Photos of Michael Joyce's "afternoon, a story"
The photos of Michael Joyce's afternoon, a story found in this chapter are copies Grigar owns and holds in her library in the Electronic Literature Lab. Of the 13 editons of the work, she is missing only three: the 1st (1987), 2nd (1989) and the 5th (1992). The first two of these are extremely rare, amounting to approximately 60 copies total. The photos of the rest of the editions provide detailed information about the way in which the work was presented over the years.
3rd Edition (1990) Folio, Front
The folio is cream in color and made of vinyl. The ink printed on the front is a purplish maroon.
"Afternoon" (not contained in quotes) is written across the top of the folio in the largest font. "by" is centered underneath it, followed by "Michael Joyce":
Afternoon
by
Michael Joyce
The Yoni symbol occupies the majority of the folio's front, contained in a rectangular box with a purple border. The box casts a drop shadow along its right and bottom edges. A lowercase "a" resides in the bottom left portion of the box.
3rd Edition (1990) Folio, Back
All ink printed on the back of the folio is maroon in color, and the folio itself is a light tan. "Afternoon" is printed in purple across the top in the largest font size (which again, is not contained within quotes.)Paragraph 1
A box with a purple border contains one of the most famous lines from the hypertext. Being the second largest font size on the back of the folio, it is written in italics and contained within quotes:
"I want to say that I may have seen my son die this morning."
Paragraph 2
A larger box with the same purple border as the first contains a summary of afternoon, a story, but in a significantly smaller font size:
Michael Joyce's Afternoon is a pioneering work of literature, a serious exploration of a new hypertextual medium. It is neither a game nor a puzzle.
Paragraph 3
Contained in the same box as paragraph 3 is a quote, in the same font size, written in italics and contained within quotation marks:
"An important innovation in interactive narrative... Afternoon redefines the limits of its genre, suggesting that electronic fiction may be about to come into its own as a form of literature."
— Stuart Moulthrop, Yale University
Paragraph 4
In smaller text along the bottom of the box reads:
For all Macintosh™ computers, models 512KE or above.
Bottom Left
The logo for Eastgate Systems, Inc. is printed at the bottom left of the folio, which is an image of a stone brick wall and entryway.
Bottom Right
Contact information is printed in the bottom right of the folio. Each line is written in a varying font size. The second line that reads "CIVILIZED SOFTWARE" is written in a different font than the rest of the text on the folio.
Eastgate Systems, Inc.
CIVILIZED SOFTWARE
PO Box 1307
Cambridge MA 02238
(800) 562-1638
(617) 924-9044
4th Edition, (1992) Folio, Front
The 4th Edition is packaged in a grey vinyl folio, printed in cyan ink. "Michael Joyce" is written across the top within a blue rectangle. Underneath, "afternoon, a story" is written haphazardly from left to right:afternoon,
a story
A yoni symbol printed in blue is situated center-left on the folio's front, with an "a" at the yoni's bottom-left side. A blue horizontal rule near the bottom of the folio separates the rest of the content, with eastgate's logo (a stone wall and entryway) aligned left and contact information aligned right:
Eastgate Systems, Inc.
CIVILIZED SOFTWARE
PO Box 1307
Cambridge MA 02238
(617) 924-9044 (800) 562-1638
4th Edition (1992) Folio, Back
The back of the folio reads "Afternoon" across the top, overlaid on a blue rectangle. A black rectangular smudge covers the lower portion of the title's center. Underneath reads the famous line "I want to say that I may have seen my son die this morning", surrounded by two blue horizontal rules. Smaller text below reads as follows:Michael Joyce's Afternoon is a pioneering work of literature, a serious exploration of a new hypertextual medium. It is neither a game nor a puzzle.
A quote from the NY Times Book Review is written in larger bold text is placed a third of the way down the folio, aligned center. The quote's source is aligned right:
"The grandaddy of full-length hypertext fictions...a landmark"
—Robert Coover
NY Times Book Review
Following are three more quotes, written in a significantly smaller font size. The quotes are aligned left, while the sources are aligned right. They comprise the rest of the folio:
"Redefines the limits of the genre."
—Stuart Moulthrop
author of Victory Garden
"An information-age Odyssey"
—Pamela McCorduck
The Whole Earth Review
"Each reading of Afternoon breathes life into a narrative of possibilities, which momentarily obliterates the other possible... ghostly versions of reality."
