The Janus Texts (imagemap)
Introduction
When film was invented, it was undefined as a medium unto itself. The camera was a fixed entity, recording a singular and constant perspective. With the development of cinematography, the camera became liberated from this tunnel vision. The likes of Charlie Chaplin, Buster Keaton, and Orson Welles explored the limits of the camera to help define its own medium. They didn't reinvent the camera, however. They reinvented the abilities of its content.

Hypertext is the modern medium, the new medium, and it is now in a period of redefinition. It has only recently emerged from its own infancy of simple screen dumps of text files. Writers have discovered its abilities to break free from narrative linearity. Corporations have applied their mass media business models for endorsements and advertisements. Organizations have found the new way to provide information with instant global access. Web nodes are looking more and more like pages of well-designed books instead of unformatted text.

The Janus Texts is a literary magazine specifically geared toward the evolving medium of hypertext. As poets and writers, we are exploring and inventing new rules for the presentation and flow of creative writing. Hypertext allows the linguistic free association of thought. It breaks the linear flow of narrative storytelling. It allows the writer to define new structures of presentation. Hyperlinks allow the instantaneous juxtaposition of contrasting elements. They are the intertwining paths of the writer's many perspectives on the creative theme. Now, in the electronic age, hypertext even allows the reader to become an editor and writer along with the rest.

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We hope you enjoy your visit.