• 1  Even though the first literary experiments on computers date back to the 1950s.
• 2  For a better definition and analysis of the typology of electronic literature, see N. Katherine Ha (...)
• 3  René Audet and Simon Brousseau, “Pour une poétique de la diffraction de l’œuvre littéraire numériq (...)
• 4  René Audet and Simon Brousseau, “Pour une poétique de la diffraction de l’œuvre littéraire numériq (...)

1Even though it is relatively young, barely thirty years old in fact,1 “electronic literature” has already been split into periods. When academics talk about it, they usually divide it into two major parts: the first period, when the emphasis was on hyperlinks and the resulting interactivity,2 and the second, that stands apart from this “hyperlink-centrism” to open up on to what René Audet and Simon Brousseau refer to as “media polyvalence,”3 which means “a broad and diversified use of the technical options provided by the digital medium. This shift results in the multiplication of media, a continual capacity to update and the historical stratification of the discourse.”4

• 5  “The most immediate temptation is to compare the electronic revolution with that of Gutenberg. […] (...)
• 6  Bertrand Gervais, “Naviguer entre le texte et l’écran. Penser la lecture à l’ère de l’hypertextual (...)

2From this perspective, the smartphone is the final stage in a long line of reading devices that have radically changed our relationship to reading and writing. Without seeing these changes as clear splits or even revolutions, we will instead retain these stages as heuristic figures that represent epistemological constellations, configurations of meaning, in short, paradigms—an in-depth analysis of the legitimacy of this temporal breakdown and of the formalisation of these stages themselves are not within the remit of this article. The first stage of modernity would then be, if we follow Roger Chartier’s intuition, the transition from the roll to the codex;5 consequently, the second, would be considered to be the invention and use of the computer, the “connected screen,” to use the expression coined by Bertrand Gervais,6 for literary purposes.

• 7  Here, we are just going to cover mobile devices with internet connections and a geolocation system (...)

3While these two paradigm shifts have already been extensively analysed, literary studies on smart mobile devices7 as a medium—from all points of view—remain rare, due to the relatively newness of these devices: the mass use of smart phones started about a decade ago. Consequently, our analysis is obviously not intended to provide definitive answers, but simply to shed light on a few research options and a number of questions relative to practices of reading and writing made possible by mobile devices. To do so, we will use a dual approach: on the one hand, from the range of questions we intend to cover, we will distinguish three types that will help to frame our approach. On the other, as we progress, we will examine issues related to the introduction of mobile devices in literature through real case studies.

• 8  For an examination of the role of the notebook in writing, especially for the writer-flâneur, see (...)
• 9  The use of the aesthetics and functionalities of analog media by contemporary digital platforms an (...)

4The first characteristic, perhaps the main one, of this type of device is their mobility and portability. These machines mean that we can write and read at any time and in any place—a particularity that applies also, in theory, to the laptop computer. Nevertheless, it can be highly uncomfortable to use a laptop for writing or reading, especially for reading or writing while walking. As such, we can state that mobile devices are not only “connected screens” but are also, and most importantly “freed screens.” The mobility they provide is incomparable with that of a computer, and electronic devices can compete with the portability of a notebook as a format for writing and poetry8 and, in terms of reading, with the accessibility of a book one always has to hand.9

• 10  A series by Rongier on Facebook. “Sébastien Rongier,” Facebook. [Online] https://www.facebook.com/ (...)
• 11  In particular, the “La ville écrite” section of his website Carnets. Arnaud Maïsetti, “La ville éc (...)
• 12  Even though Pierre Ménard’s multiform literary production and “multiplatform” are housed on the we (...)
• 13  With each new photo posted on Facebook, almost daily, Gilles Bonnet changes the title of the photo (...)