—Jane Yellowlees Douglas
Writing On The Edge
A sticker with a two bar codes and ISBN number has been placed in the bottom-left corner of the folio. Top and center of the label reads "AFTERNOON, A STORY". The ISBN number is written along the top of the bar code: "ISBN 1-884511-01-5". The bottom of the bar code reads "9 781884 511911". A second, shorter bar code is situated on the right side. Numbers above it read "51995".
4th Edition (1992) Folio, Open
The folio's interior is the same grey color as its exterior. It contains a white floppy for Macintosh systems in its left sleeve, for the ©1992 version of afternoon, a story, and a paper instructional booklet in its right sleeve. The instructional booklet is comprised of white paper stapled together and folded down its center, printed in black ink. The front page reads "Afternoon, a story" in the top-right. Horizontal rules split the top, center, and bottom portions of the page. The left-hand side reads as follows:Afternoon, a story
by Michael Joyce
It's the connected stories of five people (who are themselves intertwined emotionally, sexually, professionally)... The richly nuanced characters come near and back away just as people do in life; banter, hide, make love, comment on one another, reveal and conceal...an information-age Odyssey.
—Pamela McCorduck
The Whole Earth Review
A great triumph. I am stunned by the quality of the writing...The fragmentation of narration has the effect of a lamp moving behind darkened stained glass... I was stunned, enchanted, jealous, and inspired.
—Sarah Smith
author of King of Space
Smaller text displays the copyright information:
Afternoon ©1987 Michael Joyce-- All rights reserved. Storyspace and Readingspace ©1984-89 Jay David Bolter, Michael Joyce and John B. Smith
The left-hand side shows the contact information:
Published and distributed by
Eastgate Systems, Inc.
PO Box 1307
Cambridge, MA 02238
(800) 562-1638
+1 (617) 924-9044
The logo for Eastgate Systems, Inc. is printed in the bottom-right; a stone brick wall and entryway.
4th Edition (1992) Floppy Disk
The 3.5-inch floppy disk of the 4th Edition is contained in a white case. A label comprises the upper half of the disk. The top third of the label is maroon in color, with the words "CIVILIZED SOFTWARE" followed by "from Eastgate Systems, Inc." written underneath, in white and aligned center.The lower two thirds of the label is white. Any graphics or text written here are printed in the same maroon color as the upper third. The logo of Eastgate Systems, Inc. resides on the left side of the white space. The right side reads "Afternoon by Michael Joyce", aligned center:
6th Edition (1994) White Folio, Front
The 6th Edition is packaged in a white cardboard folio, though now ivory with age. Its front is nearly identical to the blue one of that same edition. It is believed by Grigar that the white folio preceded the blue. This presentation shows: "MICHAEL JOYCE" printed in black with rectangles emanating from the folio's center, which are blue, "Afternoon, a story" is arranged haphazardly but with a capital "A" and in darker blue, and the quote from the Robert Coover in the New York Times Book Review is printed in black. Additionally, "ZUERN" is handwritten in black ink along the folio's left edge, signifying that the copy once belonged to John Zuern before he donated it to Grigar.
6th Edition (1994) Folio, Back
In contrast with the folio's front, the back cover displays noticeable differences in design between the blue folio's. Photos of the author cascade down the left side in an alternating pattern with series of emanating blue rectangles. Unlike the design, the text has remained the same except for the capitalization of the word "Afternoon" a third of the way down the folio. The right side of the folio reads as follows in black ink:"...an arresting, intricate, delicately contoured prose sculpture"
—Richard Grant, The Washington Post Book World
"One of the first hypertext fictions and still one of the most fascinating. The lyrical intensity of the language lures you through a structure that is simultaneously compelling and perplexing."
—Harry Goldstein, The Utne Reader
"the granddaddy of hypertext fictions...a legend."
—Robert Coover, The New York Times
Two blue horizontal rules contain "Afternoon, a story" printed in blue and written in the largest font size present on the back cover. Text directly underneath the title (and still contained within the rulers) reads:
"There is no simple way to say this."
"I want to say I may have seen my son die this morning."
