The science fiction genre has undergone significant changes and evolution over time, with various factors influencing its development, including the rise of new authors from diverse backgrounds.

The genre has historically lacked diversity, with only 8 out of 100 top sci-fi films featuring a person of color as the lead character in 2014, implying an inability to imagine a future with people of color.

However, in recent years, there has been an increase in diverse representation, with major franchises like Marvel and Star Wars including better racial diversity, paving the way for more inclusive storytelling.

The Hugo Award, which is the highest honor in science fiction, has also played a significant role in promoting diversity and inclusivity, with winners including authors from diverse backgrounds and identities.

Chinese science fiction, in particular, has flourished, with authors like Liu Cixin winning the Hugo Award for Best Novel in 2015, and Chinese female writers thriving in the genre, despite limited feminist expression in China.

The internet has removed barriers to writing for non-male authors, allowing for a more diverse range of voices in the science fiction genre, and providing a platform for women and queer talents to develop their writing skills.

The number of women writers in science fiction has increased in recent years in China, with a wider and more diverse audience for the genre, and independent publishers have played a crucial role in promoting underrepresented authors.

The science fiction genre has become more diverse and inclusive, with authors from diverse backgrounds making significant contributions, such as Nnedi Okorafor, whose Binti is a Hugo-award-winning Africanfuturistic science fiction horror story.

The genre has also been influenced by authors who incorporate elements of ethnography and intertextuality into their works, and has become more global, with authors from different countries and cultures contributing to its development.

The impact of diverse authors on modern science fiction has been significant, enriching the genre and expanding its possibilities, and the future of science fiction looks promising, with new authors and voices emerging, and the genre continuing to evolve and adapt to changing times.

The Hugo Awards have recognized the work of underrepresented authors, including women and people of color, and have helped to promote diversity and inclusivity in the genre, with a record number of non-English speaking members participating in the 2023 awards.

Overall, the science fiction genre has undergone significant changes and evolution over time, with a growing focus on diversity, representation, and inclusivity, and the impact of diverse authors has been significant, enriching the genre and expanding its possibilities.

The genre continues to evolve, with new authors and voices emerging, and the future of science fiction looks promising, with a growing focus on diversity, representation, and inclusivity.

The science fiction community has implemented various initiatives to address the historical lack of diversity and representation in the genre, including inviting diverse speculative fiction submissions and launching new imprints for speculative fiction.

These initiatives have helped to promote diversity and inclusivity in the genre, and have provided opportunities for underrepresented authors to publish their work and reach a wider audience.

The impact of independent publishers and online platforms on promoting diversity and inclusivity in science fiction has been significant, with many underrepresented authors achieving success and gaining recognition through these channels.

Social media has also played a significant role in promoting underrepresented authors and connecting them with readers, providing a platform for them to share their work and build their audience.

Overall, the science fiction genre has become more diverse and inclusive, with a wider range of voices and perspectives being represented, and the impact of diverse authors has been significant, enriching the genre and expanding its possibilities.

The science fiction genre has undergone significant changes and evolution over time, with various factors influencing its development, including the rise of new authors from diverse backgrounds.

Title:

Content: Science Fiction: Chinese Female Writers | Culture | DW | 21.10.2023
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Cultural warp and weft
Science fiction: the rise of Chinese women writers
While the space for feminist expression in China has shrunk further over the past decade, there ’ s good news from this week ’ s World Science Fiction Conference in Chengdu: Chinese female writers are thriving in the science fiction world, making them one of the most striking trends in the genre.
The rise of Chinese female writers in science fiction has become one of the most striking trends in the genre, according to participants at this week's World Science Fiction Conference in Chengdu.
The World Science Fiction Conference, the world ’ s oldest and most influential science fiction event, was held in China for the first time this year and attracted a large number of local fans, both male and female.
China remains a relatively socially conservative country, and under President Xi Jinping, the space for feminist expression has narrowed further over the past decade.
But author and editor Regina Kanyu Wang, who was nominated for two prestigious Hugo Awards at the World Science Fiction Conference this year, said the number of women writers in science fiction has soared in recent years.
She said more and more women are now realizing that "it's not just nerdy, nerdy science-fiction novels like Liu Cixin [author of the three-body series] that can be published, or can be considered science fiction." Liu Cixin is great, and we all like him.
But there's a lot more to it than Liu Cixin's style. "
The good news, says Wang, is that once women start to become writers, they don ’ t feel they ’ re being treated unequally.
The market and readers need a new perspective, she said.
The 81st World Science Fiction Conference will be held in Chengdu from October 18 to 22.
"Now, many Chinese female science fiction writers focus on issues that women face that men may not feel," Zhou Danxue, a literary scholar at XJCC Liverpool University, told AFP. "These writers can reflect unique female experiences in their own way."
Wang said that in the past two years, four anthologies of Chinese fantasy novels written only by female or non-binary authors have been published, which is a major breakthrough.
There wasn ’ t even an all-female science fiction writer ’ s portfolio before that.
Before the 1990s, there were very few female science fiction writers.
An article in the collection "The Way Spring Comes", which Wang Kanyu participated in compiling, pointed out that the Internet is a training base for women and queer talents.
Author Ni Xueting explained that the widespread use of the Internet “not only brought a new sense of community to people, but also … removed many barriers to writing based on industry and social stereotypes, especially for non-male writers. ”
Chen Qiufan, one of China ’ s leading science fiction writers, told AFP that the genre had traditionally not received special attention and was seen as “written and read by boys. ”
He said there was now a "wider and more diverse audience", estimating that his readers were split equally between men and women.
Chinese women writers begin to make their mark in science fiction
Monet, a 21-year-old woman who visited the science fiction convention on Friday, said she sometimes felt isolated among her own fan base.
“It ’ s hard to share my interests with people who don ’ t understand me.
They ask, "Why does a girl like science fiction?"
She is optimistic about these changes in attitude, pointing out that there are a lot of interested primary and secondary school students at the conference site.
“I think interest in Chinese science fiction has to be nurtured from an early age, ” she says.“ We didn ’ t have that opportunity when we were young … I really envy them, to be honest. ”
(AFP)
© 2023 Deutsche Welle Copyright Notice: All content in this article is protected by copyright law and may not be used without special permission from Deutsche Welle.
Any misconduct will lead to recovery and criminal prosecution.

The genre has historically lacked diversity, with only 8 out of 100 top sci-fi films featuring a person of color as the lead character in 2014, implying an inability to imagine a future with people of color.

Title:

Content: 'Snowpiercer' star Daveed Diggs says it's 'frustrating' when sci-fi stories lack diversity: 'That implies that you can't imagine a future with people of color'

  • "Snowpiercer" star Daveed Diggs told Insider that it's "frustrating" when sci-fi stories lack diversity.
  • Diggs said that it implies "you can't imagine a future with people of color."
  • Diggs added that "Snowpiercer" tries to make the future reflect what the world looks like now.

"Snowpiercer" star Daveed Diggs told Insider that it's "frustrating" when sci-fi movies and TV shows lack diversity.

Diggs, best known for his role in the original Broadway cast for the "Hamilton" musical, stars in the dystopian thriller about the last of human civilization living on a fast-moving train after Earth becomes a frozen wasteland. One of the aspects that make the series stand out is the fact that the characters are racially and geographically diverse.

Diggs, who plays the lead character Layton, told Insider that he hoped more sci-fi movies and TV shows embrace diversity in regards to their cast.

"The frustrating thing when our science fiction lacks diversity is that that implies that you can't imagine a future with people of color and that's super frustrating no matter who it is who's writing the show," Diggs said. "Because that also implies that you don't see them in your present or see us in your present."

He continued: "One of the things I do like about this show is that we try to make the world of the future also reflect our contemporary world."

In 2014, a study by book publisher Lee & Low Books found that in the top 100 domestic grossing films in the sci-fi and fantasy genre, only 8 had a person of color as their lead character. In six of those eight movies, the protagonist was Will Smith.

In recent years, major sci-fi franchises, such as the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Star Wars, and the CW's Arrowverse, have started to include better racial diversity, as well as diversity in other areas.

Diggs also told Insider that the series reflects the contemporary world with its underlying themes for season three.

"Season three asked us to look at the inherent flaws in a bunch of political systems," Diggs explained. "We live in a world in which, in the last few years, we've been witnessed to a fair amount of authoritarian regimes popping up in places that we thought were solidly committed to democracy and that happens on 'Snowpiercer.'"

He added: "The big political question this year is how useful is a broken democracy and what are you willing to do to fix it? And what does it mean to fix it?"

The third season of "Snowpiercer airs Mondays at 9 p.m. ET on TNT.

Sign up for notifications from Insider! Stay up to date with what you want to know.
Subscribe to push notifications

Keep reading

However, in recent years, there has been an increase in diverse representation, with major franchises like Marvel and Star Wars including better racial diversity, paving the way for more inclusive storytelling.

Title:

Content: 'Snowpiercer' star Daveed Diggs says it's 'frustrating' when sci-fi stories lack diversity: 'That implies that you can't imagine a future with people of color'

  • "Snowpiercer" star Daveed Diggs told Insider that it's "frustrating" when sci-fi stories lack diversity.
  • Diggs said that it implies "you can't imagine a future with people of color."
  • Diggs added that "Snowpiercer" tries to make the future reflect what the world looks like now.

"Snowpiercer" star Daveed Diggs told Insider that it's "frustrating" when sci-fi movies and TV shows lack diversity.

Diggs, best known for his role in the original Broadway cast for the "Hamilton" musical, stars in the dystopian thriller about the last of human civilization living on a fast-moving train after Earth becomes a frozen wasteland. One of the aspects that make the series stand out is the fact that the characters are racially and geographically diverse.

Diggs, who plays the lead character Layton, told Insider that he hoped more sci-fi movies and TV shows embrace diversity in regards to their cast.

"The frustrating thing when our science fiction lacks diversity is that that implies that you can't imagine a future with people of color and that's super frustrating no matter who it is who's writing the show," Diggs said. "Because that also implies that you don't see them in your present or see us in your present."

He continued: "One of the things I do like about this show is that we try to make the world of the future also reflect our contemporary world."

In 2014, a study by book publisher Lee & Low Books found that in the top 100 domestic grossing films in the sci-fi and fantasy genre, only 8 had a person of color as their lead character. In six of those eight movies, the protagonist was Will Smith.

In recent years, major sci-fi franchises, such as the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Star Wars, and the CW's Arrowverse, have started to include better racial diversity, as well as diversity in other areas.

Diggs also told Insider that the series reflects the contemporary world with its underlying themes for season three.

"Season three asked us to look at the inherent flaws in a bunch of political systems," Diggs explained. "We live in a world in which, in the last few years, we've been witnessed to a fair amount of authoritarian regimes popping up in places that we thought were solidly committed to democracy and that happens on 'Snowpiercer.'"

He added: "The big political question this year is how useful is a broken democracy and what are you willing to do to fix it? And what does it mean to fix it?"

The third season of "Snowpiercer airs Mondays at 9 p.m. ET on TNT.

Sign up for notifications from Insider! Stay up to date with what you want to know.
Subscribe to push notifications

Keep reading

The Hugo Award, which is the highest honor in science fiction, has also played a significant role in promoting diversity and inclusivity, with winners including authors from diverse backgrounds and identities.

What is considered a major breakthrough in science fiction publication?

Chinese science fiction, in particular, has flourished, with authors like Liu Cixin winning the Hugo Award for Best Novel in 2015, and Chinese female writers thriving in the genre, despite limited feminist expression in China.

What is considered a major breakthrough in science fiction publication?

The internet has removed barriers to writing for non-male authors, allowing for a more diverse range of voices in the science fiction genre, and providing a platform for women and queer talents to develop their writing skills.

What is considered a major breakthrough in science fiction publication?

The number of women writers in science fiction has increased in recent years in China, with a wider and more diverse audience for the genre, and independent publishers have played a crucial role in promoting underrepresented authors.

What is considered a major breakthrough in science fiction publication?

The science fiction genre has become more diverse and inclusive, with authors from diverse backgrounds making significant contributions, such as Nnedi Okorafor, whose Binti is a Hugo-award-winning Africanfuturistic science fiction horror story.

Title:

Content: 60 Sci-Fi Books That All Science Fiction Fans Must Read

Are you looking for a new science fiction book to read? Looking to fill up your reading list with journeys to strange new worlds and fast-paced science fiction adventures? You're in luck because we've compiled a list of the best sci-fi books.

Whether you're looking to dive into the great sci-fi classics you missed out on or you're looking to delve into brand new tales from up-and-coming indie authors, you're sure to find something that will spark creativity and excitement for you. Science fiction and fantasy novels provide us with allegories, cautionary tales, and deep dives into the human condition told through the lens of the fantastical and the cutting-edge.

The Best Sci-Fi Origins Books

Where did it all begin? Read these early tales with impossible futures, fascinating creatures, time travel, and alien invasion!

Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus by Mary Shelley

Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein brought us the iconic monster made by Victor Frankenstein. Considered the first true science fiction novel of the modern era, it would foreshadow genetic tinkering stories of the future.

The Blazing World by Margaret Cavendish (also called The Description of a New World, Called the Blazing-World)

Considered to be the first science fiction work, in the 17th century, Duchess of Newcastle Margaret Cavendish wrote of a utopian world.

Ozma of Oz by L. Frank Baum

The third Oz book by L. Frank Baum features Tik-Tok, the wind-up clockwork man Dorothy Gale encounters in the Land of Ev. Tik-Tok is basically one of the first robots in literature. Other wacky features in Ozma of Oz include a sand-sailing boat and lunch pail tree.

The Time Machine by H.G. Wells

A 19th century classic by Wells, depicting time travel and inspiring science fiction tales for over a century.

The War of the Worlds by H.G. Wells

The book would go on to inspire a radio program that terrified people into thinking Martians were actually invading Earth. Wells would kickstart first contact stories and alien invasion at the same time, offering up a cautionary tale that touches sci-fi to this day.

The Best Sci-Fi Space Epics Books

Transport yourself across the universe with these pillars of world-building in science fiction, all of which are either now adapted for TV or film or soon will be.

Dune by Frank Herbert

Frank Herbert’s Dune is considered a masterwork of world-building and family intrigue, inspiring other famous series and their respective houses. In the first book, Paul Atreides encounters the resident free people of the planet Arrakis (Dune), the Fremen, and achieves a destiny of messianic proportions. Dune recently graced the big screen in a new adaptation by Denis Villeneuve.

Binti by Nnedi Okorafor

Nnedi Okorafor's Binti novella series begins with Binti, a Hugo-award-winning Africanfuturistic science fiction horror story published by Tor.com. Binti is the first of the Himba people ever to be offered a place at Oomza University, the most exalted institution of higher learning in the galaxy. She faces the choice to accept the offer and give up her place in her family so that she can travel among the stars. Hulu has ordered a pilot for Binti.

Foundation by Isaac Asimov

The beginning of the Foundation series reveals the “psychohistory” developed by mathematician Harry Seldon. Seldon would establish a new empire called Foundation to preserve the culture from societal collapse. Foundation debuted as a TV show on Apple TV in 2021.

Embers of War by Gareth L. Powell

Gareth L. Powell's award-winning trilogy Embers of War follows the war-weary crew of the sentient spaceship Trouble Dog, who after becoming disgusted by her role in war joins the House of Reclamation. Trouble Dog and her captain Sal Konstanz are sent on a rescue mission, which intersects a mission to find missing poet Ona Sundak. The galaxy teeters on the brink of another war, just as an alien presence makes itself known, altering the course of things to come. Now under development for TV.

Rendezvous with Rama by Sir Arthur C. Clarke

A strange spacecraft enters the solar system, and humanity investigates. The secrets within the enormous craft, called Rama, reveal the heritage of an advanced alien civilization. Rendezvous with Rama is in development for a film adaptation with Denis Villeneuve at the helm.

The Best Hard Sci-Fi Books

If you like your science fiction taut with the edginess of battle and the implication of future wars, you must add these books to your collection!

The Forever War by Joe Haldeman

This classic military sci-fi epic details the tragic effects of time dilation on a group of soldiers fighting a seemingly endless war.

Ringworld by Larry Niven

Set in the 29th century, Louis Wu and his companions explore a vast, Earth-orbit-sized, constructed world. Their adventures uncover the alien civilization that built it.

The Three-Body Problem by Cixin Liu

First set with the backdrop of China’s cultural revolution, this new epic involves secret scientific experiments, alien invasion, challenging moral dilemmas, and impressive world-building.

Old Man’s War by John Scalzi

A man in his 70s is recruited as a soldier in the Colonial Defense Force, and altered physically in unexpected ways. Strong on character development, this kickstarts the Old Man’s War Series.

Starship Troopers by Robert Heinlein

This classic military sci-fi tale follows Johnny Rico and military recruits who become involved in a battle between humans and aliens nicknamed Arachnids or “Bugs.”

If you love Starship Troopers, check out our review of the wisdom of Grand Admiral Thrawn – Michael

The Best Sci-Fi Robot Stories

The future of robots is here and is complex and necessary reading in these sci-fi tales.

I, Robot by Isaac Asimov

Isaac Asimov’s intriguing work introduced the laws of robotics that all robots must adhere to work alongside humans.

All Systems Red by Martha Wells

The first novel in the Murderbot Diaries, All Systems Red, follows a cyborg that goes by the name Murderbot contends with self-awareness in the corporate-dominated future.

Cinder by Marissa Meyer

The beginning of the Lunar Chronicles series is a retelling of Cinderella from the point of view of a cyborg.

Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep by Philip K. Dick

Famed for its eventual big-screen adaptation, Blade Runner, this novel recounts a future in which highly realistic artificial fugitives are on the run from bounty hunter Rick Deckard.

The Alchemy of Stone by Ekaterina Sedia

Mattie is an automaton in this steampunk and urban fantasy novel involving gargoyles, Mechanics, and Alchemists.

The Best Sci-Fi Mars Stories

Our neighbor, the red planet Mars, beckons to us. What would it be like to walk on the shifting red sands of Mars? Find out in these Martian classics.

The Martian Chronicles by Ray Bradbury

Ray Bradbury’s mesmerizing prose introduces us to a Mars full of exotic possibility, soon plundered by humanity’s arrival.

Red Mars by Kim Stanley Robinson

The first in the Mars Trilogy, Red Mars, involves the colonization and terraforming of Mars and the conflicting moral questions that result.

The Martian by Andy Weir

Astronaut Mark Watney is left behind on a Mars mission and must draw upon his skills and ingenuity in order to survive.

Mars by Ben Bova

Navajo geologist Jamie Waterman joins the first expedition of scientists exploring Mars. The grounded approach Bova takes to all the interaction, politics, and bureaucracy help achieve a plausible future story.

Red Rising by Pierce Brown

The first book in the Red Rising Trilogy envisions a future of planetary colonization in which caste systems abound. Darrow must fight against this system of overlords.

The Best Sci-Fi Fantasy Books

Fly high with dragons, roam lands on epic quests, and learn the hearts of true heroes in the fantasy masterpieces.

The Lord of the Rings Trilogy by J.R.R. Tolkien

J.R.R. Tolkien’s magnum opus spans three books, opening up a fantastically detailed and wholly invented universe in Middle Earth that was hinted at in The Hobbit. Considered the ultimate work of fantasy, The Lord of the Rings brings myth, allegory, poetry, song, war, and melancholy to heights of realism and wonder.

A Wizard of Earthsea by Ursula K. Le Guin

The first novel in The Earthsea Cycle tells the tale of the wizard Ged, and his journey to redeem his reckless past.

A Song of Ice and Fire series by George R.R. Martin

Beginning with A Game of Thrones, Martin’s elaborate, dark fantasy series covers land in which seasons last decades, and a terrible force from the north threatens to bring an icy apocalypse to an area filled with rulers jockeying to take the Iron Throne.

The Dragonriders of Pern Series by Anne McCaffrey

This remarkable series takes place in the world of Pern, where people telepathically bond with dragons. Dragonflight is the first in the series.

The Fifth Season: The Broken Earth, Book 1 by N.K Jemisin

The Fifth Season marks the first book of the award-winning The Broken Earth trilogy. Set against civilization’s collapse and natural disaster, Essun endures great personal tragedy in her quest to rescue her daughter.

The Best Sci-Fi Dystopian & Apocalyptic Books

Set in a nightmare future, these dystopian and apocalyptic legends will keep you up at night.

The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood

In a totalitarian future America, handmade Offred is forced to bear children to men of a ruling class. The tale follows her harrowing life in a bleak future, and the attempt to escape and bring down the subjugating class to restore rights.

The Stand by Stephen King

A deadly pathogen escapes a military installation, rapidly spreading and bringing civilization essentially to an end. A group of survivors makes its way to a form of a promised land while battling a malevolent group seeking domination.

Parable of the Sower by Octavia E. Butler

In the near future breakdown of the society of Los Angeles, empathic teenager Lauren believes in a better future entailing traveling to other planets. Lauren gathers followers to her belief as she makes her way north.

Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel

Set in the Great Lakes region of America, a group of nomadic creatives picks up the pieces after the fall of civilization due to pandemic flu. Station Eleven has been adapted for HBO Max.

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

The first book in the Hunger Games Trilogy follows the immense challenges that Katniss Everdeen faces in the post-apocalyptic version of America called Panem. She takes her sister’s place in the government-sponsored Hunger Games to compete for survival in a no-holds-barred and deadly competition.

The Best Sci-Fi Near Futures Books

The future is here, or nearly so, in these ground-breaking novels set close to our present day.

Contact by Carl Sagan

Scientist Ellie Arroway detects a potential extraterrestrial signal from space, which appears to instruct humanity in how to build a machine. She faces self-doubt amid scrutiny to uncover the mysteries of the discovery.

Jurassic Park by Michael Crichton

This cautionary tale about genetic engineering in which scientists make living, cloned dinosaurs for an amusement park. Mayhem ensues.

2001: A Space Odyssey by Arthur C. Clarke

Mysterious monoliths appear across many worlds, seeding life with intelligence. Following the discovery of one such monolith on the moon, Dr. Bowman and a team of scientists investigate the signal it sends to Saturn’s moon Iapetus. The onboard AI begins exhibiting dangerous behavior during the journey.

Flashforward by Robert J. Sawyer

A physics experiment creates an unintended consequence of everyone on earth losing consciousness for two minutes. Each person sees a “flash forward” decades in the future while they are unconscious. The resulting accidents and visions challenge everyone’s ideas of free will.

Ready Player One by Ernest Cline

In dystopian 2044, impoverished Wade Watts navigates through the virtual reality world of the OASIS, seeking to reverse his fortune.

The Best Sci-Fi Books for Younger Readers

Take adventures through time and space, no matter your age!

A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle

The Murry children and Calvin O’Keefe crosses universes and space-time to try to find their missing father. Their tale is a mind-bending adventure of good vs. evil.

His Dark Materials Trilogy (The Golden Compass/The Subtle Knife/The Amber Spyglass) by Philip Pullman

The Golden Compass/Northern Lights begins this sweeping saga of two children, one born in a parallel universe, one born in our own. In Lyra’s world, people’s souls exist in animal form, called daemons. Her father and mother represent warring factions determined to control all universes. Filled with talking animals, witches, airships, and strange creatures, His Dark Materials packs an emotional punch.

The Apothecary Series by Maile Meloy

Set in the 1950s, The Apothecary starts this highly entertaining, thrilling adventure series in which American Janie Scott meets Benjamin Burrows, the son of an apothecary. After Benjamin’s father is kidnapped, the teenagers uncover a terrifying plot that could result in humanity’s end. They use potions with magical effects to try and stop the impending doom.

The Serpent's Secret (Kiranmala and the Kingdom Beyond #1) by Sayantani DasGupta

The first of the Kiranmala and the Kingdom Beyond series, book one begins with Kiranmala discovering her parents are missing, and there is a demon in her kitchen! Two princes recruited her and sent to another dimension, where she must battle the Serpent King and the Rakkhoshi Queen to rescue her parents and save the Earth.

The Wild Robot by Peter Brown

This delightful middle-grade novel recounts a discarded robot named Roz and her search for love and acceptance.

The Best Sci-Fi Ponderous Books

These mind-bending sci-fi novels will have you thinking for a long time afterward.

Stranger in a Strange Land by Robert Heinlein

Raised on Mars, Valentine Michael Smith returns to Earth and tries to fit in. His unusual upbringing makes him seem superhuman, but he attempts to help his Earth kin understand things from a different perspective.

The Demolished Man by Alfred Bester

Set in the 24th century when telepaths (“Espers”) are common, and police are telepathic as well. Ben Reich tries to evade the telepathic police for a murder he wants to commit. The story opens up the moral issues of using telepathy, regulated mostly by a guild, but raises concerns about the exclusion of telepaths who run astray as well as psychological intrigue.

Solaris by Stanislaw Lem

Solaris follows humans’ failed attempts to communicate with extraterrestrial intelligence. The sentient planet tests the researchers with their memories and emotions.

Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell

A story spanning time and space and connections between various characters, Cloud Atlas explores the theme of fate with a mind-bending narrative.

The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K. Le Guin

This classic tale follows the journey of Genly Ai on his mission to the planet Gethen. The ambisexual Gethenians present challenges and growth for Ai.

The Best Sci-Fi Cyberpunk Books

If you dream of the future lit by neon, shadowed by noir, and fueled with intrigue, these seminal cyberpunk novels are for you!

Neuromancer by William Gibson

In the first novel of the Sprawl Trilogy, hacker Henry Case is hired to help an AI take over the global network called The Matrix.

All the Birds in the Sky by Charlie Jane Anders

A modern cyberpunk tale is weaving together magic and science, with wit and feeling.

Altered Carbon by Richard K. Morgan

Set in the 25th century, humans have spread through the galaxy and can be preserved after death via cortical stacks, then essentially regenerated or “re-sleeved” into another body. Takeshi Kovacs stumbles upon a vast conspiracy after his latest “sleeve.”

The Stars My Destination by Alfred Bester

This early entry into cyberpunk sci-fi follows teleporter Gully Foyle, an outcast considered dangerous.

Synners by Pat Cadigan

The synthesizers, or Synners, are people who can turn mental images into products for consumption. The story is told via various characters’ viewpoints.

The Best Sci-Fi and Fantasy Books by Indie Authors

Discover the latest sci-fi and fantasy stories, while supporting independent authors!

Mindful Things by Mya Duong

Nineteen-year-old Lauren begins to experience visions and uncovers the fact her deceased parents were witches. A madman hungry for power pursues her, and she must embrace her magical heritage to try to stop him.

The Infinite by John W. Akers

The inventor Pax works on a secret project that can revolutionize human cognition. His plans are derailed by a computer virus that could end civilization, so Pax is forced to choose how he can help humanity survive.

Threadwalkers by Joanna Volavka

Miranda Woodward undergoes a discordant series of events following her father’s death. This is a young adult time travel tale.

Resonance by Jennifer Greenhall

In Book One of the Resonance Series, Sophia Walsh uses her psionic abilities for good but finds herself the next target of a killer.

Heliopause: The Questrison Saga®: Book One by J. Dianne Dotson

Heliopause by J. Dianne Dotson kickstarts The Questrison Saga®, a four-book series science fiction and fantasy series. In Heliopause, a mystery at the edge of the solar system reveals a galactic menace. A galactic natural disaster unfolds, aiding the monster in the void. Human Forster and human-looking, ageless Galla-Deia team up with telepaths, galactic mages, aliens, and androids to face the greatest threat to all life in the galaxy. Full of diverse characters and exotic worlds, found and made families, heartbreak, and whimsy, this space opera recalls Star WarsDoctor Who, and Game of Thrones.

At Your Money Geek, we are huge fans of the science fiction genre, everything from military science fiction to novels about space travel, parallel worlds, and fantasy novels. We are always looking for new books to read and exciting sci-fi writers to profile, let us know in the comments what authors you are currently enjoying.

This post was produced and syndicated by Wealth of Geeks.

| Website | + posts

J. Dianne Dotson dreamed up other worlds and their characters as a child in the 1980s in East Tennessee. She formed her own neighborhood astronomy club before age 10, to educate her friends about the universe. In addition to writing stories, she drew and painted her characters, designed their outrageous space fashions, and created travel guides and glossaries for the worlds she invented.

As an adult, Dianne earned a degree in ecology and evolutionary biology, and spent several years working in research. She published Heliopause: The Questrison Saga®: Book One (2018) and its sequels Ephemeris: The Questrison Saga®: Book Two (2019), Accretion: The Questrison Saga®: Book Three (2020) and her last novel in the saga, Luminiferous: The Questrison Saga®: Book Four (2021).

Dianne is also a science writer, content writer and manager, short story writer, watercolorist, and illustrator. She lives with her family.

Who wrote "Binti," a Hugo-award-winning African futuristic science fiction horror story?

The genre has also been influenced by authors who incorporate elements of ethnography and intertextuality into their works, and has become more global, with authors from different countries and cultures contributing to its development.

Title:

