[1] The collection was first published by Viking Penguin in 1989, although several of the stories had already been printed elsewhere, including an earlier publication titled Early Routines.

The title was inspired by the International Zone in Tangiers, Morocco, where Burroughs lived for a time and by which he was greatly influenced.

A notable inclusion is "Twilight's Last Gleamings", written in 1938 in collaboration with childhood friend Kells Elvins, and widely thought to be Burroughs' first attempt at fiction.

Moreover, the concluding section entitled "WORD" was part of the original Naked Lunch manuscript but was cut during the editing process (according to the introduction by editor James Grauerholz).

The book is divided into three sections: As noted above, this is a novella-length story that was originally part of the Naked Lunch manuscript when it was entitled Interzone.