Naaj Story of the Bitten Oar

My stories keep getting longer and longer don't they?! Do you all remember where I left off? If that Anell wasn't such a pest I'd be done by now. Oh right, that shark was charging at me through the clouds! 

I raised my oar high to cast a spell and he jumped and chomped the biggest bite out of it possible! Oh that made me sooooo mad. I chased him down with my busted oar and beat him up so bad that he gave up. And do you know what I did to that shark? I turned him into my house. So now you know, don't cross me, or I might just make a house outta you!

~Naaj

Go outside/inside and play!

It's summer time and parents everywhere are directing their kids to turn off their consoles, drop the controllers, and head outside to get some fresh air, sunshine, sunburns, cuts/scrapes, and bug bites.

But what if you kid wants to stay indoors and play video games*? 

There's a lot of pressure on parents to treat video games a unhealthy pastimes that rot the brain and the body. As a viral post went around social media recently said "Kids need less Xboxes and more tackle boxes!". Public Service Announcements blame too much screen time for a host of social ills and medical journals now say  and sitting too long is almost as bad a smoking.

So what's a parent to do?

Simple- Get the kids up an moving! Help them learn that while the fantastical worlds that games transport us to are nice, we have to live in this one which can also be filled with wonder and excitement. Exercise and movement are essential for healthy development.

BUT... (there's always a but)

Don't forget that an healthy imagination, problem solving, and abstract thinking can all be improved when kids spend time with quality games. A healthy body needs a healthy brain too, and good quality video games that challenge the mind (puzzles, mysteries, stories, adventure) can promote that.

*I hear there's a new on coming for the Wii U that's quite fun

 

~Mutz

Cult Games

It’s said that video games are going to surpass other methods of mass entertainment in the early 21^st century. So will video games ever become as common an experience as listening to the radio, watching TV, or going to the movies?  Chances are good as more designers understand that story-driven games are a prime motivator, not just an afterthought.

Think of some of best games you’ve ever played- did they have characters, places, and plots you could relate to?  More than likely that’s the case. Getting people to play a game is easy, make it accessible to them. Getting people to keep playing over and over and want more after they’re done takes the elements of storytelling that best-sellers and cult favorites are known for.

What are some of your favorite cult games, and what is it about them that keeps you coming back?

~Mutz

Where's my broom you ask?

Have you ever wondered why I have an oar instead of a broom? Well I can't tell you too much but I will tell you a tale.  Well, I was traveling as a guide through the red swamp for the greckles. We had just laid to rest for the night and had enjoyed a delicious meal.  One of them picked up what they thought was a simple twig and used it as a toothpick. THAT WAS MY BROOM !!!!!! Gone forever, broken off in his stone teeth.

I couldn't be without anything to fly!  That would be shameful.  So I snuck up to a gathering of polywoggles and snagged an oar from one of their skiffs. I used an enchantment to make it fly! Now,  why does it have a bite out of it you ask?  That's a story for another time...

~ Naaj

Excitement

Do you recall the things that made you look forward to what was coming as a child? It may have been a visiting friend or relative, a holiday celebration, or birthday presents. For most of us involved with 3twins.net, we all have stories of the next issue of our favorite comic, the next episode of our favorite TV show, or finding the last item to complete a collection. You know, geeky stuff, like that. Fortunately for us all, the geek culture has allowed larger society to be part of that excitement with TV episodes, movies and series on streaming networks, and introducing our comic heroes to the motion screens both large and small. As adults, we still find that initial excitement in those activities.

 

That is the heart of the worlds within 3twins.net. In the works are stories that will be shared in multi-media format and even our first ever video game! As someone who has befriended the twins before this all started with a simple website, I am impressed with the body of work available now as well as the work awaiting art or animation to be revealed in the future. It brings me back to the excitement of my youth when I knew something new would be coming to tie up loose ends and unravel others. We all have that now with many fine shows available for watching from other companies, but which of your favorites are really giving you a chance to weigh in? This family of writers and artists at 3twins.net invites you to do just that. Let’s talk about what you would like to see that would get you excited. Please tell us!

 

Choose your escape!

                                                                                                                        ~ Chuck

SUPERHEROES

Who doesn't love them?  I think that even if you weren't into super heroes before,  you are now! The Marvel universe has grown in the movie industry the last few years and these movies have reintroduced these amazing characters to generations young and old! Those that have read the comic books have a deeper connection (like Jason), those that have seen the movies (like me) enjoy the new adventure and the way the others light up as they pop off the page. I love the fact that my whole family enjoys it all!

~Michelle Kuder

We all have a story

A few days ago I read an article on NPR's website by Glen Weldon titled Question: Who's the Longest Running Fictional Character Ever? (If you don't want me to spoil the answer then read the article before continuing!)

The answer was Superman who has been fighting bad guys with his super strength for 70 years now. The point of the article, it turned out, was to illustrate how Superman is a bad example of an open ended story gone awry. Stories, according to Weldon, are designed to have an end. They are not intended to go on forever or they just have to rewrite their own rules, throw in cheesy gimmicks and end up turning into soap operas - even if the characters can fly and wear spandex.

While I see Weldon's point, I have to say that I don't agree. I have loved to write and tell stories for as long as I can remember, and I think I can safely say that the same applies to Andy and Jason. One aspect of story telling that we have discussed numerous times is how we hate to see a story end. Once we have created a great set of characters and come to the end of a tale, we anxiously await their next series of events.

I even do this when I watch movies or read books. When I really fall in love with the characters in a story and then come to the end, I imagine what life is like for them beyond what I just witnessed. Will they go on to have more adventures? Will the new couple stay together? Is the villain really defeated? And I feel this way every time even though I know that sequels most often disappoint.

I've thought about why this is, and the conclusion I keep coming back to is that each of our lives is a story. Maybe not the kind of story you'd read on the news or turn into a reality TV show, but it's a story nonetheless.

Think of the elements any story needs, they're all a part of our every day lives: good characters who develop over time, a setting, a plot (sometimes many of them), conflict (often more than we really care for), antagonists, protagonists... it's all there. Maybe the only thing that isn't there is a climax and a resolution. Sure, there are major events and turning points in our lives that ultimately get resolved, but unlike a movie or a novel the story doesn't end there.

Now, in some situations I can see Weldon's point. Certain stories are more plot-driven than character-driven and end when the plot comes to a close. Take a fable like The Tortoise and the Hare, for example, no one is really interested in the Hare's back-story, it's the plot that moves things along. And some stories serve to convey a point that is much bigger than book or the film. Take Harper Lee's classic To Kill a Mockingbird, while it contains great characters, the point is to serve as a commentary on racism in the South.

But what about Superman? Or The Adventures of Hatman and Indigo for that matter? While at times these stories may contain a moral or an over-arching point, the heart of the story will always lie with the characters themselves. We long to see what will happen to them, how things will develop, where their lives will take them. And I believe we do this because of an innate belief that our stories are bigger than the events of our lives.

Yes, as Weldon says, this may tempt the author's of these stories to "jump the shark" in order to keep viewers, and this is a sad reality. But I don't believe it changes the fact that we can relate to stories that don't necessarily have an end. It just means that as writers, we need to work even harder to continue telling new and great stories without losing the essence of the characters that made them great in the first place.

-Steve