Shadow of
Draconis
Hypertext
Hypertext is text displayed on a computer display or other electronic devices with references (hyperlinks) to other text that the reader can immediately access. Hypertext documents are interconnected by hyperlinks, which are typically activated by a mouse click, keypress set, or screen touch. Apart from text, the term "hypertext" is also sometimes used to describe tables, images, and other presentational content formats with integrated hyperlinks. Hypertext is one of the key underlying concepts of the World Wide Web,[2] where Web pages are often written in the Hypertext Markup Language (HTML). As implemented on the Web, hypertext enables the easy-to-use publication of information over the Internet. (Wikipedia contributors, 2023)
These Waves of Girls is a hypermedia novella by Caitlin Fisher that won the Electronic Literature Organization's Award for Fiction in 2001. The work is frequently taught in undergraduate literature courses and is referenced in the field of electronic literature as a significant example of early multimodal web-based hypertext fiction, placing Fisher "at the forefront of digital writing".
afternoon, a story, spelled with a lowercase 'a', is a work of electronic literature written in 1987 by American author Michael Joyce. It was published by Eastgate Systems in 1990 and is known as one of the first works of hypertext fiction.
The SCP Foundation is a fictional secret organization fostered by the collaborative-writing wiki project of the same name. Within the website's shared universe, the Foundation is responsible for capturing, containing, and studying various paranormal, supernatural, and other mysterious phenomena unexplained by science (known as "anomalies" or "SCPs"), while also keeping their existence hidden from the rest of human society.
In 1965, Ted Nelson introduced the concept of "hypertext" at the national conference of the American Computer Society (Ted Nelson Regarding "Hyper-text" 1965, n.d.). The core of hypertext as a literary genre lies in its use of electronic hyperlinks, which establish connections between different forms of text (text, sound, images, etc.) through keywords. This allows for current reading to reference the content of other texts, thus aligning more closely with the human cognitive characteristics of multilinearity, cross-referencing, and associative thinking (Delany & Landow, 1991).
The most striking novelty in hypertext is its multidirectional and often labyrinthine linking system (Coover, 1992, p. 24). In contrast to the unidirectionality of traditional narrative modes, where readers can only proceed from the first page to the last, hypertext readers have the freedom to determine their own paths and change directions. They can start reading the story from any given node, switch to any other plot, and freely adjust the reading sequence. Hypertext links are likened to "the interstate highway and road system of a country" (Deemer, 1994).
Initially, most hypertext novels were produced and sold in CD-ROM format, but with the proliferation of internet tools, the forms of hypertext fiction have become more diverse. In 2004, Matthew Baldwin created The Live Journal of Zachary Marsh through blogging, and in 2002, Rob Wittig distributed Blue Company via email. The development of the internet further breaks down the barriers between writers and readers, as in theory, all texts in the digital environment are equidistant and unrestricted, making collective creation possible. The Unknown, a hypertext novel co-authored by four writers from 1998 to 2001, is an example of such an attempt (The Unknown | ELMCIP, n.d.).
References:
Deemer, C. (1994). What is hypertext?. Online][Accedido: 22 de octubre de 2004]. Dirección: http://www. ibiblio. org/cdeemer/hypertxt. htm.
Delany, P., & Landow, G. P. (1991). Hypermedia and literary studies.
Main - SCP Foundation. (n.d.). https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/
Perloff, M. (2004). Differentials: poetry, poetics, pedagogy. University of Alabama Press.
The Unknown | ELMCIP. (n.d.). https://elmcip.net/creative-work/unknown