STORYSPACE: Method
Surely I’ve said this before, only it was likely in a more ‘over the river and through the woods’ way–which is my style unless I’m in a bad mood, and then I’m quite short and concise. Or concise anyway; I’m always short–regardless of mood.
Don’t you love that first paragraph above? I’ve said nothing!
However, this illustrates the point; some paths of lyrical prose may be interesting, but not necessary to plot or story. This is one of my personal approaches to the use of Storyspace and hypertext in narrative. I can embellish or expound for those who care to read this way, or allow those who just seek a quick journey to follow a thread made up of pure plot. Embellish and expound are not perhaps the right words; rather enhance and reveal would better describe my meaning here. A story told should be complete without the side trails; the meandering paths for my intent are bits of information that provide the more adventurous reader with a deeper perception of character and situation.
This, of course, is only one method of writing into the hypertext story world. One of the more heralded notions is to allow the reader to write the story by making it an entirely singular experience based on choice. I would wonder why; the author chooses to share, why not the reader?
The Lost Children: A Charity Anthology