Narrative development

During my Wednesday tutorial on the 9th of January, I got the idea of rather than one big story, i perhaps explore looking at maybe a series of short story’s, told from the point of view of everyday residents of a city set in the near future. To this end i have been looking at developing the following:


A series of short stories written from different perspectives and in different styles, portraying the day to day lives, issues and problems surrounding the world of tomorrow. All the characters are linked in some way and are referenced in the other characters stories. At present i think im going to have all the storys based in the city of London around the year 2034 / 2040


• A diary / journal style entry made by a homeless person living on the streets of London.

The diary entry will talk about the main characters contempt at society and general dislike of technology. The he has chosen to live his life “below the radar”. As a result he has had to abandon almost all his materials positions and technology. The narrative comments on the different social quirks and situations he observes while on the street and also explores the different parts of the city, from the clean and technology filled rich areas to the underdeveloped poorer areas and the social classes that occupy them.

• A conversation between a psychotherapist and her patient as they explore the patient’s medical condition of “digital / virtual Schizophrenia.”

The main characters form of schizophrenia has been brought about by an unhealthy obsession with his virtual life. Choosing to spend more time in the virtual world rather than the real one. Even choosing to have virtual job rather than a physical one. The convocation tells us how the problem has become a common one and explores the lengths that some people go to not only to stay online, and how they even favour their virtual personas over their physical ones.

• A short story told from the point of view of security analyst who has to track a terrorist through the city and update authorities of his movements as they move in to catch him.

A normal day at work is thrown into chaos for the main character when some government agents come into the building and ask him to track a suspected terrorist. The narrative explores how technology could be used to track someone and how even with the latest technology, it can still prove difficult and a challenge.

• Another short story, this time told from the point of a view of the said terrorist and how he tries to avoid capture.

This narrative explores the opposite from the previous; looking at the problems and difficulties someone would encounter if they were on the run and didn’t want to be caught.

• A report from a fictional journalist reports upon the previous day’s terrorist threat and the damage caused.

This journalistic approach talks about who the terrorist was, and his actions. Moreover, it will also fill in the gaps, showing how all the characters in the other short stories are linked.