18 Stories, 6 Characters, 18 to Go — A Half-Time Check-In on the 36 Stratagems

This is a mid-project reflection on an ongoing creative writing series adapting the 36 Stratagems — the classical Chinese strategic framework — into short fictional stories with recurring characters. Eighteen stories in, the author takes stock of what is working and where the project is heading. The writing is thoughtful and the ambition is clear: illustrate strategic thinking through narrative rather than bullet points. That is a legitimate creative goal and potentially useful for founders who find abstract frameworks easier to internalize through story. What it is not is a tool, a product, or something with an obvious integration into a builder workflow. It lands here as a curiosity rather than an actionable resource. Worth a read on a slow afternoon if the 36 Stratagems are already on your radar as a mental model library. -> Best for: indie hacker or founder who reads broadly and has an interest in strategic frameworks as applied thinking