Glitcherature

glitcherature-mode, 2014, Emacs Lisp code.

Glitcherature is glitch literature, glitch aesthetics applied to text. “Kathy Acker uploaded by Bryce Lynch“, as I said of Orphan Drift’s novel “Cyberpositive“.

I’ve converted my earlier glitcherature Python code experiments to a mode for the powerful and easily hackable Emacs text editor.

Installing and enabling glitcherature-mode in Emacs allows you to glitch text by introducing OCR scanning errors, inserting random characters around words or lines, converting text to binary, 1337 and more.

Here’s some Sherlock Holmes:

T oSH anYo HeLMNa ms heINSH iSEYsHEwo, MaNIhaV eSE-LDOmhEA Rd HImM eNti ONHe rUNDE. rI tWA StNortha
EeElt AYeSeSh EecliPsE SAn dpr EdOMInaTE SThew holE OF hERSex ons Adt atT HPFRT
ICuNYLMot, iONAK iNt ol,oVEF or IreneADLERALl, emOt iaBLybNlAT He DONEDa HEW AL
aRIYwerE Abho,RRenttOHi S ColDPreCi sEbuT adMi rv inGmacH NCet Min tewor
SHtaK, eIt the mostper fECt re aSonInGA Nd OBSER LfiNaF, INseHA tiThO NHl dEa
SSeENbuTas Al OVE rhEw, oUl dhaV ep laCe dhIMSEA NDAanEA lTp oSwiREAd, ENa
vERSp, Ok eOftheSoftER PAssiONS saVeWi tHaGib EN Gth Esv eErf rHEYMe. es mom
IREBlEthI NGS , forTHeObSEr VErE xC elL ENTfo rd RAwiS, UCh ntiLsIoo mIn nohiSti
VNSAndacTION sBUtfORThetraInEDrEAS on ERToadmittR oD uCIArUiST nsT ITgfA cOwDE,
liC ATEa NdfinE LyAD jUst ED t eMpEr aME ntWA StoIntSGr ET dARacsin IV eIT
orRWhiCHMightTh.Rowad ouBTUp onAl L HIsMe NTal rESUl SwouidI nT bSE noRtDI: sT
NSt iUmEntO R acRAck i No NEOfhIsO WnH IGhpoWe RLeNsE, AN DyE lTnoreEm Be tO
NEU RbM ngthA Na STR ongemOtIoNin an AtuREsuC hA ShisofDtbIh, eSA waSquus TI OnW
oeaNtOHI MaNdthaTW o Manwa. stHelate IrenEAdler yMy UaroUagendde rif teA
BLsmEM oRY

And here’s some high modernism:

Uly_R_

STATELY, plump Buck Mulligan came from the STAIRHEAD, BEARING A bowl of LATHER on which A MIRROR AND a RAZOR LAY CROSSED. A YELLOW DRESSINGGOWN, ungirdled, was SUSTAINED GENTLY BEHIND him ON THE MILD morning AIR. He HELD THE bowl ALOFT and INTONED:

—Introibo AD ALTARE DEI.

HALTED, HE PEERED down THE DARK winding stairs AND CALLED out coarsely:

—Come up, Kinch! Come up, you fearful jesuit!

Solemwly he came fo_ard awd mouw_d the rouwd guwre_t. He f__ _ut awd ble___ gravely thri_ the tower. the _urrouwdiwg lawd awd the _aki wg mouwtaiw _. Thew. ca_hiwg _ight of S_phew Dedalu_. he bewt toward_ him awd made r_id cro__e_ iw the _ r. gurgl iwg iw hi_ thr_t awd _hakiwg hi_ hed. Stephew _lu_. di_J

Buck Mulligan peeped an instant under the mirror and then covered the bowl smartly.

—Back to barracks! he said sternly.

He added in a preacher’s tone:
___*_****)**%)*%*)***_**__%_*_))_*_%_%%_)*_*)%))_%)_)*_%*%%_%%)_**__)__*%_%%%)%_
—For this, O dearly beloved, is the genuine Christine: body and soul and blood and ouns. Slow music, please. Shut your eyes, gents. One moment. A little trouble about those white corpuscles. Silence, all.

He peered sideways up and gave a long slow whistle of call, then paused awhile in rapt attention, his even white teeth glistening here and there with gold points. 010000110110100001110010011110010111001101101111011100110111010001101111011011010110111101110011. Two strong shrill whistles answered through the calm.

You can get the code here or here.