Rebooting Electronic Literature: Documenting Pre-Web Born Digital Media

Thomas M. Disch’s "AMNESIA"

Thomas M. Disch's Biography


When Thomas M. Disch died on July 4, 2008, he left behind a large body of work that included 17 novels, four novellas, eight story collections, 13 poetry collections, four works of non-fiction, five anthologies, two plays, five works for children, two audio works, and one computer game. He was eulogized by The Guardian an “American science fiction writer whose strange, dark worlds mixed horror and wit.” The New York Times said Disch was a writer who “twisted the inherently twisted genre of science fiction in new, disturbing directions.” But it is that one computer game, an oddity actually, that places him in the sphere of born digital media. Growing up in Des Moines, Iowa, Disch loved literature and developed an interest in science fiction at an early age. He served in the military, worked odd jobs, lived abroad for a time, and eventually was able to make a living by his writing. New York became his adopted home and he lived there with his long-time partner, the poet Charles Naylor, until Naylor’s death in 2005.
Versions of "AMNESIA"

✭ Version 1.0: Published on two 5.25-inch floppy disks in 1986 by Electronic Arts.

Special Note: A folio was produced by Harper & Row in anticipation of the work published by that company.


References

Hawtree, Christopher. “Thomas Disch Obituary.” The Guardian. 8 July 2008. https://www.theguardian.com/books/2008/jul/09/culture.obituaries.

Martin, Douglas. “Thomas Disch, Novelist, Dies at 68." The New York Times.  8 July 2008. https://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/08/books/08disch.html.

“Thomas M. Disch.” The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction, 3rd Edition. Ed. John Clute, David Langford, and Peter Nicholls. 9 Oct. 2017. http://www.sf-encyclopedia.com/entry/disch_thomas_m.


Resources

AMNESIA. Moby Games. https://www.mobygames.com/game/amnesia.

Ansari, Hamza. “Amnesia.” Adventure Classic Gaming. 10 Dec. 2013. http://www.adventureclassicgaming.com/index.php/site/reviews/836/

Disch, Thomas M. Design Script for AMNESIA. Gallery of Undiscovered Entities. http://gue.cgwmuseum.org/galleries/index.php?pub=0&item=67&id=3&key=1.

---. "Endzone." Thomas Disch LiveJournalhttps://tomsdisch.livejournal.com

O’Donnell, Joseph (joe042293). “Thomas M. Disch’s AMNESIA Walkthrough, Vo. 1.” GameFAQs. 19 Aug. 2006.  https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/pc/581535-amnesia/faqs/44464.

Scott, Jason. “The AMNESIA Manuscript.” ACSII by Jason Scott. 11 Oct. 2008. http://ascii.textfiles.com/archives/1458.

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