Content: Sunday Literature ‧ 2021 The Most Awakening Book List (Literature)
Post Date: December 26, 2021
【 Ming Pao Newsletter 】 Fiction
by Sunfai
A variety of Hong Kong in three novels
In the past, I actually read less and less Hong Kong literature, and this year I wanted to distance myself from some words that were too timely to respond to society, and also found that I was getting farther and farther away from the younger generation, so I specially found some young writers' novels to look at, and taste the multiple Hong Kong in different eras and frames.
1) The Love Method of the Overcrowded City
Author: Huang Yi
Publisher: United Literature (September 2021)
Before the winter solstice, I finished Huang Yi ’ s “The Love Method of the Overcrowded City ”.
Each short story is put together with a painting, and the words are light and light because of the power of the picture, so that the reader has the possibility of multiple reading.
Whether it is heterosexual love, homosexual love, complex entanglement of love, the author wrote so naturally, but as a reader of my psychological reaction turned out to be so twisted.
The novel was written in the past two or three years, the dark shadow of the era is like a shadow, but it does not reduce the warmth of the heart, love, the breath of youth so that people still have a little space in the oppression.
2) Single Bed
Author: Jiajun
Publisher: Mishan Bookstore (2021)
Because of the promotion of "Sunday Literature", I read the first book by Mishan Bookstore, "Single Bed", and was surprised at the resilience of the younger generation.
In the book, Jiajun writes about Beijing, Xinjiang, Mongolia, South America and other places, but Hong Kong is always a lingering theme.
Central white-collar life is certainly not easy, but occasionally open anal, bladder jokes, the meaning of life still has to rely on their own to find.
As in the case of the righteous, there is a life of lawlessness, a life of lawlessness.
3) Nan Hui Truck: A Collection of Short Stories from New Territories West
Author: Wang Zen-heng
Publisher: Postscript Studio (January 2021)
But the most profound, or after the vernal equinox read "Nan Hui truck: New Territories West short story collection".
The workers in the northwest New Territories under Wang Zen-heng ’ s pen, the crane workers, the massage girls, the unmarried women from the Mainland who came to Hong Kong, the border youths, and the low-level agents of the anti-triad unit, are not the groups I have come into frequent contact with in my life, but I know that they are the background of this society.
The black sand beach of Lung Kwu Tan, the disorderly walk on Castle Peak Road, the village entrance of Siu Lam Tsuen, and the unquenchable smoke head of the ground of the rear hill breaking down the primary school are obviously not the schizophrenic construction of "Illusion Love", but in fact, they are the cruel reality of the nightmare that impels Yuen Tin and even our city.
I am 30 years old and 40 years old, I am particularly taught by the post-90s generation this year, whether it is music, YouTube Channel, or the creators of novels.
This year has not been easy, and the road ahead is even more difficult. I just hope that you will continue to work hard and unleash more power than you can imagine.
Science fiction
Man TANG Ching-kin
The Crossing between Science Fiction and Pure Literature
If science fiction is still regarded as genre literature today, it would be too light on science fiction.
Now pure literature writers are happy to take science fiction as the topic, and actively explore the pursuit of literature with science fiction; on the other hand, many authors who are regarded as science fiction writers have gradually pushed "science fiction" to a new position beyond traditional types of literature.
If possible, I would prefer to use "Watsuki" to understand the relationship between science fiction and pure literature.
1) Clara and the Sun
Author: Kazuo Ishiguro
Translator: Lin Hongtao
Publisher: Shang Zhou (March 2021)
Nobel Prize winner Ishiguro Ishiguro has written many works with science fiction elements, but the literary laurels make him incompatible with the label of "science fiction writer".
But as soon as you start reading his words, you will immediately understand what I mean by "Watanabe".
Klara and the Sun is a bittersweet grown-up novel about Clara ’ s feelings and introspection as she grows up — the only thing special is that Clara is a robot made to be a companion to human children.
The novel uses a robot as a first-person narrative, so the novel not only responds to the growing fiction tradition in the history of literature, but also transcends it: how did the robot human spirit grow? How did Clara's knowledge of self and love get excavated under the pen of the novelist?
Ishiguro Ishiguro is one of the few writers to write gently and deeply about science fiction, and this new work after the Nobel Prize has not disappointed.
2) Zero Separation
Author: Imah
Publisher: Maitian (May 2021)
However, this kind of "crossing" is not limited to the topic of the novel.
In Taiwan, for example, a group of Mesozoic novelists even regarded it as a basic narrative skill, and science fiction has become a common material for them to practice narrative skills.
This year, I was particularly interested in the new book Zero Separation.
Since "The Dreamer", Yi has explained to the Chinese speaking world that he has the ability to lead Chinese novels to a new territory of "science fiction - (pure) literature".
The complexity of the narrative of the novel lies in the fact that he takes on the universe of The Dreamer and at the same time inserts various fictional "subtexts" such as preface, postscript, and dialogue to contain a future world written by a future author.
3) "Transit: 15 Trans Dimensional Travels by Le Guin"
Author: Ursula K. Le Guin
Translator: Yan Yun
Publisher: Trojan Horse Culture (August 2021)
Finally, I have to recommend a science fiction writer in the strict sense.
Her "six songs of earth and sea" has long been a science fiction type of classic.
This year, Taiwan translated her short story series, “Changing Planes, ” a series of stories about moving through different dimensions.
Under Le Guin ’ s pen, science fiction stories are written as ethnography, spreading the magnificent and mixed heterogeneous universe.
Literary readers with a clear heart can also read a kind of intertextuality: the novel refers to many literary names, such as Bochs, Calvino, and Dostoyevsky.
As I read, I twirled between the “sci-fi universe ” and the“ literary dimension. ”
This is the experience of reading contemporary "science fiction - (pure) literature".
prose
Mann Chan Yen-kai
1) Copy the "Unfathomable": "Drifting Clouds"
Author: Li Rikang
Publisher: Postscript Studio (January 2021)
Those frightened, harsh eyes were staring at me.
He is forcibly taken away by a dog squad with a dog pen, or has become a dish on someone else ’ s table.
It was the black dog that accompanied me through my childhood.
It turns out that "a lot" is also the case, which may be the fate of rural dogs.
Li Ri Kang ’ s “Leaving the Clouds ” also revealed the scars of my childhood.
The author says this book is about misinformation.
While studying in Kyoto, he enjoyed Japanese aesthetics, but also encountered natural disasters.
In the summer of 2018, I was editing a collection of student essays, and I soon received an article entitled “A Journey to Kyoto ” from Li Rikang.
The article explains the various aspects of visiting students, and carefully explains the experience of copying ancient books in college.
A year later, someone is determined to open the Pandora box, and the result is “unexpected ”.
Later, people experienced "grief, sigh, destruction, mystery, fear, determination, and dreams."
There is also a "mishap" to be written.
Man Hsu Ti-chung
Guarded by Dragons: Encounters with Rare Books and Rare People
Written by Rick Gekoski
Publisher: Constable (August 2021)
When Gekoski was a student, he sold a set of Shakespeare and made his first pot of gold, which led him to start his gold business by trading old books.
His original occupation was a professor of English at Warwick University, and he probably taught Tao Jie. Obviously, being a rare bookseller is much more fun than teaching.
The subtitle of this book, "The Best Book and the Best People", can also be used in the previous similar work, Tolkien's Gown (American version of Nabokov's Butterfly), both to write books, and more importantly to write people, these people, mostly famous writers, Gekoski help them sell books, or Their book heritage, written about their great personalities and behaviors.
So the bookseller can not be offended, otherwise he will explode your dark side - rest assured, after you pass.
3) "Geng Zi Hai Wu Xu"
Author: Yeh Han-liang
Publisher: OUP (April 2021)
Yeh Han-liang is now widely known as a martial artist. When he knew his name, he was a musician and a broadcaster.
When I bought this book, I wanted to see if he was teaching people how to spend years and fortune telling.
If so, you might end up putting the book down.
There is only a small amount of talk in the book, and because of the circumstances, it is not selling cucumbers.
And Ye Han-liang is the same generation, he talks about the old life, I can most of the experience, feel the same.
The words in the book are quite beautiful - a little higher than fluency, Li is the meaning of sprinkling.
He studied foreign languages at university, but has long paid attention to "national history", and academic numbers, had to understand Chinese classics, the pen quotes the ancients, pure and natural, will not give people the feeling of dropping a book bag. Geng Zi, that is, 2020, 2019, 2018, is the eventful autumn of Hong Kong, the article is more lyrical than emotional (in fact, it is absolutely not), it is not only political, it is more everyday.
4) 《 Love Bookstore 》
Author: Yosuke Ikouchi
Publisher: Small Bookstore Small Case Publishing (July 2021)
The coronavirus epidemic has dealt a heavy and even fatal blow to various industries, and the book industry naturally bears the brunt of it, with fewer people taking to the streets. But according to the author of the book, some booksellers have turned to selling books online, and their business has been ahead of the curve.
Another interesting phenomenon is the addition of a number of independent bookstores and independent publishing houses in that year alone (2020).
I found that this is also the case in Hong Kong, in addition to bookstores and publishing houses, as well as magazines, it is because of curiosity that we have to see what is happening in the Japanese book industry.
The author visited 10 independent bookstores in Japan and their founders, and his list is said to be as long as 40.
These bookstores have their own characteristics, but they generally have one thing in common, which is that they often host lectures and events, and even publish.
In Hong Kong, some bookstores offer paid lectures, classes, and even become a major source of income.
The author is Japanese, understands Chinese, and the book is written in Chinese, so there is no translator.
Man Lee King-heng
I ’ m not a fan of new books, but I ’ ve recently read a couple of memorable books that happened to be published in 2021.
5 ） 《 Shop Life 》
Author: Huang Guoxuan, Zheng Junhan
Publisher: Extraordinary (March 2021)
I rarely read the prose, but this collection of essays calls me unrelenting.
The article in the book depicts the daily life of the bookstore, but in the clever arrangement, the whole book structure is complete and unified, the content is comprehensive, and thought-provoking.
The story begins with two people entering the bookstore and ends with a review of everyone ’ s departure.
The author briefly and warmly outlines the daily work of the bookstore — ordering, unpacking, putting on shelves, stocking, packing, book fairs, and even dealing with rat plague floods, as well as the fate and interests of bosses, colleagues, guests, publishers, authors, book club owners, and even porters.
The book permeates the author's ideal mission and realistic management of books, reading, bookstores, and even social life care and reflection.
Reading this book about books and bookstores made me feel the texture and temperature of the book.
6) Running to the Night: A Collection of YOASOBI Novels
Author: Hoshino Dance Night, Ishigaki Aota, Ishigaki no, Underwater Wave
Translator: Chen Fanfan
Publisher: Cutting-Edge (May 2021)
I like books and I also like music.
This “musical novel ” project, which combines music and literature, is very special: the record company first released the draft under the premise that the winning works will be adapted into songs, and the Japanese duo YOASOBI wrote and interpreted the lyrics based on the winning works. YOASOBI is good at subtly composing melodies of melancholy and melancholy, and subtly composing melodies through the contrast of form and content. It is a simple but complex rhyme.
This book contains four original novels adapted by YOASOBI as songs on the album THE BOOK, including young people ’ s feelings and reflections on death, fate, love, and the end.
Hoshino Dance Night ’ s “The Temptation of Sonatos / Dissolve in the Night Sky ” is a story about death in an ingenious and one-of-a-kind way, and the song“ Run to the Night ” has been downloaded over 100 million times.
But I prefer - whether it is a song or a novel - "Maybe", like it to capture the sadness and helplessness left by a couple after their love fades with a precise but understated brush stroke.
7) Becoming Simonova
Author: Kate Kirkpatrick
Translator: Zhang Wei
Publisher: Acropolis (June 2021)
Simompova is a legendary woman: an open relationship with Saudi Arabia; an existentialist following Saudi Arabia; a world-renowned feminist. It is absolutely amazing to read this more than 500 pages of Being Simompova with these impressions.
Based on the letters and diaries published after Bova ’ s death, the author presents one of the most three-dimensional complex Simone Bova has ever seen.
Rather than being the perfect embodiment of ideal love, Bova and Saudi Arabia are more like partners on the intellectual road.
In fact, she is much more passionate about other heterosexual and same-sex relationships, and has been deeply hurt by Saudi Arabia ’ s popularity and coldness.
Academically, Bova ’ s ability to argue is higher than Saudi Arabia ’ s, forming ideas about existence and nothingness earlier, and even developing a set of existential ethics on her own.
She was dissatisfied with the feminists of the time, and wrote "Second Sex" originally only to organize their own growth experience, but unexpectedly became the most influential feminist.
Finally, I have to mention that the foreword of this book is very wonderful, and even if she is not a Bova fan, she will certainly feel endless fun.
WEN YARAN
(8) The Complete Seventies.
Author: 7th Grade
Publisher: Imprint (December 2020)
A full set of 13 books, with novels, poems and essays, published in December 2020, should not be excessive if it is included in the 2021 awakening book list.
I have not read the seventh grade before, it is after his death in 2020, the printing and publishing of this set of complete began to read.
The words of the seventh class are really powerful, like one of his masterpieces, the short story "I Love Black Eyes", is pouring rain, pedestrians scramble to climb the ladder to the roof of the house to avoid flooding, he wrote: "He has never hated human beings as much as at this moment. The goal of the project."
The words of the seventh class, I would say, have a unique dark atmosphere, and when asked where this atmosphere came from, the prologue in the second book of the Complete Collection provides an answer: that is, "the characteristics of the rhythm of the text."
In the words of the seventh class, the rhythm is different from other, there is "the breath of life, the beating of the blood."
You will understand when you read.
9) The past is not as good as smoking.
Author: Zhang and
Publisher: OUP (September 2021)
When you see the author ’ s name, you know it ’ s a must read book.
The six characters in the book, like the first book published in 2004, are the stories of the upper echelons of Chinese society and the last aristocrats, all of whom have been talking to the author's father, Zhang Bojun, for many years.
In China before and after World War II, as well as resisting foreign enemies, the elites of these countries wandered between the two parties, and in their lives, there were questions about where the country should go and what role they should play and what role they should play.
There are dramatists like Hong Shen, who was once a member of the Kuomintang, and later hoped to be recognized as a communist after his death; there are also political figures like Zuo Shunsheng, who was once the secretary general of the NLD, an important figure of the third force outside the KMT, and was the object of Mao Zedong's active recruitment.
It was only after 1949 that he did not go to Beijing and did not go to Taiwan, choosing to settle in Hong Kong and continue to discuss politics as a scholar.
Under the political storm, there are at least six examples of what people can choose and how they should choose.
"The Anatomy of Melancholy"
Author by: Robert Burton
Publisher: Penguin Classics (July 2021)
The Chinese translation "Anatomy of Depression", first published in 1621, and finally revised after the author's death in 1651. In 2021, the Penguin Classic reprinted this monumental work in hardcover.
This year, there is such a book on the pillow, there will be a calming effect. More than 1,300 pages, talking about what depression is, was written by Robert Burton in Oxford.
The book is very thick, but in addition to the opening preface, there is actually no need to read from scratch, find the chapter that interests you, that is, a specific depression that troubles you, or what kind of curiosity you are about depression, like the root of love depression, or why we are angry or afraid, the author as early as the 17th century, has the answer.
Wen Yi-jen
11) The Mayfly of the Great Age
Author: Shao Songxiong
Publisher: Mishan Bookstore (December 2021)
Shao Chung-hsiung studied in the 1980s, and has a wide range of knowledge and interests in the humanities. In the past, Oxford published only three collections of essays on music: Black and White, The Joy of Music, and The Twilight of the Gods.
"The Mayfly of the Great Age" just compiled his column articles written in the last years of the Apple Daily, from memoirs of the pioneers he encountered during his school years, to talk about Hong Kong popular culture such as movies or TV dramas, from family education to learning boxing and cooking, etc., and chatter and talk, and let the reader savor the image of the last student.
The book is divided into six parts by content: floating life, religious views, teaching, world style, humanities and film arts.
Shao Songxiong ’ s words do not have beautiful words, on the contrary, he sincerely shares his experience and insights with readers in a solid text, which is a long example of scholarly prose in the classical humanistic tradition.
"The Soul of the Old."
Author: Guo Ting
Publisher: Maitian (July 2021)
What are old things? Why are old things important? Guo Ting, who grew up with the elderly in Shanghai, seems to have a firm belief in old things.
From the old things, she saw people who had lived and died in a single line of time and did not return, leaving behind a chance to reconnect with the lost time.
While studying in the UK, she found that the society has been relatively stable for hundreds of years, and its charity shop has left a large number of intact old things, from fashion to porcelain, from books to vinyl records, and even home furnishings. Guo Ting will be her rich knowledge and passion for charity shops, second-hand shops, and old bookstores, focusing on the soul of old things. It is written in a very detailed manner, and it is written in a poetic manner.
How did the sad days pass?
Author: Huang Shu-han
Painting: LAI En-tsi
Photographer: Ruan Chi Him
Publisher: Shi Ching Culture (November 2021)
After two turbulent years, many Hong Kong people re-examine the past life and find the shadow of the past life. Huang Han-sook's "How to Live the Sad Days" recorded some of her own experiences and thoughts in the past few years: as a person in the education system, a witness of my city's aging, a patient, how should she view the city people's evasion of negative things?
In search of the whole, she listens to other people ’ s stories; in search of answers, she reads classic literary novels.
The book contains not only her simple words, but also the paintings of theater director Ryan Enci and the street scenes photographed by Ruan Zhiqian, which show a more three-dimensional look of sadness.
Poetry collections
Mann Chan Tzu-him
1) Save me with her little tongue.
Author: Cao Shuying
Publisher: Black Eyes Culture (June 2021)
Cao Shuying is good at short poetry and rapid segmentation, full of improvised fun, you can never guess where it will turn, how to stop.
This book is published in Taiwan, but it is full of memories of Hong Kong. At least four and a half of the seven chapters refer to this place: Hong Kong, Tai Yu Shan, Night Kowloon, Heart Lake City, Green Island.
Some poems seem to have no local memory, and the author still does not forget the point at the end of the poem, which shows deep feelings.
On the other hand, poetry does not always flow into reality, but can also plunge into the mind.
Also written in Taikoo, Cao Shuying ’ s “In Taikoo ” does not outline the landscape and concentrate history like the“ Taikoo ” of Ru Ming, but says that those “women like robots ” and“ men like silk ”, “should not walk in King ’ s Road, Jusco, Percy ’ s Restaurant, / They should walk in Rome, Prague, Brooklyn. ” A mysterious rope is drawn.
How far can poetry go from life?
2) "Simboska. Collage of Life"
Author: Alice Milani
Translator: Lin Wei-yun
Publisher: BIG CULTURE (July 2021)
Simboska is very popular in the Chinese world, and there are many translations of poetry, but no biographies in Chinese have been seen so far.
Based on biographies, interviews and other materials, the graphic novel "Simboska. Collage of Life" is a virtual reality, which not only presents the poet's life turning point, changes in literature and political beliefs, but also infuses imagination with fun.
Poets love to collage images, and so does this book, which uses crisp splicing to connect different time and space.
When it quotes poetry, it often does not restore the writing background like a biography, but deliberately mismatches the poetry to another time and space, and uses it to interpret the poet's psychology and arouse the reader's imagination.
Simboska is known for his humor, and the book is just as humorous, and even the dullest thank-you note makes me laugh: “Finally, I want to thank my unparalleled manager, Alexandra Sparta. ”
He has my love and 70% of my income. "
The Rose Is Open for No Reason: 40 Paths Approaching Modern Poetry
Author: Liao Wei-tang
Publisher: New Classical Culture (May 2021)
Roses bloom, there is no need for reasons, but when the city people can not feel the poetry, who will give them the reason to read poetry, or temptation? "Roses are open for no reason - approaching the 40 paths of modern poetry" does not intend to generalize all poetry issues, prefer to give the right medicine, and respond to the public's questions: Is modern poetry and classical poetry incompatible?
Is there no musicality without rhyming? Why branch?
Therefore, this book does not look like a hard textbook, but a dialogue with a living person.
There are 40 chapters in the book, each with two or three poems carefully read to explore a poetry topic. It is obvious that Liao Wai-tong does not first have concepts and then find examples, but first draws inspiration from poetry reading and then distills concepts.
Therefore, the discussion of the topic in the book may not be complete, but the appreciation is always written brilliantly, as tempting as poetry.
Art • Liu Ruoji
Editor • Kwan Hsiao-yang
Email • literature @ mingpao.com
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The impact of diverse authors on modern science fiction has been significant, enriching the genre and expanding its possibilities, and the future of science fiction looks promising, with new authors and voices emerging, and the genre continuing to evolve and adapt to changing times.

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"From China" phone fraud California school Watson was defrauded of 180,000 yuan for three months
Wang Jiar Jinshan sang outside the fan venue and waited for 8 hours for more people to "night row" to see him.
World's Largest Science Fiction Literary Award
The award ceremony of L. Ron Hubbard ’ s Writers & Illustrators of the Future, the world ’ s largest and most authoritative science fiction literary award, was held in Hollywood on the 28th.
(Video source: reporter Zhang Hong)
Twelve writers and 12 illustrators from around the world were selected as winners of the annual Writers and Illustrators Competition for their excellence in science fiction.
The winners came from the United States, Canada, China, Costa Rica, Jamaica, Romania, South Korea, the United Kingdom and Vietnam.
Among the Asian winners, three are Lo Hee-ming from China, Helen Yi from South Korea and Dao Vi from Vietnam.
Luo Ximing, a 17-year-old girl from Hangzhou, China, won the winner of the Illustrator Competition.
She said she immigrated to the United States with her parents when she was three years old and has been living in Maryland, and this time came to Los Angeles for the award.
She actually started creating illustrations in high school, and she is very happy to have won such an award.
Next year, she will go to Penn to study computing science and art, hoping to continue to improve herself.
Also present at the event were the chairman of the CCA, Ms Chan Wai-bik, and the financial expert, Ms Lin Li-sheng. Ms Chan said that the award had been won by Chinese people over the years, but few people in the Chinese community knew about it.
Chinese people should step out of the Chinese area and participate in the activities of the mainstream society to show the strength and voice of the Chinese people.
The winner of this year ’ s Lifetime Award is Canadian science fiction godfather Robert J. Sawyer, whose works include “The Terminal Experiment ” and“ Flashforward ”. He is one of seven writers in history to have won all three of the highest science fiction awards in Nebula, Hugo and Campbell.
He has been a judge of the Future Writers Competition since 2005.
The evening ’ s guest speaker was Dan Farr, a pop culture icon.
As the founder and CEO of FanX Salt Lake Comic Con, he said that these future writers and illustrators will be the main influencers of the next generation of pop culture.
In this controversial world, the future will see a new generation of creative people changing and healing the world through works of art.
In 1982, L. Ron Hubbard released his internationally acclaimed bestselling science fiction novel Battlefield Earth, written to celebrate his 50 years as a professional writer, and in 1983 he created the Future Writers Competition, which provided a platform for aspiring mystery writers to showcase their talents, and five years later, the Future Illustrators Competition.
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The Hugo Awards have recognized the work of underrepresented authors, including women and people of color, and have helped to promote diversity and inclusivity in the genre, with a record number of non-English speaking members participating in the 2023 awards.

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Content: 2023 Hugo Awards announced in Chengdu, China
【 View the original picture 】
This is the scene of the 2023 Hugo Awards ceremony filmed in Chengdu on October 21.
Photo by Xinhua reporter Tang Wenhao
Source: Xinhuanet October 22, 2023 09: 49
Xinhua News Agency, CHENGDU, Oct. 21 (Reporter Li Qianwei, Li Like) On the evening of the 21st, the 2023 Hugo Awards were announced at the 2023 Chengdu World Science Fiction Conference, and a total of 17 categories of Hugo Awards and 2 categories of non-Hugo Awards were selected.
This is also the first time that the Hugo Award has been announced and presented in China.
Reporters learned that in the nomination stage of this year's Hugo Awards, more than 25,000 science fiction works (individuals) participated in the nomination, received more than 1,800 valid nominations, and finally selected 17 categories of Hugo Awards including Best Short Story, Best Novel, Best Dramatic Performance (Short Film), Best Dramatic Performance (Long Film) and 2 categories of non-Hugo Awards.
Chinese writer Hai Hai won the prize for best novella for "Time and Space Painter".
The Best Short Story Award was won by The Rabbit Test, the Best Long Novel Award was won by The Drowning Girl Mystery, and the Best Novel Award was won by Nettles and Bones.
The Hugo Award is an annual award presented by the World Science Fiction Association in honor of Hugo Ginsbach during the annual World Science Fiction Congress.
The award was established in 1953.
It is worth mentioning that this Hugo Award is also the largest number of non-English speaking member participants since the establishment of the award.
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What is considered a major breakthrough in science fiction publication?

Overall, the science fiction genre has undergone significant changes and evolution over time, with a growing focus on diversity, representation, and inclusivity, and the impact of diverse authors has been significant, enriching the genre and expanding its possibilities.

What is considered a major breakthrough in science fiction publication?

More Non-binary authors
More female authors

The genre continues to evolve, with new authors and voices emerging, and the future of science fiction looks promising, with a growing focus on diversity, representation, and inclusivity.

What is considered a major breakthrough in science fiction publication?

The science fiction community has implemented various initiatives to address the historical lack of diversity and representation in the genre, including inviting diverse speculative fiction submissions and launching new imprints for speculative fiction.

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Content: Westland Books invites submissions for speculative fiction anthology

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New Delhi, Jul 31 (PTI) Publishing house Westland Books has invited submissions from budding and established writers of speculative fiction for an anthology of new writing.

The entries, to be curated by author Guatam Bhatia, are to be in the format of short stories (2,000–8,000 words) and novelettes (8,000–20,000 words). The selected works will be published in Westland's new imprint 'IF'.

"When the editors at Westland and I discussed the scope of this anthology, we thought of it as a showcase for the breadth and diversity of Indian SF. We are looking for new stories as well as new voices—from writers old and new. I'm really looking forward to reading the submissions and curious about what the anthology will look like," said Bhatia in a statement.

The winners will be awarded Rs 12,500 for each accepted short story (to a limit of 10 short stories) and Rs 25,000 for each selected novelette (to a limit of three novelettes).

"We are keen to build IF as a home for exciting new writing in the realm of speculative fiction, and this anthology is an attempt to broaden and deepen the list with fresh writing from established as well as first-time writers. We could not have asked for a sharper and more committed editor than Gautam Bhatia to curate the anthology, which we hope to publish in early 2025," said Karthika VK, publisher of Westland Books. PTI MG MAH MAH

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These initiatives have helped to promote diversity and inclusivity in the genre, and have provided opportunities for underrepresented authors to publish their work and reach a wider audience.

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Content: SFWA Market Report – April 2023

Welcome to the April edition of the SFWA Market Report.

Please note: Inclusion of any venue in this report does not indicate an official endorsement by SFWA. Those included on this list pay at least $0.08/word in at least one category of fiction. This compilation is not exhaustive of all publication opportunities that pay our recommended minimum professional rate. Additionally, SFWA adheres to our DEI Policy when making selections for this report. We strongly encourage writers to closely review all contracts and consult our resources on best contract practices.

New Markets

Impossible Worlds
The Off-Season: An Anthology of Coastal New Weird (Upcoming)

Markets Currently Open for Submissions

Analog Science Fiction & Fact
Apex Magazine
Asimov’s Science Fiction
Assemble Artifacts Magazine
Beneath Ceaseless Skies
Cast of Wonders (Recently Opened)
Clarkesworld Magazine (Recently Opened)
Escape Pod
Factor Four Magazine
Fantasy & Science Fiction (F&SF)
Fantasy Magazine (Recently Opened)
Flame Tree Fiction Newsletter
Habitats Magazine
Infinite Horrors
Infinite Worlds
Islandia Journal
Issues in Earth Science
khoréo magazine (khoreo) (Recently Opened)
LatineLit
Lightspeed (Recently Opened)
Little Blue Marble
midnight & indigo
Nature: Futures
PodCastle
PseudoPod (Recently Opened)
Reckoning
riddlebird (Recently Opened)
Robotic Ambitions (Recently Opened)
Samovar
Small Wonders (Recently Opened)
The Big Issue (Recently Opened)
The Deadlands
Uncharted Magazine

Markets Recently Closed for Submissions

CatsCast
Cosmic Roots and Eldritch Shores
FIYAH
Metastellar (Originals)
Zooscape

Other Opportunities

If There’s Anyone Left Micro-Fiction Contest

Upcoming Market Changes

Cast of Wonders‘s “Banned Books Week” theme ends soon.
Cast of Wonders‘s Limited demographic submission window: young authors begins and ends soon.
Cosmic Roots and Eldritch Shores‘s Submission Window begins and ends soon.
If There’s Anyone Left Micro-Fiction Contest‘s Submission Window ends soon.
khoréo magazine (khoreo)‘s Submission Window ends soon.
Lightspeed‘s General science fiction, short fiction ends soon.
Lightspeed‘s BIPOC-only fantasy, short fiction begins and ends soon.
Lightspeed‘s General fantasy, short fiction begins soon.
Robotic Ambitions‘s Limited Demographic Submission Window: marginalized writers ends soon.
Strange Horizons opens soon.

What is considered a major breakthrough in science fiction publication?

More Non-binary authors
More female authors

The impact of independent publishers and online platforms on promoting diversity and inclusivity in science fiction has been significant, with many underrepresented authors achieving success and gaining recognition through these channels.

Title:

Content: SFWA Market Report – April 2023

Welcome to the April edition of the SFWA Market Report.

Please note: Inclusion of any venue in this report does not indicate an official endorsement by SFWA. Those included on this list pay at least $0.08/word in at least one category of fiction. This compilation is not exhaustive of all publication opportunities that pay our recommended minimum professional rate. Additionally, SFWA adheres to our DEI Policy when making selections for this report. We strongly encourage writers to closely review all contracts and consult our resources on best contract practices.

New Markets

Impossible Worlds
The Off-Season: An Anthology of Coastal New Weird (Upcoming)

Markets Currently Open for Submissions

Analog Science Fiction & Fact
Apex Magazine
Asimov’s Science Fiction
Assemble Artifacts Magazine
Beneath Ceaseless Skies
Cast of Wonders (Recently Opened)
Clarkesworld Magazine (Recently Opened)
Escape Pod
Factor Four Magazine
Fantasy & Science Fiction (F&SF)
Fantasy Magazine (Recently Opened)
Flame Tree Fiction Newsletter
Habitats Magazine
Infinite Horrors
Infinite Worlds
Islandia Journal
Issues in Earth Science
khoréo magazine (khoreo) (Recently Opened)
LatineLit
Lightspeed (Recently Opened)
Little Blue Marble
midnight & indigo
Nature: Futures
PodCastle
PseudoPod (Recently Opened)
Reckoning
riddlebird (Recently Opened)
Robotic Ambitions (Recently Opened)
Samovar
Small Wonders (Recently Opened)
The Big Issue (Recently Opened)
The Deadlands
Uncharted Magazine

Markets Recently Closed for Submissions

CatsCast
Cosmic Roots and Eldritch Shores
FIYAH
Metastellar (Originals)
Zooscape

Other Opportunities

If There’s Anyone Left Micro-Fiction Contest

Upcoming Market Changes

Cast of Wonders‘s “Banned Books Week” theme ends soon.
Cast of Wonders‘s Limited demographic submission window: young authors begins and ends soon.
Cosmic Roots and Eldritch Shores‘s Submission Window begins and ends soon.
If There’s Anyone Left Micro-Fiction Contest‘s Submission Window ends soon.
khoréo magazine (khoreo)‘s Submission Window ends soon.
Lightspeed‘s General science fiction, short fiction ends soon.
Lightspeed‘s BIPOC-only fantasy, short fiction begins and ends soon.
Lightspeed‘s General fantasy, short fiction begins soon.
Robotic Ambitions‘s Limited Demographic Submission Window: marginalized writers ends soon.
Strange Horizons opens soon.

What is considered a major breakthrough in science fiction publication?

More Non-binary authors
More female authors

Social media has also played a significant role in promoting underrepresented authors and connecting them with readers, providing a platform for them to share their work and build their audience.

Title:

Content: -- -- -- / -- -- --
Site Management
Boxtagram and Boxtock.
What ’ s behind Sarah Ravens ’ success in the book world?
Majeed Sareh
• 251
• 0
Earlier this year, social media audiences were surprised that an Algerian writer, Sarah Rivens, had the highest sales in France for her novel, written in French, “Captive, ” or what she translated into Arabic as“ The Hostage. ”
The 23-year-old writer, who is still based in Algiers, before her novel was published by a French publishing house, and achieved that number of sales in libraries, was published on the platform “Watpad ” electronic under the pseudonym (The blurred girl).
Sarah Ravens is not the only one who has used social networks in the field of writers, as there are many, and everyone uses these networks.
In addition to those who publish their own texts, there are those who choose to use them to share and introduce texts and books and encourage their reading.
These networks are not only limited to the application “Watpad ” dedicated to publishing literary works of articles, poems and novels, but also to“ TikTok ” and “Instagram ”, the two social networks that are used especially in the publication of photos and videos, and to a greater extent pictures and videos of fashion artists and what are recently called“ influencers ” in the social networks inhabited by many young people who make up their own world.
“Boxtagram ” or how to live your fondness for books on social media
Boxtgaram, Boxtock, and Boxtock are also from the “Inhabitants ” of this world, and the name comes from the English word for book.
Those who talk about books are up to date, living away from the noise and extravagance of influencers and hundreds of thousands of followers.
In social networks, they form small groups, with the largest number of followers in the tens of thousands on Instagram.
But these groups that talk about the book are gradually growing, not only do they have readers who want to share what they read, they have been joined by professional writers such as booksellers and booksellers.
To a lesser extent, authors and publishers, to publicize and promote their books and what they do, as well as journalists who are interested in the book.
Most of these are college girls under 30.
They share and comment on what they read from books on Instagram, TikTok or YouTube and share their desire to encourage those around them to read, in French, English and Arabic.
Nelia Salem, 27, holds a university degree in French literature and civilization, through her Instagram account “Algerian _ bookreaders ”, in which she has been publishing about the book since the summer of 2018, is among the most distinguished Algerian“ pokestagram ” in terms of form and content.
She tells us that what prompted her to do what she does is “a desire to encourage people to read and to discover Algerian literature, ” and she posts on her account“ summaries of my positive readings, as well as a critical touch (positive or negative), videos of interviews with a book, good book purchases (promotions in bookstores or at old booksellers), tips for regular reading, tips for choosing better readings with preferences, biographies. Authors.
I recently introduced a new format, one-minute “reels ” to summarize a reading succinctly and without disclosing it completely.
The production of the videos to talk about the book was also chosen by Lina Boray, 29, who is currently an inspector at the Ministry of Finance.
Leena posts videos in her YouTube channel “meis libris ” as well as other social networks.
She talks about what she does and says, “Reading has always been my passion since I was a kid.
I love reading so much that at a certain point I told myself why I don ’ t share this passion with others, I present my various readings in small videos because they are more attractive.
My goal above all is to encourage people to read, especially students and teenagers, because from my experience in cultural associations I have noticed that few people are interested in books and literature.
Becoming a “booktopose ” was an idea that came to me in 2018 but I couldn ’ t materialize it until 2020 until I was able to do it when I had free time during the quarantine period. ”
Lina Boray says that she deals in her videos with Algerian literature in particular to introduce it: “I start by giving a short presentation to the author, then I finish with the content of the novel and the various topics it dealt with and finally I choose a passage from among the ones that attracted me the most and I read it. ”
If Lena Buray and Nelia Salem talk to their followers openly, there are accounts that deal with books that have not yet seen the face of those behind them.
LyndaBooksAddictDz, an Instagram account with more than 11,000 followers, spoke to Lindh, 29, from Algiers, who speaks for herself: “In everyday life I ’ m a consultant on web strategies and social media.
But in life behind the screen, I ’ m BookAddict Dz, a pokestagram that ’ s been around for a few years and aims to share the culture of reading around me. ”
When her career combined with a love of books, she produced what she does on Instagram to motivate others to read and write.
“It ’ s the most popular social network in Algeria, especially among young people between the ages of 15 and 35.
Instagram is a space that allows us to express ourselves freely and share what we want in a post or story.
But for me, it ’ s my favorite network where I can share my routine as well as my reading habits. ”
The status of books in Algeria is different on Instagram and YouTube
In our country, bookstores and booksellers are not a lucrative business, so our number of bookstores is very limited, especially with the recent COVID-19 pandemic, where many libraries have been forced to close.
But on Instagram this is not necessarily the case, it looks completely different: the account dedicated to publishing ads selling and exchanging books “dzbookdealer ”, which counts more than 16 thousand followers, publishes several ads daily.
“myb0oksbec ” started the account I created because I wanted to sell my old books so I could buy other books.
After that some followers contacted me in order to publish their books that they sold, and then I began to exchange books with them and changed the name of the account to “bookexchangedz ” and then the followers began to send book requests.
Because I ’ m passionate about books, because I ’ m looking for them here in Algiers, and because there aren ’ t enough libraries to meet my tastes, unfortunately, especially in English, I started posting requests on the account and that ’ s when “dealing ” (laughing) started.
I love the challenge of looking for the best prints at the best possible prices for the followers of “dzbookdealer ” We talked to the owner of the page, Zeina Ben Shuwaikh, 22 years old and an English student who works as an English teacher in a private school.
On her account, “dzbookdealer ” not only posts book orders and book deals, but also talks about her readings and offers reading tips and library titles.
“I feel very proud when someone tells me that they have read a book that I advised them to, ” says Zeina, laughing, and then adds,“ Bookstagram and Booktop, first with foreigners and then I discovered Algerians who are also doing this, they helped me a lot.
They often encouraged me to read more.
They help me find new titles to read and even teach me to know my taste in reading.
I found people who shared the same passion for reading and even became my friends.
This also gives me the opportunity to read, write and even talk because previously I only talked to myself (laughing).
The Algerian Bookstagram group is growing day by day, and I think it ’ s a great thing to turn literature from readable to audible and make it accessible to everyone. ”
For the booksellers...
Money isn't everything!
The use of social networks from Instagram and TikTok and the emergence of influencers in it prompted advertisers to approach those in order to promote certain products and services.
This created an advertising market in this space where millions of dinars revolved, so that in April 2021 a new activity that can obtain a commercial record was added: the “content industry ”.
For the people who spoke to them, even if they are content creators working on it in terms of form and content, opening a commercial register is not what they are aiming for, what they are doing is not for material reasons but because of the love of the book and the desire to participate and encourage reading.
“He suggested that I organize competitions by libraries.
What I did was not for money.
What made me happy was that those who followed my account won one or more gifts, ” says Lynia Salem, who also adds that someone sends her books to read them “usually ” P.D.
F, then I can ’ t accept it.
I prefer books with paper. ”
Lindh says she received offers from writers and publishers.
“Writers call me in order to suggest novels for me to read and share my opinion about them or to present them in ‘ Book Addict ’ in most cases I have collaborated with French writers.
She also collaborated on novels for L ’ Harmattan.
Lina Boray says she has not received any payment under any form: “I do this because I like to do it.
Positive feedback from people is enough to keep me doing it.
It's an encouraging thing.
I am also pleased with the responses of the book, for example the best Bekash, called Khadra or Karim Akoush. ”
This use in the field of writers for social networks, especially Instagram and TikTok, which are the most used by teenagers and young people, is modern not only in our country but even in other countries, and was launched as soon as the hashtag in Instagram in a publication concerned with the book was developed during the quarantine period with the Covid pandemic, forming then a subculture.
The criticism directed at her is that she overcomes the form at the expense of the content by focusing on the selection of images and beautiful decorations to talk about the book.
But in our country, where libraries are few, the pages that deal with the book in the newspapers are shrinking, and the dates that deal with the book are scarce, our Bookstagram provide a great service to the book, especially as they talk to young people under 35 years of age about the book and encourage them to read, and that is not only about youth books, but they talk about Algerian and world literature. This is a drop of water in a time of drought.
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Overall, the science fiction genre has become more diverse and inclusive, with a wider range of voices and perspectives being represented, and the impact of diverse authors has been significant, enriching the genre and expanding its possibilities.

What is considered a major breakthrough in science fiction publication?

More Non-binary authors
More female authors

Title:

Content: Science Fiction and Politics in Literature and the Arts (Symposium, Toulouse)

Science Fiction and Politics in Literature and the Arts

The aim of this symposium run by the LLA-Créatis laboratory at the University of Toulouse Jean-Jaurès is to develop open thinking about “political” questions, in the broad sense of the term, that science fiction narratives allow. Different types of stories can be considered, in different literary genres or in cinema, video series and comics. It can be studied and interrogated from a historical, political and social perspective by involving, where appropriate, the possible contributions of different analyzes (anthropology, semiotics, feminist studies, postcolonial studies, etc.) Diversity of perspectives and questions raised by gender.

The entire twentieth-century period produced works in San Francisco that were marked by ideologies such as capitalism and its “communist” counterpart, but also by threats associated with civilian and/or military nuclear power, religious-related abuses, racism, minority liberation struggles, and pollution. , etc. These perceptions persisted, but in the period from the last 20 years of the 20th century to the first 20 years of the 21st century, other concerns were voiced: ecological pesticides, the climate crisis, demographic crises, resource depletion, or the danger. The scientific and technical potential (transhumanism, “artificial intelligence”, etc.) is being carried away.

The link to the realities of the times (as in the collection “Le Passager Clandestin / Dyschroniques”) can of course depend on one or more authors, take into account a work or compare several (especially in the case of short stories and short films). The broader perspective will consist in considering the basic ideologies, either in relation to the literary prizes awarded, or in relation to the works themselves, the semantics of these presenting themselves from the outset sometimes as criticism, sometimes as propaganda, the two being able to be combined according to modalities that tend to be ironic, Satirical, disruptive, etc.

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In any case, it would be a matter of highlighting the “exploratory potential” in these works, of identifying the “problematic tools” and of making the ideas put forward in fictional form productive from the point of view of political theory. (Y Rambhala).

Of course, it is advisable to include works belonging to different geographical and linguistic fields so that the panorama of this search is sufficiently realistic.

Provisional schedule of courses (date adjustments possible)

Oct 20, 2-4 PM / Nov 17, 2-4 PM / Dec 15, 2-4 PM / Jan 19, 2-4 PM / Feb 9, 2-4 PM / Mar 15, 2-4 PM / May 31 , 2-4 p.m

Contribution proposals must be sent Before October 1, 2023 To the following addresses: frederics[email protected], [email protected], [email protected]

Title:

Content: Writers' Column
(Lee Ching-heng / editing by Lin Hsiao-hui)
century
A Brief Introduction to the Future of Humanity / Li Ching-heng / Editor / Lin Hsiao-hui
[Ming Pao article] Human history can be said to be a record of the efforts and achievements of mankind to overcome many difficulties and break through the limitations of nature. With the progress of science and technology, the world seems to be getting better and better.
Today, it has even been suggested that humanity has evolved to a different stage, having entered the so-called “post-human generation. ”
The rapid changes in the world have led to a large number of works of art and literature with different visions of the future.
Interestingly, most of these works show criticism and concern about this “Brave New World ”, focusing on its possible problems.
Are humans really making progress, or are they not able to break through on their own?
Music producer Icy (Lai Yanting) was inspired by Dong Kai-chang ’ s novel “Comedy in the Afterlife ” published in 2020, and created the musical work“ Posthuman Landscape ”, which explores and presents the post-human world with music and video.
In the middle of last month, I was invited by the private humanities library to hold a conversation with Icy entitled “Post-Human and Brave New World ” and share some of my thoughts on this issue.
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Content: My channel
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Hugo ’ s Soul – Hugo Award, the highest honor in contemporary science fiction
A crazy idea from a science fiction novel has come true.
How can they give up this feeling of being in heaven? Of course they want to go on to heaven.
Heaven appeared in Chicago for the second time in 1940 and Denver for the third time in 1941.
However, the Second World War broke out and their annual extravaganza was interrupted.
After the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, the vast majority of science fiction fans enlisted in the military, and only a few stayed home.
Those who stay will send science fiction magazines to their comrades on the front lines, because the comrades who hide in the trenches must rely on them to protect their souls.
In 1945, a crazy idea in science fiction came true, two atomic bombs exploded in Nagasaki, Hiroshima, Japan, ending the war, bringing peace back, and, of course, heaven. In 1946, the Fourth World Science Fiction Conference reopened in Los Angeles.
At science fiction conventions, sometimes science fiction fans vote for their best novel or short story.
At the Eleventh Congress in 1953, a rocket-shaped trophy was presented to the winner, but it was only a temporary initiative that did not continue the following year.
It was not until the Thirteenth Congress in 1955 that the people decided to make the award a permanent ceremony, and the award was named The Science Fiction Achievement Award, but it was still called the Hugo Award in private in honor of Gensbach ’ s contributions.
In 1958, the Hugo Award became the official name.
And so the Hugo Award was born.
Nearly 70% of the awards were awarded.
Canadian author Jo Walton is the winner of the 2012 Hugo Award for fiction.
Starting in 2010, she spent three years reading the novels that won awards and were shortlisted in the 42-year period from 1959 to 2000, and published them on the science fiction website, and in-depth discussions with the science fiction community, which caused widespread response.
In 2018, she published An Informal History of the Hugos.
She said she expanded her reading range to include the finalists because she was curious to see if the winning entries were actually the best ones of the year.
She concluded that twenty-five of those forty-two years were indeed well chosen, equivalent to 69% of the winning entries.
In addition, why stop at the year 2000? She gives two reasons.
First, she has published her own work since 2000 and was shortlisted for the John Campbell Memorial Award in 2001, so she cannot include her work in the evaluation in order to remain detached and objective.
The second and most important reason is that the work must stand the test of time.
Since she started writing the column in 2010, a ten-year interval is a reasonable time frame.
For example, if a novel published in 2000 is not out of print by 2010, it can barely stand the test of time.
It takes time to see the works from the depth of history.
Finally, she said that because she also won the Hugo Award in 2012, deeply shocked, coupled with reading 250 novels and writing a column for three years, she is more convinced that the Hugo Award is indeed of extraordinary significance, indeed the most important literary award in science fiction.
The Ideal Science Fiction Reading Guide
So, for readers in Taiwan, what does the Hugo Award mean?
Compared to English-speaking countries, Taiwan's science fiction publishing is much cooler, however, with the efforts of many publishers, Taiwanese readers can still get access to some classic works in the history of science fiction.
Therefore, the Hugo Award can still be an ideal reading guide.
For example, the 1966 award-winning Dune is a classic in the history of science fiction.
The film based on this novel has been popular around the world since its recent release, which has sparked a rush to read the original novel.
Successful film and television adaptations do help drive readers ’ interest in science fiction reading.
Similarly, the 2016 Oscar-nominated film “Arrival ” is also based on classic science fiction.
The success of the film has made Chiang Feng-nan, one of the most prominent Taiwanese-American writers of the time, a household name.
His two collections of novels, The Story of Your Life and The Breath, won four Hugo Awards in 2002, 2008, 2009 and 2011.
And the 1966 Hugo Award "Best Science Fiction Series" of the "Base" series (Chinese translation fantasy base publication) is the history of science fiction super classic, the impact on the future generations is unparalleled.
A television series based on the novel is also popular.
The 1970 award winning "Left Hand of Darkness" and the 1976 award winning "Nothing" are representative works of the life of the female writer Esula Le Guen, who is familiar to Taiwanese readers.
The 2002 award for American Gods is the work of Neil Gaiman, a leading contemporary fantasy writer, and his award is the most successful example of a Hugo Award-compatible fantasy genre.
The publication of classic science fiction novels in Taiwan still has a long way to go. (Part II)
Fiction Finalists
The last one.
Sea Star Anti-Epidemic Soup
The next one.
I used to be a fellow traveler.
Extended reading
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Title:

Content: The novel is a cure for scientific infiltration.
Novelist art of the last three decades of the twentieth century and the beginning of the present century is perhaps one of the most important tools for the dissemination of scientific knowledge and making it part of the general culture, as it has significantly reduced the gap between the scientific fiction and scientific applications in the field, through interesting stories and interesting characters.
Scientists can reach a wider audience and simplify complex ideas, which contributes to the promotion of scientific awareness and inspiration among readers; the integration of science with literature is not just an intellectual luxury, but a necessity for effective communication between scientists and society, especially as physical discoveries have become more confusing and fascinating than the most imaginative scientific novels.
When we read according to preconceived expectations, we marginalize the element of surprise with all its uncalculated potential, which may lead us to wonder and pleasure.
The use of the novel in the dissemination of science is not a new innovation, as literary stories throughout the ages have been an effective means of transmitting knowledge and values. Every sober novel must be a medium of knowledge, and therefore it undoubtedly requires a writer passionate about knowledge to touch a chord in the heart and mind of the reader. To achieve this, the reader must be engaged in learning.
But in modern times, with the increasing complexity of scientific theories and technology as a means of dealing with epistemological lava, epistemological narratives are no longer just lavish, but an urgent need and a simplistic tool that allows audiences to understand this knowledge more deeply.
To think of scientific novels as mere science fiction involves a great deal of predilection and prejudice, and I think it is more correct to describe them as an epistemological novel that satisfies in a fictional framework, and this can be seen by examining the dramatic and attractive survey that marked most of them.
With the proliferation of international novels and their drinkers, selective reading was inevitable; after all, we wouldn ’ t be able to read every recent edition.
Here comes the subjective approach; some are satisfied with the translator into Arabic, because there is no way for him to read another language, some read novels based on previous compliments of prominent critics and known for the excellence of their literary industry, others follow novels for their popularity and popularity, and there are readers who follow certain names for their knowledge of the creativity in their novels, and I think myself of the latter category. Although I sometimes tend to take the opinion of the first category, I think that when we read according to preconceived expectations, we marginalize the element of surprise with all its uncalculated potential, which may cause us to wonder and enjoy.
In Alice in Quantum Country, Robert Gilmar takes the reader on a journey through the world of quantum mechanics, in ways that draw the reader into the depths of this mysterious and complex field.
Gilmar uses a simple narrative style, with illustrations and famous experiences
I follow the work of Dan Brown and José Rodríguez dos Santos with great passion, and I make sure that I do not miss any of their work, and I think it is a wonderful experience that their novels and the works of other novelists who have taken it upon themselves to convey scientific ideas and concepts to a wide audience in an interesting and easy to understand way, especially by making them freely available to readers on the Internet. A large number of readers are paying to read it, and to see the most distinctive and unusual scientific investigations of our time.
By this I mean “particle physics ”, which is one of the most prominent sciences of the modern era, led by the Center for Nuclear Research in Switzerland (CERN), and the unprecedented revolution of communication, informatics and electronic applications, nano-engineering, and the science of industrially created materials; as well as“ quantum mechanics ”, which led to a revolutionary turn in science, thought and philosophy.
These are some of the most exciting and complex fields of science.
Thanks to their storytelling style, writers have been able to present these topics in a way that non-specialist readers can understand and enjoy, and keep up with the explosive stream of information generated daily; in Alice in Quantum Land, Robert Gilmar takes the reader on a journey through the world of quantum mechanics, in ways that draw the reader to the depths of this mysterious and complex field.
Through illustrative examples and famous experiments, such as the double-slit experiment and the Schrödinger cat experiment, Gilmar explains how qubits and quantum entanglement can be the foundations of new quantum computing, simplifying complex scientific concepts and making them accessible to everyone.
Dan Brown introduces elements of particle physics and electronic engineering into his novels, as shown in The Lost Symbol and The Origin.
It mixes scientific facts with literary fiction, creating interesting worlds.
The book is not just a theoretical exposition, it is a fictional journey into the quantum world, involving chapters with dramatic titles that rob the passionate reader: Into Quantum Land, Heisenberg Bank, Institute of Mechanics, Copenhagen School, Fermi-Boz Academy, Virtual Reality, Atoms in the Empty, Rutherford Castle, Particle Concert Masquerade, and the City of Experimental Physics Games.
Quantum Alice is similar to the Alice created by the novelist Lewis Carroll (who had an in-depth experience in mathematics).
It is a novel whose protagonists are electrons, neutrons, protons, photons, and quarks.
Alice goes to the Quantum Country — an entirely new version of Wonderland, smaller than an atom — and each landmark she frequents there illustrates a different aspect of quantum theory; there Alice encounters a number of extraordinary characters, through which she learns the uncertainty principle, wave functions, Pauli principle, and other concepts. Baffling, with a new intake that makes them all easy to absorb.
Along the same lines, Dan Brown introduces elements of particle physics and electronic engineering into his novels, as shown in The Lost Symbol and The Origin.
Braun blends scientific facts and literary fiction to create interesting worlds that help readers explore these fields without feeling overwhelmed; in Angels and Demons, Braun offers particle physics in an exciting way, tackling the story of antimatter smuggling, which prompts the reader to dive into this complex field of science, in an interesting narrative that highlights the challenges and adventures associated with this science.
José Rodríguez dos Santos, a Portuguese journalist and novelist, combines his journalistic and novelist skills to provide stories that delve into science in an exciting storytelling style, though he elaborates on scientific knowledge more than Dan Brown does.
In his novel The Mystical Hand, Dos Santos addresses the subject of biological evolution and astrophysics, mixing scientific facts with fiction, dissecting scientific concepts in a way that the average reader can understand, without losing the element of suspense and excitement in his plots.
I feel very grateful for this type of novel and its authors as much as I am for scientists and their discoveries, and I hope that it will be more popular in our Arab societies, whether by specialists in the scientific field or others, as a space for fun and learning.
In his novel The Gods of the Universe, Dos Santos explores topics such as the Big Bang and string theory, presenting them in the context of an exciting story.
Thanks to his journalistic background, Dos Santos has the ability to simplify scientific concepts, presenting them in a curious way.
What science fiction novelists do in their series is try to shift one ’ s mind from the superficial, fragile, transitory levels of thought to the higher horizons, which may seem invisible or intangible to many; understanding the basics is the foundation of every sober science, the necessary first step to contribute to intellectual and societal advancement, and not to dwell in the corners of indifference away from the scientific revolutions around us.
I feel very grateful for this type of novel and its authors as much as I am for scientists and their discoveries, and I hope that it will be more popular in our Arab societies, whether by scientific professionals or others, as a space for fun and learning, to turn on the disrupted senses, and to take a look at the worlds around us.
The views expressed in the article do not necessarily reflect the editorial position of Al Jazeera.

