November 25th, 2011 / 4:38 pm
Author Spotlight
Impossible Mike
Author Spotlight
LIES/ISLE PRESENTS: Unrepairable by Russ Woods
Since it’s the terrible day of capital-death known as BLACK FRIDAY, I’ve decided that a more positive gesture, to assuage all the guilt of those who are pimp their souls to save a buck (we’ve all been there in some regard), is needed. Thus, I’d like to publish a brilliant work of literature that specifically makes use of the medium it’s being published on; namely THE INTERNET. Russ’s work takes a note from old text-based RPGs (MUDs to be more specific) on telnet, an entirely antiquated form that, as Russ’s work proves, is ripe for exploration.
Russ Woods lives in Chicago and edits Red Lightbulbs with his wife Meghan Lamb.
Click “more” to read Russ Woods’s brilliant Unrepairable.
And what would you go back to? No one lives in the place where they're from. -Wisdom Tooth, "Everything's Green" I don't see you anymore. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 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Tags: internet literature, MUDs, russ woods
anachronism is fashion. work it, russ.
this is GREAT
I want more librarians to treat the world like Russ Woods.
1337
There’s so many reasons why this is dope. Used to play this AOL test based RPG called Legends of Terris. It basically evolved my writing skills by 10 years at the tender age of whatever. But yeah Russ man, this makes me want to buy a book of yours.
As I read this, I kept thinking: This is wonderful, but do Russ and Mike realize he misspelled unrepairable? Isn’t it unreparable? eek!… And then I realized I was thinking of irreparable, which is entirely different word. All of which intensified to the uncanny and uncomfortable feelings that make this text such an effective affective experience.
you’re thinking ‘irreparable.’ they’re both words. ‘unrepairable’ is just a wee bit more literal.
Did you read my comment?
YES.
no, why?
………………………………………………………………………..
………………………………………………………………………..
………………….no, it doesn’t hurt to rea……………………….
………………….d this kind of text. it fee……………………….
………………….ls pretty good both emoti……………………….
………………….onally and intellectually, in………………………
…………………………………………………….f……………………..
………………………………………………………a…………………..
………………………………………………………..c…………………
………………………………………………………….t……………….
……………………………………………………………;……………..
…………………………………………………………….it…………….
………………………………………………………………is………
………………………………………………………………..a………….
………………………………………………………………….bit………
……………………………………………………………………..tricky.
……………………………….and
………………………..trying
……………………..of
…………………the
……….patience
…….to
.write
,
t
h
o
u
g
h
.………………………………………………………………………
no, why?
You did it!
lol
I liked this!
cuz everything you said in your response to my comment I already said in the comment you were responding to.
I found this to be somewhat banal. I wasn’t familiar with there being a tradition of practical jokes on Thanksgiving or the day afterward or whatever. I thought that was in April.
This was a very good thing, and I enjoyed it quite a lot. The skulls were especially good. And then there were more skulls. I swear I’m not too much a philistine always.
lit secret: if you use special formatting you don’t need as much meaning, and the fewer words you put on each page, the longer your chapbook will look
Irony, sort of. Very clever, Hank, very clever. Good for you.
Do other people have problems taking the word banal seriously? Whenever I read it the word plays in my head with a Boston Brahim accent (bah-naaaal). I’d really like for it to be pronounced bah-NAL!
At any rate, it’s a useful word that has been used so much it now is exactly what it means.
meaning and length are very important qualities, as everyone knows
little old lady lollygagging on lollipops levitates orbiting lintels
My chapbook is really short even with all the ascii bloat. There aren’t a whole lot of words. I write regular poetry too. Everyone seems to like this stuff better, though.
Or at least more people have asked me to write it.
This joke wasn’t very practical.
i like imagining it as rhyming with “anal”
w
.h
..a
…t
….e
…..v
……e
…….r
floats your
boat
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lol
in the future i will make an effort to read the comments to which i am replying
Just started playing Legends of Terris again after reading this poem. Last time I logged in was like 6 or 7 years ago.
i am a fan of russ woods
╔═══╗ ♪║███║ ♫║ (●) ♫╚═══╝♪♪╔═══╗ ♪║███║ ♫║ (●) ♫╚═══╝♪♪╔═══╗ ♪║███║ ♫║ (●) ♫╚═══╝♪♪
Geez Louise–in the future, would you at least make an effort to read the comments to which you are replying??
I like when words seem to take on the qualities of the things they describe. Of course, it happens most often with a word such as that one, but anyhow…
“’Jeez Louise,’ Scott says towards his mimetic semblance, an invocation of, however distant and unconscious, our Lord Jesus Christ.’
Shit is hot, Russ. Like it.
[oops]
I figure that “gee” is a way of swearing without actually using the name (‘Jesus’) and summoning (“in vain”) the Resurrected One, and (perhaps) “gee whiz” (a nearish homophone) likewise, so I’m tempted sometimes to write “Jes’ Louise” or “Jes’, man”.
–but I’d never write “Je’, I don’t know.” or just “Je'” or “Je’ whiz” or “Je’ whillickers” – except for fun and without (much) concern for intelligibility – , because I’d doubt its legibility even to well-intentioned readers.
–so, for me, it’s geez. ?
back to the future, deadgod!
I was a big Aardwolf fan in high school. Back in the day I played Legend of the Red Dragon on our local dial-up bbs. I also frequented some more obscure ones for awhile and learned to build/program MOOs on the otherwise ridiculous Dare 2 Dream.
[…] from februaryy‘s UNREPAIRABLE (2011). Taps into both ascii collection style, poetry and the scroll-down-mania of internetz […]