You may not have heard of Alter Stories just quite yet, and that’s ok – you’re not the only one. However, for the discerning writer, this Dutch startup is worth a second look. Founder Martijn Koenen is the sort of man who looks to the future, and while the core functionality of the website might be user driven, and the users are the only thing that are sparse at the moment, the methodology behind the long term idea is not only sound, but also… Dare we say it, visionary?

How the platform works

Alter Stories is a collaborative platform that requires a user to come up with the idea for a story, and then post the first seven hundred words of it. Then, the only data available to the readers as to what the story might be about (other than the opening, of course), is a set of keywords and tags. But that’s not where the buck stops. If the reader likes the opening, they can do something that has never been done before quite like this – they can take the reins and continue the story.

Using the tags, they can navigate to a genre they like, choose a story at will, and then are guided by the keywords left by the previous writer, which must be included in the follow-up. Using this process of creative leapfrogging, the creator retains just a modicum of creative control over the general content, while the second writer is able to stretch their literary legs and pretty much take the story anywhere they see fit. Perhaps they embody the opening theme perfectly, and the original author and them embark on a back and forth journey which results in a collaborative masterpiece. Or maybe, the secondary writer decides that things could be different, and changes it up, forcing the original writer to rethink their story, adapt, and evolve into a writer that they didn’t think they were – or could ever be.

It’s human nature to compete and to out-compete our peers, and what better way to do it than in a constructive and downright fun way.

And as well as continually adding to your portfolio, which should be the number one priority of any writer who puts pen to paper regularly; Alter Stories also acts as a springboard for your personal bookstore.

Great for readers

Amazon’s Self Publishing hub is well known and is still the one-stop shop for every wordsmith who wants to peddle their wares. It can be a melee though, and I’m not afraid to say it. Every writer who writes their own reviews brands their work as a masterpiece to make ‘Gerald Seymour quake in his boots!’ because ‘There’s a new kid on the block!’ – ahem, that’s actually one I read not too long ago as the description for a spy thriller.

But how do you figure out whether or not a writer is worth their salt before you pay for and download their work? Well, wouldn’t it be nice if there was a place you could visit to see their work – and not the polished, packaged and primed version either – no, the nitty gritty first draft wrote straight on the page in a frenzy of creative fury sort of content, that lets you judge a writer by what shoots out of their fingers when they’re in the midst of their perfect literary tumult… wait, was that even a question? No matter, you get the idea.

Alter Stories lets you find a piece based on what you like, be it mystery, thriller, romance, fantasy, sci-fi, or a myriad of other options, then it lets you read it, see who’s read it, go to their profile, read their other work, fall in love with it (and them), and then click the the orange “Buy Now” button. If you click that, it takes you to the bookstore on Amazon, so you can see their fully fledged work – their Mona Lisa off the back of their notebook doodlings.

Great for the self-promoting writer

What more is there to say? If you haven’t already opened another tab and googled Alter Stories, then just click the link below and have a read around. You can view the content and the website in full without registering, and even go to the Founder’s page to hear his thoughts on the matter. And who knows, maybe you’ll find your next favorite writer?And if you’re a writer more than a reader, well, it’s nice to know that you can build your profile with the standard about me sections, add a photo, link to your Amazon bookstore, create a deliciously tempting banner to showcase the cover art of your latest work, and then even add a youtube video as a trailer to further tantalise your potential readership.

And if not, maybe you can be someone else’s.

Visit Alter Stories and see what the future of storytelling looks like:
www.alterstories.com