A classic of electronic fiction. Complex and richly imagined, Afternoon is the story of Peter, a technical writer, who (in one reading) begins his afternoon with a terrible suspicion that the wrecked car he saw hours earlier may have belonged to his former wife."
Two quotes beneath the horizontal rulers say:
"...is to the hypertext...interactive novel what the Gutenberg Bible is to publishing."
—Toronto Globe and Mail
"There is no simple way to say this,' writes Mr. Joyce in Afternoon, a story. Another Joyce wrestled with that literary cliche and came up with fiction that has never been equaled. Hyperfiction has the potential to better him."
—The Wall Street Journal
A black horizontal line separates the remaining content. "For Windows™ or Macintosh™" is written directly below it, with a circle placed before each platform listed. The Macintosh circle is filled in with a blue sticker, signifying that this is a Macintosh copy of afternoon, a story. "Requires | MB free RAM and a hard disk drive." is written to the right. The logo for Eastgate Systems, Inc. resides in the bottom-left corner of the folio. Directly to its right the area contains the company's contact information:
Published by
Eastgate Systems INC
134 Main Street
Watertown, MA 02172
(800) 562-1638
(617) 924-9044
A series of ISBN numbers and two bar codes occupy the bottom-right corner of the folio. "ISBN 1-884511-01-5" is printed vertically to the right of the contact info for Eastgate Systems, Inc. A wide barcode resides to the right of this number; the ISBN is repeated across its top while a different string of numbers rests underneath: "9 781884 511011". A narrower barcode to the right has "90000>" printed across its top.
6th Edition (1994) Folio, Open
The cardboard within the white folio has yellowed over time. The 1994 floppy and instructional booklet are contained in the right sleeve. The folio's left sleeve contains an advertisement for the Eastgate Quarterly Review of Hypertext in the top and copyright information in the bottom:to the
Eastgate Quarterly Review of Hypertext
A decorative separator-- two spindles pointing outwards with three circular shapes in the center-- divides the following text from the content above it:
just $49.95
If you own this work, you're probably looking for more quality hypertext. The Quarterly is your only source for new work in serious hypertext. Issues include interactive poetry, fiction and non-fiction hypertexts, essays and criticism. Every issue includes hypertexts for the Macintosh platform; most also include hypertext for Windows as well.
We like to think of it as (so far) the... "little literary magazine" for hypertext... Where else will you find anything like it...
Save $29.85 by subscribing—better... 35% off the single issue price.
Call or write us now to subscribe.
Following a black horizontal break reads the copyright information:
Afternoon, a story ©Copyright 1987 by Michael Joyce...
Cover Photograph by Marcia Butterfield
Jacket design by Eric Cohen
Macintosh™ is a trademark of Apple Computer, Inc.
Windows™ is a trademark of Microsoft Corp.
The logo for Eastgate Systems INC is positioned in the bottom-left corner; a stone brick wall and ornate entryway. Contact information is printed on the right:
Eastgate Systems INC
134 Main Street, Watertown, MA 02172
(800) 562-1638 (617) 924-9044
FAX: (617) 924-9051 EMAIL: eastgate@world.std.com
The instructional booklet has the same design as the front of the cardboard folio, though the quote from the New York Times Review is absent.
6th Edition (1994) Floppy Disk
The floppy disk of the 6th Edition is contained within black casing. Its upper half is covered by a label. "CIVILIZED SOFTWARE" written above "from Eastgate Systems, Inc." is printed center-aligned over a dark red portion of the sticker. The other two-thirds of the label are white with dark red graphics and text. The logo for Eastgate Systems, Inc. is situated on the left-hand side. The right side reads:Michael Joyce
Afternoon,
a story
"Afternoon" is written in a larger font size than the surrounding text. The lower left corner of the label contains an address:
Eastgate Stystems, Inc.