Title:

Content: Monday 27 December 2021
Chairman of the Board of Directors and Editors
I'm sorry.
Mohamad Elbaz
Editor-in-Chief
Wael Lotfy
Chairman of the Board of Directors and Editors
I'm sorry.
Mohamad Elbaz
Editor-in-Chief
Wael Lotfy
“Studies in Scientific Literature. ”
A book that explores the features of science fiction in Arabic works
Science fiction literature has witnessed a wide presence in Arab creative writings despite its emergence and prosperity in the Western world, and despite its creative popularity, it has not received sufficient critical attention. Based on this idea, the Syrian writer and critic Ahmed Ali Mohammed observes the features and features of science fiction in Arabic literature, both ancient and modern, in his book "Studies in Science Literature", recently published in the series of studies by the Arab Writers Union.
The Syrian researcher believes that the Arab criticism has overlooked the literature of science fiction, citing a number of arguments such as the immaturity of this type of writing in the Arab world, and the disregard of his writers for the features of literary writing, as well as the lack of scientific knowledge, which the writer considers weak, especially with the presence of remarkable writings in this field succeeded in setting a firm foot and overcome many shortcomings.
Leadership in scientific literature
Ali points out that the philosophical messages of Avicenna and Ibn Tufayl can be considered as the beginning of the link in ancient Arabic literature between literature and science, as the Arab heritage includes philosophical messages written in successive times that represented the basis of literary thinking based on science fiction, the most prominent of these messages: "The message of Hayy bin Yaqzan" by Avicenna.
Shahabuddeen al-Sahrawardi ’ s “Strange Alienation ” message is inspired by the story of the neighborhood of Ben Yaqzan, and Ibn al-Nafees ’ s“ Perfect Letter ” in which he followed the example of his predecessors.
The author says of the relevance of these letters to science fiction: "These letters draw a narrative basis based on the facts of science, elaborate on the imagination based on thought and knowledge, and depict part of the knowledge of their owners.
The most prominent aspect of these letters is the narrative imager related to the facts of science and the perceptions of philosophy, which confirms the existence of seeds of scientific literature in the Arabs. ”
Science Fiction Poetry
The writer points out that science fiction literature has been associated with narrative forms, was raised with the French writer Jules Verne, who published the first story in science fiction literature in 1863 entitled "Five Weeks in a Balloon" and then wrote another story entitled "Journey to the Hollow of the Earth" and then continued productions, including the novel "Time Machine" by George Wells and others.
Science fiction poetry is rare, including the poem "The Asteroid" by Russian poet Nikolai Glazkov, translated by Al-Azhar University professor Ahmed Shafiq al-Khatib, a poem based on the achievements of science fiction literature in terms of prediction, foresight and time travel.
Criticism of scientific literature
Some of the works of Tawfiq al-Hakim include The Year of One Million (1953), which is dominated by philosophical consideration of life, nature and the universe, and his play Journey to Tomorrow (1958), which involves a forward-looking view of the future related to man ’ s struggle with time, as well as his play “Food for Every Mouth ”." In which he talks about the problem of food that people will suffer from in the future, and his play "The Prayer of Angels", which deals with the impact of science on the happiness of humanity and the provision of its needs.
Political fiction literature
The writer monitors the branches of science fiction literature that not only addressed the problems of the environment, pollution, space and planets, but touched the problems of politics, society and economy through the literature of political fiction, which includes under its banner the literature of utopia and dystopia.
There are a number of writings concerned with depicting Utopia, which means a utopia without trace of corruption, evil or injustice, the most prominent of these writings is Thomas Moore ’ s “Utopia ”, which depicts an ideal world critical of the political, religious and social conditions of his time.
The literature of dystopia comes in contrast to utopia, but they belong under the name of political fiction, which is a branch of science fiction literature, as each deals with political life by storytelling accompanied by fiction, and dystopia means the literature of the corrupt city or the world of bitter reality that depicts a society full of corruption and highlights the phenomena of destruction, murder and destruction and transformation of human beings. A feuding.
The author mentions a number of Western and Arabic writings that have emerged in the field of dystopia, including George Orwell ’ s 1984, Aldous Huxley ’ s Brave New World, and Ray Bradbury ’ s Fahrenheit 451.
At the level of Arabic writings, a number of works can be observed such as the novel "The Front" by Izz al-Din Issa, the novel "The Tale of the Last Arab" by Wassini al-Araj, "Frankenstein in Baghdad" by Ahmed Saadawi, "The Second War of the Dog" by Ibrahim Nasrallah, "Mercury" by Mohammed Rabie, "The Line" by Basma Abdul Aziz, and "Novelist of the First City" by Omar Hazek. And "Orwell in the Southern Suburbs" by Fawzi Thebian.
Literary Studies
In his book, the Syrian critic offers critical readings in a number of works under the banner of science fiction literature, including the novel "Hala al-Nour" by Mohammed al-Ashri, seeking to stand on the aesthetic trend, especially with the departure of literary criticism from the study of the aesthetic aspects of science fiction literature, observing the methods of the novelist mixing the facts of science with the world mythical heritage.
The book provides another analysis of the collection “Behind the Dark Walls ” by the Syrian writer Taleb Omran, which falls within the literature of dystopia, because the stories depict worlds in which savagery, destruction, murder and destruction prevail, and on the other hand it monitors the Syrian storyteller ’ s interest in the method of scientific storytelling and its reliance on astronomical knowledge and geographical information.
The writer also analyzes the elements and features of fantasy in some of the works of Ahmed Khaled Tawfik as one of the most prominent writers in this field, explaining that science fiction is different from fantasy or wonder in the contemporary novel in that it starts from the modern scientific output, and depends on scientific knowledge specialized, while fantasy completely degenerates from logic and depends on the imagination and does not find a trace of laws we know in reality and depends on mythological and form It is in harmony not with the outside world but with its own world according to which it takes place.

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Content: People 's Daily Online > > Economy and Technology
Science fiction writer Liu Cixin: Someone must dare to dream like this
June 16, 2024 08: 58 | Source: Xinhua News Agency
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"No one knows what the future holds, but someone must dare to dream like this."
At the recently concluded 8th China Science Fiction Conference in 2024, a science fiction short film adapted from the novel of the same name by science fiction writer Liu Cixin, "Earth Cannon", was unveiled for the first time.
The classic quotes and shocking pictures complement each other, bringing the audience into a futuristic world full of science fiction.
On the wings of imagination, what kind of future will science fiction arrive? Recently, in an interview with Xinhua News Agency reporters, Liu Cixin, who is the president of the Beijing Yuanyu Science Fiction Future Technology Research Institute, further explained the underlying logic of science fiction imagination.
“Everything needs imagination. ”
During this science fiction conference, Liu Cixin, who is over 60 years old, is very busy, and the topics and questions related to science fiction converge to this representative of the Chinese science fiction community.
Liu Cixin, born in 1963, worked as a computer engineer at a power plant in Shanxi Province and began publishing science fiction works in the 1990s.
Its published novella "Wandering Earth", imagines the human race struggling to find a suitable home when the sun is destroyed; the subsequent novel "Three Bodies" leads the reader to explore unknown civilizations outside the world with a more strange and bold imagination.
The latter won the Hugo Award, the highest honor in science fiction, and Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg has recommended the book to his tens of millions of fans.
Many readers are curious about the "underground city" in "Wandering Earth", the refuge of mankind in the face of the sun crisis. Liu Cixin said that the "underground city" that will be built in the future is completely different from what we imagine now.
It doesn't have to be closed, it can be very expansion.Where humans need to build underground cities the most, it may be on the moon or Mars.
There, the underground city can effectively block the strong radiation in space, while creating a breathable and temperature-appropriate environment, "Liu said.
Liu Cixin believes that science fiction is based on the imagination of science and technology, and with the rapid development of science and technology, many scenes in science fiction are gradually becoming reality.
For example, in the sci-fi imagination, humans can achieve "brain networking", connecting the brain to the outside world and even other brains.
In the current reality, brain-computer interface technology has enabled paraplegic patients to use their thoughts to control the cursor to move.
In Liu Cixin's view, when humans use brain-computer interface technology to 100% identify, store information in the brain, and then send it to the computer - this is digital survival.
Science fiction originates from the rational expansion of cutting-edge scientific and technological achievements and scientific discoveries, and constantly "ignites" people's imagination and curiosity, and technological innovation is also changing the connotation and extension of science fiction.
The 2024 China Science Fiction Industry Report predicts that the impact of innovative technologies on the science fiction industry will be further manifested, and the deep integration of science fiction and future industries is expected to provide assistance for the development of new quality productivity.
"New quality productivity itself must have a strong innovation factor, and innovation requires us to have an open vision, active thinking."
"We hope that the development of science and technology in the future will enable mankind to build a better earth, and at the same time allow mankind to develop a greater living space," Liu said.
“China is a country full of a sense of future. ”
"Three Body" has been translated into dozens of languages to spread around the world, "Wandering Earth" series of movies overseas to win praise, "Earth Age" "first series" as the representative of a number of Chinese science fiction online literature works have been included in the British Library Chinese collection books … In recent years, more and more Chinese science fiction works "out", Chinese science fiction "go out" step up.
"The rapid progress of modernization has made China a country full of 'futuristic' and promoted the rapid growth of Chinese science fiction literature." Liu Cixin said that the rapid development of China has also attracted the world's attention in culture, and Chinese science fiction will be exported to more parts of the world in the future.
The 2023 Chengdu World Science Fiction Conference held Liu Cixin signing activities attracted many science fiction fans. Photo by Xinhua reporter Shen Bohan
The "China Science Fiction Overseas Communication Report (2018-2023)" jointly developed by the China Science Fiction Research Center and the International Communication Big Data Intelligent Service Platform of the World Research Institute shows that the overseas search popularity of Chinese science fiction works and the number of relevant mainstream media reports are increasing year by year, and Chinese science fiction is becoming an important force in Chinese culture "going global".
From the animated version of "Three Body" to Tencent's domestic drama series "Three Body", to the Netflix version of "Three Body" launched in March this year, the film and television dramas and animation works adapted from the science fiction novel "Three Body" have frequently attracted attention at home and abroad.
The "Three Body" IP Sea Observation Report jointly developed by the China Science Fiction Research Center and Tencent Penguin shows that nearly 80% of overseas respondents want to understand China after watching the original domestic TV series "Three Body", and most want to further understand "China's cultural tourism" and "Chinese history".
This is a Japanese translation of the Three Body.
Photo by Wang Hao, Xinhua News Agency
For the "Three Body" has garnered so much attention overseas, Liu Cixin believes that one of the important reasons is that the "Three Body" describes human beings and human civilization "as a whole."
In the vast universe, humanity is a very small existence.
The idea of "jointly facing future crises and challenges" transcends cultures and countries, and arouses the resonance of people in different cultural backgrounds.
"We have seen the proposition of human existence beyond the individual, even beyond the country, civilization and culture, and the relationship between people and the universe and the possible existence of intelligent civilization in the universe, which should attract everyone." Liu Cixin said.
“Put your eyes on the whole scale of human civilization. ”
Since the rise of the concept of "science fiction" in the 1920s, the connotation and extension of science fiction literature have been continuously expanded in the past century.
In Liu Cixin's eyes, science fiction is a literary subject facing the future and facing a wider space of time, which should "give people the pleasure of imagination and let people appreciate the possibilities of the future and the universe."
On December 1, 2023, “Jianfa · Three Body Immersive Art Exhibition ” opened in Chengdu, Sichuan Province.
The picture shows the model of the three-body warship "Natural Selection".
Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Shen Bohan
For people who want to engage in science fiction writing, Liu Cixin gave his own advice: “As much as possible, broaden your mind. Don ’ t limit yourself to the joys and sorrows of things and individuals around you. You should put your eyes on the scale of human civilization and think about its future and future as an existence in the universe. ”
At the 2023 Chengdu Science Fiction World Congress, “post-90s ” Chinese writer Hai Hai won the“ Hugo Award ” for Best Novel in Time and Space. This honor was awarded to Liu Cixin, who is very young and looks forward to his future development.
Science fiction talent team continues to grow, science fiction creative forces, especially the number of young creative talents is rapidly increasing; young people are more and more interested in science fiction, science fiction film and television literary works, science fiction travel and so on are deeply loved by young people; science fiction industry structure continues to expand from reading, film and television, video to games, cultural tourism and so on.
On April 27, the 8th China Science Fiction Conference opened in Beijing.
The picture shows that children experience VR games in the field of science fiction carnival.
Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Zhang Chenlin
The latest report released by the 8th China Science Fiction Conference shows that in 2023, the total revenue of China's science fiction industry reached 113.29 billion yuan, and typical formats such as science fiction reading, science fiction film and television, science fiction games, science fiction travel accelerated, and the science fiction industry ushered in a golden opportunity period.
Supervisor: Wei Tiemin, Liu Chang
Planning: Ding Jing, Qi Rong
Reporter: Yang Shujun, Wang Yihui, Ding Jing, Yang Na
Editor: Liu Chang
Video source: Xinhua News Agency, official microblog of film "Wandering Earth 2", official microblog of TV series "Three Body", Qianku network
Thanks: Beijing Yuanyu Science Fiction Future Technology Research Institute
Xinhua to the outside
Xinhua News Agency Beijing Branch
Economic Reference Newspaper
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Produced by Chinese Story Workshop
(Editor: Wang Renhong, Li Nanhua)
Public Number ： People 's Network Finance
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Content: Silence X Liu Zhiyu Conversation: Novel is the art of weaving, mapping the survival of the reality in which we live
What we want you to know is
In 2011, the publication of "Lost Time" was positioned as a fantasy novel, and in 2020 "Goddess Buffet" was classified by most people as pure literature, but Liu Zhiyu believes that she did not think in advance of what kind of literary classification she wrote, and the process of writing did not want to be limited by classification.
Text: Lin Meng-hua ｜ Photography: Li Pei-chun
The difficulties of Taiwan ’ s creative environment are well known, and the confrontation between serious literature and the popular genre is also a problem that cannot be solved.
However, since the 21st century, there are many creators who have ambitions to cross the border, break down the barriers between the two, and insist on the possibility of deepening genre fiction.
This talk, from the silence of the recently published "Super Water Box", and Liu Zhiyu, originally engaged in the creation of fantasy novels and later wrote "Goddess Buffet", began a difficult situation related to genre fiction, and how to practice the art of weaving with fiction, and explore feminism.
Creator ’ s Dilemma, Determination to Advance Genre Novels
Silence published the first set of martial arts in 1999. At that time, the publishing standard was to hand over a novel of at least 60,000 words to a publisher every month. He often wrote 100,000 words without paying attention. After two or three years, he was forced to despair and exhausted. There will also be a lower valley floor, as if there is an endless abyss underneath.
"The depression of the martial arts type is the greatest predicament of the creator, like the end of the day."
When the market decides not to take you, you will be thrown into the unknown corner.
We all have to maintain our creative will in the midst of conflict and struggle.
Of course, the most difficult thing is to accept, especially in the face of irreversible reality. "Silent and helpless smile, but the eyes are always firm," but I have the consciousness to become a type of novelist, it should be said that my teenage creative cultivation Chengdu is from the martial hero novel, originally held to write martial hero mentality to write, and have a kind of ambition, want to push the boundaries of this field, Break down old patterns and ways of writing, and think about creating new evolutionary possibilities. "
From the golden age of classical reasoning by Arthur Conan Doyle, Agatha Christie, Josephine Tiay, Van Dain, Ellery Quinn, and so on, to the rise of cold hard reasoning by the armies of Hugh Hammett and Raymond Chandler, to the present day of Lawrence Bloch, James Eichmann, Dennis Loy. Like the master of crime fiction.
Silence said: "Other science fiction and fantasy novels have also explored the more serious and deeper side."
From this, it can be seen that genre literature can be promoted, not just to keep the market occupied, but to keep itself updated. "
Unlike silently based on martial history and full of consciousness, Liu Zhiyu did not feel that she was a fantasy or serious literary author, she mentioned that she was shocked to find that there was a distinction between serious and type literature until she was in graduate school, "When everyone said favorite works, I said" Harry Potter ", when most of the classmates were literary creators, they discussed the film of Chu Fu and Fei. Shock ah, I think they are not too vulgar? So went to the school near the Guangnan sweep everyone said the film, one after another to see.
Since then, I have always had this kind of creative anxiety, worried that their works are not attractive to others, can not be on the table, but what I like is really like this, I want to create, should also be their favorite things, even if not on the table, right? 」
Published in 2011, "Back in Time" is positioned as a fantasy novel, and the 2020 "Goddess Buffet" is classified by most people into the field of pure literature, but Liu Zhiyu believes that she did not think in advance what kind of literary classification she wrote, and the process of writing does not want to be limited by classification.
She said sincerely: "Because most of the works I like are fantasy science fiction subjects, I just want to write what I like."
Similarly, "Goddess Buffet" was originally because the editor-in-chief of the publishing house Chen Xia Min wanted me to write the female experience, and I went to write what I understood and wanted to write those female experiences, so it naturally grew into this, frankly speaking, I created the "Goddess Buffet" when I did not want to write a feminist book, there is still a difference between the female experience and feminism. class, I can accept, in fact, I can not control it at all. 」
Why become a feminist, but why not?
Silently, as early as 2002, he wrote that the housewife became a master because of chance and foundation, but it buried the marriage and family of the feminist martial arts, but he also admitted: "At that time, it was not really writing the experience of women, the situation, more heterosexual sexual fantasy or masturbation, or the embodiment of my supple face."
I just want to write a woman who is more powerful than all men. "No wonder, after years of silence, in 2019, I wrote the" Sword as Time "with the female sword master as the main, and even this year, the 108 good men of Liang Shan Bo have all turned into women's" Super Water Box ".
"I have always loved the works of female creators, and always felt that they wrote more levels that men can't reach and don't know."
"Silence quickly said a bunch of lists, such as the favorite Chinese novelist is Hong Kong's Huang Biyun, non-Chinese novelists love Virginia Woolf, Alice Munro, Margaret Atwood, Chinese poets are Taiwan's zero rain, Xia Yu, non-Chinese poets think Emily Dickinson is the first, the best. The fantasy novelist is Ursula Le Guin, and the most powerful vampire novelist is Ann Rice.
However, what really makes Shen think that she is a feminist is the wife, the poet Lin Meng, who wrote the poetry collection "Cleanliness".
Silence said: "Before writing women, are not really known.
But after I fell in love with the dream, I often felt the difficulties and difficulties of the dream as a woman, which prompted me to become a feminist.
In other words, I want to understand her more fully and deeply, so that I can become a feminist.
Coupled with the fact that our daughters are always taught by girls who want to be like girls, it makes me want to identify and identify what feminism is, or why we need feminism. "
"I am actually not sure whether I am a feminist now." Liu Zhiyu said, "because I feel as if I have not read enough theory, as if at most I can only fight on the Internet and care about some gender equality laws."
But is this even a feminist? "She asked seriously and reflectively:" If "Goddess Buffet" is a feminist book, why does this book of novels not help the world, these things a little more? Why there are still countless women in the world, in the face of all kinds of gender discrimination, sexual harassment and sexual assault violence? "」
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Content: Interview with Wang Jinkang, 2024 Hugo Finalist

INTRODUCTION: Eight Light Minutes(8LM) Culture of Chengdu has given permission for File 770 to reprint the series of interviews with Chinese science fiction writers which they have been running this week on Facebook. The first one is a question and answer session with Wang Jinkang, whose novella Seeds of Mercury is a 2024 Hugo Award finalist.

SUPPORTING CHINESE WRITERS SERIES (1): 2024 HUGO AWARD NOMINATION INTERVIEW WITH WANG JINKANG

Translated by Joseph Brant.

Wang Jinkang(王晋康) was born in Nanyang, Henan Province in 1948. He is a senior engineer, and a member of the Chinese Writer’s Association (CWA), The China Popular Science Writing Association (CPSWA), The Committee of Scientific Literature and Art, and the Henan Writers’ Association. Since the publication of his first story, The Return of Adam, in 1993, he has published over 90 short works, and 20 full novels, including Cross, We Together, Escape from The Mother Universe, Parents of Heaven and Earth, and Cosmic Crystal Eggs, totaling over six million words. He has won China’s Galaxy Award 16 times, as well as The Chinese Science Fiction Nebula’s Lifetime Achievement Award. He is considered one of Chinese science fiction’s ‘Four Heavenly Kings’, and his emblematic work Seeds of Mercury was shortlisted for the 2024 Hugo Award for Best Novella.

Hello Mr. Wang! Before we start, I would like to congratulate you on Seeds of Mercury’s shortlisting for 2024’s “Best Novella” Hugo Award. This is news that has excited countless Chinese science fiction fans. Ever since the publication of Chinese Science Fiction: An Oral History, readers have commented that your contributions have particularly appealed to them and would like to know more about your life and work. Hopefully, this long-awaited interview will provide some of the insights the sci-fi community has longed for.

Q1Mr. Wang, despite having produced many great works, this is the first time you’ve been shortlisted for the Hugo. How did you feel when you learned that you’d been shortlisted?

Wang Jinkang: Of course I was elated. Although I’ve won many awards in China, in fact the most Galaxy Awards in history, this is the first time I’ve been shortlisted for a Hugo. It felt like 31 years ago, when I first saw The Return of Adam in print, and when I won my First Galaxy Award. I think every author experiences these moments of excitement. It’s excellent that Chinese science fiction has reached a certain level, after years of growth, it’s now more and more visible internationally, which is fantastic. Of course, what we value even more, is these works transcending their era, and surviving the tides of time to reach future generations.

Religion and Science are enemies who love each other.

Q2Mr. Wang, as one of the ‘Four Heavenly Kings’ of Chinese science fiction, you’re already very well known in China, with a creative career spanning over thirty years, with works such as Leopard Man, Ant Life and Survival Experiment and so on. This shortlisted work is such a quintessential piece. However, this interview is not just intended for the Chinese sci-fi fans, but for readers around the world, who may not be familiar with Seeds of Mercury. Could I ask you to introduce it for the benefit of the overseas sci-fi fans?

Wang Jinkang: Seeds of Mercury is a two-threaded story. The first one follows a female scientist named Shawu, who discovers a new formula for life, and creates a fluid metal nano life form. When she dies, she entrusts that formula to Chen Yizhe, a businessman with a pure heart, along with the message “real life cannot be bred in pens. In the Solar System, there happens to be a suitable place for it to breed freely – Mercury”. Chen Yizhe accepts this monumental legacy enthusiastically, using his personal wealth to maintain the laboratory. In order take the next step, of “seeding Mercury”, he must turn to the society around him. Mr Hong, a multi-billionaire with a disagreeable personality but a benevolent soul, decides to liquidate his empire to facilitate the spaceship’s construction. Furthermore, Hong makes another astonishing decision: to relocate to Mercury, have his body frozen in the millennia-old ice caves of the planet’s north pole, to be awakened every 10 million years, to assist the evolution of these micro-lifeforms. In just 15 years, Chen Yizhe sends Hong to Mercury to seed the nano-life into the liquid metal lakes of Mercury, after which Hong settles down in its polar caves. Meanwhile, Hong’s lawyer, and soulmate named Yin, bids her painful farewells from the distant Earth.

The second storyline is set 100 million years later, when the Suola race have evolved on Mercury, their metal bodies adapted to the hundred-degree temperatures of the planet. They are sustained by light (drawing energy directly by photosynthesis). With no sense of hearing, they rely on the flashing of light through two orifices in their abdomen to communicate in binary. The entire Suola race are devout followers of Shawu, venerate the Star Father, the great god Shawu and her earthly incarnation. They have been initiated in science, and after studying their Holy Book, scientist Tu Lala discovers that much scientific knowledge has been disguised and hidden within. From this he deduces that life on Mercury originates from The Blue Planet. He implores the high priest to send an expedition to search for the Holy Site in the depths of the ice, with the excuse of reviving the incarnation of Shawu, as the Book prophesied. The high priest consents, sending a chaplain to supervise the mission. Tu Lala actually locates the Holy Site, and discovers the incarnation of Shawu (Mr Hong), frozen in the ice, along the sacred rites of “how to revive the incarnation of Shawu”.

However, unexpected occurrences, mainly due to the ignorance and blind devotion of the believers, result in Tulala’s unfortunate violent death (as metallic organisms, the Suola can easily resurrect after a sudden death, but those who do are considered an untouchable caste). In order to protect Mr Hong’s body, Tu lala risks the humiliation, but tragically, his student Qi Qiaqia denounces him, exposing his untouchable status, and inciting the crowd to him, During which time, Mr Hong’s body is destroyed in the scorching sunlight. To avoid blame, Qi Qiaqia suddenly declares that the incarnation of Shawu was a false god, which is why the Father Star could destroy it. This narrative is accepted by the devotees, who hail him as their new high priest. In the thousands of years that follow, Suola society descends into darkness, religious cruelly suppressing science, but from among the population comes a new “Sect of Repentance”, apparently founded by an untouchable. Silently they preserve everything related to science, awaiting the next rebirth of Shawu in future millennia.

Q3Seeds of Mercury was first published in 2002, and its appeal still endures, even after all this time. What inspired you to write this story?

Wang Jinkang: The initial inspiration probably came from a sad epiphany I had as a teenager. The human body is too fragile. Our proteins start to coagulate above 80°C, our brain suffers irreversible damage if we don’t breathe for five minutes, our body can’t withstand radiation, and we can die from disease, hunger, dehydration, drowning and freezing… It’s admirable that such a fragile life form has been propagated on for billions of years, but it also makes me apprehensive that humanity would not survive a disaster. Human civilisation is a great achievement, which is why we are proud of it; but it also makes me anxious, worrying that humanity may not survive the next cataclysm. I couldn’t help but imagine, what if a creator, or god of evolution, created a metallic life, invulnerable to fire and flood? Many years later, I combined these youthful imaginings with my subsequent concept of “Templates for Life” and turned it into this novella.

Q4Seeds of Mercury is a piece about the sublime act of Creation, and a reflection on the transitory nature of life. Did you write it with the intention of exploring the contradiction between Science and Religion? Or did that grow naturally out of the creative process? Also, do the sentient beings you write about reflect your own views and positions?

Wang Jinkang: I didn’t intend to construct that dichotomy between Science and Religion, but it’s exactly what happened on Earth, so when I created a history for Mercury’s civilisation, those episodes just appeared naturally. Religion and Science are enemies who love each other. European Papacy cruelly persecuted Galileo, Bruno, and other ‘heretics’, and strictly forbade the theory of evolution, but medieval Europe became the birthplace of modern science. When we look back at the history of Civilisation over millennia, you can’t help but sigh that history is full of paradoxes, and that The Creator is always full of mischief, making fun of the theories of Cause and Effect. As to whether this new life carries some of my own views or positions? Of course. Tu Lala is the heir to the human spirit, with his scientific rationality, adventurous spirit, sense of responsibility, fortitude, and self-sacrifice. In the story, when Tu Lala meets the holy body of Shawu Incarnate, and he figures out that the great god was a scientist. Thus, demonstrating that the intellectual spirits of all scientists are inter-relatable, even if they are alien. That is what I believe in my heart.

Today’s AI isn’t quite up to the standard of “Return of Adam”

Q5Mr. Wang, the world has moved on 22 years since the first publication of Seeds of Mercury. What changes do you think have occurred in science fiction writing in the present day, compared to the early years both in terms of the environment, and the core themes?

Wang Jinkang: These 22 years have brought great changes, and it could be said that civilisation has reached a critical point, that we’re on the cusp of drastic changes. However, for the science fiction writer, who is used to seeing the world from a god-like point of view (through the eyes of science) we think in millennia, so 22 years is too short a period to affect the themes of my work. For example, my debut story Return of Adam showed a society where AI had overcome natural humanity, though it had taken on a parasitic approach, augmenting the processing power (IQ) of the human mind to far outstrip the basic brain, and in fact, became the core of human consciousness. The rapid development of AI today, especially the LLM systems, is amazing, even frightening, but in general, today’s AI isn’t quite up to the standards of Return of Adam. Still, I’m saddened that some things I wrote about, which I assumed would be far in the future have come to pass in my lifetime. For example, in 1997, when many Chinese people asserted that AI could never triumph in the field of Weiqi (Go), I was convinced it eventually would, and wrote a scene of an ‘AI beating a human chess master’ in one of my stories, before it actually happened. I just never expected to see it in my lifetime.

Q6Before Liu Cixin appeared, you “held up half the sky” in Chinese Sci-fi. When you first appeared in China’s science fiction circles, you were relatively older, and more experienced. Do you think that maturity allowed your work to appear more rounded?

Wang Jinkang: My life and experiences have been quite unique. I’ve lived through a very special time in China’s history, worked as a rusticated youth, a miner and model maker. I went to university at 30, became a mechanical engineer, wrote literary novels, and only broke into the science fiction world by chance at 45, publishing my first sci-fi story. If anything, my near-fanatical reading of literature at university paved the way for my future writing. At that time, the reforms were already happening in China, and it was opening up to the world. A huge amount of foreign literature was pouring into the country, dazzling readers like me. There may be another special factor, which is, because I was studying engineering, I was standing atop this wall of science and watching this river of literature racing by, I had a sense of detachment. Add to that I only started writing SF decades after experiencing the rise, fall and distilling of the wave of literature. I suppose that’s why my writing style has a poised, bleak, and sombre character.

Q7What sort of stories do you think are expected from the current literary ecosystem? Which sci-fi genres do you expect to take off in the future?

Wang Jinkang: I have always felt that science fiction is unlike any other form of literature. The richness of mainstream literature does not necessarily coincide with the strength of a country. As the aphorisms go, “classics are born from chaos”, and “poets are fortunate when the country is not”. However, the success of science fiction is reliant on enough readers and authors being educated to a certain threshold, and so depends on the country’s economic, scientific, and technological development, which can be proven by the movement of science fiction’s centre from Britain and France to the United States over the last century. Over the past 40 years, China’s overall economic development has been good, and as one of the oldest sci-fi writers in the country, I’ve experienced this first-hand. I feel that as China continues to modernise and converge with the rest of the world, the creative environment of Chinese sci-fi will continue to improve. As for which themes, I feel will start to emerge? It’s expected that artificial intelligence and space themes, with more emphasis on exploring the human condition, are going to be the stories of importance, but other themes will also develop immensely.

Science fiction writers are used to seeing the world from a god-like viewpoint.

Q8 Mr. Wang, science fiction has taken root in China now for around a century, and you have played a pivotal role in the history of science fiction in the country. Irrespective of whether or not you win this Hugo Award, you have influenced a generation of sci-fi fans and creators. How do you view your own Creative Achievements?

Wang Jinkang: I’m flattered, but I only really played a leading and inductive role in the early stages of the so-called “New Generation” of Chinese sci-fi back in the 1990s. I’m content with the two aspects of my writing career, firstly, in forming the genre of Philosophical Science Fiction, which is based on the latest technological advances, and digs deep into the influence it has on alienation, civilisation, and so forth, to discover this genre’s philosophical uniqueness. This genre did not originate in my work, foreign writers including Mr. Arthur C. Clarke have long created excellent works of philosophical sci-fi, but these elements in my work are more concentrated. Furthermore, with regards science fiction as “the most cosmopolitan form of literature”, I consider my work, whilst still cosmopolitan, to be imbued heavily with Chinese styles and themes, which adds a certain flavour to the genre.

Q9Do you feel that science fiction writing is shifting from short-form to long form, and what difficulties do you feel are associated with that?

Wang Jinkang: In my experience there are three main issues faced when moving into the long-form. Firstly, there must be enough knowledge, from the accumulation of experience and information. Secondly, there must be a more mature view of Nature and human society, in their entirety. These are not necessarily the dominant trait of the novel but will play important roles in the story’s development. Thirdly, the ability to comprehend the entirety of the larger story. This ability to grasp the complete story is equally important to mainstream literary writers, but in science fiction, concepts always play a driving role in the whole work and should be logically consistent in themselves.

Q10In your eyes, what is the role of Morality and Ethics in Science Fiction?

Wang Jinkang: Science fiction authors often look at the world from a godlike point of view, and in the eyes of a creator, survival comes first, and morality and ethics are just auxiliary codes established by humans once they reached a certain level of civilisation. They are also conducive to the overall survival of the human race. As Humanity develops, and “co-operation” becomes more central to society, the role of morality and ethics becomes more and more important, but they certainly won’t stay the same, and the rules will certainly have additions and deletions. For example, once technology becomes suitably advance, the ethics of “strict prohibition regarding editing the genes of a human being” are very likely to change.

Q11Throughout your career, which of your stories are you most satisfied with?

Wang Jinkang: Of my short and medium length works, I like Seeds of Mercury’, Bee Keepers and The Song of Life, and of my longer works, I’m most satisfied with Ant’s Life and the Alive Trilogy (Escape From The Mother Universe, Parents of Heaven And Earth, and Cosmic Crystal Eggs).

Thank you, reader, for giving meaning to my life.

Q12Mr. Wang, some sci-fi fans have pointed out you are ‘the oldest non-American writer shortlisted for the Hugo Award’, which is an impressive feat. What are your hopes for the Hugo Awards?

Wang Jinkang: There’s a bit of a special circumstance here, where a story I wrote 22 years ago, was only translated into English last year, and shortlisted according to the translation’s publication date, even though, I’m very happy to hold this “World Record”. I hope it will go further than just being a finalist, but even if it doesn’t, I still consider it a great honour to be shortlisted.

Q13What would you like to say to the readers regarding the inclusion of Seeds of Mercury in the Hugo Awards shortlist, which was voted for by individual sci-fi fans one after another?

Wang Jinkang: I’ve always had a reverence for my readers. The two most common inscriptions I write to fans at signings are “The reader is the god of authors”, and “Thank you reader, for giving meaning to my life”. Out of the millions of publications each year, in a sea of stories, to have any number of people read your work, enjoy it, and keep it in their memory after that relentless tide of time, is a rare blessing. One might even call it a great gift from the readers to the author.

