Emily Short

Emily Short is one of the most renowned authors in the IF community. Emily's nickname on the ifMUD is Emily.

Author Credits

• Not Made With Hands (2000; Z-code).
• Galatea (2000; Z-code). 2000 IF Art Show: winner of Best of Show. Winner of Best Individual NPC at the XYZZY Awards 2000, and finalist for Best NPCs and Best Game.
• Metamorphoses (2000; Z-code). IF Comp 2000: 2nd place; Miss Congeniality: 3rd place (tie). Winner of Best Writing at the XYZZY Awards 2000, and finalist for Best Puzzles, Best Setting, and Best Use of Medium.
• Pick Up the Phone Booth and Aisle (with Ola Sverre Bauge, Steve Bernard, Jon Blask, John Cater, Liza Daly, David Dyte, Stephen Granade, Iain Merrick, Rob Noyes, Dan Schmidt, Dan Shiovitz, and J. Robinson Wheeler; 2001; Z-code). Finalist for Best Use of Medium at the XYZZY Awards 2001.
• The Last Sonnet of Marie Antoinette (2001; Z-code). Speed-IF 16.
• The Crescent City at the Edge of Disaster (2001; Z-code). Speed-IF 2001.
• A Day for Fresh Sushi (2001; Z-code). Speed-IF Without Number.
• Banana Apocalypse and the Rocket Pants of Destiny (2001; Z-code). Speed-IF Y.
• A Dark and Stormy Entry (as "Lord Lobur-Bytton"; 2001; Z-code). LOTECH Comp 2001: 2nd place.
• Pytho's Mask (2001; Z-code). SmoochieComp. Winner of Best NPCs at the XYZZY Awards 2001, and finalist for Best Individual Puzzle, Best Setting, Best Story, Best Writing, and Best Game.
• Marble Madness (2001; Z-code). IF Arcade.
• Best of Three (2001; Glulx). IF Comp 2001: 7th place. Finalist for Best Individual PC, Best Use of Medium, Best Individual NPC, Best NPCs, Best Writing, and Best Game at the XYZZY Awards 2001.
• Savoir Faire (2002; Z-code). Winner of Best Puzzles, Best Individual PC, Best Story, and Best Game at the XYZZY Awards 2002, and finalist for Best Use of Medium, Best Individual Puzzle, Best Setting, and Best Writing.
• Max Blaster and Doris de Lightning Against the Parrot Creatures of Venus (with Dan Shiovitz, illustrator: J. Robinson Wheeler; 2003; TADS 3). Spring Thing 2003: 1st place. Finalist for Best Writing and Best Individual Puzzle at the XYZZY Awards 2003.
• City of Secrets (2003; Glulx). Winner of Best NPCs at the XYZZY Awards 2003, and finalist for Best Individual NPC, Best Writing, Best Setting, Best Story, Best Use of Medium, and Best Game.
• Mystery House Possessed (2005; Z-code). Mystery House Taken Over. XYZZY Awards 2005: Winner of Best Use of Medium, and a finalist for Best Individual Puzzle (identifying the killer).
• Bronze (21-Jan-2006, 01-Mar-2006; Z-code). Speed-IF Gruff. XYZZY Awards 2006: Finalist for Best Use of Medium.
• Damnatio Memoriae (01-Mar-2006; Z-code).
• Glass (30-Apr-2006; Z-code).
• When in Rome 1: Accounting for Taste (30-Apr-2006; Z-code).
• When in Rome 2: Far from Home (30-Apr-2006; Z-code).
• Floatpoint (30-Sep-2006; Glulx). IF Comp 2006: 1st place, and 3rd choice for Miss Congeniality. XYZZY Awards 2006: Winner of Best Setting and Best NPCs. Also finalist for Best Game, Best Writing, and Best Individual Puzzle (choosing the present).
• Fugue (publisher: Up Right Down; c.22-Feb-2008; Z-code).
• Lowell Prison (27-May-2008; Glulx). bouchercomp entry.
• Alabaster (with John Cater, Rob Dubbin, Eric Eve, Elizabeth Heller, Jayzee, Kazuki Mishima, Sarah Morayati, Mark Musante, Adam Thornton, and Ziv Wities; 05-Jun-2009; Glulx). Illustrated by Daniel Allington-Krzysztofiak. XYZZY Awards 2009: Winner of Best Writing and Best Individual NPC (Snow White); also was a finalist for Best Use of Medium.
• Indigo (07-May-2011; TADS 3). Indigo New Language Speed-IF. XYZZY Awards 2011: Finalist, Best Individual Puzzle.
• Bee (3-Jun-2012; Varytale).
• First Draft of the Revolution (with Liza Daly and inkle; 24-Sep-2012; web-based).
• Counterfeit Monkey (31-Dec-2012; Glulx).
• Blood & Laurels (6-12-2014; Versu).
• Ultimate Quest (July 2014; web-based Glulx augmented with graphics. Advertising game).
• Aspel (4-4-2015. Seltani). Spring Thing entry in the Back Garden area.