PO Box 1307, Cambridge MA 02238
The lower right corner displays two phone numbers:
(800) 562-1638
(617) 924-9044
6th Edition (1994) Blue Folio, Front
As mentioned previously, cardboard packaging was used for the 1994 editions. The front cover is cyan in color, with white-bordered rectangles emanating from the center outward. "MICHAEL JOYCE" is written in black across the top, center aligned, with the first name stacked above the last. A sideways photo of the author resides in the cover's center. "afternoon, a story" is printed in blue. While "afternoon," is placed at a slight angle ascending towards the right, "a story" is placed at a much more drastic angle, as if hinging off the end of the previous word. The bottom of the folio displays a quote from the New York Times Book Review, center-aligned in bold:—Robert Coover, New York Times Book Review
6th Edition (1994) Blue Folio, Back
The back of the cardboard folio is white, printed in cyan, black, and blue ink. The upper third of the folio contains three quotes about the piece, printed in black:"...an arresting, intricate, delicately contoured prose sculpture"
—Richard Grant, The Washington Post Book World
"One of the first hypertext fictions and still one of the most fascinating. The lyrical intensity of the language lures you through a structure that is simultaneously compelling and perplexing."
—Harry Goldstein, The Utne Reader
"the granddaddy of hypertext fictions...a legend"
—Robert Coover, The New York Times
Two cyan horizontal breaks contain the work's title, "afternoon, a story", written in blue. The following paragraph printed in black ink reads:
"There is no simple way to say this."
"I want to say I may have seen my son die this morning."
A classic of electronic fiction. Complex and richly imagined, afternoon is the story of Peter, a technical writer, who (in one reading) begins his afternoon with a terrible suspicion that the wrecked car he saw hours earlier may have belonged to his former wife.
Two more quotes follow the lower horizontal break:
"...is to the hypertext...interactive novel what the Gutenberg Bible is to publishing."
—Toronto Globe and Mail
"'There is no simple way to say this,' writes Mr. Joyce in afternoon, a story. Another Joyce wrestled with that literary clichè and came up with fiction that has never been equaled. Hyperfiction has the potential to better him."
—The Wall Street Journal
A black horizontal break isolates the remaining content in the very bottom of the folio. The left-hand side reads "For Windows™ or Macintosh™", with a circle placed before each platform listed. The Windows circle is filled in with a blue sticker, signifying that this is the Windows copy of afternoon, a story. "Requires | MB free RAM and a hard disk drive." is written in the next line. The logo of Eastgate Systems, Inc. is placed below and center. On the left-hand side are a list of phone numbers, a fax number, an email address and a web url. The physical address is placed on the right:
(800) 562-1638
(617) 924-9044
FAX (617) 924-9051
E-MAIL info@eastgate.com
WEB http://www.eastgate.com/
Eastgate Systems INC
134 Main Street
Watertown, MA 02172
USA
Two bar codes are printed in the bottom-right side of the folio. "ISBN 1-884511-01-5" is printed above the first bar code, with "9 781884 511011" written at the bottom. "90000>" is placed above the second bar code. "ISBN 1-884511-01-5" is printed vertically to the left of both bar codes.
6th Edition (1994) Blue Folio, Open
The folio's interior is white, with black and cyan ink. The grey floppy containing the 1994 version of afternoon, a story is placed in its right sleeve. The left-hand side of the folio reads as follows:ALSO BY MICHAEL JOYCE
Twilight, A Symphony
"There is nothing that has quite prepared us for the extraordinary beauty and fragility and intelligence at work in Michael Joyce's lyrical elegy, Twilight. He is one of the most exciting artists at work today in any medium."
—Carole Maso, author of Ghost Dance and The Art Lover
The long-awaited new hypertext novel by a master of the form.
Eastgate Systems, requires CD-ROM
$24.95
The War Outside Ireland
Of this, his first novel, the San Francisco Review of Books wrote, "Michael Joyce is a writer with a talent for putting together... those day-to-day details which make up the dynamic of everyday life." Winner of the Great Lakes New Writers Award in fiction, Tinkers Dam Press, available from Eastgate (softcover)
$9.95
Of Two Minds: Hypertext, Pedagogy, and Poetics
This recent collection of essays brings together... of Joyce's thought on hypertext writing and... criticism and controversies, issues in hypertext, and... literature, teaching, computers and the mind. An essential work in the field.
University of Michigan Press, available from Eastgate
(hardcover)
$29.95
A black horizontal break isolates the following:
afternoon, a story Copyright © 1987 by Michael Joyce. All Rights Reserved.
Cover art and documentation Copyright © 1996 by Eastgate Systems, Inc. All rights Reserved. Cover photograph: Marcia Butterfield. Jacket design by Eric Cohen.
Macintosh™ is a trademark of Apple Computer, Inc.
Windows™ is a trademark of Microsoft Corp.
