Michelle_5_Bernstein and Greco

There's been so much talk about the possibilities of hypertext lit, and there's starting to be a substantial base of hypertext literature to work with. Anyone who has actually tried to write in hypertext understands how incredibly difficult it is to keep track of what's going on if you're writing in straight HTML, especially if you're writing a self-contained story. A program like Storyspace is as much for the writer as it is for the reader to keep track of branching and threads and keep track of where you've been.
That being said, I like that Bernstein and Greco are suggesting some alternative ways to construct hypertext literature. Just as printing allowed for more people to have their works read, a simpler software construct can allow more people to write in hypertext. Sure, great literature can be written with an ink pen and parchment (the equivalent of HTML to hypertext lit), but the word processor sure has made it easier.
That being said again, I love the idea of Thespis. Taking things backwards seems like a messy idea at first, until I compared it to sculpting. Michelangelo is quoted as saying, "Every block of stone has a statue inside it and it is the task of the sculptor to discover it." The story is there-and sometimes starting with a big blob and getting rid of everything you don't need might lead to unexpected connections.