5Since mobile devices became products of mass consumption, and in particular smartphones, we can attest to a considerable upsurge in forms of electronic writing that are specifically characterised by the technical constraints this new writing medium imposes. They are conditioned, not only by the ergonomics of the platforms in question—Twitter being the perfect example—, but above all by what these devices allow—it is uncomfortable to write very long texts on a tactile screen—, the “digitally mobile” writer tends to poetically reflect his or her environment in haiku form, in aphorisms. Examples that spring to mind are the Matin series by Sébastien Rongier10 Arnaud Maïsetti’s11 and Pierre Ménard’s photos,12 and even, in the case of the Arbres series by Gilles Bonnet, where one simple word is used.13

• 14  Sébastien Rongier, “Disparition,” 2014, remue.net. [Online] http://remue.net/spip.php?rubrique723 (...)
• 15  Sébastien Rongier. “Disparition,” 2014, remue.net. [Online] http://remue.net/spip.php?rubrique723 (...)
• 16  The literary avatar Général Instin is on Twitter, Facebook and on remue.net. See also Sébastien Ro (...)
• 17  Général Instin, “SP 38. Campagne mondiale d’affichage instin,” Facebook. [Online] http://www.sp38. (...)
• 18  Général Instin, “campagne instin non officielle,”Facebook. [Online] https://www.facebook.com/gener (...)

6The electronic writer, in pulling away from the computer, indulges in a contemporary form of wandering or flânerie: so, we are treated to images and notes taken in the field, literally while passing by, giving an account of a passing impression of a place, a chance meeting or the descriptions of a town’s inhabitants. Not only do these notes and pictures appear on the platforms, websites and blogs, the typical options for electronic literature, but they also give rise to specific literary forms. Among these forms, we feel a few examples should be mentioned for future research. The Disparition14 series by Sébastien Rongier, where a photograph of a park bench with clothing, a bag and a box are spread out, becomes a writing constraint for guest writers, leading them to reflect on the poetic, interlocking process of mobility: by inserting a description of the context in the literary fragment that starts the series off—“I took this picture in early January 2014. I was passing by this little park and I saw this deserted bench. I kept walking but then turned back, waited a moment, then took the photo”15—, Rongier turns the circumstances around the taking of the photo into a stand-alone piece of literary material, removed from the actual content of the photo. In the same way, the fictional “multiplatform” character General Instin16 questions the poetics of mobility from the reader’s side: SP 3817 “Instin’s international poster campaign” as well as the so-called “unofficial”18 version, gathers testimonials about the General’s appearances in the four corners of the Earth. These traces are collected with mobile devices and contribute considerably to the development of the character’s collective identity, questioning the role of the author today.

• 19  Pierre Ménard, Les Lignes de désir, 2015-2016. [Online] http://leslignesdedesir.net [accessed 12 M (...)

7Finally, the mobility of these devices leads to the production of literary works that are specifically written with this characteristic in mind. Lignes de désir by Pierre Ménard is a prime example: the project is based on an online app using location technology to construct a narrative that is tailor-made for the user’s movements. The author himself says that Les Lignes de désir “tells the story of a photographer who criss-crosses Paris from one end of town to the other, looking for the woman he loves who has disappeared, in places they used to go to together.” The intermedia set-up of the project means users can listen to the story as they walk around the space in which the narrative takes place (the streets and riverside walks of the Ile Saint-Louis in Paris), developing, according to the route they choose and their movements (walking pace, direction, length of ground covered), a way of writing the text while walking.”19 In this project, portability and mobility, in as much as they are the actual conditions that make it possible—as the basis for both the reading and the writing of the piece, in short, the underlying poetics—, prove to be separate literary materials themselves.

• 20  For an in-depth examination of the changes the Internet has wrought on human perception of time an (...)
• 21  Louise Merzeau, using and developing the terminology adopted by Régis Debray’s mediology, proposed (...)
• 22  On this subject, see the seminal study by Nicolas Nova, Les Médias géolocalisés. Comprendre les no (...)
• 23  When I say “conversational” the meaning is the same as André Gunthert with regard to digital image (...)

8The second notable characteristic of these devices is their high-speed internet connections—which makes them fluid hubs inside a global network of communication as they act as entry and exit points of all sorts of information in real time.20 If the computer is a “connected screen,” the smartphone is always connected, in space and time, it is hyper-connected. And yet again, the Internet, while it is crucial, is not the only means to make this hyper connection possible:21 integrated geolocation technology also contributes to the way our position in the world is being defined, by redefining our relationship to space22—not only because the massive availability of location apps means it is rare to get lost in a city these days, but also because our spatial position has become a piece of data that can be shared, conversationally23 and semiotically—a poetic signifier and material in and of itself, just as much as language.

• 24  Roland Barthes, La Chambre claire. Notes sur la photographie, Paris, Gallimard/Seuil, 1980.

