Everything about Hypertext Fiction totally explained
Hypertext fiction is a genre of
electronic literature, characterized by the use of
hypertext links which provides a new context for non-linearity in "literature" and reader interaction. The reader typically chooses links to move from one node of text to the next, and in this fashion arranges a story from a deeper pool of potential stories. Its spirit can also be seen in
interactive fiction.
The term can also be used to describe traditionally-published books in which a non-linear and interactive narrative is achieved through internal references.
Vladimir Nabokov's
Pale Fire (1962) and
Julio Cortázar's
Rayuela (1963; translated as
Hopscotch) are early examples (predating the word
hypertext), while a common pop-culture example is the "
Choose Your Own Adventure" format of young adult fiction.
History
The first hypertext fictions were published prior to the development of the
World Wide Web, using software such as Storyspace and Hypercard.
Michael Joyce's
Afternoon, a story, first presented in
1987 and published by
Eastgate Systems in
1991, is generally considered one of the first hypertext fictions.
Afternoon was followed by a series of other
Storyspace hypertext fictions from
Eastgate Systems, including
Stuart Moulthrop's
Victory Garden,
its name was Penelope by Judy Malloy, (whose hyperfiction
Uncle Roger was published online on Artcom Electronic Network on The WELL from 1986-1987) Carolyn Guyer's
Quibbling,
Shelley Jackson's
Patchwork Girl and Deena Larsen's
Marble Springs. Judy Malloy's
l0ve0ne
, created in 1994, was the first selection in the Eastgate Web Workshop.
Douglas Cooper's
Delirium (
1994) was the first novel serialized on the
World Wide Web; it permitted navigation between four parallel story strands. Shortly thereafter, in 1997,
Mark Amerika released
GRAMMATRON, a significantly more multi-linear work which was eventually exhibited in art galleries. In 2000, it was included in the
Whitney Biennial of American Art.
(External Link)(External Link)
Some other web examples of hypertext fiction include Adrienne Eisen's
Six Sex Scenes (1995),
Stuart Moulthrop's
Hegirascope, (1995,1997)
Sunshine 69,
The Unknown (which won the trAce(Alt X award in
1998),
The Company Therapist, and Caitlin Fisher's
These Waves of Girls (
2001) (which won the ELO award for fiction in 2001).
The internationally oriented but U.S. based
Electronic Literature Organization (ELO) was founded in
1999 to promote the creation and enjoyment of electronic literature. Other organisations for the promotion of electronic literature include
trAce Online Writing Community, a British organisation that has fostered electronic literature in the UK, Dichtung Digital, a journal of criticism of electronic literature in English and German, and ELINOR, a network for electronic literature in the Nordic countries, which provides
a directory of Nordic electronic literature.
The Electronic Literature Directory lists many works of electronic literature in English and other languages.
Further Information
Get more info on 'Hypertext Fiction'.
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