Comments on: Hypertext Fiction or Power Trip? http://boomerspeak.wordpress.com/2008/03/11/hypertext-fiction-or-power-trip/ Perspectives on life from the half-century mark Wed, 14 May 2008 20:43:06 +0000 http://wordpress.com/ hourly 1 By: gypsysavage http://boomerspeak.wordpress.com/2008/03/11/hypertext-fiction-or-power-trip/#comment-7 gypsysavage Fri, 14 Mar 2008 18:57:37 +0000 http://boomerspeak.wordpress.com/?p=20#comment-7 Take a deep breath. Relax. You don't have to read it ever again. That's got to count for something. Take a deep breath. Relax. You don’t have to read it ever again. That’s got to count for something.

]]> By: boomerspeak http://boomerspeak.wordpress.com/2008/03/11/hypertext-fiction-or-power-trip/#comment-6 boomerspeak Fri, 14 Mar 2008 15:57:44 +0000 http://boomerspeak.wordpress.com/?p=20#comment-6 Will do! Will do!

]]> By: BW http://boomerspeak.wordpress.com/2008/03/11/hypertext-fiction-or-power-trip/#comment-5 BW Tue, 11 Mar 2008 18:02:02 +0000 http://boomerspeak.wordpress.com/?p=20#comment-5 Why does the author have to "get to the point"? This is a hypertext story, not an academic essay. Would you say that Melville has to get the the point? Or, Faulknor? Or Stephen King? Why create an antagonistic relationship between writer and reader right off the bat? As Landow suggests, there is more going on here than words on a screen and links on a page. Blandable has located one of those things; there are many others. I suggest that your reaction to the story indicates that the author has "gotten to a point" on the first page: to ask the reader to question the medium of writing, the goal of sentences, the structure of narrative, etc. In this sense he is hyper-aware of his audience, attempting to anticipate exactly what their reaction will be. Release the constraints that years of reading and schooling have placed on you (and all of us) with regards to the order of things, take more than a few minutes to consider what he is doing with the links and how the narrative is flowing, appreciate the beauty of his prose and dialgue (which gets quite wonderful at points) and see where it takes you. Why does the author have to “get to the point”? This is a hypertext story, not an academic essay. Would you say that Melville has to get the the point? Or, Faulknor? Or Stephen King? Why create an antagonistic relationship between writer and reader right off the bat? As Landow suggests, there is more going on here than words on a screen and links on a page. Blandable has located one of those things; there are many others.

I suggest that your reaction to the story indicates that the author has “gotten to a point” on the first page: to ask the reader to question the medium of writing, the goal of sentences, the structure of narrative, etc. In this sense he is hyper-aware of his audience, attempting to anticipate exactly what their reaction will be.

Release the constraints that years of reading and schooling have placed on you (and all of us) with regards to the order of things, take more than a few minutes to consider what he is doing with the links and how the narrative is flowing, appreciate the beauty of his prose and dialgue (which gets quite wonderful at points) and see where it takes you.

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