Tech Credits

• For Inform 7: wrote the examples and the Test Suite used for regression testing. Also gave theoretical guidance and advice.

Review and Article Credits

• Some Observations on Using Inform 7 - article at Brass Lantern.
• Recommended Playing List - showcases games with unusual features.
• Two articles about IF in the UK magazine PC Plus:
  • April 2008: about interactive prose and description.
  • due for May(?) 2008: about action design.

Reviews

See also: non-comp reviews page (with links to her reviews of comp games).

Competition reviews

• IF Comp:
  • 2000, 2001, 2002, and 2003.
  • 2006: rgif posting or text file (archive).
  • 2007: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, and General observations.
  • 2008: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, and General Reflections and Favorites.
  • 2009: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, and overview.
  • 2010: Intro and reviews.
  • 2011: reviews.
  • 2012: reviews.
  • 2013: reviews.
  • 2014: reviews.
  • 2015: reviews.

• Spring Thing:
  • 2005.
  • 2007: Fate, Reluctant Resurrectee, The Starship Volant, The Epic Origins of CamelGirl!: 1 and 2.
  • 2009: A Flustered Duck, The Milk of Paradise, and Vague.
  • 2011: reviews.
  • 2012: reviews.
  • 2013: reviews.
  • 2014: reviews.
  • 2015: reviews.
• IF Art Show: 2003 and 2004.
• IntroComp: 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, and 2008.
• ParserComp 2015: reviews.
• SmoochieComp: reviews.
• RomanceNovelComp: reviews (archive).
• SwashComp: reviews.
• ShuffleComp 2014: reviews.
• ShuffleComp: Disc 2 (2015): reviews.
• WalkthroughComp: reviews.
• One Room Game Competition: 2007 and 2008.
• HP Lovecraft: The Commonplace Book Project 2007: Ecdysis and The Cellar; IF Games from The Commonplace Book Project.
• IFBeginnersComp: reviews.
• Casual Gameplay Design Competition #7: 1, 2, 3, and 4.

Reviews at Play This Thing!

• Review (archive) of The Act of Misdirection.
• Review (archive) of An Act of Murder.
• Review (archive) of Aisle.
• Review (archive) of Anchorhead.
• Review (archive) of The Baron.
• Review (archive) of Blue Lacuna.
• Review (archive) of Bonehead.
• Review (archive) of The Chinese Room.
• Review (archive) of Common Ground.
• Review (archive) of Everybody Dies.
• Review (archive) of Fate.
• Review (archive) of Fragile Shells.
• Review (archive) of The Gostak.
• Review (archive) of Gun Mute.
• Review (archive) of Hoist Sail for the Heliopause and Home.
• Review (archive) of The King of Shreds and Patches.
• Review (archive) of Klockwerk: The Shadow in the Cathedral.
• Review (archive) of Lock & Key.
• Review (archive) of Lost Pig.
• Review (archive) of Make It Good.
• Review (archive) of 'Mid the Sagebrush and the Cactus.
• Review (archive) of Necrotic Drift.
• Review (archive) of The Nemean Lion.
• Review (archive) of Rameses.
• Review (archive) of rendition.
• Review (archive) of Shade.
• Review (archive) of Shelter from the Storm.
• Review (archive) of Slouching Towards Bedlam.
• Review (archive) of Treasures of a Slaver's Kingdom.
• Review (archive) of Walker & Silhouette.
• Review (archive) of The Warbler's Nest.
• Review (archive) of Worlds Apart.

