A route should start with a story that introduces the experience and end with a story that wraps up. The intermediate stories all follow a simple model consisting of three parts: introduction to the location, a site-specific story, and a teaser for the next story, which also explains how to get there.
1. Introduction to the Location
Where should the user stand and where should they look? Actively guide the user's gaze; there should be a reason why they are standing there and not just listening from home. The location should be directly connected to the story.
Is there a spot where they can enter, or a bench where they can sit? Read more about crafting a good introduction for a story.
Example
Welcome to the Baroque Garden! Stand in the middle of the bridge and look towards the Castle. As you can see, the garden is symmetrically arranged in relation to the Castle. This garden is inspired by the lavish parks in Italy and France, which were at their peak during the Baroque period in the 1700s. This garden was created in the Baroque era in the 1720s, where, as in the time of Christian IV, the staging of power and wealth was central.
2. Site-Specific Story
The actual story we want to tell should be anchored in the surroundings and based exactly where the user is standing.
A good story should be under four minutes, engage the senses, and follow a coherent narrative. Learn more about crafting a good story.
Example
Now turn around, so you are looking away from the Castle and towards the waterfalls. We're going back to Louise's story. In Louise's time, the garden had fallen into disrepair, as it hadn't been maintained since the end of the 1700s when Baroque was replaced by Romanticism. In addition to the onset of Romanticism, the European population had also embraced new ideas.
Uprisings had arisen across Europe, where people demanded better conditions and bloodshed painted Europe red. In the streets of Paris, freedom fighters were defeated by the military, and the French king had to flee for his life.
3. Wayfinding & Teaser
Here we need to make the user excited about the next story and explain how we get there. In the first story, it might be a good idea to inform the user that they can always look at their phone if they are in doubt about where to go. Read more about wayfinding and crafting a good outro.
Example
Feel free to walk around here as long as you like, enjoying the trees, flowers, and sculptures. Meet me at the top plateau when you're ready for the next part of our story. Head towards the tall obelisk that you can glimpse centrally at the top of the garden. You should stand on the opposite side of the lake in relation to the obelisk. We'll talk again shortly.
Full Example
Find an intermediate story from "Folkets Kvinde," taking place around Frederiksborg Castle in Hillerød, below.
Welcome to the Baroque Garden! Stand in the middle of the bridge and look towards the Castle. As you can see, the garden is symmetrically arranged in relation to the Castle. This garden is inspired by the lavish parks in Italy and France, which were at their peak during the Baroque period in the 1700s. This garden was created in the Baroque era in the 1720s, where, as in the time of Christian IV, the staging of power and wealth was central.
The purpose of the garden was to demonstrate how humans could control nature. Through meticulous illusions, precious flowers, pruned trees, and pyramid hedges, as well as straight axes, humans subjugated nature beneath their feet.
Now turn around, so you are looking away from the Castle and towards the waterfalls. We're going back to Louise's story. In Louise's time, the garden had fallen into disrepair, as it had not been maintained since the end of the 1700s, when the Baroque style was replaced by Romanticism. In addition to the advent of Romanticism, the European population had also embraced new ideas.
Uprisings had arisen across Europe, where people demanded better conditions, and bloodshed painted Europe red. In the streets of Paris, freedom fighters were defeated by the military, and the French king had to flee for his life.
By 1849, these revolutionary thoughts had reached Denmark. The citizens had mobilized, and on March 21st, 15,000 people marched towards the gates of Christiansborg in Copenhagen, where Frederick VII and Louise resided.
The procession presented the new king, Frederick VII, with a political question: should Denmark become a democracy?
Before we move on, notice the four finely clipped parterre fields with boxwood hedges here in the front part of the garden. They are formed in intricate patterns, and if you look at your phone now, I will show you a picture of what it looks like from above.
The four parterres represent monograms for each of the regents who played a role in the garden: Frederick IV, Christian VI, and Frederick V, who all reigned during the garden's initial period, and then Margrethe II, who inaugurated the recreated new garden, as we see it today, in 1996.
You are welcome to walk around here as long as you like, enjoying the trees, flowers, and sculptures. Meet me at the top plateau when you are ready for the next part of our story. Head towards the tall obelisk, which you can glimpse centrally at the top of the garden. You should stand on the opposite side of the lake relative to the obelisk. We'll talk again shortly.