9For example, in the Arbres series by Gilles Bonnet, only a few of the photographs indicate where they were taken, through the Facebook location function. What is the function of geolocation in this case? Can we say that geolocation has a function similar to the one Barthes gave photography,24 meaning that location marking testifies to the fact that something happened? To take the photography analogy even further, in this series, does geolocation have an indexing function that anchors the photograph in real life? And if so, what about the others?

• 25  The Dérives collective saw the light of day first on the personal website of Victoria Welby, a wri (...)
• 26  See Daniel Chartier on this subject, “Introduction. Penser le lieu comme discours,” in Daniel Char (...)

10Bonnet’s use of geolocation is just one way among many others. Echoing the words of the artist Karlis Kalnins—to whom we owe the expression locative media, and for whom “location describes a situation, not a place”—the Montreal collective Dérives25 questions the techno-centred construction of the idea of geolocation, based notably on GPS technology. Taking literature to Twitter, and, to a lesser extent, Instagram, using the hashtag #dérive and a hashtag that indicates the name of a piece of Montreal’s urban landscape—streets, alleyways, neighbourhoods, parks, etc.—, the collective shows us the possibility of rethinking the idea of geolocation from a literary point of view: the located-being somewhere in space, is not only defined through technology, but also—and perhaps most of all—through the discursive construction of the idea of place.26

• 27  The writer-in-residence programme at the Lycée Henri Wallon in Aubervilliers gave rise to a work b (...)
• 28  The Résidence assignée section details the process of identity construction of places that appear (...)

11Another possibility for diverting away from the technical aspect of geolocation is that established by Cécile Portier. Her writing workshop Traque traces,27 asked high school students to write two series of numbers, with no explanations:28 they came up with the GPS coordinates of a given place. While the point where latitude meets longitude is just that, a point in space, a simple place is given a body and depth when inserted into a narrative network, that go beyond mere occupation of a space: in fitting poetically into the construction of a literary story, the place gains a real identity thanks to the narrativization of its location.

• 29  On the idea of interface in the digital age, see Alexander R. Galloway, The Interface Effect, Camb (...)

12The final category of questions calls for an analysis of the material nature of this type of device. The material nature of the traditional paper book has been the subject of much study, in particular with the new epistemology brought by the codex, and the advent of the computer. The introduction the tactile screens should also be covered in light of the new relationship between user—be it writer or reader—and the device itself. Taking Chartier’s reflection a little further, when he says that “with the computer, the mediation of the keyboard […] sets up a rift between the writer and the text,” it seems legitimate to ask what the consequences are of a form of reading and writing that requires one to touch the body of the text on a screen? What new interfaces and gestures will mobile, geolocated devices lead to?29

• 30 Pierre Ménard, “Présentation,” Les Lignes de désir, 2015-2016. [Online] https://lignesdesir.wordpre (...)
• 31  Kristin Veel, “The Irreducibility of Space: Labyrinths, Cities, Cyberspace,” Diacritics, vol. 33, (...)
• 32  Pierre Ménard, Les Lignes de désir, 2015-2016. [Online] http://leslignesdedesir.net [accessed 12 M (...)
• 33  The user does have access to readings of the texts, but the author uses the term “reading” so we w (...)

13One meaningful example of the new possibilities provided by these interfaces and literary gestures is the one we already mentioned, Lignes de désir by Pierre Ménard. According to the author, this mobile app uses a base of “365 texts specifically written for a non-linear reading that allows the process to be arbitrary.”30 Even though Pierre Ménard is indeed the author of all of the texts—of the story—, it is the user who strings them together, each time producing a different story, determined by the route and pace of the individual walking around the Ile Saint-Louis. This is the same process Kristin Veel described when talking about the archetypal figure of the flâneur in the labyrinth-city and, by extension, the ergodic reader: “the reader has to perform the process of the implied author, not that of the author.”31 The poetics of the “abandonment” of the authorial function in favour of the reader forms the basis of Lignes de désir also: as Pierre Ménard himself tells us, underlining the way the book and the city are so closely intertwined “a book becomes another book each time we read it. A city is the same kind of invention, a trip through time, each journey changes it. Walking in the streets, as if through the pages of a book, keeping a trace, with, over time, the surprise of seeing a path developing that did not exist when we were travelling.”32 Pierre Ménard’s project sees the entire body becoming a literary interface, thanks to which the user generates his or her own reading and writing path:33 the way the texts from the database arrange themselves according to the walking, stopping, slowing down and wanderings of the user make them as much about writing as reading.