CSI creator’s plans for a digital empire

Anthony Zuiker will always be known as the creator of “CSI,” but he’s also the author of the “Level 26” thriller series. Now he’s bringing the two worlds together.  

On the Oct. 14 episode of “CSI,” the forensic investigators will square off against Sqweegel – the “forensic proof” serial killer from Zuiker’s books. Ann Margaret guest stars in the episode.

Single character crossovers from the book to TV world are rare – but Zuiker’s not planning to stop there. Two weeks after the episode airs (and, conveniently enough, the second “Level 26” book hits store shelves), Zuiker hopes to launch an iPad ‘digi-novel’ of the book, which will incorporate several multimedia elements, including a one-hour digital short telling a back story featuring the book’s characters. (Justine Bateman is among the cast.)

Zuker incorporated these cyber-bridges into his first “Level 26” book, but felt they were too disjointed and out of context. Readers were also directed to the book’s Website to view them, which wasn’t ideal. (Readers of “Dark Prophecy,” the second book will also have a chance to watch them online.) By making the book an app – and not just a download from the iBooks store, he was able to incorporate all the interactive elements into a single experience.

“The ideal consumption experience is really on something like the iPad,” he says. “Words pulse as you read them and you can flick your finger and a gunshot hole appears on the screen. It allows you to collect evidence that leads to a separate story line.”