Infinite Summer

From "", Stacey Schmeidel's interview-by-email with Wallace, for the Spring 1999 issue of the Amherst College magazine:

Q: Can you talk about your writing process? When/were/how do you write? Do you rewrite?

A: Well, like I said, I am a Five Draft man [writing, two rewrites, and two typed drafts] ... the first two of these drafts are pen-and-paper, which is a bit old-fashioned, but other than that I don't think there's anything very distinctive about my work habits. I fluctuate between periods of terrible sloth and paralysis and periods of high energy and production, but from what I know about other writers this isn't unusual. Work-wise, my only real distinction is that I am incredibly fast and accurate two-finger typist, the best I've ever heard of (another skill honed at A.C.).

*******

As a fellow two-finger typist, I'd love to know how fast he was. Anyone know?

At one job interview in New York, actually around the same time as this interview, I was clocked at about 75 wpm.

I would imagine that if "incredibly fast" is being used in conjunction with two-finger typing (or hunt and peck sans hunt), then Wallace was able to type as fast as standard ten-finger typists.

I don't actually have a factual answer, though. Considering how long Infinite Jest wound up being, and that he'd already written the whole thing out twice.... I certainly hope he was able to at least crack 100 WPM.

I gots no facts either.

But last time I checked my two finger score was "Copy and paste does not improve your typing speed."
I'm very slow. I press Caps Lock to do single capital letters, e.g.