ENTRY / 01
CANON
/ˈkanən/ · noun
The events considered officially part of a fictional world's story. In your personal storytelling? The moments you decide belong in the highlight reel.
“THIS HAPPENED. KEEP IT IN.”
AN UNOFFICIAL GUIDE TO BEING ALIVE · VOL. 001
THIS
WASN'T
IN THE SCRIPT.
Sometimes the obstacle becomes the anecdote. The detour becomes the plot. And the joke starts explaining itself.
NO DESTINY REQUIRED. JUST A GOOD SENSE OF HUMOUR.
FRAME_03
UNEXPECTED
UNEXPECTED
ACT I / ???
FIG. 01 — THE STORY REFUSES TO STAY INSIDE THE BOX.
REAL EVENTSQUESTIONABLE NARRATIONEXCELLENT CALLBACKS
01 / CASE STUDYBASED ON AN ACTUAL BROWSER TAB
THE HIGHER INCIDENT™
The universe has
excellent timing.
The plan: make a little website about climbing higher. The complication: the internet had a ceiling. The sequel: find another address. Somewhere along the way, the error message became the punchline.
- 01THE SETUP
The ascent begins.
A website about reaching higher reaches for its own address. The soundtrack is already playing.
- 02THE CONFLICT
The ceiling speaks.
Cloudflare says the record quota is exceeded. A remarkably literal obstacle for a project about rising above obstacles.
- 03THE DETOUR
Another door exists.
The proposed address moves from .com to .online. The script has acquired a new location.
- 04THE CALLBACK
The bug becomes lore.
Even the trouble publishing the story has become part of the story. That's not magic. That's a very well-timed joke.
OFFICIALLY
CANON
CANON
THE POINT
A setback doesn't automatically mean something profound. But sometimes it makes a surprisingly good chapter.
02 / THE GLOSSARYFOR PEOPLE WHO SAY “CANON” WITHOUT KNOWING WHY
WORDS WORTH STEALING
A tiny field guide
to the bit.
Not everything is a sign. Some things are just funny. Here's the vocabulary for enjoying that distinction.
ENTRY / 02
LORE
/lɔːr/ · noun
The backstory, recurring jokes, odd details and accumulated history that make a world feel lived in.
“YOU HAD TO BE THERE.”
ENTRY / 03
FOURTH WALL
/fɔːrθ wɔːl/ · noun
The imaginary barrier between a performance and its audience. Breaking it means the work addresses or acknowledges the audience.
“YES, YOU. READING THIS.”
ENTRY / 04
METAFICTION
/ˌmetəˈfɪkʃən/ · noun
Storytelling that notices it's storytelling. Like a page about life's accidental narrative that comments on the act of making this very page.
“THE STORY KNOWS IT'S A STORY.”
03 / INTERACTIVE EXPERIMENTWARNING: SELF-REFERENCE AHEAD
LIVE FROM INSIDE THE WEBSITE
There is a wall
right here.
A website is talking about the fourth wall. A visitor is reading about the fourth wall. Everything is currently behaving itself.
WALL STATUS: STRUCTURALLY SOUND
A philosophical footnote: noticing patterns isn't evidence that reality has a screenwriter. It can still make for excellent art.
04 / THE CANONIZERLOCAL ONLY · NOTHING SENT ANYWHERE
YOUR TURN, STORYTELLER
Make an ordinary event
sound like an episode.
Enter what actually happened. Pick a storytelling lens. Keep the facts intact; exaggerate only the narration.
THE CANON ARCHIVEENTRY 001
AWAITING INPUT
Your next
episode is
unwritten.
THE EVENT
Start with something true. The plot can take it from there.
THE NARRATOR'S TAKE
The story is on standby. The narrator is getting coffee.
STATUS: DRAFT
Your words stay in this browser tab. No login, tracking, or storage. Copy them before leaving.
POST-CREDITS SCENE
You don't have to believe
life is a movie.
You can still enjoy the plot.
Let the facts be facts. Let the jokes be jokes. When a detour becomes a good story, congratulations: you've discovered a little canon.
Explore the wider universe