Poetry for the digital age.
Among the various experimental and visual forms of poetry, hypertext poetry fully embraces the spirit of the Information Age. Digital interfaces allow poets to construct branching verses where readers choose their own path through the work, selecting color schemes, soundscapes, and narrative directions to shape their unique experience of the poem.
In contrast to other visual forms, the poet must let go and allow each reader to construct the poem as he or she pleases. The poem is no longer linear, but instead is multi-dimensional, giving rise to exploratory journeys of comparisons and cross-connections.
The reader as leader.
Hypertext poetry is reminiscent of the progression of experimental writing that puts readers in control of the content. This form harkens back to earlier, low-tech versions of works controlled by readers, such as Emily Dickinson's poems that utilize variant words written on the bottom of the page and B.S. Johnson's The Unfortunates, an unbound novel placed inside a box for readers to rearrange the papers to their preference.
Digital hypertext poetry works a bit differently. Instead of readers rearranging the order of entire pages, they have control over small snippets of language, with the title of the poem as the center and subsequent lines providing a journey through the poem and the relationship of words, images, and ideas. The technology enhances traditional poetic forms, from haiku to free verse, and works with every level of structure, from strict sonnets to the most expressive visual poetry.
A rich history.
The roots of hypertext poetry trace back to the 1980s, when poets began experimenting with Storyspace and other early hypertext systems. The form gained momentum with the World Wide Web, and by the 2000s, platforms like SpicyNodes (created by the WebExhibits team) enabled poets to create radial, animated verse structures. Today, tools like Twine continue this tradition, allowing anyone to craft branching, interactive poetry that speaks to how we navigate information in the digital age.