We noted when UT acquired David Foster Wallace’s papers here. And now we’ll note the purchase of Denis Johnson’s archive, which includes floppy disks and baby footprints.

I think I like the idea of archiving authors’ papers, but I wonder how these libraries will acquire their electronic materials? I remember one of my professors saying that UVA had passed on purchasing his email archive. Will such an acquisition be important in the future? How will those of us who are interested in that sidewise material access it? Who will look after it? What do you think about this impulse we have to sift through an author’s unpublished papers, and how will that translate to his or her electronic writing?

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