The Paradise Prank
Letter Zero 17
Dear friend,
Next week I am going to announce a massive art project that I want you to be a part of. I’m giving you a heads up because space will be limited and I want you to be at the front of the line. Don’t miss next Sunday’s Letter Zero. Here’s a hint.
But that’s not the only thing I want to tell you about. Also...
Did you know there’s a 2-page drawing of paradise hidden in the middle of a children’s book called Inside UFO 54-40? As you flip through the pages, choosing your own adventure, there is a good chance you will stumble across the paradise illustration and wonder, “How can I get to this happy ending?”
Don’t bother to reverse-engineer the decision tree that leads to the paradise ending. There isn’t a path. It’s an Easter egg, a prank pulled on readers who read Choose Your Own Adventure books backwards, finding the happy ending and backtracking so that you feel like you always make the right decisions.
Here’s what it says on the page describing paradise:
You did not make a choice, or follow any direction, but now, somehow, you are descending from space–approaching a great, glistening sphere. It is Ultima–the planet of paradise.
The page ends with:
"As you can see, there is such a place after all," says Arkam, "though very few from Earth's universe ever reach it."
"No one can choose to visit Ultima," says Elinka. "Nor can you get here by following directions. It was a miracle you got here, but that is perfectly logical, because Ultima is a miracle itself."
It may not be Shakespeare, but is this not the most profound message in the history of kid’s books? It might be the most honest message a child will ever hear. Grown-ups aren’t going to tell you that you can follow the rules your whole life and still never achieve that perfect ending. Nobody tells you that your life won’t be a fairy tale, that the whole “just follow the instructions” format is a scam. Few understand that you can write the story yourself, otherwise the pages will turn you.
Creative breakthrough is like Ultima, very few people from Earth’s universe will ever find it. There are no shortcuts. You can’t cheat. Not really. But there are rules that can be broken without penalty. Flip through the pages of life experimenting until you find something that works.
I’ll write again next Sunday. Stay creative.
Your friend,
Adrian
P.S. Don’t forget to reply to next week’s email when I announce my art project.It will be worth it.