Tributes for US novelist Wallace

US authors have been paying tribute to writer David Foster Wallace, who was found dead at his home in Claremont, California, on Friday night.

The 46-year-old hanged himself at his home, police said.

Wallace, best known for 1996 novel Infinite Jest, first gained praise for his offbeat humour with 1987 debut The Broom of the System.

US National Book Award-winning novelist Richard Powers praised Wallace as "the best of our generation".

Wallace's death was "beyond describing", he added.

Dark wit

Author AM Homes, whose novels include The End of Alice, described Wallace as "a wonderful writer, a generous friend and a singular talent".

"I am so sad - stunned. It reminds us all of how fragile we are and how close at hand the darkness is," she added.

In 1987, the New York Times said the then-24-year-old's Broom of the System was "a portrait, through a combination of Joycean word games, literary parody and zany picaresque adventure, of a contemporary America run amok".

His biggest hit, Infinite Jest - set in an elite tennis academy and a drug rehabilitation centre - was praised by critics for its complex, dark wit and featured in many best-of lists.

Wallace, born in Ithaca, New York, also wrote short fiction, published in magazines including GQ, Esquire and Harper's.

Three collections of his short stories - Girl With Curious Hair, Brief Interviews With Hideous Men and Oblivion: Stories - were also published.