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Thomas M. Disch Biography

Thomas M. Disch

Thomas Michael Disch (February 2, 1940 – July 4, 2008) was an American science fiction author and poet. He won the Hugo Award for Best Related Book – previously called "Best Non-Fiction Book" – in 1999, and he had two other Hugo nominations and nine Nebula Award nominations to his credit, plus one win of the John W. Campbell Memorial Award, a Rhysling Award, and two Seiun Awards, among others.

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Thomas M. Disch Quotes

But before any of the small appliances who may be listening to this tale should begin to think that they might do the same thing, let them be warned: ELECTRICITY IS VERY DANGEROUS. Never play with old batteries! Never put your plug in a strange socket! And if you are in any doubt about the voltage of the current where you are living, ask a major appliance.

Appliances, Cute, Old, Play, Tale, Thinking

Poets are regarded as handicapped writers whose work must be treated with a tender condescension, such as one accords the athletic achievements of basketball players confined to wheelchairs.

Achievement, Athletic, Basketball, Handicapped, Player

Knowledge is devalued when it becomes too generally known

Known, Devalued, Knowledge, Becomes, Generally

Laughter is just a slowed down scream of terror.

Laughter, Scream, Slowed, Terror

Here was a flower (the daisy reflected) strangely like itself and yet utterly unlike itself too. Such a paradox has often been the basis for the most impassioned love.

Daisies, Daisy, Flower, Paradox, Strangely, Utterly

So, without saying anything to the others, it made its way to the farthest corner of the meadow and began to toast an imaginary muffin. That was always the best way to unwind when things got to be too much for it.

Cute, Muffins, Too Much, Muffin, Way, Unwind

But the toaster was quite satisfied with itself, thank you. Though it knew from magazines that there were toasters who could toast four slices at a time, it didn't think that the master, who lived alone and seemed to have few friends, would have wanted a toaster of such institutional proportions. With toast, it's quality that matters, not quantity.

Matters, Proportions, Quality, Thinking, Time, Toasters

The distances between the stars seem brief by contrast to the distances between each of us and his fellows.

Contrast, Distance, Distances, Fellows, Loneliness, Stars

A predilection for genre fiction is symptomatic of a kind of arrested development.

Fiction, Development, Kind, Genre, Symptomatic

Writers tend to consider distinction and originality as virtues, but they are anathema to publishers.

Originality, Publishers, Virtue, Virtues, Writers, Writing

America is a nation of liars, and for that reason science fiction has a special claim to be our national literature, as the art form best adapted to telling the lies we like to hear and to pretend we believe.

Art, Liars, Lying, Nation, Pretend, Telling

Creativeness is finding patterns where none exist.

Patterns, Findings, Creativeness, Exist, Finding

Though opposition is a hopeless task, acquiescence would be worse.

Tasks, Would Be, Acquiescence, Though, Task

Let me tell you about the end of the world. It happened fifty years ago. Maybe a hundred. And since then it's been lovely. I mean it. Nobody tries to bother you. You can relax. You know what? I like the end of the world.

Happened, Lovely, Mean, Tell, Years

Sometimes the whole world is mud luscious and puddle wonderful

Mud Puddles, Nature, Puddle, Whole, World

For a lot of people, poetry tends to be dull. It's not read much. It takes a special kind of training and a lot of practice to read poetry with pleasure. It's like learning to like asparagus.

Dull, Kind, People, Poetry, Practice, Training

Gene Wolfe has produced a work of art that can satisfy adult appetites and in which even the most fantastical elements register as poetry rather than as penny-whistle whimsy.

Adults, Art, Elements, Gene, Poetry, Satisfy

Thought is a disease of the brain. The mind defends itself against the degenerative process of creativity; it begins to jell; notions solidify into inalterable systems.

Against, Brain, Creativity, Inalterable, Mind, Systems