Creating Interactive Fiction with Inform 7

Creating Interactive Fiction with Inform 7 by Aaron A. Reed is a 448 page paperback (also available for the Kindle). It shows how to create a work of interactive fiction using the Inform 7 authoring system, explaining how the example game Sand-dancer was developed (with Alexei Othenin-Girard) from conception to final product. The first edition of the book was published by Course Technology PTR, August 18, 2010, and has a foreword by Don Woods.

• ISBN 1435455061 (ISBN-10)
• ISBN 978-1435455061 (ISBN-13)

The book was written for Inform 7 version 6E72 (July 2010); the errata page updates it for 6G60 (December 2010); the language has since evolved in the 2014 and 2022 releases, such that some examples don't work. (2022-03 post about prospects for a new edition)

Getting a copy

• The hardcopy can be tricky to find; second-hand prices are often high, but it is sometimes possible to find it cheap. (forum threads: 2022, 2023)
• The "Inform 7 documentation and resources" forum post has some links, including to an epub ebook.
• Oldish links, may no longer be useful (see also book website):
  • Buy it from Amazon.com (now only 'used').
  • Buy it from Powell's Books.
  • Buy ebook for Nook from Barnes & Noble.

Links

• Creating Interactive Fiction with Inform 7: The Official Companion Site to the Book (RSS).
• Book page on author's site.

Reviews

• Review by Joe Johnston.
• Review (dead link 🔍) by Yoon Ha Lee.
• Review by David Monath - in SPAG #60, April 25, 2011.
• Review by Andrew Plotkin.
• Review by Brooks Reeves.
• Review (brief) by Zack Urlocker.