When characters breach internal fourth walls to go on adventures in books, films and so on. Generally they travel into one or more books or films to become part of the plot, or, at least, to observe the plot first hand. This often forms part of an allegory or metaphor for escapism, the idea that the imagination allows a reader to 'enter' a work and subconsciously cast themselves as an observer or a main character. This is one reason why the lead characters of books are often [[AudienceSurrogate very vaguely or loosely described]], allowing the reader to assume the hero's identity as a form of role-play.

Compare and contrast TrappedInTVLand. See also ReadingIsCoolAesop. Not to be confused with FromBeyondTheFourthWall, when the fourth wall is the one between us and them.
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!!Examples:

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[[folder:Anime and Manga]]
* In ''MonsterRancher'', Genki travels to the monster world through a computer game; however, this example may be a subversion since [[spoiler:it is alluded throughout the series that Genki may actually have travelled through time to the distant future instead of into a game]]. In particular, the [[spoiler:post-apocalyptic setting]] and the fact that [[spoiler:Genki isn't dumped back into his room in front of an end-of-game screen in the last episode]] speaks volumes. Not to mention that [[spoiler:once he arrives there is no indication that the world he is visiting is a game]].
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[[folder:Comics]]
* ''ComicBook/FantasticFour: True Story'' by Creator/PaulCornell. The FF travel through various well-known works of literature.
* ''JusticeLeagueOfAmerica'' villain the Queen of Fables. She is eventually defeated and trapped when the heroes trick her into entering a copy of the US Tax Code: a work that contains no imagination and so one from which she cannot escape.
* In Creator/GrantMorrison's ''ComicBook/TheFilth'', The Hand uses Intrepid Fictioneer tactics to mine cheesy golden-age comics like ''Secret Original'' for WeirdScience gadgetry.
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[[folder:Film]]
* ''Film/LastActionHero'', starring Creator/ArnoldSchwarzenegger. A young boy gets sucked into the latest installment of a fictional action movie franchise using a magic ticket and try to stop the villain of the movie from using the ticket to wreak havoc in the real world.
* ''Film/TheNeverEndingStory'' and its two sequels where a boy travels to the world of Fantasia by reading the book of ''The [=NeverEnding=] Story'' and having to save the world inside the book from the various evils that wish to destroy it.
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[[folder:Literature]]
* ''Literature/HaroldShea'', back in the 1940s, invented the "syllogism-mobile", which allowed him to visit worlds of fiction. Unfortunately, it didn't always work quite like he planned, and he didn't end up in quite the works he was aiming for.
* ''Literature/TheInkworldTrilogy'' has select few characters who are able to send people and objects into and out of stories when they read out loud.
* ''Literature/TheNeverEndingStory'', where a boy travels to the world of Fantasia by reading the book of ''The [=NeverEnding=] Story'' and having to save the world inside the book from the various evils that wish to destroy it.
* ''Literature/OnlyYouCanSaveMankind'', Johnny and other characters travel into the titular computer game and rebuild large parts of it with their imaginations. Their actions alter the game in real time and actually [[spoiler:affect sales]].
* JasperFforde's ''Literature/ThursdayNext'' books are the trope namer and codifier here. Thursday finds out that fiction has a 'behind the scenes' and that all books are intrinsically linked, with characters as actors in the work. Thursday goes on to travel from book world to book world. Incidentally, ''fictioneer'' is a derogatory term meaning a writer of large amounts of tatty pulp fiction.
* ''Cassandras Affect'' has a main character, Cassandra Matthews, who is not only aware she's a character in a book, but also travels through several books during her adventures.
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[[folder:Live Action TV]]
* ''TheTenthKingdom'' subverts this in that it is revealed that most fairy tales were written by people who wandered into an actual fairy world.
* ''LostInAusten''.
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[[folder:Theatre]]
* In ''Bunbury: A Serious Play for Trivial People'', [[TheImportanceOfBeingEarnest Bunbury]] and [[RomeoAndJuliet Rosaline]] become BeenThereShapedHistory as they journey through the Western canon, meeting other [[TheGhost unseen characters]]. Bunbury even becomes [[WaitingForGodot Godot]].
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[[folder:Video Games]]
* In ''{{Myst}}'', this was the premise. Certain people had the power to create worlds by writing about them in books (or something like that). They could travel into them -- and, if the book, which then served as a gateway between worlds, was damaged, they could be trapped.
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[[folder:Web Original]]
* Wiki/SCPFoundation's [[http://www.scp-wiki.net/scp-423 SCP-423]], also known as "Fred", is a roving character who can hop between books for fun. [[http://www.scp-wiki.net/scp-826 SCP-826]] is a pair of bookends that allows one to enter any work of fiction placed between them.
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[[folder:Western Animation]]
* In the ''{{Futurama}}'' episode "The Day the Earth Stood Stupid," Fry travels into books and assumes the roles of various characters.
* {{Gumby}}'s theme song points out that "he can walk into any book," and he does so frequently.
* In ''TheFairlyOddParents: Channel Chasers'', this happens to Timmy, also the episode "Shelf Life" has Timmy chasing [[TheAdventuresOfTomSawyer Tom Sawyer]] through different books after he stole Cosmo's wand.
* The ''WesternAnimation/TeenTitans'' animated series has them chasing Control Freak through a bunch of different TV shows.
* In ''WesternAnimation/BluesClues'', the main character, Steve, would "scadoo" into books to find clues. The story itself seems to take place inside a book.
* In ''WesternAnimation/ThePagemaster'' Richard travels through a mash-up storybook world based around tightly and neatly divided Adventure, Fantasy, and Horror genres and is, essentially, traveling from one book to another trying to find his way out.
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