’s gonna include lots more features for keeping hold of the many threads. (In fact, the name ‘Ariadne’ is from greek myth; she’s the daughter of King Minos who gives Theseus the thread, so he can find his way through the labyrinth.)

We’ll be including different types of diagrams like spider diagrams and mindmaps, some outlining and synopsis tools, a word processor, to-do lists so you can plan a writing schedule, etc. Lots and lots of stuff you can use to keep your head together. Since most people writing are writing part-time, knowing what you’re about is probably one of the trickiest things…

Of course, all of this is ‘when we can do it’. These things take time. Lots of time.

Who’s ‘we’?

I’m saying ‘we’, because Ariadne’s starting to get a team behind it. I’ve been on it for a year, doing everything, but now I’ve been joined by lots of folks who are eager to see Ariadne take off. I’ve got a team of about half-a-dozen people together, and we’re going to be splitting the many, many jobs among us. Hopefully, that’ll let me get back into code, which is where I really should be.

Neil Gaiman

Neil received the parcel yesterday morning, and hasn’t had time to play with it yet. But he says he’s really looking forward to it. I’ve gotta say a public thank-you to him here, because even though he hasn’t even installed it yet, his interest has kindled other people’s interests, and the whole project seems to have achieved this great momentum, and I’m really grateful to him for that.

So, here goes: Neil Gaiman. He’s a great guy, and he writes great stories. Go buy them. Spend all your money on his stuff (except £15 pounds, because there’s this bit of software you’d really like to buy, too 😉 )

$$$!

Ariadne’s been available in Travelling Man York for a week, and it’s now available for purchase on getariadne.com, although trade is not yet brisk 😉 Version 1 is going for the very reasonable price of £15, which is only the cost of a DVD or a graphic novel or something. Very reasonable, when you think about it. Why not buy one today?

Learn more

Here are a few websites you might want to visit;

My Livejournal on Ariadne

GetAriadne.com – description and help

The Ariadne Newsletter – subscribe today!