Eastgate Systems' logo is placed underneath and center; a stone brick wall and entryway. Phone and fax numbers, an email, and a url are placed on its left, with the physical address on its right:
(800) 562-1638
(617) 924-9051
FAX (617) 924-9051
E-MAIL info@eastgate.com
WEB http://www.eastgate.com/
Eastgate Systems INC
134 Main Street
Watertown, MA 02172
USA
The right-hand side of the folio, Storyspace's logo is situated at the top, written in black script over cyan calligraphy. "The Future", "of", and "Writing" overlap the logo's left side, with each phrase contained within black rectangles with slanted edges. Below the logo and center reads "Hypertext Writing Evironment" in bold. The following text is split into two columns. The left-hand side is as follows:
Storyspace is a hypertext authoring system. Just as a pencil or a word processor allow you to write traditional text, Storyspace gives you a way to write hypertext.
Storyspace will help you...
- write serious hypertextual nonfiction, fiction, and poetry
- manage and link complex information— research notes, screen plays...
- organize complex intellectual projects— dissertations, novels, business proposals...
- prototype and create complexly linked Web sites
Storyspace can also translate its hypertext into Web pages— so its powerful tools can help create complexly linked Web sites.
The right-hand column contains a list of hypertextual works created with Storyspace software. They are compiled within a black-bordered box, center-aligned:
afternoon, a story
Michael Joyce
Socrates in the Labyrinth: Hypertext, Argument, Philosophy
David Kolb
Victory Garden
Stuart Moulthrop
Cyborg: Engineering the Body Electric
Dian Greco
Patchwork Girl
Shelley Jackson
Sea Island
Edward Falco
•
•
•
all written with
Storyspace software
Below the box reads "The software of choice among fiction writers in this country."
—Robert Coover, New York Times Book Review
Two more columns of text reside below a black horizontal break, advertising the software. The left column reads as follows:
Storyspace
The full-featured hypertext writing environment. With manual and tutorial files.
For Macintosh or Windows $245.00
The right column reads:
Storyspace 10-pack
Save 75.7% outfitting your workgroup or classroom!
For Macintosh or Windows $595.00
"Educational and quantity discounts are available on all Storyspace products. Call to inquire." is printed underneath both columns. The horizontal break at the very bottom of the folio contains a black oval with the white "S" for "Storyspace" in its center.
6th Edition (1994) Floppy Disk, from Blue Folio
The 1994 floppy has a dark grey casing. A white label comprises the upper half, and reads "Michael Joyce" followed by "afternoon, a story" in black ink, aligned-center. White text across a black band says "SERIOUS HYPERTEXT from" with "Eastgate Systems INC" underneath. Contact information is positioned below that:"134 Main St., Watertown, MA 02172
(800) 562-1638 (617) 924-9044".
8th Edition (1997) W. W. Norton & Co. Special Web Edition, Screenshot
The title screen of the W. W. Norton & Co. Special Web Edition is the image of reporters filing out of the Pentagon Joyce had repurposed for his novel with MacPaint. The image was used thereafter for the opening screens of all but two editions of the work (Grigar, "Ten Things," 4 May 2016). For the 9th Edition the image is tinted with the color chartreuse. "AFTERNOON, a story" is written across the top, the first word written in blue followed by orange colors written in a smaller font.10th Edition (2001) CD-ROM Jewel Case, Front
The insert of the jewel case for the 10th Edition is made from white paper and printed on in black ink. A black-and-white photo of trees and a wooden fence along a pathway occupies most of the cover. A black rectangle along the bottom contains text, aligned right, reading "MICHAEL JOYCE" with "afternoon, a story" underneath.
10th Edition (2001) Jewel Case, Back
The back side of the jewel case insert is completely black, except for the white text and graphics. Three quotes occupy the upper third of the cover; the quotes are aligned-left while the sources are aligned to the right:"...the granddaddy of hypertext fictions...a legend"
—Robert Coover, The New York Times
"...is to the interactive novel what the Gutenberg Bible is to publishing."
—Toronto Globe and Mail
"...an arresting, intricate, delicately contoured prose sculpture."
