Hi guys, And welcome. This is one of two mirrored Posterous sites, set up only as a temporary measure to allow focused brainstorming for a while. Then we'll rejoin forces and compare notes, if that's OK with everybody. We'll play here for a bit until we grind to an inevitable halt -or think of some amazing ideas. Let's go for the latter, eh!
If you've come to this forum, then you're here to discuss the possibilites that generating or using original storylines might lead to. There are some fantastic posts salted in the various 'collaboration' threads of the pound already, but I thought it might be a nice way to start by picking out a suggestion that Jim proposed recently. It sits between the camps - or straddles them both - whichever way you prefer to view it. He's kindly given me permission to copy it here.
Jim wrote
Regarding the original, self-generated material vs. pre-existing, public domain material discussion: another option would be to meet in the middle, choosing a particular fairy tale (or 3) and creating variations on that theme. That gives the project a built-in, unifying theme while also providing each individual with room to create and put their personal stamp on the material. In other words, it's not necessary to create wholly self-generated material or material that simply illustrates pre-existing work.
Emily's post also gave me an idea: if we chose to tackle mythological subject matter, one approach could be to do a collection illustrating myths fro different cultures that have a common theme. creation myths are an obvious example but there's enough commonality in myth that I'm sure there would be other choices. For example, we could collaborate on a book devoted to Trickster myths.