Other reviews

• Reviews for IF-Review.
• Reviews (archive) for Baf's Guide.
• Emily Short's reviews - at IFDB.
• Reviews for Interactive Fiction Reviews Organization.
• Reviews for SPAG.
• SPAG Specifics of The Act of Misdirection, Fine-Tuned, Heroine's Mantle and Lazy Gods of Earth.
• Games I didn't finish, and why.
• Four ADRIFT games on MacScare.
• Two games you should have played by now - reviews of Arrival, or Attack of the B-Movie Clichés and Sunset Over Savannah.
• Reviews at GameSetWatch:
  • Review of Blue Lacuna.
  • Review of Klockwerk: The Shadow in the Cathedral.
• Reviews at Jay Is Games:
  • Review of Enlightenment.
  • Review of Suveh Nux.
  • Review of Violet.
• Review of Adventures of Helpfulman.
• Review of Blue Lacuna: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6.
• Review of Infidel: 1 and 2.
• Review (also in Italian) of The Land of the Cyclops.
• Review of Letters from Home.
• Review of Ron Weasley and the Quest for Hermione - at Trotting Krips.
• Review of Shrapnel.
• Review of Textfire Golf.
• Review of Vespers.
• Review of Walker & Silhouette.
• Review of Worlds Apart.

Author Commentary

• Making of "Bronze".
• Making of Counterfeit Monkey: Puzzles and Toys.
• Making of Counterfeit Monkey: Story.
• Making of "Damnatio".
• Making of "Glass".
• Making of Metamorphoses.
• Writing for Seltani: an Aspel Post-mortem and Writing for Seltani: Aspel Post-mortem Part 2.

Organizational Credits

• Organizer of SmoochieComp in February 2001.
• Organizer of WalkthroughComp in May 2001.
• One of the official judges for RomanceNovelComp (2002).
• Organizer of SwashComp in August 2003.
• One of the judges for the IF Art Show in 2003 and 2004.
• Organizer of Speed-IF Gruff in January 2006.
• Organizer for IF Cover Art Drive in 2008.
• Maintainer of the Cheese-friendly Game Directory.
• One of the people behind feelies.org, "your one-stop shop for interactive fiction feelies". Feelies.org disappeared in early 2008; the link is to the Wayback Machine's most recent copy of the site.
• Librarian in charge of selected pages at inform-fiction.org.
• Chief Editor of the IF Theory Book until September 2010. Her successor in the role is Kevin Jackson-Mead.
• Organizer of Bring Out Your Dead in June 2016.
• On the advisory board for the Interactive Fiction Technology Foundation.

Testing Credits

• A New Life (Alexandre Owen Muñiz; 01-Oct-2005; Z-code 5).
• Blighted Isle (Eric Eve; 14-Jul-2007; TADS 3).
• Lost Pig (Admiral Jota; 30-Sep-2007; Z-code 8).
• Hadean Lands (Andrew Plotkin; 30-Oct-2014; Glulx).

Game Appearances

As an NPC:

• Mission From Short (Jessica Knoch and Jennifer Maddox; 2004; Z-code). Speed-IF Century.
• Zig-zy (Jonathan Rosebaugh; 2001; Glulx). Speed-IF XYZZY.

As a reference only:

• "Emil Petit" in Krakatoa Tuna Melt (David Welbourn; 2002; Z-code). Speed-IF 10^-9. Emil Petit is who Emily Short might be if she were male and French.
• "Hold for E. Short" in Tinseltown Blues (Chip Hayes; 2002; Z-code). Spring Thing 2002. This notation is on a large cheese prop.
• "Emily's bag" in Tragedy strikes at the XYZZY awards! (Adam Biltcliffe; 2001; Z-code). The bag contains a dragon furnace, which refers to her game Metamorphoses.

