Storyspace 2 for Macintosh

Is Storyspace Right For Me?

Storyspace 2 for Macintosh is a tool for collecting, organizing, and expressing complex ideas. A flexible, expressive, and graphically-rich workspace, Storyspace allows you to record ideas in virtually any medium (text, image, sound, video), and then reposition, revise, and shape them into final form.

1. OK, for starters, what is "hypertext"?

The word "hypertext" refers to a specific kind of writing. While customary text appears in a single sequence (e.g., page two always follows page one), hypertext presents the reader with multiple pathways through a document. These pathways are created using hypertext links, a special kind of hypertext object that permits readers to actuate sequences, just like turning a page. Unlike a book, however, the hypertext reader's repertoire of interaction is not limited to page-turning, but may include interventions that actually change the content of the work, for instance, by changing the outcome of a story. Simply put, hypertexts are branching textual objects that allow the reader to decide where to go next; in that sense, hypertexts are examples of non-sequential writing. Hypermedia, a cognate term, refers to documents that are structured like hypertexts (branching, non-sequential) but also include other media, such as images, video, or sound.

2. I'm a writer. What can Storyspace do for me?

Because Storyspace lets you create a collection of ideas, texts, images, and other inspirations, you always have a place to put those ideas that don't yet fit anywhere else. Storyspace lets you write without demanding much structure at the outset, so you can discover connections as you go along.

Noted writer Mark Amerika used Storyspace to map out his recent web fiction, Grammatron. In thinking back on the creation of Grammatron, Amerika recalls that "creating complex hypertext structures for the web is a nightmare because, after a certain point, one cannot visualize a cognitive mapping structure for a webwork that has literally thousands of screens and links. Fortunately, Storyspace provided me with the tools I needed to create a roadmap of where my story was going both content- and link-wise. Even after having published GRAMMATRON on the WWW, I have had to occasionally go back to my Storyspace version to see what the overall structure looks like!"

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3. I read all the time, and I'm an inveterate note-taker. But no matter how hard I try, I can't keep all the information in my head. Is there a better way to organize all this stuff?

Storyspace makes it easy to create large, multimedia notebooks with links, so you can easily see how all your ideas fit together. Even better, you can use the Storyspace search function to find notes pertaining to similar topics, and you can use keywords to mark those notes for easy retrieval later.

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4. I want to write a story that ends in several different ways, depending on what choices the reader makes earlier in the reading. Will Storyspace let me do this?

Storyspace was designed for just this kind of multilinear storytelling. Use Storyspace to plan all your multilinear stories, from the simplest choose-your-own adventure to multiply-plotted tales of intrigue like Michael Joyce's afternoon, a story or Stuart Moulthrop's Victory Garden.

The nuts-and-bolts of multilinear narration in Storyspace are simple. Most writers use guard fields -- conditions attached to links -- which are activated when a reader follows those links.

Read more...

5. I'm a teacher. What can you tell me about Storyspace in the classroom?

Storyspace has lots of classroom uses! For instance, you can use Storyspace to help composition students learn to organize complex ideas. While the graphical interface gives an intuitive sense of hierarchy, it is not as restrictive as an outline: ideas can grow organically, as students learn to make links between bits and pieces of a work-in-progress.

Learn more about using Storyspace in composition...

Storyspace has also been used in art and film classes. Teachers have found the software helpful in producing collaborative projects and facilitating discussion and interaction. Read more. . .

6. Help! I'm writing a dissertation. How I can make Storyspace work for me?

Storyspace is great for planning, organizing, and writing dissertations. With Storyspace, you can store field notes, bibliographies, brainstorms and polished drafts all in the same document! While Storyspace allows you to export your dissertation to HTML for easy Web conversion, Storyspace is also good for structuring dissertations intended to be read ultimately as print documents.

Peg Syverson used Storyspace to write her dissertation: "Storyspace was absolutely essential to the cognitive effort of keeping a large quantity of concepts, quoted material, notes, reflections, and relationships and also making some sense out of them. Because of Storyspace I did not panic about keeping so much diverse material in my head at once. As needed I simply added another text box and dropped material into it. I could move it around or link it to other boxes later as the connections became clear to me."

Read more about Peg's experiences...

Read more about Storyspace and field notes...

Read about Storyspace as a device for discovering and making connections in literary concordance...

7. Is Storyspace available for Windows?

Yes! Storyspace is available for Macintosh and for Windows.

8. Can I add sound to Storyspace files? What about images and video?

Yes. In addition to text, Storyspace 2 for Macintosh supports images (.jpgs and .gifs, among others), Quicktime video, and sound (Quicktime and .snd). When translating Storyspace documents to Web-readable HTML files, Storyspace for Macintosh translates images as .jpgs.

9. Can I use Storyspace to make a database?

Sure. Storyspace lets you create indices to collections of media assets. Structured properly, these indices can mimic a traditional database, and are much easier to navigate since the user is not restricted to predefined search terms and categories. To learn more about Storyspace as a database application, read David Caruba's report, Storyspace Versus the Database of Doom.

10. What about storyboarding?

Storyspace is certainly useful for storyboarding. HyperCafe, an award-winning interactive film written, directed, and produced by the team of Nitin Sawhney, David Balcom, and Ian Smith, was based on concepts initially developed in Storyspace. In Hypercafe the designers used Storyspace to build connections between scenes and to provide navigational bridges to connect narrative threads. According to Hypercafe's creators, "A primary influence for hypervideo originated in the hypertextual framework of Storyspace. Users create 'writing spaces' or containers for text and images, which they link to other writing spaces. The writing spaces form a hierarchical structure, which users can manipulate and reorganize."

Read more about Storyspace and Hypercafe ...

11. Do you offer site licenses?

We offer affordable 10, 50, and 100-pack site licenses. These prices are listed below. If you need more information about site licensing, please call (617) 924-9044 or send email to info@eastgate.com.

12. Can I use Storyspace to make a Web site?

Many people use Storyspace to design their web sites. Storyspace is a superb tool for planning large and complex sites -- especially when you need to get the link structure and navigation exactly right!

13. Can I add URLs to my Storyspace document?

Yes. To add a URL to a writing space, type in the entire URL, including the prefix http:// To follow a link to a URL, press the command key while clicking on the link.

14. Can I share my Storyspace project with friends who don't own Storyspace?

Absolutely! You don't have to pay royalties or obtain permission to distribute Storyspace files. Instead, Storyspace comes with a customizable Storyspace Reader which you can use to turn your Storyspace file into a freely-distributable stand-alone application.

15. I have a hypertext that I'd like to submit for publication with Eastgate. How do I do this?

Eastgate is always looking for new and exciting works of fiction, non-fiction and poetry that employ hypertextual techniques. We publish all sorts of formats, including works meant to be read in Web browsers, on CD-ROM and floppy disk.

If you have work that you'd like to submit for publication, please read Eastgate's guidelines for authors...

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Questions?

From the USA or Canada, call Eastgate Systems at (800) 562-1638. From overseas, call +1 (617) 924-9044. From anywhere, send e-mail to info@eastgate.com.

Educational discounts are available. Prices are subject to change without notice. Call for details, or email info@eastgate.com.