Although begun in 1986, _We Descend_ did not become a hypertext until it was developed in two sessions of Robert Kendall's online course, Hypertext Poetry and Fiction, at the New School for Social Research in the summer and fall of 1995. Without Rob's thoughtful criticism and continued support, this work would likely still be just an ever-growing pile of notes.

A hypertext clinic at the Eastgate Conference in September 1995 permitted me to publicly present the general conception of the work for the first time. I am especially grateful to Mark Bernstein, Michael Joyce, and Stuart Moulthrop for their inspiriting interest and wise recommendations, and to John Giancola, Carolyn Guyer, Jon Hutcheson, John McDaid, Rosemary Simpson, Sarah Smith, John Tolva, and Cliff Wulfman for their very useful suggestions.

Several people also read early versions of _We Descend_: Alon Bochman, Rosemary Passantino, and Murray Baker Moulding, fellow students in Rob Kendall's class, helped immeasurably in my struggles to build a cogent structure for this peculiar story; Bill Neely, who had never read an electronic hypertext before, remained cheerful and patient through his befuddlement, keeping me ever mindful of the needs of the reader; Deena Larsen was the Muse of encouragement, and her own work continues to illuminate for me the possibilities of hypertext.

I would also like to thank Diane Greco of Eastgate Systems for her careful reading and incisive editing of the text and structure, and my beloved wife Deborah, whose gift for the perfect metaphor at the perfect time more than once helped me to escape from a conceptual cul-de-sac.

Finally, I must thank the Smiley family of Mohonk Lake, New Paltz, New York, the fruit of whose labor has inspired artists and visionaries for over a century.