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Content: Explanation of the sci-fi trope “Simulation of Life”

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Science fiction is the art of imagining what the distant future or the far corners of space might be like if humanity ever survives to see those times and places. However, one uniquely common image of this genre does the opposite, suggesting that the banal everyday appearance that can be expected on Earth is only a technological illusion.

When Neo woke up for the first time in Wachowski’s groundbreaking 1999 science fiction The Matrix, it was one of the best twists in modern cinema. This momentous moment in the history of science fiction is built on a mountain of previous material and influenced everything that followed it.

The easiest way to summarize the image of the simulation of life for most of today’s viewers is to point to the premise of the “Matrix” and stop there. This image suggests that someone or something has created a virtual reality that perfectly mimics the experience of real life. It can be sold as a consumer product that gives you the opportunity to enjoy reality without leaving home. It could be a video game similar to The Sims, but much more advanced, which offers an overly realistic experience thanks to powerful new hardware. But most often it is a technological panoptic super-drama that lures its theoretically infinite victims into a fake reality in which they do not know that they are.

The original philosophical rationale for the simulation of life comes from ancient Greece. Plato’s “Allegory of the Cave”, first published as part of his work The Republic in the early 6th century, is a big idea underlying concepts such as The Matrix. A cave is a narrative thought experiment describing a group of people chained to a wall for life. The only thing they can perceive is shadows playing on their faceless wall, so it becomes their reality. Although it’s not a representation of real life, shadows are all the prisoners know, so this is their version of experiential life. The moral of this story is that reality is perceptible and that conditions can force a person to accept incorrect sensory data as fact. Science fiction, as it often happens, reinforced this idea by presenting technologies of a fantastic future.

One can imagine that the life of those who are in the cave will be hell, but with illusions much more advanced than the shadows on the walls, this state can be improved without real reality seeping in. Lawrence Manning’s 1933 novel “The Man Who Woke Up” tells the story of Norman Winters, a man who plunges into suspended animation for 5,000 years to experience new eras firsthand. In the third story of this anthology, which takes place in 15,000 AD, people voluntarily enter a machine that replaces all stimuli with programmable electrical impulses. This allowed humanity to sleep forever and completely control their sleep, allowing them to live a perfect life. Since most of the population is constantly sleeping, Norman realizes that society will soon collapse due to complacency. It probably wasn’t the first look at this concept, but it laid a great foundation for its future.

The idea of virtual reality achieved surgically is one of the fundamental elements of cyberpunk science fiction. Neuromancer, William Gibson’s 1984 sacred text for this subgenre, postulates life in virtual reality as an excellent substitute for real life, and not as a forced simulacrum. In this novel, the term “cyberspace” was most often defined by the line “A consensual hallucination experienced by billions of legitimate operators every day.” Gibson was based on Manning’s ideas, imagining a complete society and an infinite potential for interaction in a simulated reality, and turning real reality into a nightmare requiring escape.

Gibson’s work inspired decades of further cyberpunk fiction, from Neil Stevenson’s “Snow Crash” to Ernest Klein’s “The First Player to Get Ready.” Of course, the two most diligent researchers of Gibson’s cultural movements were the Wachowski sisters, who even borrowed the name of Gibson’s cyberspace center — The Matrix.

This virtual reality is so prevalent in fiction that it has evolved into real-world conspiracy theory ideas. Countless people have been convinced that the reality in which they were born is an intricately created simulation with a variety of consequences. Some suggest that humanity is a toy of some incredibly advanced alien species, an intelligent Sim. Others legitimately claim that the machines have already taken over, perhaps suggesting that The Matrix was a documentary and a form of bragging. Some even wake up every morning, convinced and grateful for the false reality they have created. The nature of reality is perceptual, and this creates constant idiosyncrasies in everyday life. If someone were looking for this, people could convince themselves that computer code better explains their reality.

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Content: Supplement
Sunday literature.
Culture
Sunday Literature: Tu Chien's Years, Huang Hua and Long Memories: A Review of Books by Tu Chien
He died, and there was a great book about him, and a great book about him.
Born in Hong Kong on February 19, 1935 (also known as February 19, 1934), Du Chin studied at Lingnan Primary School and St. Stephen's College in Hong Kong. He graduated from the Chinese Department of Sun Yat-sen University.
Du has been engaged in the editorial and translation work of newspapers and periodicals for 30 years. He has edited the monthly book “Open Volume ” and“ Readers ’ Friends ”. He is the author of “New Trends in Asian, African and Latin Literature ” (1976),“ Contemporary Foreign Writers and Works ” (1980), “The Night Voyage of the Book Sea ” (2 volumes, 1980, 1984),“ World Science Fiction ” (1992). He also translated several science fiction novels, including The Story of a Detective (1994), The Story of a Detective (2019), The Story of Three Generations (2014), Long Memories: The Eyes of a Teacher and Friends (2015), and translated several science fiction novels.
Du moved to Canada in his later years and died on July 23, 2022.
From Afro-Asian to Contemporary Foreign Literature
I have "Asian, African and Latin Literature New Trend", published by Hong Kong Wanyuan Book Company, this book from the left side, introduced the Asian, African and Latin literature, and it is rare to write a relatively mild, not too much ideological discourse.
From the illustrations in the book, Du Chen should have seen a number of foreign books before writing this book, including book reviews such as "Achebe's Novel Creation" and "Du Bois's Will", which discuss the more famous black writers, and scroll down a "text prison of a novel - this novel exposes the corruption of the police", from 1974 Nelson Marra The award-winning novel “The Bodyguard, ” and its associated spate of arrests, describes the repression of freedom of speech and the press by the Uruguayan police, as well as the repression of the literary and artistic world.
The incident has faded from the memory of ordinary literary readers, but Du Jian recorded it with a book review and became a page of literary history.
Towards the end of the 1970s, the tendency of the dogmatic left gradually faded, and Du Jian ’ s reading range became wider. Contemporary Foreign Writers and Works was published by the Hong Kong Ocean Arts and Culture Society, and its chapters were published in the magazine Ocean Arts and Culture.
Du introduced Graham Greene, John Cheever, Colette, Bertolt Brecht, Isak Dinesen, Nadine Gordimer, Ryuichiro Tanizaki and Ryuosuke Okawa, eight 20th-century writers who not only came out of the confines of Afro-Asian literature. As soon as the book is in hand, readers can enjoy the work from the two texts of the commentary and the translation. In “Contemporary Foreign Writers and Works, ” Du Jian chose to translate Ryuichiro Tanizaki ’ s“ tattoo ” and Ryuosuke Okawa ’ s “bamboo forest ”, both of which are popular and popular.
The South African female writer Gaudimet, introduced by Du Jian in the late 1970s, won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1991.
Book Sea Night Flight
"Book Sea Night Voyage" two episodes published by Beijing Sanlian, when there were many prints in mainland China, naturally has a certain influence, these two books seem to have opened a window for long-closed mainland readers.
Some of the book ’ s reviews have been found in The New Trend of Asian, African and Latin Literature and Contemporary Foreign Writers and Works. The book is mainly a collection of book reviews written by Du Jian in his spare time between 1974 and 1978.
As for "Book Sea Night Voyage II", the content is equally extensive, there is no less than, the second set of the epilogue, Du gradually explained his own ten years as a day of three paragraphs on the reading method:
"I read there is no shortcut, and will not" speed reading ", using a stupid way, the old man actually read the book, there is no other way.
I divide the time into three sections every day, to work a section, do work concentrate on other, the other section is translation and writing, people engaged in writing in Hong Kong, every day have to be a "reptile", write thousands of words, earn some manuscript money to earn a living, is the so-called book is only for the straw.
Only in the evening, I have my own time, from eight o'clock to two o'clock at night, I use to read the books I like to read, write what I like to write, these five or six hours are my most precious, but also I can control a period of reading and writing time. 」
In the second part of the book, Du Jian pointed out that the title of the book was Yan Qingshu (pen name Tang, author of "Jinling Spring Dream") in the illness, Du Jian wrote this book to commemorate the death of his friend Yan Qingshu.
Tang Tao wrote the preface to The Book of the Sea and Night Voyage II. At a glance, when he saw that the book was written by Zhang Dai (Zi Zongzi) and Ah Ying's The Book of the Night Voyage, Tang Tao, a veteran scholar of books, wrote:
"The Book of the Sea of Night Voyage, the Night Voyage Collection, and the Night Voyage Ship have a common meaning, suggesting that the author began his life of reading and writing at a time of silence and complete silence."
The first three books deal with this.
However, Zhang Zongzi has his own experience and opinions, which deserve our attention.
He said that the world is the most difficult to deal with, except for the night boat.
Yu Yao custom, the children of later generations, all do not read, after 20 years of learning as a handicraft, so the hundred works of acrobatics, occasionally have questions, such as "Yingzhou 18 bachelor, Yuntai 28 generals", one by one registration, the answer is like a "two-legged bookcase".
This kind of question and answer is often carried out in the night sailing ship. "Tang Tao also mentioned the funny story of a monk and a man in Chang Dai's" The Night Voyage Ship ", so let's not record it, and if you are interested, it is not difficult to find it.
Science fiction and detective fiction
In the 1990s, two volumes of The World Science Fiction Literary Landscape, published by the Modern Education Research Society and published by the Hong Kong Triumvirate of Detective Reasoning Novels, were the first books Du Jian wrote for young students to read.
According to Li Weicai in the book preface, the article in the "World Science Fiction Literary World" came from 1987 to 1988, and Du Jian was the "Strange Book Talk" column of the "Commercial Daily".
Watching H.G. Wells ’ s “The War of the Worlds ” and“ The Invisible Man, ” as well as Jules Verne ’ s works, Du recalls, was captivated by science fiction.
"World Science Fiction Literary Grand View" divides science fiction into four eras of creation, development, gold and innovation. The originator is "Frankenstein" author Mary Shelley (Mary Shelley), followed by Verne and Wales, and the development era has Huxley (Aldous Huxley) and George Orwell. Isaac Asimov, Arthur C. Clarke, Robert A. Heinlein and Frank Herbert, author of Dune, the era of innovation is even more grand, including Kurt Vonnegut, Ray Bradbury, Philip K. Dick, and Ballard. J. G. Ballard is one of ten.
Ni Kuang's novels are highly readable because of their dramatic plot arrangements and vivid writing.
"World Science Fiction Literary Grand View" does not have esoteric nomenclature and academic discourse, but takes characters as a special chapter, and introduces the contents of representative works, which are all-encompassing, and is both a brief history of science fiction and a good primer for teenagers.
"Detective Reasoning Novel Talk" has an additional edition of "Detective Story", according to the reprint preface, Du Jian pursues "reading no forbidden area", since childhood likes adventure novels and detective novels, he also pointed out that Qian Zhongshu, Yang, Qian Yuan's family of three are fans of reasoning fiction.
"Detective Reasoning Novel Talk" from the beginning of the conversation between Allan Poe and Holmes, also mentioned Charlie Chan, Fu Manchu, James Bond three novel characters; Japanese reasoning fiction also accounted for a considerable amount of space, the additional edition of "Detective Story" added "Little Roosevelt's" First Lady Detective Case "," The Cat Detective Case "female writer Lilian Brown", style change New materials were added to the four articles of Keigo Higashino and the New Trend of Reasoning Novels and the Past and Present of Chinese Detective Reasoning Novels.
Aged yellow flowers
In his later years, Du left behind two books, one is a memoir, "Years of Yellow Flowers: The Search of Three Generations", and the other is a collection of essays, "Long Face Memories: The Eyes of Teachers and Friends."
From the childhood of the beacon fire (1935 – 1946), experienced the ideal pursuit of studying in mainland China, the anti-rightist struggle, and the storm of the Cultural Revolution. After 20 years in mainland China, he returned to Hong Kong and lived in Hong Kong for another 20 years.
Due to the serious illness of his mother, Tu Chin returned to Hong Kong with the President of the Xinhua News Agency, Mr Leung Wai-lin, and then came to Hong Kong with a one-way permit to accompany his father, Dr Li Song, to work in a pharmacy.
In the past 20 years in mainland China, many books can not be seen, so once in Hong Kong, they constantly buy books to read.
Du Jian bought a collection of poems by Kahlil Gibran and translated some of the novels, but he wanted to kill time and practice writing. Moreover, "In the past few years, the pollution caused by the language of the Cultural Revolution in China, when I opened the newspaper, I saw all the big stories and false stories and official words, and it was best to clean the scum of my own language and words. I was able to learn his writing skills and practice my own Chinese writing, so I started translating Gibberlain ’ s novels. ”
He does not want to hide in the willow.
Du Jian went to the "New Evening News" to see the work, Rover asked Du Jian to translate a draft to see, Du Jian reluctantly to his own translation of the novel and the introduction of Ji Boren's short article to Rover.
The next day, Du Jian opened the "New Evening News" and found that his article introducing Gilbert was published in the newspaper.
As a result, Du turned to work at the newspaper office, because the newspaper was short of people, so he worked in the supplement of the newspaper.
He changed his name to Dujuan, meaning Dujuan Dujuan, to "Dujuan Dujuan".
My handwritten collection of Kiberon's novels, a small book by Daguang Publishing House in 1975, is a collection of translations from Du Jian's that year.
Du Jian said in "The Golden Flower of Time" that Zhang Huai, editor of Daguang Publishing House, is his acquaintance and has published several books for him, including "Life and Death", "People at the bottom", "New District Governor", "Golden City of Blood", etc. These books are not easy to find nowadays.
Teacher 's Eyes
In the preface to the book "I Know Du Zhen", the subtitle of "The Yellow Flower of Time", Lan Zhen points out that "The Yellow Flower of Time" "tells the story of the three generations of his family (grandfather Pan Ta Wei, father Li Song and Li Wenjian) who followed the truth and participated in the democratic revolution." His father was a little older, and his father was a little older, and his father was a little older, and he was a little older, and he was a little older.
It is divided into two parts: the first part is "Teacher's Letters", which, as the name suggests, are reminiscent of teachers and friends, including Lun, Chen Ti, Wu Chi-min, Lu Fu, Yen Ching-shu, Fan Yong, An Tzu Chieh, Kang Chun-fang, Li Liang-min, Xiao Qian Qian, Xu Xu, Lin Nien-tong, Huang Kuo-chih, Ma Kuo-chuan, and Qian. In the second half of the book, "Looking Back on History," Du Chien writes about the old stories of Liao An-hsiang, Pan Chu, Huang Leng-kuan, Pan Ta-wei, and Chen Lu-kui.
There are a number of overlaps between the "Love of the Teacher" and the "Yellow Flower of the Year". "From scratch" is a macroscopic view, and "Love of the Teacher" is even a micro-close-up. Du Jian writes old prose with the pen of a novelist. It is better to be lively and friendly, and everyone is alive. — Remembering my grandfather, Pan Ta-wei ” is a particularly detailed and wonderful article. Pan Ta-wei was influenced by Sun Yat-sen ’ s ideas and joined the Xingzhong Society. Later, Pan Ta-wei became the organizer of the Southern Section of the League.
The most famous story of Pan Ta-wei is the collection of the remains of the 72 martyrs of Huang Hua-gang. This passage is told by Du Chien through the words of his mother-in-law, Chen Wei-chang. When Chen Wei-chang died, Du Chien was very young. It was impossible to record his mother-in-law ’ s words. In other words, Du Chien used a small pen. The story of his father is told in the book of Revelation, and the story of his father is told in the book of Revelation.
Author: Wu Chi-min, editor of Readers ’ Liangyou Monthly (1984-1988, 45 issues), Science and Science Fiction Series (1990, 4 volumes) and Readers ’ Liangyou Library (10 volumes), Zhao Jiabi, Liang Yusheng, Hsu Ting-ming, Dong Ding-shan, Hsiao Chien, Ku Tsang-wu, Huang Ji-shih, Chen Hui-yang and Du Chien-chun.
Combining "The Yellow Flower of the Year" and "The Memory of the Long Face", now imagining Du Jian's career of writing books, translating books, and compiling books is bound to feel wonderful.
by Vincent Cheng
Art • Liu Ruoji
Editors • Chu Chien-hsun
Email • literature @ mingpao.com
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Content: Classic sword and sorcery stories have a special place in our hearts. To those unfamiliar with the genre, sword and sorcery tales usually follow the adventures of a solitary hero or heroine in a fantasy landscape peopled with supernatural beings — witches, wizards and monsters. If you’ve watched “The Witcher,” then you get the idea. Join us as we stroll (sword in hand!) through the history of the field and look at some notable titles that might have escaped your notice.

Lavie: I love the original “Witcher” stories by Andrzej Sapkowski, collected in English as “The Last Wish” in 2007 and translated by Danusia Stok. They were originally published in the Polish magazine Nowa Fantastyka. I got to read “The Last Wish” in proof before it even came out, but I don’t know that anyone then expected it would become as big as it did. For a time, it was nearly titled “The Hexer” but, hexer or witcher, Sapkowski’s Geralt of Rivia is a worthy successor to its earlier influences.

Stephen King’s “The Gunslinger” has similar origins. The stories were first published in The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction in the late ’70s and early ’80s. These entries were collected into a book of the same title. King swaps guns for swords, but otherwise his Roland of Gilead is as classic an S & S hero as you would like. Subsequent books expanded the scope (and page count), but the heart of the Dark Tower can be found in those original tales, still bound in the yellowing pages of the magazine.

Silvia: It’s no surprise that King reconfigured S & S into a Western. This subgenre, which begins with writers such as Robert E. Howard and his Conan adventures, had already begun morphing by 1970 when Fritz Leiber’s Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser stories were collected in “Swords and Deviltry.” Leiber was deeply influenced by authors who were active in the pulps in previous decades, such as H.P. Lovecraft, and if we continue this game of six degrees of separation, we arrive at C.L. Moore, who created two iconic characters: the space adventurer Northwest Smith (grandfather to Han Solo) and the warrior queen Jirel of Joiry whose stories are collected in “Black God’s Kiss” (2007).

Around the time Leiber was churning more volumes of adventures, Tanith Lee, Karl Edward Wagner and C.J. Cherryh contributed to a mini-boom of S & S. Lee had “The Birthgrave” (1975), first in a trilogy, about an amnesiac woman with strange powers who awakens inside a volcano and goes on to roam a landscape populated with magic and violence. Wagner in turn wrote many books starring the mercenary Kane, imbuing his creation with touches of horror — these novels have been collected as “Gods in Darkness” (2002) and “The Midnight Sun” (2003). Cherryh penned the Morgaine Cycle, beginning with “Gate of Ivrel” in 1976, which follows a mysterious warrior on a mission to close down portals that allow time travel and passage between worlds.

Five years later, Charles R. Saunders released his African sword and sorcery novel, “Imaro.” Saunders went on to influence a new generation of writers such as Milton J. Davis, who has created numerous “sword and soul” stories (sword and sorcery with an African influence). “Griots: A Sword and Soul Anthology” (2011) serves as a good example of more recent sword and sorcery efforts. Though Saladin Ahmed may be best known for his comic book work, “Throne of the Crescent Moon,” a Middle Eastern-inspired fantasy novel, garnered him a Locus Award in 2013. Now, should we talk about that famous white-haired warrior who swung a sword long before Geralt?

Lavie: Back in the ’60s, Michael Moorcock was publishing New Worlds Magazine, and churning out S & S stories on weekends to pay the bills. The result was the stories of Elric of Melniboné, the haunted albino with the demonic sword who is destined to kill everything he loves, now undisputed classics. They were collected in “The Stealer of Souls” (1963) and “Stormbringer” (1965). When Moorcock went looking for a name for these works, Fritz Leiber came up with “Sword and Sorcery,” at last giving it a label. Also in London at the time was Samuel Delany. He tackled the genre in his own way. “Tales of Nevèrÿon” (1978) was the first of a quartet that covers slavery, gay culture and power dynamics, and radically reinterprets and questions the ideals of sword and sorcery. Even the AIDS epidemic gets woven into the story in “Flight from Nevèrÿon” (1985).

Sword and sorcery has its soul in the short-fiction magazines and, as such, has never been the most popular strand of the fantastic. But whenever it comes up it offers something fresh, individualistic — and often spectacular. How about you, dear reader: Who are the sword and sorcery protagonists that scratch your itch for devilry and adventure?

Silvia Moreno-Garcia’s books include “Mexican Gothic,” “Velvet Was the Night” and “The Return of the Sorceress.” Lavie Tidhar is the author of the novels“The Violent Century,” “A Man Lies Dreaming,” “By Force Alone” and the “Gorel of Goliris” stories.

Science fiction and Fantasy

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Content: How did Frank Herbert ’ s Dune, based on his journalistic experience, revolutionize science fiction?
Photo credit: Warner Bros.
What we want you to know is
When readers first came into contact with Dunes World in the 1960s, it quickly became apparent that it was unlike any fictional world they had ever read before.
A few decades before George Lucas ’ first draft of Star Wars, science fiction was still in its infancy.
Compiled by: Alice
The film “Dune ” has swept the world, and at the top of the box office, the studio has also announced the official launch of the sequel, which is expected to be released in 2023.
The Dune was originally written by Frank.
Written and published by Frank Herbert in 1965, the series consists of six songs, including the first, Dune, Dune Messiah, Children of Dune, The God Emperor of Dune, Heretics of Dune, and The End of Dune. "Chapter House: Dune", which won the Nebula Award in 1965 and the Hugo Award in 1966.
In fact, before becoming a science fiction writer, Frank Herbert did odd jobs. In 1957, while working as a journalist, Herbert traveled to Oregon to write an interview about how the state government was using jungle weeds to stabilize sand dunes along the coast line.
Herbert was impressed by the vast area and extent of the Pacific Northwest, where the natural landscape seemed to dwarf the large cities that Herbert had visited.
The interview, which Herbert never finished, was replaced by the experience that inspired him to work on the most influential science fiction series in history, The Dune.
Set in a fictional, extremely distant future, the story of humanity ’ s successful colonization of the most remote corners of the Milky Way.
The protagonist, Paul Atreides, is a young heir to the aristocratic family, which in the past was granted the management of the desert planet Arrakis, responsible for overseeing the extraction and export of spices, a drug that only exists in Arrakis and can distort time and space and prolong life.
When readers first came into contact with Dunes World in the 1960s, it quickly became apparent that it was unlike any fictional world they had ever read before.
A few decades before the first draft of George Lucas ’ Star Wars, science fiction was still in its infancy, often dominated by short stories and published in inexpensive magazines such as Amazing Stories.
In general, these stories are more concerned with creating suspense plots and exploring interesting ideas about human nature than with creating a lifelike, paper-based fictional time and space — Herbert ’ s Dune is both.
Rethinking science fiction
Of course, Herbert wasn ’ t the first to try.
More than a decade before Herbert published Dune, the English linguist and fantasy writer J.R.R. Tolkien ’ s classic The Lord of the Rings trilogy expanded the Middle-earth border, as he depicted in his earlier work The Hobbit.
The book contains an appendix to the history of the kingdom and royal blood to make the story more believable. Tolkien ’ s story is inspired by English and Gaelic folklore. In contrast, Herbert ’ s transformation into the original material of the sand dunes is not in myth, but drawn from history.
Readers familiar with "Dune" can find many connections between Herbert's imagination and the real world that inspired it.
Since the story takes place in the future of our real world, it makes sense to think that the society depicted in "The Dune" should carry traces of today's society.
In Dune, the planet colonized by humans is organized into a feudal system called Landsraad — a word taken from Danish that means “Land Commission ”.
Herbert chose to use foreign rather than English terms, suggesting that the Galactic Empire in the story may have originated in Scandinavia or was based on European feudalism.
Similarly, many of the characters in the story — despite living in very different time and space — have modern surnames.
For example, the main villain in the novel, Vladimir Harkonnen, a long-time rival of the Atreides family, is named De Vries, a surname derived from the province of Friesland in the north of the Netherlands.
In Dune, spices are the rarest and most valuable commodities in the known universe, such as today ’ s natural resources such as oil and natural gas – all of which exist only in specific locations around the world, and their existence has a major impact on human development and international relations.
History in the Dune
In The Dune, Herbert not only tries to make his writing acceptable to a large number of readers, but also satisfies his academic interests.
In order to make his fictional universe as real as possible, he made the history of the dune-world as complex and similar as that of our real world.
For example, it is no coincidence that the planets mentioned in the story came together under the rule of the emperor and were organized in a system of fiefdoms.
Centuries before the beginning of the Dunes story, when humans were pushed to the brink of extinction by robots and finally managed to turn things around, the survivors of the war (later known as the Bartland Jihad) decided to ban the development of artificial intelligence.
This resolution — “Thou shalt not build machines to impersonate the human mind ” — became the central precept of civilization ’ s progress, and explains why the society in Dune is not as advanced as one might think.
Culturally, the Battle of Bartland also seems to have brought society back to its half-century state.
For example, the reader may be surprised to find that religion is still active in the distant future and plays an even more important role than in our time — humanity unites all of the “old world ” religions into a single humanitarian text.
Known as the Orange Catholic Bible, this text is one of the most influential works in the entire dune-world.
Its spiritual teachings are a combination of monotheistic, polytheistic religions that serve as guidelines for how the citizens of the empire should behave and progress.
The highest commandment, “Thou shalt not destroy the soul, ” is a variation of the lessons learned from the Battle of Bartland.
Many of the above details did not appear in Danny.
In the film adaptation directed by Denis Villeneuve, it is not even emphasized in the original novel, but it can be seen in the appendix and index at the end of each book – Herbert ’ s genius and revolutionary influence on science fiction are hidden in these often overlooked title pages.
This article was published with the permission of Readmoo Read Frontline, and the original was published here.
Extended reading
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Content: The exhibition “Crossroads of Utopias: The Future in Literature of the 1920s ” was opened at the State Museum of the History of Russian Literature named after V. I. Dahl.
The exposition is devoted to the images of the ideal “city of the future ”, presented in domestic literary utopias and dystopia.
The Crossroads of Utopias: The Future in 1920s Literature
Natalia Streltsova © IA REGNUM
In the twenties of the twentieth century, utopias became one of the most popular literary genres.
The Crossroads of Utopias: The Future in 1920s Literature
Natalia Streltsova © IA REGNUM
Exhibition curator Timur Khayrulin
Natalia Streltsova © IA REGNUM
“Mankind has always imagined an ideal future, whether it ’ s a garden of paradise, a transparent phalanster, or a blooming apple tree on Mars.
Utopia is a style of thinking about the future, not just a literary genre or political theory, but a universal idea, an extracted dream, characteristic of various cultural epochs, ” the organizers of the exhibition noted.
The Crossroads of Utopias: The Future in 1920s Literature
Natalia Streltsova © IA REGNUM
The Crossroads of Utopias: The Future in 1920s Literature
Natalia Streltsova © IA REGNUM
The Crossroads of Utopias: The Future in 1920s Literature
Natalia Streltsova © IA REGNUM
The Crossroads of Utopias: The Future in 1920s Literature
Natalia Streltsova © IA REGNUM
The Crossroads of Utopias: The Future in 1920s Literature
Natalia Streltsova © IA REGNUM
A. S. Shaikhet, “Illich ’ s Lamp ”, 1925
Natalia Streltsova © IA REGNUM
On the imaginary map of the future world, ideal cities and countries are manifested: Khlebnikov's "Lebedia", Plato's "Chevengur", Vivian Itin's "Country of Gonguri", Yesenin's "Ionia", Alexander Chayanov's "Country of Peasant Utopia".
Fantastic urban landscapes of the future are contrasted with peasant ideas about an ideal society, and Russian theorists of cosmism dream of interplanetary travel and the arrangement of an ideal world in other universes.
Finally, the "future world" begins to depict critically: there is a forerunner of all the known dystopia of the 20th century - Zamyatin's novel "We".
Illustrations for the novel Zamyatin "We"
Natalia Streltsova © IA REGNUM
Illustrations for the novel Zamyatin "We"
Natalia Streltsova © IA REGNUM
Zamyatin "We"
Natalia Streltsova © IA REGNUM
Evgeny Zamyatin
From the polemics of various utopian systems, Soviet science fiction is born.
The authors of the 1920s enthusiastically painted in their works a world in which flights into space, robotization of production, prolongation of life, universal communication are possible.
What fantasies of writers have come to life, and what else are waiting for their possible embodiment, you can see by going through the exhibition.
The Crossroads of Utopias: The Future in 1920s Literature
Natalia Streltsova © IA REGNUM
The Crossroads of Utopias: The Future in 1920s Literature
Natalia Streltsova © IA REGNUM
The Crossroads of Utopias: The Future in 1920s Literature
Natalia Streltsova © IA REGNUM
The Crossroads of Utopias: The Future in 1920s Literature
Natalia Streltsova © IA REGNUM
The Crossroads of Utopias: The Future in 1920s Literature
Natalia Streltsova © IA REGNUM
The Crossroads of Utopias: The Future in 1920s Literature
Natalia Streltsova © IA REGNUM
The Crossroads of Utopias: The Future in 1920s Literature
Natalia Streltsova © IA REGNUM
The Perpetual Engine
Natalia Streltsova © IA REGNUM
The exposition presents samples introducing the viewer to the world of the future in the representation of V. Khlebnikov and E. Zamyatin, A. Platonov and A. Chayanov, A. Belyaev and A. Tolstoy, V. Mayakovsky and Y. Okunev.
The halls present drawings and models of the “mechanisms of the future ”, graphic images of“ flying cities ”, materials telling about the authors of utopias and the perception of their texts by contemporaries.
At the exhibition, the exhibits are arranged on themes in several halls: “City of the Sun ”,“ Between City and Country ”, “Beyond the Earth ” and“ Against Utopia ”.
The Crossroads of Utopias: The Future in 1920s Literature
Natalia Streltsova © IA REGNUM
The Crossroads of Utopias: The Future in 1920s Literature
Natalia Streltsova © IA REGNUM
The Crossroads of Utopias: The Future in 1920s Literature
Natalia Streltsova © IA REGNUM
The Crossroads of Utopias: The Future in 1920s Literature
Natalia Streltsova © IA REGNUM
The Crossroads of Utopias: The Future in 1920s Literature
Natalia Streltsova © IA REGNUM
The exhibition project was attended by the State Museum of Architecture named after A.V. Shchusev, the Russian State Archive of Literature and Art, the Multimedia Art Museum, the State Central Theater Museum named after A.A. Bakhrushin, the Political Museum, the Russian State Library, the Kostroma State Historical, Architectural and Art Museum-Reserve, the State Historical Museum, the State Central Museum of Cinema, the Russian Academy of Sciences.
The Crossroads of Utopias: The Future in 1920s Literature
Natalia Streltsova © IA REGNUM
The Crossroads of Utopias: The Future in 1920s Literature
Natalia Streltsova © IA REGNUM
The Crossroads of Utopias: The Future in 1920s Literature
Natalia Streltsova © IA REGNUM
The exhibition runs from April 13 to August 14, 2022 in the State Museum of the History of Russian Literature named after V. I. Dahl.
House of I. S. Ostroukhov in Trubniki at the address: Trubnikovsky lane, 17, p. 1.
Dahl State Museum of the History of Russian Literature
Natalia Streltsova © IA REGNUM

