Novelist Eli Horowitz has already started to alter the way we conventionally consume literature with his interactive novels created specifically for digital mediums. His latest project, The Pickle Index is a short novel about a dysfunctional circus embarking on a dubious prison break. The novel is published in three different mediums: a hardcover book, an app and a paperback book.
Each version offers the reader a completely separate, stand-alone experience with its own special features that have been inspired by the different format of the mediums. This unconventional offering allows readers to choose their preferred medium based on their individual reading style.
The hardcover edition comes in a boxed cover and includes two hardcover books. To follow the story, the reader has to alternate chapter-by-chapter, between the books and sometimes, has to rotate corresponding full-page illustrations to create a full image.
The digital version of the novel is an app in the form of a compulsory recipe-exchange network. The user or reader unlocks the story over ten days, through a series of app interactive features like dynamic maps, mini-games, and voting. This is a completely new way of digital storytelling, which requires readers to completely immerse themselves in an exploratory narrative experience.
The Pickle Index paperback edition is published by FSG Originals. Its unique feature is its intricate woodcuts created by illustrator Ian Huebert.
