Today we will experiment with Twine, “an open-source tool for telling interactive, nonlinear stories.” The term “non-linear” stories is a broad one, and so some folks think of Twine as a platform for making electronic literature, while others consider it a platform for making games: while others question that distinction altogether. Twine was used most famously to map out the story for the “Bandersnatch” episode of Black Mirror. There are many Twine games out in the world for folks to play.
Today we will be learning two basic book binding stitches: a 5-hole pamphlet stitch, which we will use for our class chapbook, and a stab binding, which we will use for our class zine. I will be demonstrating both, but I provide these resources so you can go back, pause, rewind, and return to them after class.
In today’s lab we will be setting type, preparing for a collaborative pamphlet/zine that we will be printing next week. If you choose to use letterpress as part of your final book project, you will be able to choose your type (wood and/or metal), your line length, your spacing, and what image cuts to incorporate. In order to produce a book with 24 people in two weeks during our lab time, however, you will be operating within certain constraints:
In today’s lab, we’ll be making paper. If we had more time, we’d visit Fresh Press Studio, a fantastic lab on campus that uses traditional methods to experiment with more environmentally-friendly methods for making paper. I highly recommend signing up for one of Fresh Press’ workshops if you are interested in these topics!
In our first lab, we meet in the Rare Book and Manuscripts Library to begin considering the question: “what is a book, anyway?” As we look together, consider the questions Sarah Werner asks in her chapter “Looking at Books.” There is a compressed version of these questions on Werner’s website which you can refer to as you draft your first lab report. Remember to include specifics—if you took pictures during our lab, those can be very helpful as you draft your report!
Welcome to the spring semester of ENGL 475, “Building a (Better) Book.” I’m looking forward to our time together at Skeuomorph Press in the CU Community FabLab.