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Content: Tribute to Frankenstein! "Science Lovers" turned AI AI version author into transgender
▲ In response to "Frankenstein" two centuries ago, contemporary writer Janet Winterson wrote a tribute to "Science Lovers". (Photo / Courtesy of New Classic Culture)
Journalist Yu-Aya Lin / Comprehensive Report
In 1816, writer Mary Shelley wrote "Frankenstein", and now the boldest contemporary writer Janet Winterson wrote a tribute to "Science Lovers", which not only made Frankenstein "electric" into AI, but also turned the author into a transgender romantic lover. Chinese version of Classical Culture.
In 1818, Mary Shelley published the first science fiction novel "Frankenstein", in which the protagonist is a curious medical student, Frankenstein, who disregarding the taboo to assemble body parts and connect the electric current, creating the horror monster we are now familiar with - "Frankenstein".
This novel not only opened up the science fiction vision of literature, the author also used monsters to refer to the situation of women in the early stages of the industrial revolution: unable to receive education, excluded from the public domain, and extremely limited scope of life.
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In 2018, when “Frankenstein ” turned 200 years old, Britain ’ s most original writer, Janet Winterson, paid tribute to the classic two centuries ago with her new book“ Science Lovers: A Story of Love ”, and also asked the question: In the modern era of artificial intelligence and genetic technology, does the line between “artificial life and human ” and“ woman and man ” still exist?
In the humorous pen of author Janet Winterson, Dr. Frankenstein, who had previously violated the taboo of life, has become Professor Victor Stein, the developer of artificial intelligence; and Mary Shelley, the author of Frankenstein, has become the lover of Professor Stein; Lord Byron has also come to the modern age, becoming a playful sex robot maker. The success or otherwise of his career has influenced the "sexual" well-being of the world.
Dr. Vito Stein, on the other hand, is secretly conducting some kind of taboo experiment, and with Rui ’ s help, he wants to steal a mysterious head from the ultra-cryopreservation of the human body in Phoenix and upload its consciousness to the cloud.
Mary Shelley, less than 19 years old, published Frankenstein in 1818.
Right: The most daring writer of the time, Janet Winterson, wrote the modern version of Frankenstein ’ s response.
(Image / taken from the network)
Mary Shelley, who was less than 19 years old, wrote Frankenstein; and Janet Winterson, who also experienced extraordinary experience, wrote a humorous, cynical, bold and frank modern version of Frankenstein in response to Mary Shelley, and the modern intersection of the development of artificial intelligence and the breaking of human and non-human boundaries, embracing science and love of literature. She asks, “What is the nature of life? ”
The work has also been well received by international media, with Elle magazine praising Janet Winterson as "the boldest and most original writer of our time."
“Winterson ’ s smartest scheduling in this book is perhaps to point out that transgender people are the real pioneers in a future we can decide for ourselves, when we can design our own bodies. ”
In rewriting Frankenstein from this perspective, the monster no longer looks like a monster; he was just born too early.
One day, Winterson pointed out that biology no longer defines us.
We are just consciousness - unbridled consciousness. "
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Content: Liu Zaifu ’ s “Forty Lectures on Literature ”: History, Journey to the West, Dream of the Red Chamber, the“ grafting ” spectacle of Chinese literary classics
Photo Credit: Shutterstock
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Liu Zai-fu, quoting literary classics from ancient and modern times, expounds in depth the meaning of literature in life, society, and human culture, not only the best primer to understand the meaning and value of literature, but also fully presents Liu Zai-fu's grand literary view.
Re: The Return of Liu
[15] Intersection of Literature.
One, two new types of inspiration
The topic I ’ m talking about today is a topic I thought about 30 years ago.
At that time, reading Lu Xun's essays, I felt that there was no such thing as "essays" in the history of literature.
This new literary category is the creation of Lu Xun, which is the result of his "grafting" of literature (prose) with political theory, contemporary theory, and contemporary criticism, and can also be said to be the intersection of prose and political theory, contemporary theory, and contemporary criticism.
Convergence, grafting and the production of another "quality", this is a large phenomenon of literature, you can do special research, you can write a paper, you can also write an academic monograph.
After the emergence of essays, some people do not admit that this is "literature", but Lu Xun said that it does not matter, one day, the literary hall will accept this new genre.
At a time when essays were gradually flourishing, another new genre of essays was emerging, called "reportage." Tsou Tiufeng, Fan Changjiang, Liu Binyan, etc., were all masters of reportage, and they became famous all over the world.
In the face of reportage, I also think of the phenomenon of "intersection" and "grafting", and feel that reportage is the result of the intersection of literature and journalism.
But it is not news, but literature, because the news can not have feelings, and the report literature is full of life and passion, the text is full of the author's thoughts and feelings.
Because of the report of literature, I entered the "literary intersection point" of reflection, and later because of the change in the environment, I did not write the paper to go abroad.
Today to pick up this topic, is completely forced by the classroom, but I do not intend to make a large article, but to put their own thoughts on literary intersection, grafting phenomenon to the students to express, I hope that the people here will be able to write the monograph of birth movement in the future.
Second, the phenomenon of "convergence" has existed in the past.
The phenomenon of literary convergence, that is, the "intersection of literature", refers to the intersection of literature with other disciplines or other forms of spiritual value creation, such as literature with history, philosophy, science, psychology, and even Buddhism.
This phenomenon has existed in China for a long time.
The great book that we all know, the History of Sima Qian, is the graft of literature and history.
"Historians", the focus is on history, that is, first of all, a great historical work, but no one can deny its huge literary nature, especially the characters in it and the characters listed.
Take "Xiang Yu Benji" as an example, the cornerstone of this era, that is, the basic material is history, but the protagonist (Xiang Yu) described is lifelike, flesh-and-blood, and can be read as a composition.
Xiang Yu ’ s story, which was later compiled into famous plays such as “Farewell to the Overlord ” and“ Hongmen Banquet ”, is the basis of this story.
Especially surprising to future generations is that many of Xiang Yu's life details must be Sima Qian's complement and imagination, such as Xiang Yu's last defeat and ran to the bank of the Wujiang River in a section description, can be said to be "not literature, more like literature."
We might as well read the text of this section:
So the king wanted to cross the river eastward, and the long boat of Ujiangting waited, saying, "Though Jiangdong is small, the land is thousands of miles, and the number of thousands is sufficient for the king."
I want the king to hurry.
The king laughed and said, "If I die in heaven, how will I do it?"
And by crossing the river with the children of Jiangdong, there is no one to return, even though Jiangdong father and brother have mercy and king me, what face do I see? Even if they do not speak, their independence is worthy of my heart? ”
When I was five years old on this horse, I was invincible, and tried to travel thousands of miles a day, and could not bear to kill it, so as to bless the Lord. "
Hundreds of soldiers were killed alone.
The king said, "If it were not for me," and the king said, "This is the king," and the king said, "I have heard that the king has bought my head a thousand gold, and I have a thousand households, and I have died for Jude."
And the king of Israel, and the king of Israel, and the king of Israel, and the king of Israel, and the king of Israel, and the king of Israel, and
Then came the horse, and the horse, and the horse, and the horse, and the horse, and the horse, and the horse, and the horse, and the horse, and the horse, and the horse, and the horse, and the
Five of them together, all of them.
5: 5); and the Lord of hosts, and the Lord of hosts, and the Lord of hosts, and the Lord of hosts, and the Lord of hosts, and the Lord of hosts, and the Lord of hosts, and the Lord of hosts, and the Lord of hosts, and the Lord of hosts.
If Sima Chien had made the Book of History a pure historical book, it would have taken only a few words to write about Xiang Yu ’ s “end of the road ”:“ Xiang Yu stayed on the bank of the Wujiang River for a moment and felt that he had no face to see his father again, so he drew his sword and killed himself. ” In the book of Revelation, the Lord of the Rings tells us that He is the Lord of the Rings; that He is the Lord of the Rings; that He is the Lord of the Rings; that He is the Lord of the Rings; that He is the Lord of the Rings; that He is the Lord of the Rings, and that He is the Lord of the Rings.
In just four or five hundred words, he wrote a heroic ending and a heroic sad song, which is both sad and sad, and has both heroic spirit and heroic friendship, not only historical facts.
This section of text, both historical material value, can also be composition learning text read.
The History provides us with a successful example of the grafting of literature and history.
Literature can be grafted with both history and philosophy.
It can be said that Kafka and his later mainstream of modern literature, the so-called "absurd literature", are the result of the grafting of literature and philosophy.
Beckett, Yunescu, Pinter, Gao Xingjian, etc., all benefited from the intersection of literature and philosophy.
Professor Hu Yao-heng, an expert in drama studies at National Taiwan University, says that “Gao Xingjian ’ s plays are philosophical plays ” and is entirely correct.
Gao Xingjian ’ s plays, from “The Station ” and“ Beyond the Shore ” to “Dialogue and Conversation ” to“ The Night God ” and “Questioning Death ”, are the intersection of philosophy and literature.
Before Gao Xingjian, Beckett ’ s “Waiting for Godot ” and Yunesku ’ s“ Rhino ” were also philosophical and literary juxtapositions.
Its tone is no longer "lyrical", nor is it "verbal".
In the whole drama, only the author's profound understanding of the absurd world, which is both imaginary and philosophical.
The focus is on thoughts, not emotions.
From Kafka and Beckett to Pinter and Gao Xingjian, we can see the power of the intersection of literature and philosophy – it can change the tone of the literary world and create a new world of literature.
Third, the miracle of "grafting" in Chinese literary classics
If it is said that "History" is the intersection of history and literature, then "Journey to the West" is the marriage of literature and Buddhism, and "Dream of the Red Chamber" is the marriage of literature and psychology.
Without the Eastern Biography of Buddhism, there would be no Journey to the West.
The Book of Revelation is the book of Revelation and the book of Revelation, which is written in the Book of Revelation, and the Book of Revelation, which is written in the Book of Revelation and the Book of Revelation, which is written in the Book of Revelation, and is written in the Book of Revelation.
Sun Wukong accompanied Master Tang Monk to the West Heaven to take the Sutra, from the beginning to the end of the Sutra, it is all the logic of "Buddhism".
The Buddha of Rulai in Journey to the West is the most powerful, but not the absolute "savior".
The representative of the Buddhist world, Guanyin Bodhisattva, specifically helped guide the Tang monk and the Monkey King Master to overcome all kinds of difficulties and win the victory of the scriptures. She is God (Buddhism), but full of human feelings (literature).
The Lord is strong and powerful, and has the power of the devil, but the truth is perfect, and has the heart of the Buddha and the heart of the child; he is also a man, with the naughty and ideal of man.
There is no magic, no magic, no magic, no magic, no magic.
The Lord of hosts is the Lord of hosts, and the Lord of hosts is the Lord of hosts and the Lord of hosts.
"Dream of the Red Chamber" is like "Journey to the West", the whole book is full of Buddha light, children's heart pound.
"Journey to the West" is based on the Eastern tradition of Buddhism, and "Dream of the Red Chamber" is also based on the Eastern tradition of Buddhism.
But in contrast, the whole book of Journey to the West is saturated with Buddhism, and the Dream of the Red Chamber is saturated with psychology.
Therefore, I say, "Dream of the Red Chamber" is the greatest work of psychology after the "Ecclesiastes" (Wang Yangming), and the difference is only that the former is intellectual psychology, and the latter is imaginary psychology.
Jia Baoyu, the protagonist of "Dream of the Red Chamber", is not so much a "person" as a "heart" - the purest heart that has never been seen in the history of world literature, like the dustless heart that was born on the first morning of Genesis.
If we regard Jia Baoyu as a "person", we will define him as a noble son, a playboy, and will feel that he likes poetry voice is "not doing good work", so that he feels that his "problems" are many and insufficient for training.
And if you think of him as a "heart", you will find that this heart is not stained with mud, and the thoughts and thoughts in the heart are completely different from those of the secular people.
This heart has no hatred function, no jealousy function, no vengeance function, no calculation function.
This heart is a boundless universe that can accommodate all things in heaven and earth, can accommodate all people, can understand and forgive all people.
Because he is a "heart", so it does not have the secular that some of the concept of distinction, I do not know that there are expensive and inferior points, high and low points, master and slave points.
Therefore, he regarded the "underlings" and "masters" as equals, and was willing to act as the "divine waiter" of these slaves and maidens (not only as the divine waiter of aristocratic girls such as Lin Daiyu). Jia Baoyu's life was only in childhood, adolescence and youth, and there was no middle age or old age.
So the Jia Baoyu mind we see, only the breath of youth and the breath of the universe.
The heart is filled with nothing but love.
New achievements in the intersection of literature and science
We talked about the difference between literature and science.
It is not difficult to distinguish this difference.
But this lesson is about how literature and science can also be intertwined and grafted.
In Lu Xun ’ s time, Lu Xun introduced the French “father of science fiction ” Verne ’ s“ Journey to the Moon ” and “Journey Under the Earth ”.
The intersection of literature and science, the most important result is the production of science fiction.
If we adhere to literary dogmatism, we may reject science fiction because it is not written about the “real world ” (and certainly not about reflecting real life), but the future world.
The characters in the book are not "real people" with flesh and blood, but "scientific people" in the author's imagination.
This kind of activity space for technological people is beyond the survival situation of traditional novels, and beyond the "rivers and lakes" environment of the martial arts novels.
Its heroes are not real heroes or heroes, but science and technology heroes.
If you stick to the definition of "literature is anthropology", then science fiction is difficult to be classified as literature.
However, if we use what I call the three elements of “mind, imagination, and aesthetic form ” to examine without demanding literature in ready-made literary definitions, then we cannot but admit that science fiction has all these three elements, especially imagination, and will happily accept science fiction.
It is worth noting that science fiction has made great strides in recent years, both in China and in the West.
Among them, the United States has even ushered in the golden age of science fiction, and Lu Xu, who was listening to the class, recently published an article in the "Bookhouse" about Ray Bradbury (United States) "Fahrenheit 451" and Liu Cixin (China) "The Three Body", entitled "The Humanities in Dystopia", which tells the two representative science fiction writers of the United States and China, half. In the 21st century, through creation, we hope that science and technology and humanistic spirit can meet and understand each other.
Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451 develops a "science fiction utopia" into a "science fiction utopia" that warns against the anti-intellectual (anti-humanistic) tendencies of human society.
And the recent emergence of Chinese writer Liu Cixin, published in 2006 science fiction novel "The Three Bodies", not only accepted by Chinese readers, but also won the United States Hugo Award (Best Novel Award), which brilliantly realized the intersection and grafting of science, culture and literature.
He consciously fought against the spiritual split between science and culture and humanistic culture, and put more humanistic feelings into it.
Roth said of the three:
A triple star system is a star system closer to Earth that interacts with three sun-like stars, resulting in chaotic orbits and poor survival conditions.
After establishing a connection with the Earth, the Three Kingdoms decide to launch a cosmic migration, and human society is facing a crisis of extinction.
The first part of the novel uncovers this reality, and the second and third parts depict the various efforts and struggles that humans have made to cope with the great crisis. For example, launching gravitational waves into the entire universe, exposing the coordinates of the Three Body World, so that the entire solar system, including the Earth, will become the target of the cosmic "dark forest".
In order to save itself, the earth even made a low-intelligence statement (using drugs and brain science technology to reduce human intelligence), and implemented technical self-harm, that is, to save the earth by limiting human development through technology.
This idea is to leave the final salvation to the humanistic spirit, and the literary pursuit of the "ultimate good."
From the examples of Ray Bradbury and Liu Cixin, it can be seen that the intellectual challenge caused by the intersection of literature and science is the highest intellectual thinking in the human world today, and it is also a new topic facing literature.
The emergence of outstanding science fiction, such as The Three Bodies, is challenging many traditional literary theories and definitions.
Looking at the history of literature, especially the history of modern literature, we will find that many new literary categories and literary patterns are the result of the intersection and grafting of literature with other disciplines, and over the past 100 years, we have also seen that the intersection of literature and psychology has produced the giant flow of consciousness novels such as Proust's "Remembering the Year of the Passing Water" and Joyce's "Ulysses.
Since then, we have seen Orwell ’ s Animal Farm, a new type of novel that has hit the world, which is actually the intersection of literature and politics.
We do not support literature as a tool of politics (including the idea that literature serves politics), but we do not deny that political life is also a part of real life, and political activities can also become a part of literature.
Orwell is familiar with literature, but also familiar with politics, he did not put politics above literature, but turned politics into the material and tool of literature, the art of politics refining and upgrading, so that politics is fully literalized.
The whole novel is written about politics, but it is also full of literary and artistic politics.
There are two camps in the novel: the “animal farm ” is a socialist state, the“ human farm ” is a capitalist state; the “animal ” is the oppressed and exploited party, and the“ human ” is the party that practices oppression and exploitation.
The struggle between “animals ” and“ humans ” is a metaphor for the resistance of oppressed people and oppressed peoples.
It can be said that these are well-known and commonplace political stories and political common sense.
However, Orwell designed the contemporary political struggle as a struggle between animals and people.
The characters of animal farms are pigs, dogs, horses, cows, sheep, goats, donkeys, old cats, pigeons, crows, chickens, ducks, geese, sparrows, mice, turtles, foxes, etc. Point wait.
These pigs, dogs, all anthropomorphic, and most importantly, full of comedy.
Liu Zaifu ’ s “Forty Lectures on Literature ”: Literature is moving toward“ Huineng ”, not toward “Nietzsche ”, which is my own unique expression.
Book Introduction
Forty Lectures on Literature: Common Knowledge and Wisdom, Joint Publishing
Author: Liu Zai
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One of the hottest defenders of humanity.
Let go of obscure hypotheses and ask for infinite truth.
Candles shine on the heart, bid farewell to ignorance, the shortest shortcut to enter literature
The world is so rich and complex, life is so vast and boundless, human nature is so colorful, literature face all this, naturally can also show their own charm.
There is absolutely no need to incorporate the narrow framework of a certain political ideology, whether it comes from the left or from the right.
Freedom can also be completely in their own hands, only when there is an awareness of freedom, can there be true freedom, and there is no need to wait for the objective conditions of freedom to mature before creating.
— — Liu Zaifu
In 2013 and 2016, Liu Zaifu accepted the appointment of the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences of the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology and the Institute for Advanced Study as a visiting professor.
According to the course, the book is divided into two parts.
The upper part of the "What is literature: literature common sense 22 lectures" from Chinese and Western literature common sense, from the definition of literature to the state of literature, and ultimately to pursue the "literary mind" in real life; the lower part of the "how to read literature: literary understanding 18 points", then carefully read the literature works need to think about the main points, in order to understand the mysteries of literature.
And...
Liu Zai-fu, quoting literary classics from ancient and modern times, expounds in depth the meaning of literature in life, society, and human culture, not only the best primer to understand the meaning and value of literature, but also fully presents Liu Zai-fu's grand literary view.
Editor-in-Chief: Weng Shihang
Editor-in-chief: Wang Zupeng
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Content: 'Snowpiercer' star Daveed Diggs says it's 'frustrating' when sci-fi stories lack diversity: 'That implies that you can't imagine a future with people of color'

  • "Snowpiercer" star Daveed Diggs told Insider that it's "frustrating" when sci-fi stories lack diversity.
  • Diggs said that it implies "you can't imagine a future with people of color."
  • Diggs added that "Snowpiercer" tries to make the future reflect what the world looks like now.

"Snowpiercer" star Daveed Diggs told Insider that it's "frustrating" when sci-fi movies and TV shows lack diversity.

Diggs, best known for his role in the original Broadway cast for the "Hamilton" musical, stars in the dystopian thriller about the last of human civilization living on a fast-moving train after Earth becomes a frozen wasteland. One of the aspects that make the series stand out is the fact that the characters are racially and geographically diverse.

Diggs, who plays the lead character Layton, told Insider that he hoped more sci-fi movies and TV shows embrace diversity in regards to their cast.

"The frustrating thing when our science fiction lacks diversity is that that implies that you can't imagine a future with people of color and that's super frustrating no matter who it is who's writing the show," Diggs said. "Because that also implies that you don't see them in your present or see us in your present."

He continued: "One of the things I do like about this show is that we try to make the world of the future also reflect our contemporary world."

In 2014, a study by book publisher Lee & Low Books found that in the top 100 domestic grossing films in the sci-fi and fantasy genre, only 8 had a person of color as their lead character. In six of those eight movies, the protagonist was Will Smith.

In recent years, major sci-fi franchises, such as the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Star Wars, and the CW's Arrowverse, have started to include better racial diversity, as well as diversity in other areas.

Diggs also told Insider that the series reflects the contemporary world with its underlying themes for season three.

"Season three asked us to look at the inherent flaws in a bunch of political systems," Diggs explained. "We live in a world in which, in the last few years, we've been witnessed to a fair amount of authoritarian regimes popping up in places that we thought were solidly committed to democracy and that happens on 'Snowpiercer.'"

He added: "The big political question this year is how useful is a broken democracy and what are you willing to do to fix it? And what does it mean to fix it?"

The third season of "Snowpiercer airs Mondays at 9 p.m. ET on TNT.

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Content: The news tape.
The One Who Saved the Planet in the Science Fiction Series
Damascus-Sana
The story of “Who Saved the Planet ” by Egyptian writer Rauf Wasfi, which was recently published by the Syrian General Book Organization and within the series (Science Fiction Literature), brings us back to the stories of the invasion of the planet by the inhabitants of space and the intensification of the struggle to defend it.
The story begins with a massive invasion of Earth by the inhabitants of space and the capture of what remains of them and take them to an unknown place where the captives of the protagonists struggle to win their planet.
Through the 151-page novel of medium pieces, the author offers a deep introspection of the shape and inventions of the future and unleashes the world of imagination to delve into another world that makes the reader fly into hidden worlds.
As he climbed the nearby hill, he looked like a giant ghost heading into space, the man perished on the grass, and felt that he was alone in a frightening isolation, lost, a defeated creature looking for a tiny rest of self-quiet, suspended in his mind, the last words thrown by the robot were still echoing in his ears, filling the space around him and giving him some conviction that he had long been deprived of.
How fortunate you are, O human being, because you can love, hate, suffer, be happy, and forget.
It is worth mentioning that Rauf Wasfi is a contemporary Egyptian writer whose scientific composition contributed to directing his fiction towards science fiction stories and won a literary award from the Dickens Society for International Narratives where some of his wonderful stories were selected for presentation to the Society. He also presented some articles in Majed magazine and Al-Arabi Al-Saghir magazine and taught at the American University in Cairo and Mustansiriya University in Baghdad.
Mais Al Ani
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Content: (Credits: Far Out / Picryl / LSE)

Film

The classic science fiction movie that H.G. Wells hated: “Originality there is none”

Although the English author H.G. Wells wrote in many genres of fiction and also extended his writing to the realms of politics and social commentary, his contributions to the creative world of science fiction are perhaps what he is best known for and which led to him sometimes being considered the “father of science fiction”.

But it’s fair to say that the very nature of science fiction often makes it the perfect literary and artistic output to explore the ills and issues of a collaborative society, and Wells’ utopian works at points foresaw the rise in technology that seems to be almost symbiotic with humankind today, whilst his science fiction works explored concepts such as time travel and the existence of aliens.

Seeing as Wells’ science fiction work, including The Time MachineThe Island of Doctor MoreauThe Invisible Man and The War of the Worlds, are so well admired, we’d think that the writer would be well positioned to consider other notable efforts in the genre, whether in fiction or other mediums. With that in mind, it’s worth bringing to attention that Wells was no great fan of one of the most significant science fiction movies of all time, at least from a pioneering perspective.

Wells once reviewed Fritz Lang’s 1927 German expression science fiction silent movie Metropolis and called it “the silliest film” that he’d ever seen, claiming “it would not be possible to make one sillier.”

Via Wired, Wells wrote: “It gives in one eddying concentration almost every possible foolishness, cliché, platitude, and muddlement about mechanical progress and progress in general served up with a sauce of sentimentality that is all its own.”

Metropolis is one of the first-ever feature-length science fiction movies and takes place in a futuristic urban dystopia, focusing on the affluent son of a city’s master who tries to help the workers of the city rise up out of their lowly position in partnership with a saintly figure of the workers, Maria, and the city master, Joh Fredersen.

Upon release, Lang’s film was praised for its art direction and special effects, but the story was considered a touch naïve and cliched, which Wells also took issue with. The writer criticises Metropolis at great length, but some highlights from the review see him point out the production’s expensive cost, the film’s title, its characters and pretty much everything in between.

“Originality there is none. Independent thought, none,” he wrote. “The pity of it is that this unimaginative, incoherent, sentimentalising, and make-believe film, wastes some very fine possibilities.”

Evidently, Wells was no great fan of Metropolis and considered it “a waste of money”.

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Content: IN THE MOUNTAINSby@hgwells

IN THE MOUNTAINS

Too Long; Didn't Read

Next day Ann Veronica and Capes felt like newborn things. It seemed to them they could never have been really alive before, but only dimly anticipating existence. They sat face to face beneath an experienced-looking rucksack and a brand new portmanteau and a leather handbag, in the afternoon-boat train that goes from Charing Cross to Folkestone for Boulogne. They tried to read illustrated papers in an unconcerned manner and with forced attention, lest they should catch the leaping exultation in each other’s eyes. And they admired Kent sedulously from the windows.

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Content: Discover New Worlds: Top 10 Science Fiction Books for Young People
If you ’ re looking for a novel, thrilling events, elaborate details and a mystery, Ahmed Khaled Tawfik ’ s novel In the Rat Corridor is your best choice, published in 2016 and one of the best Arabic science fiction novels.
(Explanatory)
Reading is the food of the mind and a window to learn about new worlds you may not know anything about, giving you a different pleasure through which you can overcome boredom and depression and spend your free time reading your favorite book, but the most important question remains: Why read science fiction books?
Especially since there are thousands of books specialized in history and different civilizations throughout the ages that require reading and learning about them?
The answer is simply that sometimes we need to let go of the past, the present and even think about the future and let our imagination take a fun journey with science fiction books, which makes us fly into a parallel world where we can make our own laws and build our own world as we want.
10 Best Science Fiction Books Worth Reading
1.
In the Rat Corridor by Ahmed Khaled Tawfik
If you ’ re looking for a novel, thrilling events, elaborate details and a mystery, Ahmed Khaled Tawfik ’ s novel In the Rat Corridor is your best choice, published in 2016 and one of the best Arabic science fiction novels.
The story is about a huge meteor collision with the planet, blocking the sun ’ s rays from the earth, and thus the lack of all sources of energy and the creation of a system of “Commander ”, which criminalizes the generation of any source of energy or even the ignition of fire.
After the emergence of a group of rebels calling themselves the "Illuminati", the story ends with a tragic and unexpected end.
2.
Call for Carl Sagan.
Contact is the masterpiece of writer Karal Sagan, the novel talks about the realization of the dream of humans to discover another life somewhere else in the universe, but contrary to expectations people do not care about this discovery due to their preoccupation with their human world full of various political conflicts.
The adventure begins with a message explaining how to get to this place with a specially made machine for this journey, called a trip to the edge of the universe, where man sees what he has never seen before, where the huge stars and amazing scenes from a new world beyond our comprehension, and during this journey one can experience an adventure like never before.
3.
Traveler Zero by Ahmed Abdel Fattah Saleh
Traveler Zero, one of the most beautiful Arabic science fiction books, revolves around the character of a man named Sharif who wakes up one day to find himself in a world other than his own, and a life he knows nothing about, and that the last thing he remembers is his sleep as a college student and waking up as a married man with children and a different and new life. The truth about himself and the reason why he suddenly fell into this situation.
This novel is characterized by its attractive style of narration, as the writer relied on images, symbols and fictional situations that added to the novel a lot of elements of suspense and pleasure, and in which you can not stop reading if you have already begun.
4.
Dr. Morrow Island by Herbert George Wells.
This novel is the simplest example of an intellectual revolution, where it revolves around an Englishman descended from a class of nobility named Edward Brendick, all things change Edward when he goes on a trip to an island in the Pacific Ocean and his ship crashes and is rescued by a man named Montgomery, who takes him on a boat to the island inhabited by this man, in addition to a mad animal anatomist named Moro, and a number of half-humans. Created by this scientist with surgical methods and other interventions in animal life, Edward's adventure begins.
5.
The Ferry Man by Justin Cronin
This novel is about a group of survivors who are on a hidden utopia, but the truth is not what it seems.
Set in the Prospera archipelago, founded by the mysterious genius known as the designer far from the horrors of the deteriorating outside world, this island paradise has a long and satisfying life until the screens installed in their arms, aimed at measuring their physical health and well-being, drop to less than 10% and retire, and set off on a ferry trip to the island known as the nursery, where their bodies are renewed. Their memories are erased and they are ready to be brought back to life.
The story centers on Proctor Bennett of the Department of Social Contracts who finds himself questioning everything he once believed in, involved in a much larger cause than he was connected to and in a desperate mission to uncover the truth, after mounting unrest and rumors of a resistance group known as the “Expatriates ”, which may incite a revolution.
6.
The Time Machine of Herbert George Wells.
This book is considered one of the best and most important science fiction books, written by Herbert George Wells, one of the founders of science fiction and thriller.
The story revolves around a physicist who has developed a device through which he can see the future, and the extent of the major conflicts between two species of humans in the future, one of them is the Elroy luxuriant who is stupid behind the graces and lives on the surface of the earth, and the other is the Morlock, the species that lives underground and never sees the sun. Louie. "
7.
The Storm of Swords by George Martin.
This novel is the third part of the epic "Ice and Fire", one of the most famous books by George Martin, and revolves around the story of the Storm of Swords about the Five Kings, especially the young King Jeffrey, who seeks to secure his rule, and at this stage many battles and wars between the family and other kings, in an atmosphere full of excitement, suspense and science fiction.
8.
A Land Without Shadow by Mohamed Abdel Aal Al Khatib
This novel delves into the sea of science fiction and takes place in the future, where the debris of a planet flies in the sky, and each period the debris of this planet comes closer and closer to the inhabitants of the Earth, who live in a state of unprecedented fear and horror, and the population begins to search for another planet to escape to it by researchers and thinkers.
9.
The truth about Dan Brown.
One of the works of the American novelist Dan Brown is one of the most famous science fiction novels, and it is difficult to start without finishing it immediately; it revolves around the conspiracy theory and the involvement of NASA with a large research agency to convince the world of the existence of a meteor coming, and thus the public is preoccupied with many social problems and economic situation experienced by the country. There are a lot of corruption cases in the United States.
10.
Earth to the Moon by Jules Verle.
At the end of the list is one of the best science fiction novels worth reading, one of the oldest works that predicted human travel to the moon, by French writer John Ferrell, published in 1865.
A group of scientists from a club called Cannon developed a cannon shot designed to take them to the moon, and this book predicts the fact that humans arrived on the moon almost 100 years before it actually happened.
In this article, we have presented to you 10 books and novels that are considered one of the most famous and best science fiction books for leading writers, which many have enjoyed reading and enjoying.

Title:

Content: Chairman of the Board of Directors and Editors
I'm sorry.
Mohamad Elbaz
Chairman of the Board of Directors and Editors
I'm sorry.
Mohamad Elbaz
“A story from the Stone Age. ”
A collection of stories recently published by the Syrian Writers Authority
Published recently by the Syrian General Authority for Book 2023, and within the series "Science Fiction Literature", the collection of stories "A Story from the Stone Age", by: Herbert George Wells Translation: Maha Asaad Marza.
Herbert George Wells
Herbert George Wells, a pioneer of science fiction literature, was born on September 21, 1866 in Kent, England, and died on August 13, 1946 in London, England, and is famous for his fiction novel, mixed with science, a writer of short stories, and one of his most famous works Time Machine, The Invisible Man, Island of Dr. Moreau, War of the Worlds and the Early Men on the Moon.
Herbert became famous for his novels of the literary genre, and unlike his contemporary Jules Verne, Wells' novels contained purposeful social critiques and did not limit themselves to telling adventures.
His first novel, which included science fiction, began in 1895 and was titled The Time Machine and became popular among young people.
His second novel, The Island of Dr. Moreau, was published in 1896, about a mad scientist who turns animals into human beings, in 1897, The Invisible Man, about a world that succeeds in concealing itself, and in 1898, The War of the Worlds, about a Martian invasion of the Earth.
In 1909, the author published a novel, Anne Veronica, which discussed the maturation of a woman's thought and her appearance in a new and open dress, and which aroused much controversy, but was well received by critics and readers who came to read it.
The theme of the collection is “A Story from the Stone Age ”.
After the absence of the moon from among the trunks of trees on the rocky edge, he sent two enormous beams of light, and a strip of darkness was emitted through the papyrus.
Then came the sound of a continuous rustling, the sound of water splashing, and the papyrus moved further and further apart.
In the end, a hole appeared in it, as if it were splitting from the roots to the ends...
The end has come.

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Hong Kong '90s Jade Singer Lai Shih dies of cancer aged 58
Silicon Valley celebrity Hsieh Kai-ting also met the noble woman Nana fundraising scared to jump on the car.
Science fiction "Three Bodies" adapted into a new drama on the Internet to impact the Chinese scale
Created by Chinese writers, the “Three Bodies ” was adapted by Western producers as a series performed by a number of foreign actors, which not only greatly reduced the Chinese elements, but also opened with scenes of the Cultural Revolution fighting dead.
Like the story of the alien invasion of Earth, it is also impacting the “beliefs ” of many Chinese and the“ yardstick ” of the Beijing authorities.
“Three Bodies ” is a bestselling novel by renowned Chinese science fiction writer Liu Cixin, who has won one of the world ’ s most influential awards in science fiction literature. In China,“ Three Bodies ” has been considered “difficult to adapt ” for its puzzling time jumps, philosophical dilemmas and intensive exploration of scientific theory.
Today, the “Three Bodies ” are on the international screen through Netflix, a rare breakthrough in foreign media observation, in contrast to the suppression of science fiction in Chinese history.
★ A rare breakthrough under Beijing ’ s repression
Produced by Game of Thrones producers, Netflix ’ s new series “3 Body Problem ” is based on China ’ s best-selling science-fiction novel of the same name, according to the BBC. The novel is still popular in China despite China ’ s ongoing censorship of the genre.
The story structure of the “Three Bodies ” is roughly the same: one day in 1967, Ye Wenjie, an astrophysics student in Beijing, witnessed her father being beaten to death by the Red Guards during the Cultural Revolution.
She joined a military project in Inner Mongolia to avoid being punished by a series of sit-ins, but on the condition that she never leave the base.
At this cold outpost, under a huge parabolic antenna, Ye Wenjie lost all confidence in humanity.
She devoted her life to research and made scientific breakthroughs, broadcasting high-power radio signals into outer space.
This action will have serious consequences, and it all stems from that disastrous day in Beijing.
In addition to the trans-cosmic plot, the Three Bodies also involve secret scientific projects; an alien species in the solar system beyond the stars; and a strange video game depicting the rise and fall of great civilizations over the millennia.
“The Three Bodies ” is the first of a trilogy of“ Past Events on Earth ” written by Beijing-born Liu Cixin. A Chinese adaptation of the film was shelved in 2017.
But now it ’ s on the international screen via Netflix, the belated return of Game of Thrones creators David Benioff and DB Weiss.
Early reviews were divided over whether they could be successfully adapted.
What ’ s more, the original novel has been an incredible success. It was first serialized in China ’ s Science Fiction World magazine in 2006 and translated to Western readers by Liu Yukun in 2014.
Its fans include former US President Barack Obama and "Game of Thrones" author George RR Martin.
He is the author of the Qur ’ an.
Liu Cixin won the most prestigious Hugo Award for Best Novel in 2015, and the book and its two sequels have sold nearly 9 million copies worldwide.
Today, Liu Cixin is credited with bringing Chinese science fiction to the world.
This is an incredible feat considering China ’ s historical suppression of science fiction.
The English translation begins with the words: “In more than 40 days, in Beijing alone, more than 1,700 victims were beaten to death at a protest meeting ” and“ many others have chosen an easier path to avoid this madness. ”
Set in 1967, the novel kills as many as 2 million people in the Cultural Revolution over the next decade as the student-led radical Red Guards gradually turned violent in support of the Communist policies of then-Communist leader Mao Zedong.
Many of the victims committed suicide to “end their suffering. ”
The report believes that, in the modern episode of the “Three Bodies, ” the unexplained suicides that have occurred in the scientific community hint at this fact.
But what ’ s more striking than how this real history shapes events in Liu ’ s work is how the Mao regime shaped the course of science fiction in the real world.
It was dormant in the 1960s.
Liu Cixin was born in 1963, three years before the Cultural Revolution.
Li Hua, a professor of Chinese at Montana State University, said that in that era, scientists, writers and other intellectuals were branded “counter-revolutionaries ” and sent to labor camps for“ ideological transformation, ” with few literary works published, “Chinese science fiction remained dormant from the early 1860s to 1967, ” and it was especially difficult to survive the turbulent political situation, with many common themes being taboo, such as Mao ’ s. Marxist-Leninism makes no provision for the existence of aliens in the universe.
But as the “three bodies ” postscript reveals, after witnessing China ’ s first artificial satellite painting the sky in April 1970, six-year-old Liu Cixin will still be moved by“ unspeakable curiosity and longing. ”
A few years later, he found a box of books under his father ’ s bed, including Jules Verne ’ s “Journey to the Heart of the Earth. ” Liu found that he had a determination, like the character in his book, Ye Wenjie, that would ultimately have a profound impact.
Mao Zedong died in 1976, and Ye Wenjie described that year in “The Three Bodies ” as“ the horrors experienced during the Cultural Revolution gradually subsided ”. After Deng Xiaoping came to power in 1977, science fiction flourished for a short time. Deng Xiaoping said that “science and technology are the first productive force. ” Creation.
Fearing a greater spread of Western ideas to China, the CCP launched a campaign in 1983 to “clean up mental pollution. ”
Li said: “It aims to eradicate the Western-inspired trend of ‘ bourgeois liberalization ’.
The Propaganda Department singled out specific literary genres to attack and suppress, including sci-fi works of ghost stories, violence, sex, anti-scientific assumptions, and veiled criticisms of socialism, and classified them as “spiritual pollution. ”
Leading writers such as Ye Yonglie, who wrote stories about space travel when China launched its first satellite into orbit, were condemned, and Science Literary magazine was forced to publish non-fiction works, and in the process renamed the more unobtrusive “Strange Tales. ”
Li said that after a few months, Deng Xiaoping ended the event, but "many science fiction writers, disappointed and emotionally hurt, left the field."
Even if science fiction is revived again, political sensitivities are holding back its development.
Liu Cixin ’ s first full-length novel, China 2185, in 1989, describes cyberpunk fantasies about Mao ’ s resurrection in virtual reality.
This suggests that sci-fi narratives “were prevented from appearing in print due to sensitive sociopolitical topics, but were later published online, ” Li said, but many such works would soon be removed.
Most writers are self-censoring.
With its rapid economic growth in the 1990s, China is now a modern and prosperous country, and science fiction has flourished in China. In the 1990s, with films such as Jurassic Park and The Hacking Empire, Western works by Hugo Award winners Philip K Dick and Arthur C Clarke hit bookshelves.
By the turn of the century, “Science Fiction World ” had reached 400,000 copies, the largest of its kind. In 2019, another film,“ Wandering Earth ”, directed by Liu Cixin, became a hit in China, marking a watershed moment for Chinese science fiction films.
Li Hua believes that the change during this period is that the Chinese government's censorship system is relatively strict on social and political issues, but relatively lax on technical issues, so most writers will self-censor their works and avoid mentioning sensitive topics.
But the report believes that sociopolitical criticism is not impossible for Chinese writers.
Liu Yukun, a translator, said at the Reddit “Geek ” conference in 2015 that“ criticism of the Cultural Revolution is not a forbidden topic in China. ”
Liu Tsz Hin became the first Asian to win a Hugo Award, but his book nonetheless exposes the sensitive nature of his ideas. After all, chapters with a Cultural Revolution background were moved to the middle part of the original Chinese version for fear that government censors might find them too politicized, which is the beginning of the English version of the “Three Body ”.
Netflix ’ s new series “Three Bodies ” starts in the same way as the English version of the book, and they don ’ t worry about censorship.
But the new series is based on Liu Cixin ’ s original novel, and unlike the original novel, they will face the critical judgment of the audience.
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Content: Science Fiction Awards Hugo Awards Last year, China's first writers were disqualified for unknown reasons.
Author: Kathleen Leung
Published: Updated:
[Literary / Science Fiction / Hugo Award] The Hugo Award is the highest honor in the field of science fiction fiction. It was first held in Chengdu, China, last year, and won the Best Short Novel Award by Shenzhen writer Haiyang.
Recently, the organizer announced that the Chinese American author R.F. Kuang ’ s best-selling “Babel ” has been“ disqualified ” for unknown reasons.
The novel won the Nebula Award, Orbital Award and the British National Book Award in 2023, and is regarded as a hot work.
Canadian author Xiran Jay Zhao and science-fiction writer Neil Gaiman have also been labeled “not eligible to vote ” for dubious reasons.
The Science Fiction Achievement Award is awarded by the World Science Fiction Association to the best science fiction and fantasy works of the year, and each year, the Association members nominate five works from multiple categories, select the best works according to the number of nominations, and finally vote for the best works.
R.F. Kuang ’ s best-selling book “Babel College ”
The previous Hugo Awards were delayed by several months compared to previous years. Last week, it was found that many novels were marked as "ineligible to vote" at the nomination stage.
Among them, Kuang Lingxiu ’ s work “Babel Tower Academy ” won many awards such as the Nebula Award for Best Novel and the British National Book Award last year, which is regarded as a hot work and ranked third in the nomination data.
The other two books that were not selected were Iron Widow and The Sandman by Neil Gaiman.
Kuang Lingxiu ’ s debut work “Poppy War ” takes the war between the two countries as the background, telling the story of rural girls who become female soldiers after entering the military school.
Although the story is fictional, the author indicates that it is a reinterpretation of Chinese history, the title refers to the Opium War, and the heroine Rin's growth trajectory is based on Mao Zedong's birth as a blueprint.
Another writer, Zhao Xiran, said that the reason for his removal was related to past political speech.
Last year, the Chengdu organizer added details to the terms and conditions to require the works to comply with local laws and regulations.
Kuang Lingxiu responded to the incident at IG (Credit: kuangrf / IG)
Kuang said on social media after the incident that he had not received any reason for ineligibility and had not rejected the nomination.
"Until someone can explain that this book is eligible to run and win the Nebula and Orbit awards, but not be a Hugo finalist, I would assume that it is an 'unpopular' rather than an 'unqualified' issue," she wrote.
I regret that the exclusion of “unpopular ” works not only embarrasses everyone involved, but also undermines the fairness of the entire process and the entire organization.
Dave McCart, chair of the 2023 Hugo Awards judging panel, later said on Facebook that the Hugo Awards executive team had no official communication with the Chinese government.

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Content: Song Mingwei on the Rise and Future of Chinese Science Fiction
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Song Mingwei, professor and chair of the Department of East Asia at the American Wesleyan College, opened the City Reading Festival on Saturday, June 1, with the success of the Chinese science fiction masterpiece "Three Bodies" as the entry point, telling about the rise of the subject in China, attracting more than 100 science fiction fans.
After the English translation of “Three Bodies ” won the Hugo Award for Best Novel in 2015, becoming the first Asian author to win the award, Liu Cixin ’ s other sci-fi book,“ Wandering Earth ”, was also released in 2019, successfully setting off a sci-fi boom.
When people thought that the Chinese science fiction circle had begun to prosper, Song Mingwei said, "The success of Three Body cannot be replicated, and science fiction is still a minority."
In Song Mingwei's view, the success of "Three Body" only makes science fiction from humble status to the stage of the literary center, but does not mean that science fiction literature has become the mainstream.
He also revealed that there are still very few active Chinese science fiction writers, and there are only a handful of science fiction works that can be published every year.
From no one willing to publish, regarded as "unmarketable", to become an internationally famous science fiction, "three bodies" in the process of going to sea, with the help of the selfless dedication of many science fiction enthusiasts.
As one of the witnesses, Song Mingwei believes that if the science fiction circle continues to grow, it is not the trend of industrialization that needs to be studied, but the community cohesion behind it.
"Industrialization studies only look at numbers, but the research community allows us to see cultural and emotional connections," he explained.
In the public question and answer session, Song Mingwei then elaborated his observation on the prospect and trend of science fiction.
For his full sharing, watch the video.
More information about the City Reading Festival can be found at www.cityreading.sg
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Content: 3
The finalists of the tenth season of the New Horizons Award
December 22, 2022
22.12.2022
573
1 minute to read
The organizers of the literary fantastic award “New Horizons ” announced the finalists for the tenth season.
This award is awarded for the best work of fiction genre, original in theme, images and style, published in Russian.
During the press conference, the participants summed up the results of the pre-final stage and talked about future innovations:
Here is who made it to the final (the authors are listed in alphabetical order):
• Dmitry Danilov.
Sasha, hi!
• Tatiana Zamirovskaya.
Deaths.net
• Victor Pelevin.
TRANSHUMANISM INC
• Alexey Salnikov.
Occulttreger
• Tim Skorenko.
Glass
The award is expected to have two major innovations from next year.
First, LitRes.Samizdat and Ridero portals will act as nominees of the award, along with experts.
Secondly, the award will be international — it will be a nomination for the best translated work, original in subject, images and style.
The organizers plan to announce the winner of this season in January or February.
The award was founded in 2013 by literary critics and science fiction writers Vasily Vladimirsky and Sergey Shikarev.
The winners and nominees of the award over the years were such authors as Vladimir Arenev, Daria Bobyleva, Ksenia Buksha, Eduard Verkin, Maria Galina, Linor Goralik, Alexei Ivanov, Shamil Idiatullin and others.
The aim of the award is to celebrate texts and encourage authors who push the boundaries of the genre and explore areas beyond traditional literary fields.
In 2022, the organizers of New Horizons, with the support of the Presidential Foundation for Cultural Initiatives, launched the educational project “The Great Ring.
Scenarios of the future and domestic fiction. "
Within its framework, public discussions are held with popularizers of science and science fiction researchers, dedicated to the memory of the writer Ivan Efremov.
In addition, under the auspices of the award, Inspiria publishes a collection of “A New Future ” with thirteen stories that“ demonstrate different facets of the world of the future. ”
It was written by Sergey Shikarev.
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Content: Dartmouth Speculative Fiction Project considers next steps for the genre

The project brings together authors and Dartmouth professors to collaborate on new speculative fiction work rooted in scientific research on campus.

by Sophie Chadha | 53 minutes ago

From April 13 to 16, speculative fiction authors from around the country came to Hanover to participate in the Dartmouth Speculative Fiction Project, a series of events which included interdisciplinary activities between visiting authors and Dartmouth faculty, as well as readings and panel discussions open to the public. The project aimed to foster collaboration between authors and Dartmouth faculty – with a focus on designing stories rooted in scientific research – and addressed the present and future of the speculative fiction genre.

