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How J.J. Abrams Created a Reading Experience Unlike Any Other

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Re: How J.J. Abrams Created a Reading Experience Unlike Any Other

#61

Post by tim333 »

cocktailpeanuts wrote: post #34

Is it just me or did anyone feel like this website was trying too hard to "create a reading experience unlike any other" of their own? It's like a no-name comedian introducing a world-star comedian for tonight's show, and trying to one-up him (and miserably failing) They had one job: convey the story of how "J.J abrams created a reading experience unlike any other"? They failed, because I got motion sick and just clo…

> I would rather read this through some other website when it resurfaces

Wired does an OK job: https://www.wired.com/2013/11/j-j-abrams-s-book-review/

Re: How J.J. Abrams Created a Reading Experience Unlike Any Other

#62

Post by tim333 »

morsch wrote: post #30
combatentropy wrote: post #9

It amazes me that they could make it in bulk for $20 ( https://www.amazon.com/Ship-Theseus-J-Abrams/dp/0316201642 ). Among the pages are cards and other items that the two fictional readers shared or saved.

How well does the Kindle adaptation work, I wonder. (Also, thinking this would make a nice parent for my father, but the German edition was a limited run; $130 used, $180 new, jeez.)

There doesn't seem to be a Kindle version.

Re: How J.J. Abrams Created a Reading Experience Unlike Any Other

#63

Post by mercer »

> He’s no stranger to mysterious and complicated plots—planned from the very beginning, and designed from the ground up, to keep viewers guessing.

If anything this is the main problem I have with Abrams: his 'mysterious and complicated plots' become a lot less fun once you realize that their only goal is to keep you guessing without much of a pay-off.

This doesn't have to be a problem, provided that the plot offers enough in itself. But when a substantial part of the plot revolves around the mystery, there better be a reward!

I've been enjoying The Leftovers, which was created by the other dude who worked on Lost. At this point, nearing the end of the show, I could still live with never having an answer to the central mystery. But this is primarily because 1) the showrunner repeatedly said that it's not about the mystery, and 2) even though the show is walking a fine line, the mystery is still secondary to the individual characters' journeys.

The first (and perhaps second?) season of Lost are still among my favorite seasons of any show ever. But I feel they're tarnished by the convoluted, mystery-in-a-box, answers-that-lead-to-more-questions, ever-more-ridiculous later seasons, and a finale that we were explicitly told wouldn't be the case way back in the first season!

Re: How J.J. Abrams Created a Reading Experience Unlike Any Other

#64

Post by mercer »

Xoros wrote: post #12

Had anyone read The House of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielewski ? A book in a book in a book. I feel some similarities with this one.

I loved House of Leaves. The most recent example where the 'shape' of the content really contributed to the experience, albeit in a much, much subtler way, was Infinite Jest.

While cramming stuff into multiple-page-long footnotes and footnotes with footnotes felt a bit gimmicky at first, a few experiences stand out:

1. getting so drawn into a long footnote that I forgot it was a footnote. The confusion upon getting back to the main story felt right for that point in the story (or the book in general) 2. a large number of footnotes that were mildly interesting at first and turned out to be hugely valuable later on (but not crucial to enjoying the book). 3. footnotes that were funny precisely because they were footnotes and somewhat self-aware of it.

If you like Wallace' essays or the themes he kept going back to (depression, self-analysis, addiction, irony, media), I can highly recommend going through the effort of reading the book. It took me multiple tries over a period of maybe a decade to finally finish. Once I got past 200 pages it became difficult to put the (massive) book down and now, weeks later, I'm still thinking about it regularly. Few books have had that effect on me.

Re: How J.J. Abrams Created a Reading Experience Unlike Any Other

#65

Post by willismichael »

josinalvo wrote: post #36
briga wrote: post #20

'Unlike any other' might be a stretch. Writers have been playing these sorts of meta-narrative games for decades now. Nabokov's Pale Fire comes to mind. House of Leaves is another example.

It is funny, how we started to use comparisons to mean just adjectives. E.g., 'like no other' -> 'really good'. Funny, and semantics breaking. How could we write a title that just said 'the book is really good' and still felt compelling?

A distinctive reading experience?

Re: How J.J. Abrams Created a Reading Experience Unlike Any Other

#66

Post by deanCommie »

joshuaheard wrote: post #52

J.J. Abrams's TED talk on the mystery box is worth a listen. https://www.ted.com/talks/j_j_abrams_mystery_box

It's great when someone describes to you their entire philosophy and you realize "I should never pay money for anything you ever create, because I clearly will be disappointed."

Alias - fool me once. Lost - fool me twice. Fringe - fool me thrice.

(Each one - questions answered by new questions)

And yet I totally just bought this book. Sounds cool.

Re: How J.J. Abrams Created a Reading Experience Unlike Any Other

#67

Post by throwaway7645 »

Xoros wrote: post #12

Had anyone read The House of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielewski ? A book in a book in a book. I feel some similarities with this one.

I have it and "S". I thought House of Leaves was more difficult to get into and a bit pretentious, but that's probably just me.

Re: How J.J. Abrams Created a Reading Experience Unlike Any Other

#68

Post by johnchristopher »

cocktailpeanuts wrote: post #34

Is it just me or did anyone feel like this website was trying too hard to "create a reading experience unlike any other" of their own? It's like a no-name comedian introducing a world-star comedian for tonight's show, and trying to one-up him (and miserably failing) They had one job: convey the story of how "J.J abrams created a reading experience unlike any other"? They failed, because I got motion sick and just clo…

I first opened it on my smartphone and didn't get why you mentioned motion sickness but reading it later on laptop I could feel why it would give out such an impression. It felt a bit constrained on my 1366*768 device though and the experience was better on mobile.

I like gimmicks like that in books when it's executed well. I think I'll try ordering it.

Re: How J.J. Abrams Created a Reading Experience Unlike Any Other

#69

Post by colordrops »

jclulow wrote: post #55
colordrops wrote: post #40

J.J. Abrams is self-important and overrated. His works are predictable and uninspiring. He has become a name to attach to anything slightly fantasy or sci-fi oriented in Hollywood regardless of how much actual work he has put into the project. He's trying to be the next Spielberg but he's just a pale shadow. I don't like being so negative but he's pulled the wool over too many eyes.

Is it possible, just maybe, that at least _some_ people who enjoy his work are adults who can decide for themselves what they like, and aren't the victims of some elaborate confidence trick?

It's possible but I am just expressing my opinion as one among many.

Re: How J.J. Abrams Created a Reading Experience Unlike Any Other

#70

Post by braindouche »

morsch wrote: post #30
combatentropy wrote: post #9

It amazes me that they could make it in bulk for $20 ( https://www.amazon.com/Ship-Theseus-J-Abrams/dp/0316201642 ). Among the pages are cards and other items that the two fictional readers shared or saved.

How well does the Kindle adaptation work, I wonder. (Also, thinking this would make a nice parent for my father, but the German edition was a limited run; $130 used, $180 new, jeez.)

There isn't a kindle version. There is an iPad App version that I can recommend highly.
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