The same is true for creating the characters. The author has to create places where the characters go through situations so the reader can learn the character's thoughts and reactions. In hypertext, the character's thoughts or ideas can be attached to a link, reachable from a main body of text. Each time a situation unfolds, the reader can easily click on different links to get the different character's reactions to what is happening. Hypertext didn't just pop up one day, it has branched out from not only previous writing styles, but from artistic movements, such as Dadaism.
People today are more in tune with breaking things down into smaller elements.
We categorize and classify most everything in hopes that we can reference these items easily in the future. Yet, today, categorizing doesn't seem so strange, it seems second nature. So does hypertext. We have been building up to a point where we can loose the linear flow, and create depth to novels, and today we have an easy way to implement it. This way is called linking.