The project was co-organized by engineering professor Solomon Diamond, English professor Rebecca Clark, the Design Initiative at Dartmouth program manager Paula Olson, Hugo award-winning speculative fiction editor Liz Gorinsky and author and former visiting film and media studies professor Sharang Biswas Th’13.

According to Hugo and Nebula awards finalist Nibedita Sen, speculative fiction is a general term that provokes valuable questions.

“The term ‘speculative fiction’ … works as an umbrella term: It is fiction which imagines things that do not currently exist, things that may come into being through science or through magic,” Sen said. “It could be advancement, or it could be, ‘What if we went backwards? What if we stepped to the side?’ It could be a different dimension, a different timestream.”

In a Q&A panel on April 15, some authors touched on the exchange of knowledge that occurs between scientific researchers and speculative fiction writers. Author K.M. Szpara said he believes the future of speculative fiction will become increasingly interdisciplinary and collaborative.

Nebula award-winning author Sam J. Miller  said we should reframe one stereotype about fiction — that it is dismissive of reality’s problems — and instead view its creation of a world without societal problems as proof of the possibility that our society could exist without them.

“It is as simple as, ‘ … And then the housing crisis is over … And then all the people standing in the way of progress are gone.’” Miller said.

Calvin George ’24, who attended the Q&A, said he was intrigued by Miller’s concept of speculative fiction as a tool for social change.

“It was really interesting to hear from these authors [about] how imagining worlds where a huge problem like climate change is gone can actually help us solve those problems by giving us a sense of hope that they are not absolute or inevitable,” George said.

Sen said she views fiction as an important lens through which we can better understand the reality of our problems.

“A lot of people view escapism as a form of writing that is less than, but I don't believe in that. Like Tolkien said: Is it not a prisoner's duty to try to escape? Fiction is the spoonful of sugar that helps the truth go down,” Sen said.

Sen said this belief manifested in her own writing following the results of the 2016 presidential election, when she pivoted into the realm of horror as a form of catharsis.

“[In 2016,] people like me were being viewed as monsters, so I decided, ‘Well, I will show you what a monster really is,’” Sen said.

Looking to the future of speculative fiction, teacher, linguist and author Rob Cameron points to the genre’s growth over the past few decades from a niche, isolated faction of enthusiasts to a universal mode of entertainment.

“With the popularization of science fiction through film, especially Marvel, ‘geek culture’ has become much more expansive — you do not have to be a geek to enjoy it,” Cameron said. “At the same time, authors’ expectations of their readers have changed with these new mediums: Are people really going to sit down and read this book? This kind of thinking sparks novel ideas like ‘choose your own adventure’ narratives, comic books, video games and more.”

According to Biswas, the Speculative Fiction Project came to life when pitched the idea of centering speculative fiction around scholarship at Dartmouth to Diamond. When selecting the authors for the panel, Biswas shared that the organizers primarily aimed to represent diversity in both background and writing experience.

“If you’re claiming to do a project that looks at the future of humanity, you need to represent diverse perspectives,” he said.

Biswas added that if the project were to happen again, he hopes it can bring together an even more diverse group of people with more funding.

“In the future, with better channels of funding, we hope to have more geographic diversity and be able to bring in international authors,” Biswas said.

The Speculative Fiction Project will continue as authors workshop their stories with their research partners. These works of fiction will be presented at a Dartmouth symposium in June and will subsequently be synthesized into an anthology in Lightspeed Magazine next year.

According to Clark, students will be invited to submit their own stories and up to four of them will be chosen and featured in the professional collection.

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Online Commentary: Turn Beautiful Imagination into Reality Creativity
http: / / www.CRNTT.com 2023-11-27 10: 27: 46
Beijing, Nov. 27 / Net Review: Turning Beautiful Imagination into Reality Creativity
Source: People's Daily Author: Yu Sinan
Contemporary Chinese science fiction novels are popular all over the world, local science fiction films have gained a good reputation, and science fiction theme parks are favored by tourists... In recent years, China's science fiction industry has entered the fast track of development.
Recently, the World Science Fiction Conference was held in China for the first time.
This science fiction event showcases the profound innovation potential of China ’ s science fiction industry, injecting fresh energy into the development of the world science fiction industry.
Combining science and fantasy elements, science fiction is an important vehicle for cultivating the imagination, which can stimulate innovation and creation.
Guided by humanity ’ s ongoing quest for the natural universe, science fiction contains fantasies that can sometimes inspire scientific research.
From interstellar exploration to human-robot dialogue, many of the scenes that were once thought of in science fiction are now a reality.
Science fiction works satisfy people's curiosity and wonder, and have a natural advantage in promoting popular science.
For example, thanks to the popularity of film and television works such as "Wandering Earth 2" and "Three Bodies", space elevators, digital life, nuclear fusion and so on have become popular topics, which have inspired the whole society's vision of the vast space and determination to explore.
Today, from quantum science, brain-computer interfaces to the future network, the ever-expanding scientific frontier has also opened up space for science fiction creation.
At present, China's science and technology construction of a stable pace, major achievements continue to emerge, face recognition, intelligent driving and other new technology applications into depth, more and more people pay attention to science fiction, love science fiction, science fiction industry development foundation is more solid.
The "2023 China Science Fiction Industry Report" shows that in 2022, the total revenue of China's science fiction industry reached 87.75 billion yuan, and the development momentum of science fiction reading, science fiction vision, science fiction culture and tourism is stronger.
Times provides the soil for the development of science fiction, and people have more expectations for science fiction.
Compared with the rapid scientific and technological progress, China's science fiction industry is generally in its infancy, science fiction writers, audience groups and high-quality works are still lacking, and the atmosphere of science fiction to stimulate imagination and cultivate creativity has not yet been formed.
Facing the future, promoting the high-quality development of science fiction industry can not only provide people with rich cultural products, but also help illuminate the public's curiosity and love of the unknown, improve the scientific quality of the whole people, and cultivate a batch of scientific and technological innovation.
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Content: Hugo Awards Won by Women Writers
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On September 4, in the warm hope of global science fiction fans, the "2022 Hugo Award winners list" was announced, with a total of 19 awards.
Many of the Hugo Awards have been won by women writers, with Shaunin Marquis and Akadi Martin among the top writers of the year.
American writer Sean McGuire (Sean McGuire) has been nominated for several awards, including Best Novel, Best Short Story, and The Wayward Child series won Best Novel.
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Content: China
China wants to smell.
Three finalists for this year ’ s Hugo Awards in Chinese sci-fi ’ s “Four Heavenly Kings ”
[Ming Pao News] The 2024 Hugo Awards announced the finalists on the afternoon of 29 local time in the United Kingdom. He Xi ’ s “Life Is Not Different ” and Wang Jinkang ’ s“ Mercury Sowing ” were shortlisted for “Best Long and Medium Novel ”; Gu Xi ’ s“ Overture to 2181 ” was shortlisted for “Best Short and Medium Novel ”." Best Short Novel ".
This is the first time in Chinese science fiction "Four Heavenly Kings" that three people have been nominated for the Hugo Award at the same time.
The science fiction writer Hai Yun, who won the Hugo Award for Best Short Story in Chengdu last year, declined this year's nomination.
The scope of the Hugo Award is the works published in the previous year. Although the original Chinese works “Life Is Not Different ”,“ Mercury Sowing ” and “Voyage Without Answers ” have already been published, they have been included in the“ Tide 166 Light Years Away ” collection of Chinese and foreign authors, which was published last year, and they have been re-qualified to participate in the competition.
This year, a number of science fiction works by Chinese writers have been shortlisted for nine awards.
In 2015, Chinese science fiction writer Liu Cixin won the Best Novel Award for the English version of Three Kingdoms, becoming the first Asian to win the award.
The Hugo Awards ceremony was held in Chengdu, China, for the first time last year, and the organizers accepted China ’ s request to exclude works on sensitive issues such as “Taiwan ” and“ Tibet ” from nomination, causing strong criticism from the outside world.
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After 90 years in Shenzhen, Hugo Award "I remember to look at the stars"
Known as the "Nobel Prize in Science Fiction Literature", the "2023 Hugo Award" was presented in Chengdu, Sichuan Province yesterday. Chinese science fiction creators have won a total of four awards, the highest in their history.
After Liu Cixin and Jing Fang, the third Chinese science fiction writer to win the prize, Haiyan said that even in the daily tense, he remembered to look up at the starry sky, and this night, “my ideal came into reality. ”
Last night, at the 2023 Chengdu World Science Fiction Conference, the "2023 Hugo Award" was first announced in China. According to the Sichuan Daily, the Chinese science fiction creator won a total of four awards this time, the "Time and Space Painter" created by Haiyan won the best short novel award, Wen Fuming won the best fan artist, "Zero Gravity" founded in 2020 won the best fan magazine, and Zhao Enzhe won the best professional artist.
According to fast technology reports, this time the Chinese works and personnel won a variety of awards, a large number of people, for the most.
Established in 1953, the Hugo Award is one of the highest international awards in the field of science fiction in the world of the year in honor of Hugo Ginsbach.
More than 25,000 science fiction works (individuals) were nominated, and 17 categories of Hugo Awards and 2 categories of non-Hugo Awards were selected.
The Hugo Award is the first “out of the loop ” in China. In 2015, Chinese writer Liu Cixin won the Best Novel Award for the first part of“ Three Bodies ”.
Hai received the Hugo Award from Liu Tsz Xin, and the award acceptance speech was also very sci-fi: "In my daily stressful work, I calculate my time and my income, but I also remember to look up at the stars."
This was originally two unrelated, non-interfering parallel worlds, but now in Chengdu, the two worlds have merged, and the ideal has shone into my reality. "
The novel is based on the story of Wang Hsi-meng, a Northern Song painter, and traces the life of Zhao Hsi-meng to a fictional masterpiece and a story of the power struggle between the ruling and opposition parties.
In an interview with Tidal News, Hai said that he only had time to write after work or on holidays, and initially he just wanted to tell the reader an interesting story, slowly trying to convey things of technical worship and human concern.
The Best Novel Award was given to "The Rabbit Test", the Best Novel Award was given to "The Mystery of a Drowning Girl", and the Best Novel Award was given to "Nettle and Bone" by T. Goldscher.
Nobel Prize
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Vice Foreign Minister of the 50th Anniversary of the US Liaison Office in Beijing: China and the United States should learn from historical inspiration
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Zero Gravity, Hugo Award editor, only 20 years old, still in college.
As the highlight of the 81st World Science Fiction Conference, the 2023 Hugo Awards ceremony was held in Chengdu on the evening of 21.
The science fiction fan magazine "Zero Gravity", co-founded by China's Fantastic River and Zero Zero Zero, won the "Best Fan Magazine" award. One of the editor-in-chief, River, is 20 years old and still studying in college.
Red Star News reported that one of the editor-in-chief of Zero Gravity, Rivers, recalled: "This magazine was founded in 2020, when I was very ill and I got help from a lot of science fiction fans. I wanted to do something for them, so I started this magazine."
Rivers, 20, is still in college, and his work with science fiction fans has been going on since high school.
From April 2022, Rivers began to contact and interview with foreign science fiction writers by mail, and several manuscripts were published in the science fiction industry journal "World Science Fiction Dynamics"; from April to July this year, Rivers launched the "University Science Fiction Society Visiting Research Program", to visit the provincial capitals of 16 provinces and a total of 63 universities to learn about the situation of science fiction societies.
As the editor-in-chief of Zero Gravity, Rivers also launched the Science Fiction Wiki Retention and the Historical Archaeology and Documentation Project of the China University Science Fiction Association, and assisted the website of the Jiulong Project in carrying out the statistics of Chinese Science Fiction Fan Magazine.
In his editor-in-chief, "Zero Gravity", the "Special Edition of Translation of Foreign Science Fiction Culture" is also advancing.
This feature translation contains 84 science fiction historical and cultural introduction articles from more than 50 countries, and receives greetings and blessings from science fiction organizations and individuals in 30 countries.
The last one.
After 90 years in Shenzhen, Hugo Award "I remember to look at the stars"
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Content: 2023 Hugo Awards announced in Chengdu, China
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This is the scene of the 2023 Hugo Awards ceremony filmed in Chengdu on October 21.
Photo by Xinhua reporter Tang Wenhao
Source: Xinhuanet October 22, 2023 09: 49
Xinhua News Agency, CHENGDU, Oct. 21 (Reporter Li Qianwei, Li Like) On the evening of the 21st, the 2023 Hugo Awards were announced at the 2023 Chengdu World Science Fiction Conference, and a total of 17 categories of Hugo Awards and 2 categories of non-Hugo Awards were selected.
This is also the first time that the Hugo Award has been announced and presented in China.
Reporters learned that in the nomination stage of this year's Hugo Awards, more than 25,000 science fiction works (individuals) participated in the nomination, received more than 1,800 valid nominations, and finally selected 17 categories of Hugo Awards including Best Short Story, Best Novel, Best Dramatic Performance (Short Film), Best Dramatic Performance (Long Film) and 2 categories of non-Hugo Awards.
Chinese writer Hai Hai won the prize for best novella for "Time and Space Painter".
The Best Short Story Award was won by The Rabbit Test, the Best Long Novel Award was won by The Drowning Girl Mystery, and the Best Novel Award was won by Nettles and Bones.
The Hugo Award is an annual award presented by the World Science Fiction Association in honor of Hugo Ginsbach during the annual World Science Fiction Congress.
The award was established in 1953.
It is worth mentioning that this Hugo Award is also the largest number of non-English speaking member participants since the establishment of the award.
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Content: Review: Queer love and redemption from newly minted royalty of sci-fi fantasy

For those who have been paying attention, the field of science fiction and fantasy has entered a spectacular Platinum Age.

Among the cohort of exciting new writers who have emerged in the past decade is Foz Meadows, a genderqueer fantasy author and essayist born in Australia and living in California since 2018.

Meadows has been nominated multiple times for the Hugo Award and its Australian equivalent, the Ditmar, in a category she describes as “yelling on the internet” (a.k.a. “fan writing”). She won the Ditmar in 2017 and the Hugo in 2019 for exceptional yelling, but in recent years, the awards and nominations for her fiction have been piling up as well. Her fantasy novel “An Accident of Stars” was a finalist for the Bisexual Book Awards in 2017, and in 2018, her novella “Coral Bones” received Australia’s Norma K. Hemming Award for Excellence in the Exploration of Race, Gender, Sexuality, Class or Disability in speculative fiction.

Her fifth novel, “A Strange and Stubborn Endurance,” is a high fantasy tale of queer romance and political intrigue, featuring two heroes who find themselves in a snarl of murder and mayhem arising from their arranged marriage. The tale begins with a familiar scenario, as the youngest son of one noble family is pressured to wed the youngest daughter of another — the problem being that the lordling they’ve chosen to play the groom, Velasin vin Aaro, not only has never met this woman but has no interest in women at all.

The novel becomes genuinely engaging when the foreign envoy, completely unfazed by the revelation that Velasin is gay, simply pivots to marry him off to a more gender-appropriate partner — instead of Laeca Aeduria, the ambitious daughter of a foreign satrap, Velasin will be promised to Caethari, the battle-hardened son.

What emerges is a complex portrait of love and recovery focused mainly on one character. Caethari Aeduria is the hard-bodied cinnamon roll that every romance novel needs, yet it is Velasin who holds our attention. The survivor of a viciously homophobic parent culture and brutal mistreatment from loved ones, Velasin has a past that will be sadly relatable to many readers. But his will to live and his profound emotional intelligence are also familiar, and it is Velasin’s refusal to surrender to despair or hate that gives the book its title.

The quest to find love, home and family in a hostile world really does require “a strange and stubborn endurance” from queer people, now more than ever. Despite the many content warnings in the author’s note (the book contains sexual assault, suicidal ideation and self-harm as critical points in the plot), Velasin’s world is better than our own in many ways. My own hope is that we will all live happily ever after in Tithena someday — a land where marriage equality is taken for granted, all gender identities are respected and no one ever stumbles over a pronoun.

A Strange and Stubborn Endurance
By Foz Meadows
(Tor/MacMillan; 544 pages; $27.99)

  • A.D. Cirulis
    A.D. Cirulis A.D. Cirulis is a tech writer in Washington state.

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Content: Next Liu Cixin ’ s post-90s science fiction writer Hai Lai wins the “Hugo Award ” in 2023
Author: Zheng Ning
Published: Updated:
On the evening of October 21, at the 81st World Science Fiction Conference in Chengdu, Chinese writer Hai Ying won the 2023 Hugo Award for Best Short and Medium Novel for his work “Painter of Time and Space ”. Liu Cixin, author of“ Three Bodies ”, winner of the 2015 Hugo Award, presented the award.
Hai Hai, born in Shenzhen in 1990, published The Painter of Time and Space in 2022. She is the third Chinese science fiction writer to win the Hugo Award after Liu Ci Xin and Hao Jingfang (author of Beijing Folding).
“The Painter of Time and Space ” adopts the method of reasoning fiction, and combines the topic of“ cultural relics in the National Palace Museum ”, which has been popular in the mainland in recent years, with traditional Chinese culture, history, reasoning, and science fiction.
It tells the story of a "ghost" on the closing day of the National Palace Museum, and the protagonist of the criminal police intervenes to investigate and finds that the matter may be related to an ancient Song Dynasty painting.
This list of Hugo Awards shows the development of Chinese science fiction in recent years.
Chinese science fiction illustrator Zhao Enzhe won the “Best Professional Artist ” award. His illustrations are full of science fiction aesthetics, depicting landscapes of future cities and huge starships.
Zhao Enzhe said that his desire is to promote science fiction art with Oriental philosophy to the world.
In addition, the science fiction fan magazine "Zero Gravity" co-founded by China's Fantastic River and Zero Zero Zero Zizhen won the "Best Fan Magazine" award.
American science fiction writer T. Kingfisher won the Hugo Award for Best Novel for Nettle & Bone.
“Best Novel ” and“ Best Short Story ” were awarded to Sean McGuire for Where the Drowned Girls Go and Samantha Mills for Rabbit Test, respectively.
This year's World Science Fiction Conference was held in China for the first time and in Asia for the second time.

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Content: The main prize of the Hugo Prize for the best work in the genre of science fiction or fantasy in 2021 received the novel “Network Effect ” by American writer Martha Wells.
This is reported on the website of the award.
Books
George Hodan
The award ceremony was held on December 18 at the 79th World Science Fiction Convention (Worldcon).
Rebecca Roanhorse, Nora Jamisin, Tamsin Muir, Suzanne Clark and Mary Robinette Koval also claimed to win the main nomination.
Prizes in the nominations for the best novel and story received “Empress Soli and Destiny ” Ngi Wo,“ Two truths and one lie ” Sarah Shepard, “Metal as blood in the dark ” Ursula Vernon.
Also in 2021, a temporary category “Best Video Game ” was added.
This is recognized by the project Hades Studio Supergiant Games.
The Hugo Prize for the best work in the genre of science fiction or fantasy has been awarded annually since 1953.
Among the winners of the award are Robert Heinlein, Lois Bujold, Isaac Asimov and other authors.

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Content: Samuel R. Delany

Thursday, March 24, 2022
6:30 pm Central Time, 7:30 Eastern Time
Crowdcast

Rain Taxi is honored to celebrate one of the great writers of our time, Samuel R. Delany, with a special conversation broadcast live during the AWP Conference in Philadelphia! An acclaimed writer whose works have fundamentally altered the terrain of science fiction through their formally consummate and materially grounded explorations of difference, and who has also made voluminous contributions to literary theory, queer literature, memoir, and more, Delany addresses topics such as sex and sexuality, race, power, literature, and art in two new anthologies of essays, talks, and interviews, Occasional Views Volumes I and II (Wesleyan University Press). These collections richly display Delany’s trademark towering intelligence, and you get to pull up a chair from the comfort of your own space as we present the author in conversation with writer and historian Lavelle Porter.

Free to attend, registration required. Registration allows you to view a replay of the event if you cannot attend during the live broadcast. Either way, we hope to “see” you there!

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A limited number of copies will include a signed bookplate by Samuel R. Delany! Bookplates will be allotted in the order books are purchased while supplies last, and books will be shipped shortly after the event.

Have the book shipped to you: our partner bookseller, Magers & Quinn Booksellers in Minneapolis, will ship the books via US Media Mail only — if you wish to have this book shipped internationally, please contact orders [at] raintaxi [dot] com for pricing. If you wish to pick up your copy at Magers & Quinn, please contact orders [at] raintaxi [dot] com.

About the Presenters

SAMUEL R. DELANY is the author of more than 40 books, including groundbreaking science fiction novels such as Dhalgren and Nova and the essential nonfiction study Times Square Red / Times Square Blue, recently released in a 20th anniversary edition. He has won four Nebula awards and two Hugo awards, as well as the Anisfield-Wolf Lifetime Achievement Award, among many other honors. Retired from years of teaching at the State University of New York, the University of Massachusetts Amherst, and Temple University, he lives in Philadelphia.

LAVELLE PORTER is an Assistant Professor of English at New York City College of Technology, CUNY. He holds a B.A. in history from Morehouse College, and a Ph. D. in English from the CUNY Graduate Center. His writing has appeared in venues such as The New Inquiry, Poetry Foundation, JSTOR Daily, and Black Perspectives. He is the author of The Blackademic Life: Academic Fiction, Higher Education, and the Black Intellectual published by Northwestern University Press in 2019.

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Content: Afkar magazine celebrates a file discussing technology and the protection of the scientific culture project
Amman – Issue 421 of the monthly magazine “Afkar ”, published by the Jordanian Ministry of Culture and edited by the novelist Samiha Khreis, and the editor-in-chief of the magazine“ Afkar ”.
Makhlad Barakat and Editorial Secretary Manal Hamdi, the issue includes a range of new themes and creations co-written by a group of Jordanian and Arab writers.
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The issue celebrated a file entitled "Technology and the Protection of the Scientific Culture Project", written by dr.
Abdullah Yusuf al-Zu'bi.
And about "Our Arabism in the Age of Artificial Intelligence", written by Dr. Sabri Alshboul and Dr. Alshboul.
Suhail Habashneh.
On “Science Fiction in Arab Culture: Cultural Dimensions, ” he wrote.
Khaled Gharaibeh, on "The Computational Revolution and Health",
I'm sorry.
Ammar Khaled Youssef Daoud, on “Internet of Things Technology and its Applications ”
Alaa Fathi is an ally, and Engineer Afif Al-Houry wrote about “my experience in the world of the Internet of Things. ”
In the same topic, Science, Technology and Community Culture, the editorial of the issue entitled "Science and Community Culture", written by Dr.
Ibrahim Badran, in which he talks about technology, science and culture and its role in the development of human life, and how society works to develop its tools through science.
Badran says: “From a scientific perspective, it can be said that social culture is those visions, concepts and approaches through which society makes, or from which it makes its positions and decisions.
This means that the most important culture in practice is not so much the culture of the elite as the culture of the society that the state, its institutions and intellectuals must strive to move along the path of advancement, progress and harmony with the future.
Badran continues: This justifies the state ’ s interest in culture and its relentless efforts to encourage it and then spend on it and invest in it, as we note that the most developed countries are the ones that spend the most on community culture in all its components: from the written word published in a book or newspaper, to the audio word arranged by all available means, through cultural activities such as music, theater, museums, exhibitions, etc. Cultural programs and programs at all levels.
Elite intellectuals play a prominent role in enriching and adding to this culture.
Badran talks about the scientific revolution: “In the 16th century, the scientific revolution began to be followed by the successive industrial revolutions and technology, where the world became involved in the space of science and technology to become all the vocabulary of human life most affected by the discovery of science and technology and the progress of production systems. With what science holds of knowledge and what technology offers of formulations, whether in the food he eats or the word he transports from the extreme of the planet to the extreme through his mobile phone or through the plane that travels thousands of kilometers in a few hours, or through medicine.
The question is, what about the culture of society?
And where will it be from all the developments that change the lifestyles in all its details?
Is it possible today to make a decision, set a position, or set a program that can be trusted away from the rules of science?
Is it possible for a society to progress if its culture continues to be far from the science with its foundations not detailed?
In order to get out of the generalities, the culture of science in any society has its engines, which are education, spending on scientific research and technological development, national production of goods and services, published scientific papers and employment in advanced technology, scientific and technological exhibitions in schools and universities and abroad, scientific journals and bulletins that reach the ordinary man, science fiction books and science museums. Read, written and audio scientific documents, scientific literature and books circulating among members of society, and so on. ”
Referring to the role of science in the advancement of peoples, Badran points out that "in 1959, when the Soviet Union preceded the world by reaching outer space, President John F. Kennedy summoned scientists to consult them.
In 1967, Indira Gandhi, the then Prime Minister of India, was distressed by the state of hunger that was dominating India and invited a group of scientists.
Administrative politicians do not have to look for a solution.
The answer was, "India must develop agriculture with all the modern scientific technology," and it was the Green Revolution that moved India from an importing country to a food-exporting country, and the question was, "What makes the Prime Minister of India call scientists?"
“Solve the food problem? ”
On the other hand, the Arab countries are beset with complex problems such as water, food, desertification and so on.
But the Arab official often does not call on scientists to develop economic, psychological or natural solutions without digital indicators.
Can a number have value, impact or shock in the human mind when it is away from the culture of science and the scientific mind?
Can the number change societal behavior in the absence of scientific culture?
For example, we find that countries like Sweden, Finland and Switzerland occupy the highest positions in the culture of science, and are countries at the top of the list of developed countries.
This shows that the relationship between science culture and progress is a dynamic one. ”
"If we look to the future with inventions, artificial intelligence, aquaculture, climate change...
Can society face the future away from reason, science and scientific culture?
It is time for the Arabs to regain their position, and it is time for us to give scientific culture at the societal level sufficient attention to be active partners in human civilization and not consumers of what others produce. ”
In articles and studies, dr.
Mohammed al-Hourani about the Dagestani poet "Rasul Hamztov - the pioneer of high love and human belonging", and about "ten years since the departure of the critic Rebekah Dudin," wrote Shawki Badr Yusuf, and Yasser and led a deconstruction study of the poem (Sanati), by Maha al-Atom, and about "the narrative of the land in the novels of Ghassan Kanafani", "wrote Dr.
Nadia Hanawi, “Darwish, Qatous, and the Unseen Being: The Critic Writes Itself, ” wrote Jaafar al-Luqta, and“ Al-Hassan Cultural Center in Karak is a prominent cultural beacon, wrote the Arabism of Shamayleh.
On Jordan and "supporting Arab artistic production during the last decades of the twentieth century, Maryam Malhi Al-Nuwairan wrote, and on" the elegant visionary director (Elia Suleiman) presents Palestine in the heart, "wrote Muhannad al-Nabulsi, and on" Failaka Island and its Villages, "wrote Dr. Muhannad al-Nabulsi.
Ahmed Abdul Aziz Mohammed, wrote by dr.
Hani Hajjaj on “The Icelandic Film (The Land of God): All the Colors of the White Spectrum ”, and on“ The Implications of Changing the Self-Discourse and the Shared Experience of Sana ’ a Ammari ”, wrote Dr. Hajjaj.
Muhammad al-Mabrouk, and about “Autumn and its Connotations in Arabic Poetry, ” wrote Henda Muhammad.
The sections of the issue include a range of literary and creative topics such as the corner "Ibdaa", which includes a set of literary texts, along with cultural windows, and orbits of revelation.

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Content: Science fiction thinks about the present and future of humanity.
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"The whole universe will twinkle for you." This is the kind of shock that only science fiction can bring.
From Liu Cixin ’ s “Three Body ” to the“ Nebula Award ” Best Short Story “Say Hello to Your Family for Me ” … Under the sky and the universe of science fiction writers, what lies deep is life, history, and thinking about the present and future of mankind.
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Content: Swords & Spaceships

8 Excellent Genre-Bending Sci-Fi Tales To Take You to the Next Frontier

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Lyndsie Manusos

Senior Contributor

Lyndsie Manusos’s fiction has appeared in PANK, SmokeLong Quarterly, and other publications. She holds an MFA from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and has worked in web production and content management. When she’s not nesting among her books and rough drafts, she’s chasing the baby while the dog watches in confused amusement. She lives with her family in a suburb of Indianapolis.

Prophet by Sin Blaché and Helen Macdonald, published by Grove Atlantic

The must-read queer sci-fi thriller of the summer! In a world just one perilous step from our own, an unlikely pair sets out on the most dangerous and otherwordly mission of their lives. When a diner suddenly appears in a remote field, Adam and Rao are confronted with the most devastating weapon they have ever seen: Prophet. No one knows who created it, or why, but this spooky substance is bringing happy memories to life, then stifling people with their own joy. Despite their troubled past, the two are drawn closer than ever to defend what they hold most dear.

As I said in my 2022 science fiction subgenre primer, the genre of science fiction is expanding. Like our universe, it is expanding quickly, redefined with every story, be it short or long-form. And beneath the large umbrella of science fiction, subgenres are added and redefined. All in all, there are endless ways to tell a science fiction story (don’t let any old guard tell you different).

And then — subgenres aside — there is genre-bending science fiction. There is science fiction that centers horror and science fiction that is fabulist and weird. There’s science fantasy, as well as science fiction romance. There’s science fiction that is nearly unclassifiable, a mixture of so many things, or even all the things. I’ve mentioned in my Book Riot oeuvre that genre-bending of any shape or size is my kind of work. When writers are bold and brave in their genre weaving, that’s when the hairs on the back of my neck stand to attention. That’s when I rub my hands together and think, “oh, this is going to be good.”

Genre-bending science fiction doesn’t have to be confined to the novel form, either. Short fiction science fiction is in a golden age right now. Check out the latest finalists and winners for the Nebula, Hugo, and Locus awards, and I promise you will find mindblowing, genre-bending, exceptional work.

Below I will showcase eight tremendous genre-bending science fiction tales, ranging from short stories to novels, and everything in between. I believe I’ve mentioned at least one in a previous post from last year, but you’ll notice the genre coverage is different. Ergo, these stories are genre-bending.

In any case, I hope you’ll enjoy these stories as much as I do.

Genre-Bending Science Fiction: Novels & Novellas

Remote Control by Nnedi Okorafor

Fatima had a past before she became known as Sankofa. Before those around her called her the adopted daughter of the Angel of Death. With a mere glance, an entire town could fall. But before that, the world was different.

So much of what Okorafor writes is genre-bending science fiction (the Binti trilogy!). This novella begins in an almost fantasy-horror like fashion: Sankofa walking, leaving fear and horror in her wake. But as the story unfolds, it becomes this all-encompassing tale of African futurism, how the world shapes us, and then how we might reshape the world.

Hexwood by Diana Wynne Jones

One of the things I love about including this book is seeing this title on Goodreads and reading all the genres it’s described as. Hint: it’s like all the genres. Fantasy, science fiction, time travel, magic, dragons, robots, portals, you name it, Hexwood probably has it. And clearly, none of this should surprise you coming from the legendary Diana Wynne Jones.

The tale follows Ann Stavely as she watches people disappear through the farm’s gate. She meets a sorcerer, and time begins to move differently in the woods nearby. Little does she know that far beyond Earth, Controller Borasus receives word that an ancient machine has been awakened.

I mean, clearly, genre-bending at its finest.

Escape Velocity by Victor Manibo

I love how Victor Manibo is always able to craft the perfect mystery within his brilliant science fiction worlds. Manibo is a master at showing Earth just around corner, especially if we keep on our current trajectory. Picture a world of hyper-capitalism, a luxury liner — Space Habitat Altaire —and a ruthless world of amassing “points” in order for the chance to start a new life on Mars.

Now, add a decadent mystery of whodunit with a sprinkle of who’s willing to do anything to get what they want: Ava wants to find out who murdered her brother; Laz wants to win Ava’s heart; Sloane wants to collect secrets as his family’s wealth declines; Henry will do whatever it takes to get to Mars.

And all this is set during a class reunion on a luxury space liner, with twists and turns you won’t see coming. Get your science fiction Knives Out fix with this one.

Borne by Jeff VanderMeer

I still think about this book. I still think about Borne and that giant bear, Mord. This book is solidly science fiction, but it’s also just fucking weird. That’s honestly the best way to describe it, too, which is why I love it so much. It’s post-apocalyptic, and it manages to be both epic and extremely intimate.

Rachel is trying to survive in a world that wants to kill her at every turn. Then she finds Borne, an amorphous creature, in the fur of a Godzilla-sized bear named Mord. Rachel cannot bring herself, nor allow her lover Wick, to destroy Borne. Borne reminds her of better times and better places, and an attachment grows between them. This book is personal as well as out of this world. It’s weird fiction at its finest. It’s science fiction at its most profound.

Genre-Bending Science Fiction: Short Form

This list includes short fiction, though that ranges in word count. Below you’ll find tales that are short stories or novelettes.

Foxfire, Foxfire” by Yoon Ha Lee from Beneath Ceaseless Skies

Let me begin by saying that the publication of this story is in a highly respected (and one of my personal favorites) genre magazine called Beneath Ceaseless Skies. Its mission: to publish the very best in “literary adventure fantasy.” And yet, this story also has beautifully crafted science fiction elements.

This novelette follows Baekdo, a magical, shapeshifting fox who is able to speak to gods. Baekdo is set on becoming human, which requires him to kill — and devour the liver of — 100 humans. Baekdo has no qualms about coming to his 100th kill, but things don’t go as planned. Baekdo’s 100th victim is the pilot of a Cataphract, a giant battle mech. Baekdo swears on the tiger-sages that he will keep his oath with the pilot, Jong, and finish her mission. It’s an intimate, magical tale while also being epic in scope. Truly, a genre-bending masterpiece.

The Gondoliers” by Karen Russell from Orange World and Other Stories

Karen Russell is a masterful genre-bending writer. I fell in love with Russell’s work over ten years ago, with her first collection St. Lucy’s Home for Girls Raised by Wolves. Like Kelly Link, Russell was vital in redefining, for me at least, what fiction, especially literary fiction, can do. “The Gondoliers” is a wonderful example of this.

It follows Janelle Picarro, a.k.a Blister, in a post-apocalyptic world where parts of Florida have fully submerged underwater and is now called New Florida. Blister is a gondolier, ferrying people across the waters. Blister and her sisters use echolocation to communicate and steer. There is a little bit of everything in this story, and you won’t be the same when you reach the end.

Memories of Memories Lost” by Mahmud El Sayed from khōréō

khōréō is one of my favorite speculative fiction magazines. “In Memories of Memories Lost,” El Sayed crafts a devastatingly personal short story of memory, loss, and sacrifice.

After aliens take over Earth, humans must pay a “memory tax” to their cosmic invaders. The story follows Ahmed, who chooses, for his tax, to give a large family memory in the form of a heirloom. In doing so, he can assure the comfort of his father, who suffers from dementia. It’s a story of complex relationships and love. It’s a story that begs hard questions of ourselves, our souls, and our loved ones: What if we could give traumatic memories away? Would we regret the loss?

The Dizzy Room” by Kristina Ten from Nightmare Magazine

Look, I know I’ve mentioned this story before, and it’s because the story is that good. Published in the renowned horror magazine Nightmare, this story is about a video game, but it’s also a horror story about memory and language. There are images and a multitude of sensory details that will haunt me forever.

This is science fiction horror at its best, with a mounting dread that will have you tempted to lean back while also leaning forward, closer to the page, admittedly desperate to hear the sounds of the game itself beckoning you. I am not at all surprised that this story is a finalist for the 2023 Shirley Jackson Awards.

Find Genre-Bending Stories Everywhere

Every genre has trailblazers, writers who take a genre and build upon it, question and criticize it, and remold it into something new. These are the writers I seek out again and again to dissect and study these genres, rediscovering them and also falling in love with them all over again. They are out there now, and their stories are waiting.

If you’re interested in more genre-bending work, check out these other Book Riot gems:

Title:

Content: Turkish Drama from History to Science Fiction
Residents of Istanbul rush to wear headphones after the country has been hit by a pandemic that is transmitted only through language communication and speech.
These headphones protect them from the gossip of patients who have been hit by the pandemic.
Only a handful of residents have survived the disease, including Murat, a former Turkish linguist who is trying to help a young boy and is clashing with the ruthless CDC while venturing to discover his immune head in the Turkish series "Overheating Head", due to air next month on Netflix on December 2, 2022, directed by Mert Baikal.
The series is a sci-fi series and is a work of dystopia or miserable worlds in which all human beings suffer from a major collective crisis that does not belong to any individual, and is the opposite of the model of "utopia", which means "utopia" in which everything goes perfectly.
It consists of 8 parts and is taken from the novel of the Turkish writer Afshin Kom, and bears the name of the film itself.
The idea of   the series is not new in the world of art, which presented similar ideas but new in terms of television series, especially digital platforms such as Netflix and others.
In addition, the series presents the idea of   science fiction revolving in the city of Istanbul with all its oriental and Islamic culture.
It is also in the orbit of a new wave of Turkish series that adopt science fiction as the main theme, such as the series "submarine Yakamuz S-245" by the directors Tolga Karagelik and Umut Aral, which began a few months ago on Netflix, and deals with the discovery of the Turkish military base "Incirlik" of a strange phenomenon that causes a disruption in the magnetic field of the sun, resulting in the explosion and the death of all humans.
In the film "Wheat" clear metaphors and how the human first resort to the cave in search of survival in isolation represented in the experience of the story of the owners of "Surat al-Kahf" and then resort to money as in the story of the owners of the two gardens before reaching the basic station, which is the search for self from the inside and not the outside in the story of our Lord Musa peace.
Science fiction is not just a matter of entertainment, but a kind of prediction of the future of technological and scientific development in the world.
Cinema has proven its ability to predict many events, including political, social and scientific ones.
Perhaps the most striking example of this is several works of art that predicted the COVID-19 pandemic in close detail and away from what we have seen in real life, such as Steven Soderberg ’ s 2011 American film “Outbreak ”, which tells the story of a woman returning to the United States from a trip to Hong Kong carrying an infectious disease.
There is also the 2016 film “Pandemic ” by American director John Suts, about the journey of a New York City doctor who travels to Los Angeles to search for survivors after a deadly virus has claimed the lives of many people around the world.
Science Fiction with Modern Turkish Drama
The Turkish drama went through several stages before it reached the stage of science fiction.
It was the beginning of social and romantic series.
These series promoted the idea of the beauty of the place, the costumes and the feelings within a framework of tragedy.
Then I turned to historical issues, which carried all the broad political hopes that many had placed on Turkey in the context of a miserable Arab political and development reality.
History has been a common denominator with tens of millions of Turkish and Arab peoples, a universal bond that reinforces identity, rediscovers the past, builds bridges and nurtures a sense of nostalgia.
Science fiction, by contrast, leaps into the future, stimulates thinking about new science and technology, enhances self-ability, realizes the impossible, and thinks the absurd.
It is a natural progression of any ambitious production process that begins with the exhumation of memory and the past, and after most of the symbols and events of its modern history are consumed in historical series moving towards a new dramatic genre.
And the Turkish drama did well to carve this trend, because on the one hand it offers an oriental cinematic vision of science, and on the other hand it combats the spirit of frustration and despair experienced by young people by presenting a cinematic scientific narrative from an oriental Muslim country with a record of inventions and industrialization in the current era.
It is no secret that imagination as an idea is the magic word of the current generation of Turkish government, opposition and people.
The significance of this word is illustrated by a famous position between the late Prime Ministers Necmettin Erbakan and Bulent Ecevit when the latter accused the projects of the Welfare Party (Erbakan Party) as fictional, and replies that he (Ecevit) as a poet knows well the role of imagination in life and that the Welfare Party already has a wide imagination but seeks to achieve it on the ground.
The 2017 film "Wheat", directed by Semih Kaplanoglu, is one of the important attempts in the framework of science fiction stemming from Turkish culture, albeit in a cinematic rather than television setting.
He presented Arab and Islamic culture in the context of an interesting and unique science fiction.
It is an English-language film about the philosophy of the relationship between man and the modern technical nature, produced jointly by Turkish-German, French-Swedish and Qatari.
It is about the journey of Professor Errol Erin, an agronomist who lives in a futuristic city protected from the entry of multi-ethnic immigrants.
After the city is hit by a genetic engineering problem whose causes are unknown, the professor decides to look for another scientist who has written a study of the crises of genetically modified crops.
This journey of research leads him to discover what he knew about himself and life.
In the film, there are clear metaphors for the cave, and how man first resorts to the cave in search of survival in isolation represented in the experience of the story of the owners of the cave, and then resorts to money as in the story of the owners of the two gardens, before reaching the basic station, which is the search for self from the inside and not the outside in the story of Moses, as a gift to the same Koranic Sura (cave).
This last stop leads to the model of civilized urbanism based on rational construction of urbanism based on the building of the soul with the story of Dhul-Qarnain.
The film here is an application of the theory of "Quranic cinema", which we mentioned in another article last Ramadan, about the inspiration of the Quranic stories cinematically in terms of meaning and symbolism other than the direct and known stories.

