David Foster Wallace is a short story writer, novelist, and essayist. In his shortened lifetime, he published a 1,000 page+ novel, Infinite Jest; a collection of essays called Consider the Lobster; and a number of story collections. He's known for his postmodern, experimental style.
"Incarnations of Burned Children" was originally published in Esquire, and you can also find it in his collection Oblivion.
The New York Review of Books published this interview with Wallace. And you can watch Wallace's Charlie Rose interview here.
In 2008, Wallace committed suicide after a long history with depression. Here is a nice write up of his career and history from Time Magazine. After Wallace's suicide, McSweeney's published a number of moving letters from people who had read Wallace's work, and in some cases, knew or met him. You can also read "All That", a story that the New Yorker published after Wallace's death.
I remember watching the Charlie Rose interview for the first time and realizing just how much anxiety Wallace had. You can tell he's just interpreting everything he says in so many ways and focusing on all the bad ways he could have come across.
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