100 DAYS PROJECT: #52
Family Tree
After the more serious, too realistic nature of #51 Snakes and Snails, I was happy to be inspired today to cut loose a bit and let my imagination take leave of reality.
Unfortunately, I don’t have that wild anything goes streak that Steve and many of the others allow to emerge in their work; it’s there, I just can’t seem to unlock the gates to set it loose on the public. I’ll likely be eighty and writing the strangest, free-est tales of my life. Well, not about my life; those will never get past my fingers or lips.
Couple things I realized with this story; first, that I tend to use the map as a source of inspiration and it becomes as much a part of the story as the words (that’s a tree by the way). Second, that while I aim to always link semantically, it’s not always possible on such short notice. The text links are relative in some form however, even if it’s a “he” or “she” thread pattern I’m weaving. And as always, the final link in the space is usually the boring, most direct route.
Another thing I’m becoming more aware of is how to direct the reader to take one path over another by word choice. For example, in a previous hypertext #46 Suicide Notes, it seemed that at a certain point in the story the text word of “father” would want to be clicked after foreshadowing led to that point. In this piece, well, I’m kind of guessing that “suck” will win out over “falling.”
The Lost Children: A Charity Anthology
July 12th, 2009 at 8:52 pm
Okay, the first thing I want to know is how you got a tree-shaped map. Did you plan the map, then write the story to fit it? That seems anti-artistic, somehow. If it’s a happy coincidence it’s a very cool effect. (See? Trying to notice everything.)
Also, I’m insulted that you think I would choose a word like “suck” over… whatever the other word was. Really.
July 13th, 2009 at 4:44 am
Well I’m cheating in a couple of ways. I have each story file prepped with a css sheet, an html template, a title page (used to check color combos and to be filled in with title once it’s chosen for a piece), and a Tinderbox program set up with map of 20 large boxes and 10 small ones in a rectangular pattern. From there I start writing into the chosen file, and start rearranging the boxes as I want. So this is not a coincidence, but happened as I started writing and it became a part of the story as it worked with the dual storyline.
Sorry about the assumption; which did you select?
July 13th, 2009 at 10:14 pm
As a matter of fact, I forgot about this conversation when I read it and chose falling. They didn’t get to do it until my third pass through! It reminded me of how I would write when my mother was editing my stuff. It would all be, “Tenderly they kissed… and the next morning–“!