—Richard Grant, Washington Post Book World
The center of the cover reads "MICHAEL JOYCE" followed by "afternoon, a story" in a larger font size, all aligned-right. Underneath reads: "CD for Windows™ and Macintosh™. Requires Windows 95 or later, or Macintosh OS 7 or later." A white label is situated to the right of this paragraph, containing a barcode with an ISBN number at the top ("ISBN 1-884511-01-5") and another string of numbers underneath ("9 781884 511011>").
Bottom and center is the logo for Eastgate Systems INC. The left displays the company's contact information:
(800) 562-1638
(617) 924-9044
FAX (617) 924-9051
E MAIL info@eastgate.com
WEB http://www.eastgate.com/
The right side of the logo shares the company's address:
Eastgate Systems INC
134 Main Street
Watertown, MA 02472
USA
10th Edition (2001) Jewel Case, Open with CD-ROM
Inside the jewel case, a disc for afternoon, a story rests on the right-hand side while a paper slip resides in the left. The disc is silver in color, with a graphic of trees, a road, and a fenceline occupying the upper-left portion, reminiscent to the picture on the jewel case's cover. A thick black border wraps around the bottom-right corner of the graphic. "MICHAEL JOYCE" followed by "afternoon, a story" resides in the corner of the border. To the right of the bordered graphic reads "compact disc digital data", with "for Windows and Macintosh" printed underneath. Below that reads the copyright information for the work:"Copyright © 1987 by Michael Joyce. Software copyright © 1992-2001 by Eastgate Systems, Inc. Unauthorized sale or distribution of this material is expressly prohibited."
The very bottom of the disc reads aligned-center:
(800) 562-1638 (617) 924-9044
www.eastgate.com
12th Edition (2016) USB Stick, Front
The 12th Edition of afternoon, a story is contained in a USB Stick with wood encasing. A white label reads "AFTERNOON" printed in black.12th Edition (2016) USB Stick, Back
The back of the USB stick contains a clear label that reads "Eastgate" in red.13th Edition (2016) Downloadable Digital File, Email Screenshot
The 13th Edition of afternoon, a story is delivered via email and a Dropbox download.The email reads:
Thank you for ordering afternoon, a story by Michael Joyce, for macOS.
You may download your copy from
https://www.dropbox.com/s/tpmncconuvqdxw9/a371.dmg?dl=0
This hypertext is DRM-free, and you are welcome to use it in the same ways that you would use a paper book. Please don't distribute copies. If you need lots of copies for a class or work group, contact us for great discounts.
If you have any questions, please call or email us here at Eastgate. Questions about your order should be sent to orders@eastgate.com; tech support questions should be sent to tinderbox@eastgate.com; and general questions, comments and suggestions should be sent to info@eastgate.com.
Mark Bernstein bernstein@eastgate.com (617) 924-9044
Eastgate Systems, Inc. http://www.eastgate.com (800) 562-1638
134 Main St.
Watertown MA 02472 USA http://markBernstein.org
@eastgate
Mark Bernstein bernstein@eastgate.com (617) 924-9044
Eastgate Systems, Inc. http://www.eastgate.com (800) 562-1638
134 Main St.
Watertown MA 02472 USA http://markBernstein.org
@eastgate
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- afternoon, a story 6th edition (1994) floppy disk (blue folio)
- afternoon, a story 6th edition (1994) white folio, open
- afternoon, a story 10th edition (2001) CD-ROM and jewel case, open
- afternoon, a story 4th edition (1992) folio, open
- afternoon, a story 12th edition (2016) flash drive, front
- afternoon, a story 6th edition (1994) blue folio, back
- afternoon, a story 12th edition (2016) flash drive, back
- afternoon, a story 6th edition (1994) blue folio, open
- afternoon, a story 10th edition (2001) jewel case, back
- afternoon, a story 3rd edition (1990) folio, front
- afternoon, a story 6th edition (1994) floppy disk (white folio)
- afternoon, a story 3rd edition (1990) folio, back
- afternoon, a story 6th edition (1994) blue folio, front
- afternoon, a story 4th edition (1992) floppy disk
- afternoon, a story 4th edition (1992) folio, front
- afternoon, a story 4th edition (1992) folio, back
- afternoon, a story 8th edition (1997) screenshot
- joyce_1994_white_folio_front
- afternoon, a story 10th edition (2001) jewel case, front
- joyce_1994_white_folio_back
- joyce_2016_digital_download