Escape Artists [Drama]

[Hexagod]

This is my first post here, even though i lurked this forum for some time now after i found this form of media and discovered how awesome it is. Anyway, this idea was in my head for way too much time, and i am happy that i started moving my ass towards its general direction. While this is the first time i try to write creatively without someone who is forcing me to, i feel that this will be a fun expierence no matter how clumsy my text will be.

The idea of the story and the title itself came from me misunderstanding the term "escape artist" while hearing it in a song with a similar name. At the time, i thought of people who are "experts" at escapng their own unsatisfying reality almost artistically instead of dealing with it in order to change it. i thought that writing about those people would be interesting. As with anything about the project at this stage, the title is also subject to changes.


Story:
The story follows our protagonist, Amir, as he is pulled into a ridiculous turn of events in which he is obliged to bring back the glory days of an old actress, which was once famous and well known, with the help of a little girl who has an unclear background, who seems to have connections with every man he knows. Amir, while once satisfied with his boring, grey routine that mainly consists of distractions that will keep his mind from the fact that he is in a dead end job as a goverment official, becomes aware of the situation his are in as he gets more and more involved in the not-so-legal operation that he got himself into.



Main Characters:
Amir:

Your ordinary boring Goverment official. Years upon years of sitting in a white room in front of a white papers made him an expert in origami, shadowgraphy and passing countless hours while doing minimal work. Even though he has no close friends or family, and his love life is nonexistent, he is generaly a happy, satisfied guy. While he once had the ambition to do great things, years of monotonous work have taken their toll, making him unhappy with anything that disrupts his grey routine. Still, some spark of innvoation and creativity might still be found within him.

Yosefa:

While only 10 years old,Yosefa (Jhosepine) have already developed an oddly mature way of looking at life. while she is not cold or distant by any means, she is extremley sharp and nonchalant for her age, and usually observes anything that the adults she is surrounded with try to hide from her. While she seem to know a suprising amount of grown ups around town, and has a lot of "friends" to take care of her at need, she doesnt seem to go to school at all, and her actual home and family seems to be located in one of the sketchiest parts of the city, which she doesnt realy likes to talk about. Her lack of friends at her age is somewhat disturbing.


Rosa:

Once a famous, appreciated, stunning actress, who could fill entire theatres with crowd by herself. Unfortunatliy for her, Rosa had a scandalous incident with the theatre's management, in which by its end she quitted her job at the place. That, and the fact that the years have took away her youth by that time, have made her unable to find proper roles to play in other theaters, and so she sunk to the anonymity she once rose from. Still, she didnt let her acting abilties fade away, and still has the dramatic and capturing personality she once had on stage.



Side characters:

Now, i dont have alot of characters in my head at the moment, and the ones i do have are not close to being fully figured out, and mybe will not be featured at all.

Theatre guard guy- An old guard who was, and still, in love with Rosa and obssesed with her works. He might not be the brightest guy in the world, but has its own qualities. As the guard charged of sitting near the artists entrance in the night shift, he might be our ticket into the stage's lights.

Social worker gal- Have taken Yosefa's case, and while she tries her best to understand and help the situation, she is fairly new to the job, and doesnt realy know how to react to Yosefa's behavior. Might be a potential romance story between her and Amir (?).

Agian, thats all i got now, but i will sure update this section every time i got somethin' new.

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Also, i will post here some quick sketches i did for the main characters, but i dont this will be the finished look of any of them.

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Quiz time:

1.Do you think there is a potential for multiple choices in game, and/or the story is long enough to deserves those?

2.Do you think the currents art style fits the theme and the idea of the story? if not, what do you think the art style should be like?

3. Do you think Israel is a good location to set a story in? I immidietly thought about this location because this is where i live, but the story might be more interesting if it would take place in London or Paris for example.

4.If the story will take place in Israel, should i translate the names to english (Ex.-Yosefa/Josephine), or keep the original names as they are?
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I would love to work with other people on this, so if you find the concpet interesting, feel free to join up. At the moment i'm looking for all the help i can get, whether it be art, writing, music composing, programming or just general idea bouncing.

[Green Glasses Girl]

First let me say what a great synopsis! It definitely has a lot of intrigue, so I look forward to how you go about it.

To answer your questions:
1.Do you think there is a potential for multiple choices in game, and/or the story is long enough to deserves those?
It really depends on what you want. If you want interactivity to make the reader define Amir's fate, you can make as many choices you feel comfortable with. So yes, there is a lot of potential to use to your discretion.

