Writer's Resources

In what seems to be a male dominated field at times, its wonderful to find a female face who is ready to get stuck in.

In this issue of Reactive Interviews we talk to Jayne Loader aka the WWWench and find out a little more about her on-line projects.

Q. What got you interested in doing a hypertext project on the web?

Public Shelter was originally a promotional site for my CD-ROM. It went up in September of 1995. One of the things I've learned about Websites is that if you don't keep the site fresh and interesting, no one will return. So I decided to write an online column.

WWWench was originally non-fiction, with lots of links. After I had been doing the column for a couple of months, I realized that this would be an interesting way to publish some of my fiction. So I started adding links to my short stories. Then I started reading more hyperfiction and understanding the various structures. So now there are internal links and external links, into cyberspace.

Q. Why the WWWench?

Because a wench is kind of bawdy (or baudy) and sexy, but tough, the kind of girl who would bash you in the head with a tankard of ale, if you gave her any trouble.

Q. What sort of reactions have you received and have comments affected consequent issues of the WWWench?

Most of the comments have been incredibly generous. I have gotten wonderful reviews from places like The New York Times on the Web, and exceptionally positive letters from people in the hyperfiction community. I try not to take it all too seriously and get the proverbial big head. One of my goals as an artist is to never let other people's comments affect my work.

Q. What are you trying to achieve with the WWWench and what audience are you aiming at?

WWWench is a way for me to write about whatever interests me at the moment--from sex sites to movies to political scandals--while at the same time carving out some new turf for myself, in terms of an art form. The style of the writing binds the disparate subjects together. I'm not aiming at any particular audience. I hope everybody on the Net reads WWWench!

Q. Women in general often seem to create quite aggressive images on the Internet, this could be suggested by the WWWench, do you think this is a fair comment and why do you think these images are created?

I agree, women on the Net are very aggressive. I think this is a response to the combative (male) style of newsgroups. Women are just trying to hold their own and not get stomped on. I don't feel WWWench is particularly aggressive, given that context, but then again I was educated via the Socratic method and in arguments I tend to take no prisoners.

Q. What are the advantages/disadvantages of working on the web over other more traditional media?

Advantage: You can self-publish for very little money and get an enormous amount of attention.

Disadvantage: You don't get paid.

Q. What advice would you give to someone trying to set up a similar project on the web?

Find good people to collaborate with! WWWench has been a solo project up to now, but my next project, Flygirls (http://www.flygirls.com), will be more of a collaborative effort. I am working with a terrific artist on Flygirls, Holly Fahey (http://www.centripedus.com). Flygirls will be a major hypertext novel with 19 different characters. It's about a air race from Los Angeles to Cleveland, Ohio, in the summer of 1929. All the top women pilots of the day were involved, including Amelia Earhart (who lost) and the British aviatrix Sophie Mary, Lady Heath! You'll be able to follow each of the characters' stories, or follow the race chronologically, over the course of 10 days. Or you can jump from city to city. There will be film, photos, diary entries, letters, graphics, a database, as well as links to other aviation-related sites. We'll also feature vintage ads for products that changed women's lives, like Kotex! Depending on funding, we're hoping to have an on-line flight simulator, and to provide an educational component at the site to teach science, technology, history, geography, celestial navigation, and basic aeronautics to girls.

Q. Where do you see the WWWench or any future projects you have going next?

WWWench is physically moving to a new on-line magazine called Bleach on November 1st. It will be redesigned by the great typographer, Barry Deck (speaking of collaborating with wonderful people). Barry did the design for Doug Cooper's great hypertext novel, Delirium.

In addition to Flygirls, we are doing the official site for the movie Hoop Dreams (http://www.hoopdreams.com). What we'll do at this site is retell the story of the movie with a new group of kids--rich kids, poor kids, black kids, white kids, and, this time, girls!