Title:

Content: Pixel Scroll 7/6/24 This Evening Jonathan Hoag Renounces His Unpleasant Profession

(1) CHAIN-GANG ALL-STARS AUTHOR Q&A. “Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah: ‘Satire is a way to make myself less depressed’” in the Guardian.

…His first novel, Chain-Gang All-Stars, now out in paperback and currently on the shortlist for this year’s Arthur C Clarke science fiction award (announced on 24 July), takes place in a future in which live-streamed combat between death-row convicts has become prime-time entertainment. [Nana Kwame] Adjei-Brenyah, born and raised in New York, was speaking from his home in the Bronx.

Where did Chain-Gang All-Stars begin?
I’d been working with this group to try to end solitary confinement in New York state, because it’s known pretty much universally to be torture. I actually got involved with them because they were trying to support my former school district – it was being mismanaged and children of colour were being treated poorly – but the group [Rockland Coalition to End the New Jim Crow] was also interested in the rights and outcomes of people who are incarcerated. I’m interested in systems that get us to buy into violence and trick us into stepping on each other’s heads – literally, metaphorically – and I view the prison system as a huge version of that. Ninety-nine per cent of people in prison are impoverished and suffering from mental health problems and diseases of addiction. The idea that you can put humans in cages only stifles our ability to respond to these systemic issues with compassion. Carceral solutions to serious human problems perpetuate those problems.

Why did you address the subject by writing a satirical dystopia?
The speculative nature of the story helped me feel more comfortable getting extremely specific about the brutal statistical realities of prison. I don’t deny I’m writing a dystopia, but dystopia is really just a point of view that depends on your proximity to violence.…

(2) SOMETIMES THEY DO GET WEARY. “Election result celebrated by David and Georgia Tennant with ‘amazing’ Doctor Who reference”The Independent sets up the photo.

David and Georgia Tennant have celebrated the General Election results with an “amazing” Doctor Who callback.

After a night of humiliation for the Conservative Party, who were beaten in a historic landslide by Labour, Rishi Sunak, before falling victim to an embarrassing prank by a YouTuber, conceded to Keir Starmer, calling the result “sobering”….

(3) COMPANIONSHIP. “Doctor Who’s Russell T Davies explains how Varada Sethu’s cameo in ‘Boom’ led to her being cast as Ncuti Gatwa’s companion” at GamesRadar+.

“I think we might as well just be simple with this, because we’ve already said she’s not coming back as Mundy Flynn,” Davies tells SFX magazine in the new issue, which hits newsstands on July 10 and features Doctor Who on the cover. “It’s one of those very simple situations, like with Freema [Agyeman, who appeared in ‘Army of Ghosts’ before being cast as companion Martha Jones]: when you cast a great actor, you need a new companion.”Sethu played Mundy Flynn in ‘Boom‘, the third episode of season 1. Written by former showrunner Steven Moffat, it takes place on the wartorn planet of Kastarion 3, and Mundy is a marine who the Doctor and Ruby encounter after the Doctor steps on a landmine….

…”I was watching, like, the fifteenth edit of ‘Boom’, loving her,” Davies continues. “Every time I watch her, I think, ‘God, she’s brilliant’, I literally think she’s brilliant. I used to watch her thinking, ‘God, what a shame we can’t work with her again.’ I was thinking, ‘Should we go back to the 51st century, could we meet her again?’ and then I suddenly went, ‘Oh, let’s just cast her again. We’ve done that before. Lovely.’…

…Davies concluded by teasing what’s to come, claiming: “Good stuff ahead. Completely new character, again, a completely new story and that’s a great new story that will run across eight episodes.”

(4) FROM BRIDGERTON TO GALLIFREY. “’Doctor Who’ showrunner teases Nicola Coughlan cameo in Christmas episode” at Geo News.

Nicola Coughlan, who rose to fame after starring in Netflix’s regency era drama Bridgerton, has reportedly landed another role.

Steven Moffat, who is the director of Doctor Who, recently sat down for a confessional on Ireland AM, and weighed in on the Christmas special episode of the popular sci-fi series.

He also revealed the name for this episode, which is called, Joy to the World and continued to say, “Nicola is wonderful in it.”

“I’m not allowed to say anything about it. At least I think I’m not allowed to say anything about it so I’ll just shut up,” he also teased and added that Nicola “will break your heart.”

(5) OH-OH! Inverse takes us “Inside The Secret James Bond Reboot That’s Happening Right Now”.

…Written by Kim Sherwood, the novels Double or Nothing (March 2023) and A Spy Like Me (April 2024), tell a new kind of James Bond story, one that utterly reboots the canon of character and smarty, focuses on various new Double O agents. In doing so, Sherwood pulls off a radical pivot for the Bond franchise.

“What I’m doing I think is a structural shift where I’m turning it into an ensemble cast,” Sherwood tells Inverse. “Fleming was writing in this very traditional quest narrative structure where Bond was a kind of medieval knight. He’s given a mission and he sets out from the castle. He’s always on his own. But he’s part of a Double O section. He’s inherently part of a wider world.”

Tackling the wider world of 007 seems like something that should have already happened. And to some extent, it has. There were The Moneypenny Diaries in 2005, as well as a 2017 comic book miniseries about Bond’s CIA ally, Felix Leiter. But none of these spinoffs are quite as extensive or reboot-y as Sherwood’s Double O series.

“Growing up, I loved things like comic books or Star Trek, which lean into this idea of the extended universe and really big ensemble casts,” Sherwood says. “Those casts can be 25 characters deep, and every single one of them can carry the show. So that’s what I’ve grown up loving and being inspired by. That’s the direction that I’ve taken this expansion of Bond.”

Both of Sherwood’s “Double O” novels are masterclasses in world-building. The Double O section is now headed by Moneypenny, who, in this version of the timeline, rose through the ranks with Bond. A male version of M still oversees the Secret Service in general, but he’s a kindly grandfather figure who Sherwood says she modeled on Patrick Stewart. Meanwhile, the gadget expert “Q” (most recently played by Ben Whishaw in the films) is essentially an AI in this version, a quantum computer that assists MI6 with various intelligence gathering and tech problems….

(6) WHY THE WASP FACTORY WAS NEEDED. This is not the best week to lead with Neil Gaiman, but don’t hold that against Iain Banks. The Guardian has organized an anniversary tribute: “’An explosion of talent’: Iain Banks’s The Wasp Factory at 40”.

[Neil Gaiman:] It was 1984, and the publisher Macmillan was holding a small event for booksellers, and had invited a tiny handful of journalists along as well. They would be announcing upcoming titles, trying to get the booksellers excited about them. I was one of the journalists, but I only remember one author and one book from that afternoon. The author’s editor, James Hale, was thrilled about a first novel, which Macmillan would soon be publishing, and which James had discovered on the “slush pile” of unsolicited manuscripts. The author had been asked to say a few words to the assembled booksellers about himself and his book.

The author had dark, curly auburn hair and a ginger beard that was barely more than ambitious stubble. He was tall, and his accent was Scottish. He told us that he had really wanted to be a science fiction writer, that he had written several science fiction books and sent them out to publishers without attracting any interest. Then he had decided to “write what he knew”. He had taken his own obsessions as a young man, his delight in blowing things up and his fascination with homemade implements of destruction, and he had given them to Frank, a young man who also liked blowing things up but went much further than the author ever had. The author was Iain Banks, of course, and the book was The Wasp Factory…

…Iain needed to write a book that would be published, and he did. A book that was unflinchingly readable, dragging the reader in and through….

(7) JON LANDAU (1960-2024). Film producer Jon Landau died July 5. Variety notes:

…Landau, a longtime producing partner to James Cameron, was behind three of the top four highest-grossing movies of all time. Landau helped make history with “Titanic,” the first film to cross $1 billion at the global box office. He topped that movie’s record-breaking grosses twice, with 2009’s “Avatar” and its sequel, 2022’s “Avatar: The Way of Water.”

Before his death, Landau was deeply involved in the production of the “Avatar” sequels. Cameron is planning to fill his blockbuster sci-fi franchise with five movies in total, with the fifth tentatively coming out in 2031….

Landau’s genre producing credits include: Honey, I Shrunk the Kids (1989); Solaris (2002); Avatar (2009); Toruk: The First Fight (2016; TV movie); Alita: Battle Angel (2019); and Avatar: The Way of Water (2022).

(8) TODAY’S BIRTHDAY.

[Written by Cat Eldridge.]

July 6, 1927 Janet Leigh. (Died 2004). Janet Leigh. Alfred Hitchcock. A perfect pair it turned out. And Psycho is all that I’ll be talking about.

MAJOR SPOILER NOW. I MEAN IT.

Yes, she was in Psycho. Forty-seven minutes into film, she is showering when a shadowy figure brutally kills her character Marion by stabbing her over and over so the blood runs copiously.

It took a full week to complete from set-up to filming, seventy camera setups, using fast-cut editing of seventy eight pieces of film, and apparently a naked stand-in model for rehearsal (Marli Renfro who appeared in many men’s magazines of the days and appeared on the cover of the September 1960 edition of Playboy) in a mere forty-five second  impressionistic montage sequence, and both inter-cutting slow-motion and regular speed footage. (I say apparently but read on as to why that is disputed.)

Hitchcock would later acknowledge that while Leigh’s face is seen that it is her, otherwise it is Renfro. And later contradicts himself in yet another interview. And then changes his mind yet again.

Yet another individual, Rita Riggs, who was in charge of the wardrobe, stated that it was Leigh in the shower the entire time, explaining that Leigh did not wish to be nude and so she devised many things including pasties, moleskin, and bodystockings, to be pasted on Leigh for the scene. I must say this sounds quite silly.

Now it has to be noted that in Psycho – Behind the Scenes of the Classic Thriller says all the actual shower footage in the film was of her and the only time Renfro was used was in an overhead shot that was eventually cut due to censors’ concerns.

At this point, we’ll never know, will we?  Now keep in mind that Renfro is still alive and has continued to give interviews, insisting that it is she.

The question is where is the unedited film? That is the question that goes unanswered though the likely answer it seems is that it no longer exists.

END OF MAJOR SPOILER, REALY IT IS. SO IT WAS ALL SPOILERS THIS TIME.

(9) COMICS SECTION.

(10) ASTRONOMY PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR SHORTLIST. Smithsonian Magazine makes it possible for us to “See Ten Awe-Inspiring Images From the Astronomy Photographer of the Year Contest” The photo gallery is at the link.

For generations, skywatchers and hobbyists around the world have admired the beauty of the cosmos.

The Astronomy Photographer of the Year contest channels that wonder into dazzling images, taken by amateur and professional astrophotographers as they vie for a £10,000 ($12,750) grand prize. The contest, arguably the biggest astrophotography competition in the world, is run by the Royal Observatory Greenwich in England and is in its 16th year.

…. The 2024 Astronomy Photographer of the Year shortlist, unveiled on Tuesday, includes an aurora shaped like a dragon, a total solar eclipse and a breathtaking shot of the Milky Way in a desert sky.

A panel of art and astronomy experts judges the contest. The overall winners will be announced on September 12….

(11) THE MOTION STOPPED – FOR ALMOST 30 YEARS. The New York Times knows “How Stop-Motion Yetis Emerged From Film Hibernation”.

Movies like “Dune: Part Two” and “Challengers” arrived in theaters later than expected because of last year’s actors’ strike, and Hollywood experienced significant production setbacks during the coronavirus pandemic.

But “The Primevals,” about a group of researchers who discover gigantic yetis and other prehistoric creatures, made those movie delays look minuscule when it was released in theaters in March.

It was filmed in 1994.

The live-action movie, which was delayed because of funding woes and then the death of its director, David Allen, incorporates a stop-motion animation technique in which puppets are painstakingly photographed and brought to life through a series of frames, as with a children’s flipbook. The retro look conjures up an earlier era of filmmaking, before computer-generated imagery took over visual effects.

“It’s like an archaeological find,” said Juliet Mills, who plays one of the movie’s researchers. “It’s like entering a time machine watching this film.”

Mills and the other actors had doubted that the movie would ever reach theaters. Even before Allen died, the film’s development had been plagued by outsize expectations and financial challenges….

… Allen had originally envisioned pushing the boundaries of what could be accomplished with stop-motion animation, Endicott said. In the decades since, however, computer-generated imagery had become an essential tool for animating films.

“By the time he was working on it in the ’90s, the movie became a comment that stop-motion still had a voice in a world of C.G.I.,” Endicott said.

Allen died in 1999. Despite his final wishes, the movie’s puppets collected dust in a storage unit for nearly two decades.

While rewatching an old version of “The Primevals” in 2018, Endicott recalled Allen’s directive and recommitted himself to releasing the film, even if it was an unfinished version. By this time, Band’s production company Full Moon Features had also become more profitable, so there were fewer funding hurdles. Endicott and a group of Allen’s friends and fans recreated some of the puppets and completed more of the animations, and Richard Band created an orchestral score….

(12) SPACE TRAVEL CONTMINATES MOON — WELL THEY SAID ALL THESE WORLDS WERE OURS EXCEPT EUROPA ALONE… [Item by SF Concatenation’s Jonathan Cowie.] Reported in this week’s Science journal comes the news that our visits to the Moon are contaminating its natural water ice trapped in permanently shadow areas…

Orbital spacecraft have observed thin surface deposits of water-ice in permanently shadowed regions (PSRs) of craters near the Moon’s poles. Any free water molecules hop across the lunar surface until they are either destroyed by sunlight or reach one of the PSRs, where they remain indefinitely. Rocket exhaust contains water, so Farrell et al. calculated how much water reaches PSRs from lunar landings. They found that the six Apollo landings contributed less than 1% of the surface water in PSRs, implying that most is natural. However, a single Artemis landing will increase PSR surface water mass by more than 20%, polluting the record of natural water on the Moon.

The primary research is here.

(13) DO ALIEN OPTIMISTS HAVE A FINE-TUNING PROBLEM? [Item by SF Concatenation’s Jonathan Cowie.] Aliens are a key SF trope.  But I am fascinated when there is serious discussion in the academic literature.  Here’s the latest from Prof. David Kipping at the Cool Worlds Lab. “Crowded or Lonely? The Statistics of Alien Life”.

New research paper from the Cool Worlds Lab! Today we explore the implications of a classic result in statistics but applied to alien life for the first time. The result implies a startling conclusion, the cosmos is either teeming with intelligent civilisations, or we’re essentially alone. Join us today as explore how this works and what the implications might be.

(14) SOLARIS. [Item by SF Concatenation’s Jonathan Cowie.] Moid Moidelhoff  over at Media Death Cult takes a look at Stanislaw Lem’s classic Solaris. And for once we get a behind the scenes look at how Moid pulls these vids together. The 12-minute video is below….

[Thanks to Teddy Harvia, Kathy Sullivan, Mike Kennedy, Andrew Porter, John King Tarpinian, Chris Barkley, Cat Eldridge, SF Concatenation’s Jonathan Cowie, and Steven French for some of these stories. Title credit belongs to File 770 contributing editor of the day Daniel “Gilbert & Sullivan” Dern.]

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Title:

Content: Chairman of the Board of Directors and Editors
Mohamad Elbaz
Chairman of the Board of Directors and Editors
Mohamad Elbaz
2070.
“The Zanon War. ”
Smart machines guard the paradise of the superior and conquer the poor
Decades ago, fiction and cinematic works of science fiction depicted technological development that seemed more fantastical than realizable, and despite the imaginary dimension of these ancient works, the cautionary tone of potential outcomes was never absent.
Today, with technological advances so unprecedented in human history that they threaten the foundations of the social and political construction of societies, the cautionary cries of fiction are only real fears that are strongly justified on the ground.
The issue of AI and its terrifying developments preoccupy Western philosophers; there are hundreds of conversations, books and discussions about the possible threats to the future, and the fate of man in a future in which the machine is expected to dominate and control, an era in which the machine will perform the tasks that humans used to perform along with intellectual discussions....
In the Arab world, the issue is present, but of course not as much momentum and wealth.
At the creative level, works that keep pace with the latest technological developments and their questions remain few, hence the novel “2070.
The Zanon War, by Egyptian programming engineer Fadi Zewail, and issued earlier this year by the Egyptian-Lebanese House, its importance.
The novel depicts a future world to be determined in 2070, in which the duality of East and West in today ’ s world is exacerbated by the division of the world into two groups of people; the first is the genetically distinctive sect that enjoys various characteristics and enjoys all that man previously imagined to solve his problems, the second is the flawed sect that retains its old genetic defects and lives according to the foundations of the past unchanged. A giant wall like the Great Wall of China, or the wall that Trump tried to build to prevent the flow of refugees to the United States in the past, but it is a virtual barrier of highly concentrated electromagnetic waves that extends into outer space to prevent any attempt of unwanted penetration from the sect of defectors.
This barrier prevents the crossing of environmental pollutants from the lands of the “defective ” community, which uses fossil fuels and petroleum.
The genetically distinct community of Europe and the Americas lives in what they call “paradise, ” creating for themselves all the superhuman imagination.
In heaven there are no feelings in general, and therefore there is no room for hatred, hatred and betrayal, and there is no room for dealing between humans, which has always resulted in wars and conflicts, except to the narrowest extent, and there is no room for sexual relations between humans, each human being chooses what he likes and what suits his desires and then can replace it with another if he feels bored or wants to change.
The privileged are free of physical disabilities, minors and poor structure, poor eyesight, anemia, immunodeficiency diseases or defective moral traits, such as susceptibility to depression, stressors, shyness and introversion, and extend their lives to 250 years.
The faulty population is less than 70 years old, and they carry the weak genes and therefore have to live only in Africa or Asia.
On the surface, the life of the privileged seems ideal, robots are made in accordance with the requirements of the labor market and the requirements of individuals, and it is not easy to distinguish between these electronic people called Zanon and the real man, and all fantasies and hopes quickly find their realization on the ground without much effort under a social system accurately formulated to ensure the well-being of individuals, similar in terms of the idea of the wonderful new world Aldous Huxley. What the narrative reveals is the fact that it is a masked hell.
This revelation is achieved by confrontation between the two communities. There are members of the sect of the defective decide to rebel against their inferior status and the two worlds meet. The people of Paradise discover that there is a vibrant life that they lack in the midst of their strict and precisely defined mechanical system. There are human feelings that led to a life unlike life. The fullness of human existence, or are human imperfections the essence of true life?
Each character writes a letter in which she reveals her life, obsessions, and plans, and also reveals the narrative structure of the novel in an intensification that avoids engaging in details that do not serve its basic questions, and also saves it from the shortcomings of the sometimes incomplete expression of the character ’ s multiple psychological dimensions.

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Content: I love the story of the future: Consciousness against a more troubled future.
A novel by dr.
Sana Al-Shaalan (daughter of Naima)
3 minutes ago.
Our homeland today: Read: Aqeel Hashim / Iraq – After it turned out that the era is the era of narrative unlike the rest of the literary genres, the contemporary novelist seeks through experimentation to disrupt the narrative system of significance, formulation and formation, and ultimately results in the emergence of new developments on that era. The narrative discourse has a narrative — and a critique, and this has been exemplified by the novel “I adore ”.
I say that since we are in globalization an age of doubt and uncertainty, and this doubt is a prominent feature in the movement of the new novel, made the writer and reader a system of cognitive awareness communicative to read the puzzle of what is happening to our present, the reader is no longer naive to accept everything that is said to him, and therefore he wonders about every new phenomenon and therefore worries him and shakes his entity if he can not find a solution.
The novels known as "science fiction" novels, for example, rise to a major event about the prediction of the consequences of scientific phenomena in human life, and the readers of the novel have shown the validity of the predictions of many of these novels, which prepared their perceptions to accept and predict, as the novel "Brave New World" by Aldous Huxley, published in 1932. As technology evolves, and because the novel is by its nature an avant-garde art, it seeks to explore its horizons. Rather, it expresses its events about the past or the present only for the sake of a future vision that includes these events and a change in the insides of its characters. A special vision of time, and makes good use of the element (psychological time), the time in which its painted characters live and live.
The development of the narrative technique adopted in the new novel was a revolutionary introduction in order to get rid of the techniques of the traditional novel, as well as a new addition in the artistic structure of the novel, which is based on taking the reader out of his negativity, so it became necessary to consolidate the concept of self in the time of digital identity, which is more fluid, as it can not be proven. Create it without reference.
“Love Me ” by Dr.
Sana Al Shaalan, which was published in three editions, the first edition was published in 2012, and is the winner of the Dubai Cultural Award for Creativity 2010 / 2011 in its seventh session, the second edition was issued in 2014, and the third edition was issued in 2016.
The novel consists of (217) pages of medium size, this novel represents a narrative model that embodies the author ’ s attempt to benefit from some of the techniques of postmodernism, and that the investment of the so-called “future ”, and its employment in this novel, made it this distinctive.
The novel above all is the novel of the fundamental difference between a man and a woman, and it is the novel of fate, which connects the fate of each to the other, and connects the consciousness of each to the other.
Consciousness was not, as Gilles Deleuze once put it, “self-consciousness, but the self-consciousness of an unconscious self.
Consciousness is not the master ’ s consciousness, but the slave ’ s consciousness in relation to a master whose character is not to be conscious. ”
It is this bitter truth that pulls the two consciences to each other, and it shapes the conditions of their inevitable relationship.
This relationship seems to us to be in no way separated from the social and political context in which the novel takes place in our Arab world.
The time of the novel is set in the year (3010), and the place (the Milky Way Galaxy) chosen the place for her novel.
Characters:
Bassel Al-Mehri: A military intelligence man, excessively dedicated to serving a tyrannical government, a symbol of the state of oppression, violence and tyranny, lost his body in a terrorist incident because of his excessive dedication to his work, but his head remained healthy and vibrant, doctors advised him to undergo surgery, in which he transfers his healthy head to the body of a woman who has just died. Despite his regret, he justifies his action by saying: “But I am a coward weak in the face of my clinging desire for life, the sweet taste of life still gnaws at the will to refuse and overcome weakness in myself and insists on me with a bloody insistence to cling to life even in another body, even if it is a body stolen from a woman. ”
Shams: A female political activist and opposition to power rebel and rebel, she is a prominent national leader in the banned and opposition Al-Hayat party, and a famous writer and writer, Habiba Khaled Rami, a girl killed by the intelligence services.
Khaled Rami: Habib Shams and her lover, and there were dozens of love letters between him and Shams describing the burning love between them.
Ward: The fetus that Shams carries from her beloved Khalid, is still alive in the womb of the murdered Shams, moving with his mother ’ s body to the bowels of the military man Basil al-Mehri, and this name was chosen by Khalid, as Shams says: “Your name will be Ward, this name was chosen by Khalid, since now I can almost smell your pink smell in my newborn motherhood … The flower is also the name of an extinct animal that belongs to the time before the third millennium, its name is also the lion, and it is a predator, wild and strong, and noble as well, lives with pride, rejects the carrion, and cherishes its strength, and so we called you a rose to be a vow of beauty and strength and to love us.
In this particular narration, starting from the title, the miraculous, the multiplicity and the dispersion instead of unity and harmony, the abandonment of the plot, the lack of invalidity, the feeling of anger and the fictitious narrative, and the denial of causality.
We start by analyzing the title as it represents the first threshold for understanding the content of the novel. This title raises the reader to the semantic dimensions of the concept of love, love and passion, and gives a structure contrary to what is familiar, known, the foundations of the strange title, and a puzzling revelation of the concept of this relationship. Shaq and intimacy are mentioned in my novel.
The novel begins with the words of a woman in love named Shams, from the Milky Way, in which she says: “Only those with loving hearts are aware of the fact that there is a fifth dimension regulating this giant universe, which is love, and that love is the fifth most important dimension in shaping the features of our existence, only love is enough to revive this death. ”
What is important here is to emphasize that we are looking for what the writer wants and what she means from the miraculous manifestations found in the novel text is a counter-reaction to the death of love and the tyranny of the phenomenon of human death and the victory of technology that tries to overcome the facts of reality in an irrational way. It has become strange and strange, and the strange and strange event takes place.
The peculiarity of the novelistic event is reflected in several photos, the most prominent of which are: The opening of the novel with the presentation of a strange story:
This strange story put the reader from the beginning of the story in the tragic situation that befell the hero, and created a situation characterized by turmoil that shook the entity of man and woman to form one body, and felt the oddity of this unfamiliar world, and also his sense of sadness and fear throughout the novel due to the split of his personality;
This shows that it is possible for the aggressive nature of man to overcome the human nature or vice versa; the transformation comes suddenly – as a result of an accident – and there were no signs of its occurrence.
It lies in the transfer of the head of Basil al-Mahri protagonist to the body of a woman is (Shams) The transfer of the mind of an active and influential man in supporting power to the body of a woman political activist who stood against corruption in her country, which led the military intelligence to capture her, and then kill her after they failed to take any confession from her. At the same time (Shams) lost her head, and her body remained peaceful and vibrant, so the doctors gathered “and assured him that this female body, lying in the arms of death with a crimson smile full of peace and contentment, is the only body that is genetically appropriate, tissues and cells for his body...
Therefore, he must accept to plant his soul and brain in this small body on hatred or satisfaction in order to survive his life, otherwise he will die, and he must decide quickly and delay is not in his favor.
Dramatic action stimulates us, provokes us to look at our fates, to think about our lives, from the death and burial of feelings to the danger that awaits them and this is what we think the author wanted to explain – to worry the reader, to make him anxious, to question and to hesitate.
We find the confusion in this novel; the vision of the hero is dominated by mental delusions, confused imaginations of the mixing of the truth and its non-existence, and the novel continues, the writer here tries to appeal to the letters.
The message has the above importance, charm and a great communicative role, thus creating imaginary worlds, and as a document that penetrates the genre of fiction as a psychological response and an expressive suppression suffered by the characters concerned, it aims to unleash their souls pregnant with sensations, burning confessions and other things that are difficult for them to express in the presence of the recipient, whether he is a lover, relative or even an enemy....
The resort of Bassel Al-Mehri to read the memoirs of Shams in the journey of identification has left him in a emotional dilemma he did not expect, I turned all his decisions and promises to revenge against her and her body, it is the moment of disclosure, the moment of recognition of the existence of the other, after Bassel Al-Mehri knew the truth of this love between them he felt a bit of remorse and said: “How small in those moments!
And also a thief! … {He says to the fetus}: How lucky you were to have a mother of such beauty and all this love, ” the fetus carried by her body or his body is the fruit of a unique love committed by Khalid and Shams in violation of the laws of the galaxy.
After serious attempts, Basil Al-Mehri got a light package containing information about Shams in the framework of a diary she wrote to her lover Khalid and her baby (Ward), with a set of love letters sent by Khalid. The letters written by Shams and Khalid show true love. Basil Al-Mehri found in the first page only one paragraph written “Only the lovers of hearts are aware of the fact that there is a fifth dimension regulating this giant universe ”.“ Do you know why I repeat the word I love you a thousand times because it reduces all humanity to making love, I love you and I desire you? ”
I would say, the writer dr.
Sana Al-Shaalan always tries in her narratives to dive into the worlds of her characters with high professionalism and a great degree of neutrality through which she aspires to expel clichés and prejudices from the other so that the criminal killer has a demon completely, and the lover Alwahan is an angel.
This relativism in addressing issues is one of the pillars of its humanistic narrative project.
This relationship between the ego and the other is one of the manifestations of the novel and its integration and its quest to crystallize a special world, which offers us some important reading keys in it, because it is also achieved on a deeper level when the visions and expropriations involved in it correspond to reveal to us another key reading in the texts of the writer.
The symbolism of the “sun ” is a manifestation of the rebellious and liberated woman, an obsession with being, identity, time, death and the longing for the impossible realization.
In fact, what the novel says is the purely real world, the world formed by the combination of external reality and the psychological reality of the characters, and the intellectual or philosophical reality of the visions and ideas that seem to them and capture some of their interests, the moment is not permanent, because it is by nature instantaneous, but more importantly, narrative that it is uncertain in its own moment.
There is no hope of getting it back, let alone getting it back.
The negative and critical narrative text avoids the disclosure of the content so as not to spoil its seductive ambiguities.
He remains cynical in his ambiguities, but at the same time the writer will be responsible for the perpetuation of this sphere until the end, driven by an inevitable and inescapable amount of covering up the privacy of her characters until the end.
At the end of the novel, love is born between the killer and the murdered. After the hero finds himself in the body of his assassination, he falls in love with the body of the woman who was once the body of the woman he assassinated, after knowing her through her diary. The choice of love and life triumphs over death and annihilation, and Basil Al-Mahri becomes a fighter and supporter of the revolutionaries after he was a repressive hand in the hands of the government of the galaxy clutching rebels against its secularism and its misleading laws. Basil Al-Mahri believes that love is the way to save humanity from the misery it suffers. This is the easy and difficult equation, they are without a doubt the fifth dimension of things, then love is the fifth dimension of existence and the key to all its energies and the secrets of its existence, growth and mortality. ” Atheism leads to faith, and he is ready to risk his life in order to give birth to the baby (Ward), thus winning the choice of love and love at the end of the novel, heralding the birth of another new generation of humanity carrying the banner of love, brotherhood, justice and equality away from injustice and arbitrariness.
Finally, I say: “I adore me ” a beautiful and interesting novel despite its apparent difficulty, interceding its transparent poetic language and its semantic intensity giving, it tempts the reader to continue reading from the overlap of characters, and the dominance of the style of narrative suspense that makes the event the focus of the work of fiction, and urges the reader to gasp behind and pursue his chapters.
To get to know this mysterious planet called Woman, which in this regard is one of the most sincere novels in understanding women, and honest in dealing with them, she seeks to explore the depths of women from within.
A symbolic sun is a game of universes and galaxies, and its body is involved from the very beginning in a purely cosmic game.

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Content: Portland Author Alissa Hattman Shortlisted For 2024 Ursula K. Le Guin Prize For Fiction

Hattman’s debut novel, “Sift,” is inspired by modern calamities.

Portland author Alissa Hattman has made the shortlist for the 2024 Ursula K. Le Guin Prize for Fiction for her first novel, Sift (The 3rd Thing Press, 120 pages, $24.00). After an open nomination process last April in which authors and fans alike could nominate fiction novels that represented ideas reflected in Le Guin work, Hattman joins nine other authors on the shortlist. This year’s recipient of the prize will be chosen by a panel of authors including writers such as The Handmaid’s Tale author Margaret Atwood and The Paper Menagerie author Ken Liu.

Le Guin was one of the 20th century’s most prolific science fiction writers, and lived in Portland most of her life. First striking critical success in 1964 with the beginning of her Earthsea series, Le Guin won numerous awards during her lifetime, even making history as the first female author to win both of the prestigious Hugo and Nova sci-fi literary awards.

The winner of the $25,000 Le Guin Prize will be announced through Le Guin’s website on October 21, marking what would have been the author’s 94th birthday.

“It’s a huge honor,” Hattman says of Sift’s nomination. “Since I first moved to the Pacific Northwest and I was first introduced to Le Guin, which was in 1999 with this short story called “Omelas,” I have been such a deep admirer of her work. I think having been shortlisted and having this book be in the orbit of Le Guin feels so meaningful to me.”

First published in 2023, Sift follows two women as they search for a place to plant crops in a world that’s structures and order have collapsed. Hattman was inspired to write Sift while doing a morning writing exercise. In an attempt to capture her biggest fears, she ended up delving down the sorrowful inevitability of the death of her loved ones, specifically her mother.

“It started becoming a letter to my mother that became fictionalized overtime into something larger, sort of an anticipatory plea for humanity as a whole,” says Hattman.

What resulted was a book inspired by the pandemic, social unrest, and the climate crisis. Sift’s characters are forced to deal with the struggle of a ruined world  “I started to envision these two characters that might be stronger than I could be in those moments,” says Hattman.

This isn’t the first time Le Guin has impacted Hattman’s life. She says attending a live conversation between Le Guin and Atwood at the Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall in 2010 was particularly important to her as a fellow writer.

“It was so amazing to see the two of them on the stage,” Hattman says. “It was awe inspiring to me, like witnessing an eclipse or something.”

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Content: News

What is Going On With the 2023 Hugo Awards?

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Jenn Northington

Director, Editorial Operations

Jenn Northington has worked in the publishing industry wearing various hats since 2004, including bookseller and events director, and is currently Director of Editorial Operations at Riot New Media Group. You can hear her on the SFF Yeah! podcast nerding out about sci-fi and fantasy. When she’s not working, she’s most likely gardening, running, or (obviously) reading. Find her on Tumblr at jennIRL and Instagram at iamjennIRL.

‘Tis I, your local publishing and SF/F auntie, here to help answer a new “What the heck is going on?” This time, our subject is the 2023 Hugo Awards. If you’re on social media and follow any SF/F folks, chances are you’ve seen posts about eligibility, possible censorship, wonky voting numbers, EPH, Neil Gaiman, R.F. Kuang, and more. A lot of this may seem like extremely inside baseball, but (while I don’t care if you ever understand what EPH is) it’s an important moment for an historically-important award, and it’s worth talking about what is going on, and what might happen next.

Let’s start with the Hugo Awards themselves. I’ve long been an advocate of readers voting in them, mostly because a broad and distributed voting base is the best way to ensure a diverse and inclusive slate of nominees, and to minimize slate-voting attempts (more on that in a minute). And it’s not (theoretically) hard – anyone who is willing to fork over $50ish dollars can vote! With that $50, you not only get voting rights but a voter packet of the shortlisted nominees. Given how many categories there are in the Awards, that is A LOT of reading material. (Get all the details on how and why to vote right here.)

The Hugo Awards, in addition to being very open to potential voters, are also historically pretty messy. This is inevitable – it’s a process run entirely by volunteers, and that volunteer committee that changes in full or in part (more on that as well, in a minute) every year based on where WorldCon is being held. Max Gladstone does an excellent job breaking down how that works if you’re interested, but the TL;DR is that whichever group of volunteers in whichever country and city successfully won the right to host the next WorldCon also make up the selection committee. There’s no over-arching, governing body for the Awards themselves, although there are selection and voting rules laid down by the World Science Fiction Society (WSFS). Those rules have been updated, since the Sad and Rabid Puppies debacle of 2015, in an attempt to make the nominations and voting less open to slate-voting (meaning, concerted efforts by a specific group to get only their titles through to the final round). And it seems possible, although by no means a certainty, that another update could be in the offing.

When Chengdu won the bid for the 2023 Worldcon, which then made them the administrators for the 2023 Hugo Awards, many in the SF/F community had concerns. China is known to have strict censorship rules, with real consequences for those who ignore or flout them. China has also been internationally sanctioned by many countries over the treatment of the Uyghurs, a largely Muslim population in Xinjiang, which has been declared a crime against humanity by Amnesty International. Some writers signed a petition and declined nominations in protest. Others publicly grappled with the issues, but didn’t withdraw. Some books that many expected to be on the longlist weren’t, most notably Babel by R.F. Kuang, but neither the author nor Worldcon said anything about why. It was a difficult and fraught situation, especially for newer or less well-known authors, whose careers could be made by a nomination on the shortlist, much less a win in their category.

Sadly, it didn’t get any less fraught, and also faced many technical issues. I personally was a nominating voter who was periodically unable to access my voting account and struggled to get assistance from support, and I know others faced similar issues. A finalists list went up only to be withdrawn, with the explanation of it being an incorrect test list that wasn’t meant to be public. There were also issues with translation between Chinese and English throughout the process, although that is, as far as I am concerned, just inevitable growing pains if we want these awards to continue to have weight and interactions outside the English speaking world. (When you look, for example, at how much amazing Chinese-language science fiction Ken Liu alone has been responsible for bringing to the English market, I think you’ll agree that this is a good and worthy goal.)

And then the nomination statistics were released, and released late, and all hell broke loose. People wanted to know why it took so long. Then, it became clear that some notable contenders, including Babel, Xiran Jay Zhao, and an episode of the show Sandman, were deemed ineligible for reasons that are deeply unclear, if not nonexistent. Then, people who are good at numbers and spreadsheets quickly noted discrepancies in the tallies throughout the rounds; Cora Buhlert expertly broke it down. You’ll see the aforementioned EPH repeated quite a bit in these discussions; that stands for “E Pluribus Hugo,” and is the tallying method introduced in 2017 to reduce the impact of slate voting.

Folks have been asking questions and demanded answers, and none have been forthcoming. Neil Gaiman showed up in an extended back-and-forth on vice-chair and co-head of the Hugo Awards Selection Exec Committee Dave McCarty’s Facebook, of all things, trying to find out why Sandman had been declared ineligible. When even Neil Gaiman can’t get a straight answer, well, it doesn’t look good, does it? And it doesn’t just affect the authors declared ineligible: every finalist and winner now has the validity of their work’s inclusion thrown into doubt.

