“Changes... can only be effected by alterations in the original. The only thing not prerecorded in a prerecorded universe are the prerecordings themselves. The copies can only repeat themselves word for word. A virus is a copy. You can pretty it up, cut it up, scramble it - it will reassemble in the same form.”

American writer and visual artist

William S. Burroughs was an American writer and visual artist, widely associated with the Beat Generation and postmodern literature. He became known for fiction that pushed against conventional form and voice. His work is often experimental, with unreliable narrators and semi-autobiographical material shaped by his experience of drug addiction. He also helped popularize the cut-up technique with Brion Gysin. Across his fiction and his life, recurring interests included mysticism, the occult, and magical themes.