The first step to becoming the next great hunter is to find the missing link.
In this blog post, we'll tell you why finding it is so important and how you can go about doing so. We'll also provide a few of our favorite tips for locating elusively-hidden links in your code. With these tips, all it takes is one click and voila! The mystery of where that line of code was hiding will be solved!
## The following are introductions for fictional books:
Write an introduction to a young adult book titled "Damon's Awakening".
It's time for Damon’s Awakening.
Write an introduction to a young adult book titled "Dina's Adventure".
It's time for Dina’s Adventure.
In your introduction:
Write an introduction to a young adult book titled "The Magic of Sloth".
It's time for The Magic of Sloth.
1. A Simple Link is a phrase or single sentence that links to another bit of text, in the same document or in another document on the Internet. It has no emotive link, meaning it has nothing other than the informational value that ties it together and brings you back to where you need to be.
2. A Reference Link is a phrase or single sentence that doesn't just describe the destination, but actually says where it is. It also must have an emotive link, meaning it has something more to it than just the informational value that ties it together and brings you back to where you need to be. The emotive link can be very easy to understand (for example, "See Wikipedia") or encoded in clever ways requiring some knowledge of the source content, such as an obliquely placed word or title ("See Pareidolia").
3. A Reference Link needs Context. The Reference Link must be in context with the previous text. Otherwise, it means nothing and doesn't appear to be a link at all.
4. A Reference Link needs a Natural Reading Order. The Reference Link must literally make sense when read in the order it appears. The reader knows that something is missing, but can guess, at least sometimes, where that missing piece is or why it might have been left out. The most common case of this involves titles of documents, articles and books—the titles are assumed to be in some logical order that doesn't include skipping around or using synonyms or additional words (for example, "The Nothing That Is"). The Reference Link also needs to make sense when read out of order (for example, "See [title here]" where you can tell the title isn't next just from reading it).
5. A Reference Link must be In Situ. The Reference Link must appear where you would expect a Reference Link to appear, which is usually near the text being linked. It should either be in the same paragraph or even closer, like a footnote or other type of annotation right on the same page. Generally, it makes sense that if someone found an interesting bit of text they might want to know where it came from and would therefore expect to see a reference link nearby.
6. A Reference Link has Emotive Content. The Reference Link must have a clear, emotive link as well as an informational link that keeps it from being considered a simple piece of text.
7. A Reference Link is Contextual. The Reference Link must be in context with the preceding text, meaning it must appear near or immediately following the preceding reference link so that it doesn't seem to be just a random bit of text to go with whatever was written before. It should also make sense in its own right, like a section header or footnote, and make sense when read out of order.
8. A Reference Link is Emotive. The Reference Link must obviously be meaningful, but it must be important enough to the person reading and comprehending the text that they might want to know when something of interest occurs within it.
9. A Reference Link is Captivating. The Reference Link must evoke an emotional response in a reader with curiosity about where it came from or what it means. It should also evoke a visceral response with something more than just a mild curiosity, perhaps by imitating the style of an old book or magazine article from the time period the source is originating from, or maybe even by being ironic or just plain funny in nature (for example, "See [title here] at [publisher]").
10. A Reference Link is a Search Engine Optimized Snippet. The Reference Link must be optimized for search engine and social media platforms, so that it can bring a reader back to the invitation to explore further and be able to maximize the amount of time spent reading the source text.
11. A Reference Link gives you Context. The Reference Link must be within the context of the preceding text, which means it must appear within some other sentence that may or may not have had any reference links in it before it.
12. A Reference Link gives you Context. The Reference Link must appear near or immediately following the preceding reference link, so that the reader understands that something is missing and must be read to find out what it is.
13. A Reference Link can have Emotive Content. Just like a reference link can, a "captivating" Reference Link can have emotive content as well; it must be significant enough to naturally make your readers want to refer back and explore further but not so important that they need to in order to fulfill their curiosity.
14. If at All Possible, Don't Call Your Links "References". A Reference Link must be called a Reference Link. It can be a "reference" link, but it should not be called a "reference".
15. Exercise the Right Side of Your Brain. A Reference Link must be used in the right side of your brain more than the left, for example by using style rather than logic to make it work. This will help encourage your readers to explore further and keep them intrigued by what they find.
16. But Exercise Your Left Side Too. Like all other parts of your brain, you should use the left side of your brain to help connect the dots and fill in gaps in the chain of knowledge. Use an expressive, emotive and engaging style that encourages exploration.
Rules for Extending the Application of Linking Theory to Text and Images
1. At least one Reference Link must be present. The whole point of a Reference Link is to invite interpretation, not to just provide information—and one Reference Link implies there may be many more in context waiting for you to find them.
2. A Reference Link does not have to be simply a reference as defined above, but it should not exclude that possibility either. It should be open to interpretation and possibly be interpreted in an emotive or even humorous way. It should also have something about it that makes you want to look at the source text further and explore it more in depth.
3. When Reference Links are applied to text that actually contains less than two sentences, keep the first one close to the second one. No matter how good a reference link this is, everyone will get the idea that something is missing if they read just two sentences then skip forward 70 words without any reference links present.
4. Link whenever you can but don't overdo it. A Reference Link should almost always appear in context with a paragraph (or even within a clause). But sometimes, probably most of the time, a Reference Link will be a companion to an image or illustration as much as it is to text.
5. Link if you must but don't overuse it. A Reference Link should almost always appear in context with a paragraph (or even within a clause). But sometimes it shouldn't, especially when no relevant text or images are present or when the context is so lacking that their inclusion would be redundant.
6. Link whenever you can but don't overdo it. Like all other parts of your brain, use your left side and emotions to help bridge the gap between words and pictures, with style and emotion driving your thoughts rather than logic and rational thinking being behind them.
Just like with any other text-based or image-based element on your website, a Reference Link should be treated and designed as though it was the only section of your website out there. The rules and best practices above should be followed to help ensure that you get the most out of your content.
If you have any more questions about how to use reference links and how important they are, please don't hesitate to leave a comment below. If you have any questions about the other elements of this post or why we included them, again feel free to leave a comment below. We'll do our best to get back to you within 48 hours.
The reference link icon ( ) was created by from from . (as shown above) and the arrow icon ( ) is by from . Both are licensed for use through .