I’m not sure if it’s a good idea or a terrible one, but Artorius (the main story) really is one of those things that can easily be or become anything: novel, game, web comic, whatever.

I thought I’d decided on a novel, but the pacing and the cerebral nature of Artorius is something a visual novel could convey and carry more smoothly. At least in the way I envisioned it. That’s got me wondering if a visual novel is the better fit for the main story.

So why not both? Write the novel and then make a VN version. I’m only going to be able to do one or the other initially. Both have extremely difficult aspects to them. A novel, despite being pure text, can be insanely difficult to finish (especially in the same year you start it). Visual novels have a lot of media assets tied to them and I’ve got to conjure all of those up myself.

I don’t know which route I’m better equipped for, nor which is better for the story itself … and speaking of routes, that’s another thing visual novels can do. Between that and the inner monologues, slower pacing, and long stretches between the action, this might be the way to go.

That’s just how I feel at the moment. I might completely shift gears on this in a day or two, but I’m going to have to decide soon, and I’m doing a lot of research to help me get there. If I do decide once and for all to go the novel route, I know all of the major events by heart now, I’d just have an uphill battle weaving it all together and trimming the fat. If I go with a visual novel, I could probably have the story finished in a few months, but then I’ll probably spend the rest of the year or longer struggling to get the media for it.

Decisions …