2.Do you think the currents art style fits the theme and the idea of the story? if not, what do you think the art style should be like?
I think the art is fine. It's mature enough to fit with the game's themes.

3. Do you think Israel is a good location to set a story in?
Yes! There are not enough games based in that part of the world, so more power to you. You can bring the reader into a location that you are familiar with, which gives us a firsthand perspective. That's exciting!

4. If the story will take place in Israel, should i translate the names to english (Ex.-Yosefa/Josephine), or keep the original names as they are?
I say keep the original names.

[Hexagod]

First let me say what a great synopsis! It definitely has a lot of intrigue, so I look forward to how you go about it.

To answer your questions:
1.Do you think there is a potential for multiple choices in game, and/or the story is long enough to deserves those?
It really depends on what you want. If you want interactivity to make the reader define Amir's fate, you can make as many choices you feel comfortable with. So yes, there is a lot of potential to use to your discretion.

2.Do you think the currents art style fits the theme and the idea of the story? if not, what do you think the art style should be like?
I think the art is fine. It's mature enough to fit with the game's themes.

3. Do you think Israel is a good location to set a story in?
Yes! There are not enough games based in that part of the world, so more power to you. You can bring the reader into a location that you are familiar with, which gives us a firsthand perspective. That's exciting!

4. If the story will take place in Israel, should i translate the names to english (Ex.-Yosefa/Josephine), or keep the original names as they are?
I say keep the original names.

Thanks for the feedback! I appreciate it very much.

Another question i didnt ask in my post is if, in your opinion, i should include a romance story- whether it be an optional route or part of the core game. While i didnt thought of making a love story in the first place, i had some ideas and concepts for it in my head for some time now, and it would be a sure way to attract more attention to the project, too.

Also, how Much effort should i put into the game before it is appropriate for me to post it in the WIP section?

[peapodprincess]

Also, how Much effort should i put into the game before it is appropriate for me to post it in the WIP section?

I haven't posted on the Work in Progress section before, but my general understanding is that you can show off some assets that you've made for the game - logos, characters, excerpts of the writing, music, etc.

Right now, I'd say that you should develop your visual novel a bit more before moving to the WIP board. Once you've got a fairly solid plan for what you'd like to do, then it's time to post.

[Hexagod]

Also, how Much effort should i put into the game before it is appropriate for me to post it in the WIP section?

I haven't posted on the Work in Progress section before, but my general understanding is that you can show off some assets that you've made for the game - logos, characters, excerpts of the writing, music, etc.

Right now, I'd say that you should develop your visual novel a bit more before moving to the WIP board. Once you've got a fairly solid plan for what you'd like to do, then it's time to post.

Thanks for the explenation. As a way to get my project closer to the WIP board- here are some emotion sprites of Yosefa:

[peapodprincess]

I really adore your art style. It doesn't make every character look the same or make them super-models, but it's got a beauty and an appeal all its own because of that. Yosefa's design reminds me of myself at age ten.

As for your story, I think there's a lot of potential there in both the characters and in the story. Your interpretation of "escape artist" is very interesting to me, and I hope to see how it'll be used in your game as you continue to progress.

[gekiganwing]

If you're familiar with modern day Israel, then feel free to let your story happen there. Several advantages to this include:

* You can include accurate local references.
* You can discuss challenges that people in Israel routinely deal with.
* It won't seem like a research project about another place, or a tourist guide, or a theme park version.

Obviously, your story will involve human relationships. If you want to include a romance subplot, or if one might be relevant to your story, then include it. But don't compel yourself to create one!

[Green Glasses Girl]

^I'm with gekiganwing on the romance subplot. If it holds significance to the storyline, then yes. But if you just put it in to appeal to the crowd that wants romance, then it isn't necessary.

[Hexagod]

I think the best thing i can do in that matter is just to start writing, and see if i find opprotunities to include romance. If I will, its great.

However, there is much greater issue i need to discuss with you. The more the story starts to materialize in my head, the more i understand how many pieces of it are missing. I basicly have a few points that i want to write in the story, and nothing to connect them. Should i just start writing, and deal with these parts when i get to them, or should i outline everything beforehand, and only then start to write?

Whatever the case be, I would love if some people who find the idea of the story interesting would come and help me with ideas. Your efforts will be noted

Edit: just a heads up; im going on a trip for four days, so i wont update this thread until i get home.