The Award-Winning "Frightful Fairies of Arden Cottage" Joey Madia Signature Escape Room Experience

In 2018, after the success of 2 five-star Escape Rooms in North Carolina that I co-designed and wrote, I was commissioned to write two articles about designing Escape Rooms like cinematic thrillers for Stage 32 and Creative Screenwriting:

https://www.stage32.com/blog/7-steps-for-writing-escape-room-narratives-and-how-to-find-opportunities-to-write-them-1597

https://www.creativescreenwriting.com/thrill-writing-escape-room-narratives-contained-thrillers/

The Creative Screenwriting article was republished by the International Screenwriters Association in 2021:

https://www.networkisa.org/screenwriting-articles/view/writing-escape-room-narratives-as-contained-thrillers 

After those articles were published, I received an offer to design an Escape Room with a unique challenge: rather than a dedicated space, it had to be designed for quick setup and takedown in a bed and breakfast cottage in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland, that catered to tabletop gamers. 

This was my first opportunity to not only design and write the story on my own, but to design all of the puzzles (which are always linked directly to the story beats and drive the narrative forward). 

Starting from my belief that the gap in a fictional experience should be as narrow as possible between the Fiction and the Reality, the premise (or inciting incident) was that the guests arrive to find a note that their hosts have been kidnapped by faeries!

I combined local history, faerie lore, the history of witches in Scotland, and Scottish poets to craft the story and the puzzles.

FEEDBACK IN GUEST BOOK ON THE ESCAPE ROOM

1. Great escape room experience. Engages imagination and grey matter beautifully

2. Absolutely fab - the great escape room ! Very clever !! Opens up the mind!!

3. An intriguing experience - a very different way to spend an hour!

In 2023, this unique Escape Room won two awards (regional and national) from the Scottish Tourism Board.

I am currently designing a second room for Arden Holiday Cottage, with a World War I theme. 

You can learn more about Arden Holiday Cottage at:

https://www.ardenholidaycottage.co.uk/

I would love to talk with you if you are in search of a designer or consultant for your next Escape Room or immersive experience project.

joeymadiawriter@gmail.com