What is Directed Fiction?
Ready for something completely new? Directed Fiction is a Strategic Foresight technique that uses a multi-path adventure format to plunge the reader into developing, real-world situations.
Directed Fiction: Shaping Tomorrow through Strategic Storytelling
Directed Fiction is an innovative storytelling approach that merges foresight methodologies and insights from forecasting platforms. This technique combines strategic foresight tools like Framing, Horizon Scanning, STEEPLE Analysis, and Axes of Uncertainty to shape narrative development. The result is a storytelling method that offers readers a more nuanced and thought-provoking experience, prompting them to reflect on potential future paths.
The use of Forecasting Platforms
Forecasting Platforms are online platforms where users make predictions on diverse topics. These platforms leverage collective community wisdom to generate probabilistic forecasts on various future events. In the context of Directed Fiction, Dr. Merritt connects each novel chapter to a specific forecast on the Metaculus forecasting platforms. This integration of real-world data and community insights enhances the authenticity and relevance of the storytelling, allowing readers to observe potential future events based on predictions from individuals with diverse expertise and perspectives.
Challenge Your Beliefs
The integration of science fiction with forecasts challenges readers to put their beliefs and perspectives to a quantifiable test. Directed Fiction is a synthesis of Strategic Foresight’s focus on plausible future states with the Forecasting’s focus on quantitative, measurable outcomes.  Blending both of these approaches into a multi-path science fiction story encourages a shift from endless debates and subjective opinions that characterize today’s political dialogue to a more objective and evidence-based search for truth.
Directed Fiction Videos:
Directed Fiction Research:
Merritt, T. (2022). Directed Fiction: Scanning the future with scenario trends. ResearchGate, http://dx.doi.org/10.13140/RG.2.2.31029.76008
Merritt, T. (2022). Alternative Futures: The use of fiction to explore competing visions. ResearchGate, http://dx.doi.org/10.13140/RG.2.2.21485.26080
Merritt, T. (2022). Imagining the future: The rapid classification of fiction archetypes. ResearchGate, http://dx.doi.org/10.13140/RG.2.2.12922.82884