Other Credits

• Contributed a dream sequence to Narcolepsy (2003) by Adam Cadre, along with Stephen Bond, Liza Daly, Jennifer Earl, Stephen Granade, Jon Ingold, Nick Montfort, Paul O'Brian, Andrew Plotkin, Dan Shiovitz, Bridget Sweeney, and J. Robinson Wheeler.
• Participant, Interactive Fiction Walkthroughs. A reading of IF with Star C. Foster, Nick Montfort, Daniel Ravipinto, and Emily Short. Hosted by Scott Rettberg. Kelly Writers House, 27 October 2004.

Links

• Emily Short's homepage.
  (Formerly emshort.wordpress.com, emshort.home.mindspring.com.)
• Emily Short (archived) - at Baf's Guide.
• Emily Short - at IFDB.
• Emily Short at Wikipedia.
• Author Highlights by Mathbrush (12-May-2018).

Interviews

• Emily Short, author of "Metamorphoses" - SPAG #23, December 29, 2000.
• SmoochieComp 2001 - Stephen Granade of Brass Lantern interviews Emily Short about SmoochieComp. c. February 2001.
• Interaction is better than plastic explosive - Interview by L'avventura è L'avventura, October 2001. (Also in Italian.)
• The SPAG Interview with Emily Short - SPAG #29, June 20, 2002.
• PC Gamer UK Interview: Emily Short - by Richard Cobbett for PC Gamer UK, issue 118, January 2003.
• Interview: Emily Short questioned by KF (View HTML), (View PDF) - InsideADRIFT Issue 9, August 2003.
• Interactive Fiction and Feelies: An Interview with Emily Short (archive) - by Bill Loguidice for Armchair Arcade, Issue #2, March 2004.
• Magic Words: Interactive Fiction in the 21st Century - by Andrew Vestal and Nich Maragos, illustrations by Erin Mehlos. Originally at 1up.com. Includes interviews of Emily Short, Stephen Granade, Andrew Plotkin, Adam Cadre, Daniel Ravipinto and Star Foster. 2004.
• The CGM Interviews - Andrew Plotkin and Emily Short are interviewed by Lara Crigger for Computer Games Magazine #185. 2006(?).
• SPAG #44 - Jimmy Maher interviews Graham Nelson and Emily Short about Inform 7. April 30, 2006. (Spanish translation)
• Emily Short, author of "Floatpoint" - SPAG #47, January 16, 2007.
• Inside Interactive Fiction: An Interview with Emily Short - April 10, 2007.
• Wikigame: an interview with IF author Emily Short - June 9, 2008.
• Tips from interactive fiction authors: 1 and 2 (with Stephen Granade) - September 11 and October 28, 2010.
• Absent Heroes: Choose Your Own Interview II - with interviews of Adam Cadre, Emily Short, and Andrew Plotkin. July 16, 2012.
• Roundtable: The Interactive Fiction Renaissance - interviewed by Leigh Alexander, Gamasutra. With interviews of Jon Ingold, Andrew Plotkin, Anna Anthropy and Alexis Kennedy. March 14, 2013.
• On The Border: An interview with Emily Short - by Lauren E. Scott for The Border House, July 15, 2013.
• A Book Itself Is a Little Machine: Emily Short's Interactive Fiction: Part 1 and Part 2 - by Illya Szilak for The Huffington Post, October 30 and November 4, 2013.
• Emily Short - interviewed by Creative Economy, August 30, 2018.
• Emily Short deserves her flowers - by Charlotte Krol for NME, June 14, 2023.
• From Infocom to 80 Days: An oral history of text games and interactive fiction. Anna Washenko interviewed Andrew Plotkin, Graham Nelson, Emily Short, Chris Klimas, Jason McIntosh, Jon Ingold, Kevin Wilson, and Liza Daly for Ars Technica. June 20, 2024.