Hypercompendia

Uh, not for nuthin’ but I’ve been through the Flight Paths site again and the actual narrative appears to only be 2 paragraphs total so far while the terms and conditions of particpation are about 23 paragraphs long.  It’s nice to cover all bases, but is this where the creativity was spent?  There also appears to be plenty of backing for this project but I’m not fond of the machinations of the site, which is is rather a confusing pattern that brings you into Word Press with a single click from your main sign-in page.

Nevertheless, I shall be patient and watch as this thing develops.

So, how do I apply for a grant?

Well I’ve read about Flight Paths here (Mark Bernstein) and there (Steve Ersinghaus) and elsewhere, so naturally went to check it out.  It is supposedly a Networked Novel in that it is not only presented online, but others (anyone who registers) may add to via comments, videos, home movies, etc. that may or may not have anything to do with the narrative.  Though of course, once it’s there, it becomes part of it, relative or not.  I think.  And, because I’m a student of interesting developments in literary fields I joined up, notwithstanding the strict rules and regulations of participation that all but wanted me to roll over and play dead.

But I have a problem.  As I pooh-poohed the fence that might’ve kept more intelligent folk away and hopped right in, I can’t find the story.  I mean, there’s a blog and all, but I can’t find the novel that this project by Writers (and the only two that shall hold that title) Kate Pullinger and Chris Joseph. 

Maybe I’m just hypertextually deficient.  I’ll get back on this.

UPDATE: More links on Flight Path at Grand Text Auto and if: book.  And frankly, if everyone is quoting the opening lines of the story I don’t think anyone else found the rest of it either.  Really, I’m looking for a bit more of a ‘novel’ than a couple paragraphs towards that end.

Now that I’ve removed all former links between stories, the Map View gives me a much better idea of what and where the story is going.  I do want to relink at some of the points that I had originally, but now I’ll be able to do so without the use of guard fields (for the most part) because I can see where I can go back into a different area and come out at a point that is natural and moves the story forward.

Still have a slight problem with the narrative now being overly controlled, but I may just have to bite it on this one.  With the new project, working with the Storyspace environment should automatically gear me towards writing within the parameters to be able to understand how to write outside of them.

Oh wow.  I found a perfect spot where all the stories lined up where I can have one link to another to another to another and exit gracefully into the main narrative without an awkward connection. 

Oh yes, it certainly will have the reader wondering what’s going on, but it may give him some answers as well since it will be the first time the characters are in such close proximity to each other, reaching through time and possibility to do the impossible.

It needs some fine-tuning, but I think it’s going to work and it comes at a time in the story where things should be somewhat understood.

Well I’m really liking the way the path rolls out on  this project (Paths) now and I’m about a  little over halfway through the changes.  The story seems to read better, offer more intrigue and question, and offer me more leeway into expansion if the opportunity calls for it.

The bad news–and this may be only because of the way I’m doing it–is that is seems to offer a single path to be read properly (ah yes, what is proper anyway?).  Not too worried about it though since I think I’m already seeing ways around that so that the story can offer some differences besides the two options of following me, or getting lost.

I do love working in the Map View format, though I still would like to be able to telescope children out of the parental boxes so that one can work in the entire piece AND be able to use the Chart View and Outline View as well.  Right now, after I spent hours setting up the Chart View and found I couldn’t use the Map View because of the hierarchy, I reset up the Map as the main workplace and use Chart only if I’ve lost a kid somewhere’s in the mall.

As I’ve been cutting the ties between the stories where I’d formerly had them linked (such as based on the word ‘morning’ and connecting from Story 1 to Story 4), and removing the guard fields, I still haven’t quite the nerve to rearrange the map to accurately reflect the changed flow of story. 

Maybe tomorrow I’ll get braver.

Finally have had the nerve to sever all relationship links between the stories as they were originally set up.  It’s just too difficult to keep track of them and they’d still need the guard fields which, as I am coming to understand, aren’t used much by the pro writers.

It does seem as though the new way I’m mapping this is more restrictive–even without guard fields–because I’m setting up a more defined path through the stories.  The natural flow seems to go here, then here, then there, then a word from our sponsor, etc.  The most important change is that the reader is allowed to get a fuller view of whichever life he’s visiting since he can stay within the story for a few spaces, ramble around into it’s own offshooting links, and return to the main narrative flow.  He will also be reading a bit of each story in its proper sequence even though I will have him hopping back and forth among them.

I am allowing the reader to remain within any one story if he so chooses however.  There will be a code that can be recognized for what it is after a reader is into the narrative a bit, though it won’t be outrageously obvious.  The main followthrough, the way I would read it, will be navigated by the Writing Space Click.  For continuation of a single story, there will be a text link, though it won’t be on every Writing Space and that’s why I say it won’t become obvious immediately.  As a matter of fact, as I write this, I’m wondering if this is such a good idea since once that path is followed, it will either bring the reader to the end of that particular thread, or it will bring him back into the main trail at an odd moment, having missed a good portion of the ongoing, interwoven narrative.

Truly, while this pre-setup format of hypertext story was thought to be such a good idea, thinking back now, it would’ve been much easier to start from scratch and write hypertextually instead of thinking hypertext.

Storyspace has indeed opened up Paths into much more than it started out being, and I’ve posted several times on its methods of accomplishing this.  However, in this particular project, in changing the narrative structure–rerouting I guess you’d call it–I find any creative force squelched by the need to find connecting words that build bridges between the threads of story to make the whole thing work.

Not a fun time right now and I’m anxious to get it done and shelved.

Trying to get this project done and over with but the map is starting to look like a Brillo pad.  That’s because in my own bumbling manner I’ve been hesitant to actually cut the ties that have held the story together up to this major overhaul. I’m still not sure that the basic premise of the theory I’m depending upon is sound so I’ve got Plan B still in effect.

There are natural breaks in the narratives but do they melt easily enough into the break of one of the other threads?  It’s not as simple or as dopey as linking tongue to tongue anymore.  It’s got to be a smooth transition but it still has to hit with an obvious we’re not in Kansas anymore appeal.  I may be reverting to an old bad habit here of not trusting the reader.  Gotta get my head together on this.  Storyspace is making it easy enough to make these editing changes; I just have to do my part.

Via Dennis Jerz’s post on the Frotzophone, I followed his link to Adam Parrish’s original post on the Frotzophone and the audio sound it adds to interactive fiction.

Don’t need to repeat the postings here as they’re pretty much covered over there, but I did want to make a note of this development and keep it in mind as it sounds like it could be kind of neat and go along with the video interactive story I’ve been thinking about.

Adam’s weblog gives a more in depth progress report on the concept and the work.