London-based content agency Somethin Else has developed a tool called Story Farm that allows audiences access to characters interacting with each other outside of the linear television screen via an app. Working with a show, Story Farm delivers a combination of texts and voicemails providing audiences with a deeper and slightly pseudo-realistic interaction with their favourite television dramas and characters. In a sense, it creates a second world for the stories and characters of dramas that can include fake websites and newspapers, further immersing the fans into the story and the experience.

According to a story by writer Jessica Davies (@Jessdaviesmk) in The Drum, "It [Story Farm] can be used by story editors and scriptwriters to incorporate and extend the fictional lives of characters across the web, from the start of the TV show creation process, rather than as bolt-on activity." This is yet another example of an innovative digital product coming to market via a digital agency in London. Somethin Else has a long history of working with top brands including BBC, Virgin and most recently VH1. They offer a wide range of services, possibly too many, including talent management, video and TV production, radio and of course digital products. 

Although I think Story Farm is a great concept, my fear with these types of products is that without a dedicated team focused on further development and sales, that it ends up stagnating, rather than growing into a full commercial solution. That said, the team behind Story Farm are skilled professionals that I'm sure won't let a great opportunity pass them by. 

To learn more about Somethin Else, click here. 

In the past, I never willingly subscribed to newsletters as my inbox was overflowing anyway and I felt most didn't offer any new insights that I wasn't already capturing via my own online curation tools. But recently I've subscribed to three newsletters that I think are actually quite good if you are interested in multi-media storytelling. The reason I like these three is because they actually create a dialogue around the ideas rather than just reporting on them. If you get a chance, check them out. 

Adam Westbrook is an independent digital producer and publisher living in Paris. You can follow him at @adamwestbrook. His newsletter Thinking Aloud, covers an array of interesting reading material on the subjects of digital storytelling but he also writes a number of pieces himself, most recently on the Web Video problem here. His approachable style and interesting picks make Thinking Aloud a great resource when it arrives in your inbox. 

A recent launch, Storythings is a weekly recap of the top interesting stories about digital, media, storytelling and what seems to capture Matt's imagination. He writes a quick overview of the articles so you know what to expect. I particularly like that he includes the time each article or video will take so I know if I can commit to it. It's a useful feature that I'm surprised hasn't been adapted by more publishers. Matt launched Storythings in 2011 to explore new ways of telling stories and he created a great new event called The Story, which brings people together from gaming, books, video and photography for a day to explore new ways to tell stories. You can follow him at @matlock.

The Center for Digital Storytelling is a group that "support people in sharing and bearing witness to stories that lead to learning, action, and positive change." They have recently launched StoryLab, a hub for innovation to improve the public discourse. Their newsletter covers Q&As with well-known storytellers as well as new projects and the latest thinking in creating engaging experiences. A smart blog and a great resource, I recommend checking out their site and books here or follow them at @storycenter.

Ira Glass is a public radio personality in the US and a great storyteller. I recently came across a set of videos on Youtube where he explains some best practices for creating an engaging story. 

Although the videos are very low quality and over three years old, the advice is more than solid. There are four parts, each approximately five minutes in length. I've highlighted the main points if you don't have time to watch them.