McCarty is the only member of the committee who has made statements at the time of this post’s writing, and most of them have been vague at best, dismissive and rude at worst. Theories, of course, are flying every which way, and most of them allege deliberate wrong-doing. Examples include: The Sandman episode was dq’d because it had ghosts in it; Kuang was declared ineligible because she might give a speech in Chinese; McCarty was influenced by the Chinese government, or covering for Chinese committee members who could be subject to repercussions. None of these theories explain everything, and none are backed up by much evidence at the moment, which only means that the theories continue to be varied and wide-ranging. Camestros Felapton, whose name is everywhere in the comments and discussion on this, just recently posted about the “Unified Stuff-Up Theory“, which is one of the simplest and least sinister explanations – sometimes, people do a bad job with data because they’re volunteers, there were tech issues and language barriers, and they’ve never done it before. Having served on volunteer committees before and having put together large events, my experience tells me this is extremely likely. But as Felapton says, it doesn’t cover everything, and that doesn’t mean that foul play or censorship didn’t impact the Hugos. (¿Porque no los dos?)

Whatever actually happened, the hit the Hugo Awards have taken in trust and reputation is large, and particularly inside of the community that are, after all, the reason they exist. If we never figure out what happened, and different people are involved next year anyway since it’s a new committee and a new Worldcon, then what? How do they move forward from here? Many people have many proposals, of course, and I particularly appreciated Abigail Nussbaum’s breakdown of some potential next steps.

If you’re interested in being part of “next,” here’s a link to the WSFS Membership page – unfortunately, only members actually attending Worldcon and the Business Meeting can vote on proposals submitted. If that’s not you, that’s ok – but if you made it all the way to the end of this post, you might like to know that there are other ways you can stay engaged! You can still be a supporting member, which grants you nomination and voting rights for the Awards themselves; you can make your opinions known to WSFS and Worldcon Glasgow 2024. You can volunteer, if that’s something you have time and energy for! And you can read and discuss SF/F with your friends, on-line and off-, whatever their eligibility.

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Content: Xiuwei Information accumulates Xinhua works in Taiwan
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The publishing brands such as Xiuwei Publishing, Brewing Publishing, and Ouyou Light have so far published 32 Singaporean Chinese books, which mainly focus on Sino- Chinese literature.
In 2011, Zhou Can's "Rain on the Edge of Dreams" was the first book, and then Kraft, Li Baiyang, Zhang Guoqiang, Huai Ying and other writers began to cooperate with Xiuwei.
In addition, the local publishing house Lingzi Media published Xiaohan's "Hungry Food" in Taiwan through Xiuwei, and the works of Xinwen Chao Publishing House were printed and distributed through Xiuwei, and sold back to Singapore from Taiwan.
Submit a Submission
Xiuwei started as a small print, accepting submissions of Chinese works from all over the world, and was evaluated by the editorial team and launched under different brands.
The cooperation mode is mainly funded by the publishing house and published by the author at his own expense, and the editorial team will evaluate the contribution after receiving the submission, including the marketability of the work, if it meets a certain "score", the publishing house will contribute and publish it free of charge for the author.
Song Zhengkun, general manager of Xiuwei, said in an interview that the score system is hoping to make the process more scientific.
If the author pays for himself, the price according to the printing volume and publication requirements is about NT $40,000 to NT $100,000 (about NT $1,700 to NT $4,250).
He said that Xiuwei has so far co-published with more than 2,500 authors from 32 countries, 80% of the works in Taiwan, but there are also many works in mainland China, Europe and the United States, New Malaysia, Thailand and the Philippines.
Every month, the publishing community receives 10 to 20 submissions, but from time to time, it will take the initiative to find suitable works.
The actual number of books published by Xiuwei each year is about four or five hundred.
Looking forward to more cooperation with Singapore
"As far as our company is concerned, it is very much looking forward to cooperation with Singapore writers and publishing houses," Song said.
The hope is that even if there is not much profit, it can also be used as a demonstration, which is quite meaningful … At present, the publication of Singaporean works in Taiwan is still in its infancy, and there is no data to assess the future.
But the reaction of our readers at this stage is very surprised, I thought Singapore was just a commercial city, there was no literature. "
He suggested that he could work with publishing houses in Singapore to focus on Singapore ’ s works and increase visibility on some occasions, such as the Taipei International Book Fair.
On why it chose to cooperate with Taiwan Press, Xinwen Chao Press previously said that the Chinese reading market in Singapore is small, and it hopes to publish traditional Chinese books, distribute them in Hong Kong and Taiwan, and expand the readership.
A new book by Xinwen Chao and Xiuwei, a collection of poems by local author Cai Xinxun, "Poetic Utopia" will be released soon.
This is Cai Xinxun's first collection of poems, using the language of poetry to create a free parallel world for life.
As for the future of publishing, Song Zhengkun said, it is inevitable to move to the online world, more personal, more public.
In the past, even in the golden age of physical books, the visibility of non-bestselling writers was actually very low, and there was no mechanism for self-promotion.
In today ’ s social media era, an unknown person is actually very popular in his own circle.
The visibility of the work depends on the author himself.
Song Zhengkun said: "As long as the author is hard enough, as long as the subject matter is fresh enough, he is easy to find."
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PUBLISHED: | UPDATED:

Margaret O’Donnell couldn’t be found.

The author of “The Beehive,” a 1980 novel of speculative fiction dealing with the kind of feminist issues that would later feature in Margaret Atwood’s “The Handmaid’s Tale,” O’Donnell had disappeared from view. And after the folks at Richmond, Virginia-based Valancourt Books spent three months trying to locate the author or her estate in order to reprint the book, whose themes they thought resonated even more in a post-Roe world, they were ready to abandon the search.

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Hers is a very common name in Ireland. They’d tried public documents in Ireland and the U.K. and probate searches and newspaper archives. They searched using information gleaned from the book’s dust jacket, including her alma mater and the fact that she was involved in Ireland’s movement to legalize contraception.

It didn’t help that there was another woman named Margaret O’Donnell, an editor of poetry anthologies, who turned up in a bibliography found via Google Books.

“It had ‘The Beehive’ in there and attributed it to a Margaret Jane O’Donnell born in 1899,” says James Jenkins, publisher and editor of Valancourt, on a recent phone call. “That was part of the confusion. We were looking for this other person who wasn’t even the correct Margaret O’Donnell.”

So the indie imprint turned to Twitter for help.

“Normally, I wouldn’t do that because there are a lot of other publishers who follow us on there,” says Jenkins, “and if we announce that we’re after the rights to a book, it might signal to other people that this great book is out there and they might try to sign the rights instead.”

Launched in 2005, Valancourt began to publish books that had long fallen out of print, largely titles that date back to the late 1700s and early 1800s. Now a full-time endeavor for Jenkins and his husband, Valancourt has published at least 500 books, ranging from novels to short story anthologies. And while the focus is still on re-releasing titles that have gone out of print, its catalog includes a significant number of works released in the 20th century.

“In the 21st century, we can do things digitally with print on demand so we can do small print runs or even do one copy at a time if we need to,” Jenkins explains. Prior to this development, though, publishers had to be able to print a large enough run to keep the price of individual books low. “If there wasn’t a market for that many copies and they weren’t selling, then they wouldn’t re-press it.”

Sometimes, the authors aren’t all that obscure. Valancourt has been instrumental in reprinting works from Michael McDowell, the late horror writer whose screenwriting credits included the movie “Beetlejuice” and episodes of “Tales from the Crypt” and “Tales from the Darkside.”

“His novels are probably our best-selling books and probably have gotten the most interest from readers over the years,” says Jenkins, adding that readers often don’t initially know about McDowell’s work in television and film when they pick up a copy of novels like “The Elementals” and “Black Water.”

A few months ago, Valancourt caught wind of “The Beehive” via an article spotlighting out-of-print science fiction and fantasy books. “In the wake of the Supreme Court’s Dobbs decision on abortion rights and all the discussion about women’s rights, a book like The Beehive seemed really relevant,” Jenkins wrote when we initially connected via email.

The book itself was hard to track down. But no surprise: A library saved the day.

“There were no copies available for sale anywhere online, on any of the rare book sites or eBay or anything,” Jenkins recalls in our phone interview. “We requested it through interlibrary loan and they sent it to us through a university library.”

In the case of books that aren’t in the public domain, Valancourt must figure out who holds the copyright. Jenkins notes that can be the most difficult part of the process. Since the rights holder might be the estate of an author who died many years earlier, there’s a good amount of detective-style work involved.

Before republishing Mendal Johnson’s 1974 horror novel “Let’s Go Play at the Adams,’” Valancourt needed to track down the author’s estate, no easy task when the last name is Johnson. “We had to drive up to Maryland to this courthouse and examine the probate documents from after his death and it had the names of the daughters in them,” says Jenkins. “Then after some extensive searching, we were able to find them. It was certainly a long process. “

In the case of “The Beehive,” Margaret O’Donnell’s husband and sons were mentioned in the dedication by first name only. And, many years later, her granddaughter left a comment about the book on Goodreads, but with only a first name and no contact information.

That’s all part of what prompted Valancourt’s June 29 Twitter post and the round of internet sleuthing that followed. Some chimed in with information on others with the name Margaret O’Donnell. Others offered information or advice that they already had. But within 24 hours, one person turned up the correct Margaret O’Donnell’s obituary. She died in 2019 and the executor of her estate was her son, who Valancourt was able to reach just days later.

“He was thrilled and thought that Margaret would have been thrilled as well to see it republished,” says Jenkins.

Now, Valancourt can focus on tasks like a new introduction and cover art to ready “The Beehive” for a new generation of readers. Jenkins says they anticipate a release in the first half of 2024.

Title:

Content: Friday 1st September 2023 Abu Dhabi UAE
Prayer times
News Highlights
Today 's Issue
Today 's Issue
A culture
The means of communication...
Enhanced windows for creativity
Social networking sites have provided creators with platforms to spread (from source)
September 1, 2023 01: 03
Said Yassin (Cairo)
Creators in the fields of story, novel, plastic art, comics and other types of art have suffered over the past decades from the decline in the levels of access of their literary and intellectual production to the public, in light of the shrinking number of publishing houses and art exhibitions in many countries. It has a special character and can not be bypassed in any way.
Al-Ittihad polled the opinions of a number of writers, writers and artists about the role of social media and electronic publishing, and did it add new publishing windows to creativity or has it a negative role on it?
In the beginning, Noha Dawood, who has published a number of novels, said that social media has become one of the most important outlets for the writer to reach readers, and hundreds of visitors and audiences of book fairs have known the creators through electronic platforms and social media, and this represents a great challenge for the creator, as he can provide good works and at the same time reach the audience easily, provided that he does not overstep on social media no matter how good. Reality moves with its calculations.
The researcher, artist and poet Mahmoud al-Shanqarabi acknowledges that the networking sites have added a lot to the creators of plastic art and cartoonists in light of the decline in the establishment of individual and collective exhibitions, as well as the decline of some paper newspapers that used to accommodate dozens of drawings per day for artists.
He pointed out that social media introduced him more to the public, and that his paintings and works published immediately after their completion provided him with opportunities to communicate with a wide sector of the public from various Arab countries, especially that his audience on social networking sites exceeded the number of his artistic audience that he has been for 60 years.
The writer Iman Al-Omari believes that social media has many positive aspects, contrary to what some of those who focus on highlighting its negative and bad aspects on culture and creativity, as it is like anything else contains the good and bad, and in the field of literature has benefited the book a lot, where it facilitated the acquaintance of writers among them, and facilitated the exchange of experiences and knowledge of what is offered in markets, without going through libraries in search of supply. For international and old writers, these can download their writings from their sites and avoid any practical difficulties that may hinder their purchase.
She said that the e-book will not cancel the paper book, as evidenced by the continued holding of regular book exhibitions and the increasing number of printed books and the demand for their purchase.
As for the Syrian artist Ibrahim al-Hassoun, he considered that communication sites are important windows for the creator, and free to display his creative production, especially as they reach the largest possible segment.
The writer and novelist Mohamed Refaat looks at the matter from another angle, and believes that although online platforms provide the opportunity for many writers, especially new ones, they have also sometimes contributed to the squandering of their rights, in some countries, in the absence of laws governing the relationship between the publisher and the writer or the reservation of intellectual property rights decisively.
All rights reserved to Al Ittihad Newspaper 2023 ©

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Content: When Goodreads go bad: Review bombing scandal highlights online perils for authors

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When Goodreads go bad: Review bombing scandal highlights online perils for authors

By Hannah Story

Earlier this month, a scandal hit the online book community: a debut author set up fake accounts on recommendation website Goodreads to publish one-star reviews of her fellow first-time novelists.

Over a period of months, the writer – later named as Cait Corrain – targeted writers, many of whom were people of colour and were also signed to her publisher, Del Rey Books, a sci-fi–fantasy imprint of Penguin Random House.

At the same time, she used the fake accounts to praise her book, Crown of Starlight, which was scheduled for release in 2024.

The allegations led to widespread outrage from the publishing community, and Corrain being dropped by both her agent and her publisher.

While Corrain originally blamed a friend, she later admitted she was behind the swathe of negative reviews. In a statement, she wrote that she suffered from depression, alcoholism and substance abuse, and began posting the reviews while adjusting to a new medication, and in the grip of a “complete psychological breakdown”.

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“It was just my fear about how my book would be received running out of control,” she wrote. “I betrayed the confidence of my agent, my [publishing] team, my readers, and my friends, and betrayed my own deeply held values … I accept responsibility for the pain and suffering I caused.”

The practice of posting a large number of negative reviews is described as review-bombing. The Corrain scandal is just one example in a long history of the behaviour, which often involves coordination between a number of people.

In September, American writer Nate Lemcke attempted to promote his self-published book by reviewing female writers on TikTok. He was accused of exploiting women and rewarded with a slew of one-star reviews on Goodreads.

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Review-bombing is also affecting high-profile authors, like Elizabeth Gilbert, the author of Eat, Pray, Love. Three months ago, Gilbert decided to suspend the release of her next novel, The Snow Forest, due out in February 2024, following a backlash on Goodreads from Ukrainian users objecting to the novel’s Russian setting.

Robbie Egan, the chief executive of BookPeople, Australia’s not-for-profit peak body for booksellers, is sceptical of Goodreads and how it can be manipulated. Still, he acknowledges the platform “does help sell books and promote writing”.

He criticises its move to tackle review-bombing by encouraging readers to report it rather than implementing better moderation. “That seems, for a trillion-dollar company, pretty lazy to me.”

While Goodreads has its place, Egan stresses the ongoing relevance of booksellers to getting an author’s work to an audience, citing the example of Pip Williams’ Dictionary of Lost Words.

“The proportion that sold in independent bookshops was huge,” he says. “It’s very hard in Australia to make a career for an author without independent bookshops being on board.”

A manager of Readings bookshops in Melbourne from 2010 to 2018, Egan says he would encourage his staff to be sceptical of Goodreads. “I would be telling my staff to take reviews with a grain of salt and to check out the content themselves,” he says.

Madeleine Gray, author of Green Dot, a critic and former bookseller, says that Goodreads is important for getting early buzz for a novel, especially for debut authors like her. “If you can get a strong suite of pre-release reviews saying it’s good on Goodreads, that builds the hype, and it’s very helpful for people pre-ordering the book,” she says.

But Goodreads should not be confused with professional criticism.

“I say this with love: I would not think of Goodreads as an accurate critical gauge of whether a book is good or not,” Gray says. “One of my favourite pastimes is to go and read terrible reviews of undeniable classics. Like, you can go and look at The Great Gatsby and someone will be: ‘boring, dropped it after a page, one star’.”

Ultimately, Gray says, the way that books get into the hands of readers is through word-of-mouth.

“You can get as many reviews as you want that are good, but unless someone’s reading the book and recommending it to their friend or their mum, it’s not gonna go anywhere.”

Jessie Tu, author of A Lonely Girl Is a Dangerous Thing and book critic for this masthead, says she’s deliberately removed herself from the online book community.

“I just am so anti social media,” she says. She points to its divisive nature, as driven by the algorithm (and described by essayist Jia Tolentino): “I just find all of that too insane and too much for my kind of very sensitive way of being,” Tu says.

“As writers, there are different ways to engage with readers and other people,” she adds, including author talks and writers’ festivals.

While review-bombing may not currently be widespread in Australia, Tu says the Corrain Goodreads scandal highlights a problem with local literary criticism: the way books by people of colour are reviewed.

“Not enough of them are reviewed,” Tu says. “I wish more of their books were pressed into the hands of journalists and celebrities and critics and anyone who has cultural status and influence.”

“Also, I would love to see [that] the pool of critics reflects the spread and diversity of the Australian population.”

Michael Winkler self-published his first novel, Grimmish, in 2021 before it was picked up by an independent publisher and shortlisted for the Miles Franklin Award last year. He didn’t find his audience through Goodreads reviews but on Twitter (now known as X), and later through the efforts of booksellers and the acknowledgment of the Miles Franklin.

“Twitter was actually a really important avenue for writers to connect with readers, especially people who were doing things that were experimental or a bit more challenging,” he says.

“For other authors, [Goodreads] is a place where people go for recommendations, and it can be powerful. And that’s why it feels like such a nasty betrayal, I think, to have a debut author not just pumping up their own tyres with their own five-star reviews, but actually actively going out there and trying to put down other debut writers.”

While Australia’s literary scene is small, and it’s possible some bad actors are trying to undermine each other through bad reviews, Winkler describes the local industry as overwhelmingly collegial.

“The local scene is characterised by kindness and supportiveness, and people wanting others to do well,” he says.

The Booklist is a weekly newsletter for book lovers from books editor Jason Steger. Get it delivered every Friday.

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Content: Supplement
Sunday literature.
Culture
Sunday Literature ‧ From the Lecture to the Big Screen: Hong Kong Internet Fiction and Film and Television Adaptations
[Ming Pao News] ViuTV ’ s “That Summer We Bloom Like Flowers ” is based on the online novel“ The Dead Family ” serialized by He Xixian in the discussion forum in 2017. This set of sci-fi and bloody works unexpectedly won the attention and appreciation of the audience, allowing many people to see the possibility of online novel adaptation.
This time, we found 4 online writers, alas madman, orange green tea, Zhang Enqing and Xilou Yuexiu, to share with us the views of online fiction, and 4 online writers have set up a "writer Gathering" channel on YouTube, and share their views on literature with the audience.
West Building Moon Hook (West)
Born in Wenshi, currently working in the life and death industry, I believe that humor is the greatest resistance to absurdity.
She is the author of "Love is a messy poem", "Wrong correspondence with the girl ten years ago", etc.
Orange Green Tea (Orange)
Graduated from the Department of Psychology, he has been writing novels in online discussion forums since 2012. His masterpiece is “Have You Heard? ”
The Haunted House of San Diego, an exploration of human darkness by writing bloody horror stories.
Crazy people (alas)
Post-nineties network writers believe that creation is a struggle between ideals and reality, and a collection of self-inflated ideas.
The main writing of urban love, the author of "the goddess turned me into a player", "we did not say okay" and so on.
Zhang Enqing (Zhang)
After learning to write in Hong Kong after the millennium, he published two novels, "Ten Years of Love" and "Children Don't Return", and liked to write, but also liked to be a reader.
The prospect of videoconferencing in online fiction
Yang: How do you see the future of online fiction?
Alas: Not so optimistic at present, there were also online novels adapted into movies in the past, and people at that time thought there would be more and more adaptations.
After a work is "red", others will continue to try and make more adaptations, but they are not as good as the first one.
You need to know that one work "red" does not necessarily make the other two works "red", and then no one will invest in it in the long run.
Hong Kong ’ s ecology has always been purely about hit rate, and it will not be serious about nurturing a new kind of possibility.
Compared to the experience of adapting comics and novels in Korean dramas, I feel that it is difficult to implement in Hong Kong, because everything looks to money.
KM: I ’ m keeping an optimistic mind.
Because I think the previous several sets of adaptations have not had much response, but recently ViuTV's "We bloom like flowers in that summer" many people will discuss, but also let more people realize that in fact, the network novel adaptations have value and attraction.
In the past, some people would think that the content of online novels may not be comparable to traditional novels, and despised online novels, because some films and TV works let people gradually understand to appreciate.
I have seen some people ’ s comments that even if we compare “We Bloom That Summer ” with Netflix ’ s works, they will not lose to other episodes, so they will feel that the original novels of the series are also good.
In addition to TV dramas, our novels will be turned into stage dramas. I think there have been fewer such adaptations in the past. In recent years, more and more people will find online writers to publish book adaptations for stage dramas.
Zhang: I remember there were a lot of stories in the Gordon era that were adapted into movies.
Some people will see the adaptation of the film, feel that the original can not be on the stage, it is because after the story is adapted into a film, because the content is different because of the writer, the director, and the content has become another look.
But it seems that ViuTV this drama has the author himself to participate, will supervise it, so the effect is good.
If you want to make a movie with confidence, you need the author to grasp the content of the story.
West: I remember that in the Gordon era, there were many works that were adapted into movies, which led to the storytelling platform culture, and more people would participate in the creation – it turned out that writing stories could be converted into movies and encouraged people to create.
On the one hand, I feel that there are no outstanding works, and the second is that there is no ecological circle of adapted films in Hong Kong.
In fact, there have always been different network novels adapted into movies, but as Zhang Xiqing said, there are some differences, which will make people feel that the quality of the network novels is not good, so the final return of the problem is the director or screenwriter how to control.
Yang: When online novels are adapted into movies, they inevitably have to change the content of the movie model. What do you think is the biggest difficulty in adapting?
Orange: I have an original script adapted into a stage play, but my style is more murderous, so the first aspect of consideration is the method of killing people, writing can be written, but there may be many factors that lead to the actual performance can not be done in the ideal picture, or can be felt by reading the text. This is similar to the problem faced by "that summer we bloom like flowers", sometimes the content is too bloody, but it will make a group of people because they are too afraid to see, so the market will be limited, this factor will also be limited to the original creation and the effect of the painting.
West: I think it is the presentation, after all, the genre of fiction, stage drama, television drama is different, originally in the method is not necessarily the same, may be a novel can be written very empty, I can use a few thousand words to describe a scene, or describe some good science fiction things, but how can the stage drama be completed with limited costs?
Alas: I ’ m currently experiencing my own work being adapted and seeing other people ’ s work being adapted, and I usually find the hardest thing to present is dialogue.
Maybe you don ’ t feel embarrassed when you write, but when someone reads it, it will be very embarrassing, and I will think, why would I write these things? I think that if I want to present the book, even if the film is very “close to the ground ”, but those dialogues are also flickering for me.
Zhang: I think it is a matter of rhythm. For example, if I write more about feelings in a certain period, the content will be longer, and a novel can take a long time to get to the moving position. But when I become a second medium, for example, the story is only two hours long.
The Future of Online Writers
Yang: Do you think that the trend of online fiction towards film and television, facing a larger market, will not be the way out for online writers in the future?
Alas: Talking about this issue, it should be recalled that in the past, the ecology of online novels began with discussion forums, and books will be published after the forum is serialized, and then there are movie works, but the film adaptations have been quiet for a while.
And for me, the book has been called the last step, so even if the network novel is adapted into a film, I dare not say that it is a huge market, but it is also an opportunity to contact more different audiences.
Orange: We online writers, what is called a way out, or what to survive? In fact, our livelihood is usually not dependent on the publication of books, the author's share is very small, may only be enough for you to drink a cup of coffee.
So some of our writer friends, including me, are trying to open their own publishing house to publish their own books, to control the cost, and to guarantee the source of income, which is the first way I see.
And when it comes to video network novels, more like the author's own milestone, he may want to write a book first, after the book will want to have a more angle to see the works.
Zhang: If the definition of the way out is to make more money, I believe most independent publishing people dare not say that they can earn their own money through publishing, there should be nothing possible, so I do not have the idea of making money.
But if the novel into a movie can let more people know their own words, I also feel that the video works is a good way, always in the online world, the online novel will only let those readers who read the text on the Internet see, not everyone will use this way to know the works and the author, but after the video, there will be more people through different media to recognize me, let people notice that there is always online. It is also one of the benefits that people are writing and passing on their ideas and words to others.
West: My opinion is similar, as a writer in Hong Kong, I guess the biggest driving force for everyone to write is interest, and then I will think about whether this matter can make a living.
I think most Hong Kong creators and writers have to go to the very top to raise themselves with royalties.
And to move the work to video is also a way out, I will feel that video can drive the original creator's popularity, his royalties may return more to themselves.
And the second is whether it can cultivate an ecological chain, which can be continuously cycled, so that the work can be continuously visualized, and then the author can maintain himself, but the establishment of this matter is the need for conditions.
Alas: Plus I can remember to do the ecological chain as you said, his own books and constantly been adapted, currently only to the West Village upper spring tree can do, he has a total of 4 works of adaptation, 3 films 1 set of drama.
Orange: I want to look at sustainability, because the money you ’ re talking about in the adaptations of the works, compared to the writing time of Haruki Nishimura over the years, may not be able to sustain him for so many years.
So I think that to continue to adapt to achieve that ideal state, if it is intermittent adaptation can only be regarded as bonus.
Yang: What do you think will be considered when you write your work?
Alas: I think most writers in Hong Kong have not considered this, and I have not imagined that there will be an opportunity to be adapted, but only after the book is published, I will simply think about it.
But looking at other countries, such as South Korea, Korean writers will certainly have to consider adaptation, their TV series are mostly adapted from online comics and online novels, has a mature environment, and the ecology of the adapted works will also affect the author's perspective and perspective when writing.
Zhang: I feel that Hong Kong ’ s limited resources limit my imagination of how my work can become a different medium.
For example, I think that after writing, the work becomes a novel, and then publishing contact with readers is the end of the work, and there are no more possibilities.
In recent years, because of the realization of theater, I will find that the works can be adapted into different plays, and I will want to try.
Orange: I didn ’ t think about it when I wrote it, because if I had to think about actual shooting often, it would affect my own creation, as if I would “hoop ” myself.
And I am good at writing murder, bloody drama, if I often think about whether I can shoot, it will limit my thinking about the way to kill, how to look good.
In addition, I feel that the consideration of Hong Kong writers without such adaptations is a matter of style, and it is a restriction of the region.
West: I think it is normal to see if the adaptation is a normal thing. If you are in a place, you will think about adapting the work into a film and television work.
It is difficult to suddenly have a writer will think of it when writing - wait for me to write a work that will be changed into a stage play, a TV series, just like spiritual training.
We usually write stories as the only way to get started.
If everyone starts with adaptation, then the revenue generated by adaptation is considerable.
If film and television become the norm, we will see the TV station in the rendition of the script, then people will deliberately write for the adaptation, but we have not seen such a trend.
Orange: I want to emphasize that what we online writers write will not feel cinematic, that is, the plot is tight and tense.
Write a script, then a novel?
Yang: Another approach is to write a film into a novel, first a film, then a novel, like "Fantasy", how would you see this creative method?
Zhang: I think the script and the novel are different genres, and the narrative is not the same, so it is not necessary for me to just sell a script to the reader.
But if there is a novel perspective, the writing in the novel is different, it is also feasible to see another story.
And for the producer, you can make more money.
Orange: If, from an audience point of view, I think it looks good after a play, I would like to see the novel again.
But it may be my memory problem, I do not remember the bridge of the film, so when reading the novel, I feel like reading a story again.
The second is that the movie picture and text bring a very different feeling, but watching the movie is only more than two hours, and watching the novel can be slowly felt.
Alas: I feel like peripheral goods, to meet some people who like text, can enjoy it more.
But my personal experience is that usually the movie will not be as good as the movie, such as "Yin Leaf Court", "5cm per second", which is only after the animation of the novel.
When I look at the animation, I will be more immersed in the inner struggle of the protagonist and the pure love between the male and female protagonists.
Zhang: And when reading a novel, there is more room for imagination. I remember watching a movie before I felt that the male protagonist was miserable and pitiful, and when I read a book, I felt that he was very resistant to death.
But because the actor who plays the lead actor is very good looking after the film, even if he does the same bridge, he does not resist the feeling of death.
So the imagination brought by reading the novel will make the angle of view different, the feeling is different, and the film is too clear to show the difference in the effect of the picture.
Postscript
The conversation with the four authors allowed me to understand that there is still a lot of room and direction for development in Hong Kong. Online novels can rely on the popularity of original readers to make film and television works more effective, and film and television works can also be regarded as an extension of the novel, and beckon to more unknown audiences.
And from the novel to the visual-led medium, there are many changes, such as the length of film and television works, the mirror can be very different from the original, in the process of transformation or will affect the original, should be regarded as two works, two kinds of presentation.
Author: Gathering
“Writer Gathering ” is part of the“ Restructuring Theatre New Project ”, which combines online theatre and literature to invite online writers to develop their works into theatre performances.
The YouTube Channel "Writer Gathering" is to explore the phenomenon of fiction and online culture with everyone, and introduce culture to the audience in an easy way "close to the people" and reach more readers.
There are five main members of “Writer Gathering ”, including Orange Green Tea, Yang Ge, West Lou Yuehu, Ah Crazy Man, and Zhang Enqing, so that the writer can become a YouTuber and face the reader directly.
For writers, writing is mostly alone, such as the West Lou Yueh-Hou and Zhang Enqing books rarely appear in front of the curtain, West Lou admitted that he prefers to be a person when creating, but it is rare to be able to discuss literature and art with a group of people.
And this attempt for Zhang to overcome the fear of performing in front of the curtain, she was worried that she would say the wrong thing, and writing, interacting with people and filming are very different, and talking about things other than writing occasionally caught her "off guard."
Another member, Orange Green Tea, believes that writers are "on the mirror" and returning to writing, when there is a big gap to the reader, and it is easy to "disillusion". She explains that sometimes the text allows readers to fantasize about a certain image of the writer, and the writer in front of the camera is different from the imagination of some readers.
Yang Xiying - is striving to become a professional writer, believing that the written word is a vehicle for responding to the world, and is a reporter, editor and publisher.
The article appears in Ming Pao, "Flowers" and so on.
Art • Liu Ruoji
Editors • Chow Ling Pu
Email • literature @ mingpao.com
fb: http: / / www.facebook.com / SundayMingpao
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Content: Home / Opinions / Editorial / Editorial: Reading is trending on social media

Editorial: Reading is trending on social media

While there has always been and always will be people who love to read, social media has influenced the sale of books and reading in the past few years.

During the peak of the pandemic, people stuck at home picked up reading as a way to pass the time, driving sales and kickstarting a rise in popularity of books across social media.

Although videos revolving around books have been available since the start of YouTube, BookTube really got underway in 2010.  With BookTok’s increase in popularity within the past few years, reading has taken off and made the book community even more prevalent.

These social media platforms have given new and independent authors a way to advertise their books and get a steady following, helping authors in a time where self-publishing is becoming more popular.

Readers also have access to more stories. This trend is allowing people who love to read or are learning to love to read to come together and share in their favorite books and genres, and book recommendations are now easier to come by.

However, with the rise of reading, there comes the good and the bad. While there are amazing books coming out of the woodworks, some books are thought to be way overhyped.

Influencers are advertising books they are being paid to read, and authors with large followings are taking over the internet.

Colleen Hoover, one of the most popular authors of social media, has even sold more copies than the Bible this year, according to NPD BookScan, and has four books in the top 10 of The New York Times Best-Seller list.

While everyone has different preferences, romance has become one of the top-selling genres due to the hype across the different platforms.

Social media isn’t the cause of book trends. Book-to-film adaptations also increase the sales of popular books, which has been notable throughout the decades with books like “Twilight,” “The Hunger Games” and, more recently, “Dune.”

Fanfictions like “After” by Anna Todd are also becoming more widely read.

Avid readers used to be the object of bullying, thought of as boring or nerdy for loving to read. Reading as a trend allows people to relish in their love of reading, and younger generations won’t have to be ashamed.

Book sales skyrocketed in 2020 and increased even more in 2021; however, book sales are starting to decline again even though BookTok is still in full swing.

All trends fluctuate and go away, but reading is a wonderful thing for people to be excited about. This trend is definitely not harming anyone, and we hope it is here to stay.

This editorial reflects the general opinion of The Spectator.

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Writer Andrei Vasiliev, writing in the genre of LitRPG, became the most read and sold digital author in 2023, Izvestia learned.
In the past year, more than 264 thousand of his books were sold on the Litres service.
According to the rating of the service, which is available to Izvestia, Vasiliev ’ s book “The Edge of the Sky ” overtook Sergey Lukyanenko ’ s“ Jump ”.
In general, the popularity of digital authors is growing.
“The number of registered digital authors in Litres grew by 22% in 2023.
Sales of books by digital authors (in pieces) in 2023 increased by 16%, ” the press service of Litres told Izvestia.
Rideró has 86,123 registered users, an increase of 12% by 2022.
In total, more than 765 thousand people are registered on the platform of the publishing holding.
On the oldest Internet platforms “Stihi.ru ” and“ Proza.ru ” to place their own creativity, their works are published by 911 thousand and 328 thousand users, respectively.
Read more in the exclusive material "Izvestia":
Self-author: independent writers in 2023 ousted the “publishing ”
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Content:
American Fiction: Scathing And Accurate Portrayal Of The Obstacles Black Writers Face In Publishing

Author: Ellis Walker

(MENAFN- The Conversation) Warning: this article contains spoilers.

Drawing inspiration from Percival Everett's 2001 novel, Erasure , Cord Jefferson's directorial debut American Fiction follows disillusioned novelist-turned-professor Thelonious“Monk” Ellison (Jeffrey Wright) as he grapples with the challenges of the American publishing industry. Despite his clear talent, Monk continuously faces rejection for his latest novel.

It's never explicitly said but it's made pretty clear that his book is just not“black enough”. As a scholar exploring the relationship between black British literature and its intersections with the British publishing industry, I was struck by the similarities between the UK and US industries.

The industry continues to face global criticism and has come under constant scrutiny particularly after the Black Lives Matter protest in 2020 brought attention to the inequalities faced by black people, including the persistent lack of diversity and representation in creative industries like publishing.

Authors from historically marginalised communities, including black authors, repeatedly encounter obstacles to getting their work published, receiving post-publication support, or securing a safe platform that allows their voices to be heard.

The struggle for authentic representation

In American Fiction, Monk encounters the work of Sintara Golden (Issa Rae) who has gained major success with her novel We's Lives in Da Ghetto, the sort of“black book” publishers want. Monk considers the book as pandering“black poverty porn” and its success drives him to the edge.

In one scene, Monk asks a bookseller why his books are being stocked in the African-American Studies section as they're“just literature”. When he takes his books to sit among the general fiction, he's confronted with a large display of We's Lives in Da Ghetto.

The pigeonholing of books by marginalised authors is common. In 2010, the writer NK Jemisin wrote on her blog that she wanted libraries and bookshops to stop stocking her novels in the“African American Fiction” section as she doesn't believe such a section must exist. She went on to say that writers who find that their books are stocked in this section have a much lower earning potential after being marketed as a“black book” and rarely sell enough copies.

This pigeonholing reinforces the idea that only black readers find stories by black authors interesting. When framing certain stories as representative of the black experience, publishers overlook other black experiences – causing the market to be saturated with monolithic depictions of blackness.

The year 2020 was a perfect example of publishers commissioning“black books” to absolve themselves of guilt. A swathe of books by black authors were commissioned and aggressively marketed. As a result, books such as Reni Eddo Lodge's Why I'm No Longer Talking to White People About Race , a book with a target white audience by a black author, became incredibly popular during the height of the Black Lives Matter movement in 2020.

PEN America's 2022 report Reading Between the Lines: Race, Equity, and Book Publishing found that waves of diversity, equity and inclusion efforts made by the publishing industry since 2020 have largely been temporary efforts. They engaged with these sorts of equity and diversity drives without enacting real structural change.

Publishing companies sought to“diversify” their catalogues, both as a marketing tactic and so that they could shape themselves as influencers of public opinion rather than be subject to it. In American Fiction, although it is not outwardly discussed, I believe these are the likely reasons for the publication of Golden's book. It reflects an idea of blackness and black experience that publishers are all too happy to buy into.

Commercial success vs. authenticity

After his sister dies unexpectedly, Monk becomes the primary carer for his mother who is suffering from Alzheimer's. In a desperate position, in need of money and support – and driven mad by the unfairness of it all – he begins to write.

Under the pseudonym Stagg R Leigh, Monk pens My Pafology (later renamed Fuck). It's his answer to the absurdity of the publishing industry, replete with almost every black stereotype he could think of, including gangs, absent fathers, guns and drugs. To Monk (and initially his agent) this is an unsellable book that obviously calls out the racism inherent in the success of such books like Sintara Golden's.

To his complete bewilderment, however, he's offered a $750,000 advance from a publisher who had passed on his other work. Part of the draw of this book for many of the white decision makers he encounters is the perceived“authenticity” of the story and, under the advice of his agent, he takes on the persona of Stagg Leigh, whom he makes a convict on the run from the FBI.

Unsurprisingly, Fuck quickly becomes a bestseller.

In the midst of all this, Monk is asked to be the diversity inclusion to judge a prestigious literary award. Fuck happens to gain a nomination and Monk is surprised to learn that Golden shares many of his criticisms of Fuck, labelling it“pandering”.

The conversation between the two touches on the complex issues surrounding authenticity, commercialisation,“selling out” and the definition of meaningful representation. Monk critiques Golden's novel as“trauma porn” – a needlessly traumatic story created to shock and entertain – arguing that narratives like hers oversimplify the black experience,“flattening” black lives.

Black authors constantly grapple with the pressure to conform to the expectations of the publishing market . These are undoubtedly extreme examples, but both Monk's and Golden's novels are a product of this pressure. While Monk seems to feel ashamed of chasing the money, Golden sees no issue with it, arguing that she is simply writing to the market's demand.

Sintara Golden being interviewed at a book fair about her bestselling novel We's Lives In Da Ghetto. Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures

Black authors are more heavily criticised for writing books that feature stereotypically black experiences. Alex Wheatle's The Dirty South is one such novel that, to this day, faces criticism for depicting black people as“eternal victims”. Wheatle has defended himself stressing that he draws inspiration from his real, everyday life and that he thinks characters should be three dimensional.

Monk, however, isn't able to come to terms with his own fight against the burden of representation , wanting desperately to depict“true” black experience but seemingly unwilling to believe narratives that counter his own understanding of what blackness is. Without even meaning to, Monk is just as guilty of flattening the black experience due to his rejection of Golden's work.

Both the British and US publishing industries face parallel challenges concerning the portrayal and treatment of black writers. American Fiction showcases these issues and highlights the industry's tendency to pat itself on the back for small acts of perceived diversity, rather than take any meaningful action.

I thoroughly enjoyed American Fiction and it emerges as a clear voice among critics of an industry that has proven it is greedy for profit over inclusion and representation.

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Content: Children's

10 Picture Books You’ve (Probably) Never Heard Of by Creators of Color

This content contains affiliate links. When you buy through these links, we may earn an affiliate commission.

Prepare yourself for an unapologetically diverse book list! All the books on this list are written by authors of color, many are illustrated by artists of color, and most feature characters of color. #sorrynotsorry

In all seriousness, creators of color need and deserve our support. The publishing industry is challenging to break into, and that difficulty is compounded for authors and illustrators with marginalized identities. Furthermore, authors of color are often paid less than their white counterparts.

Children’s books are among the most important genres in need of diversification. Children from diverse racial backgrounds need to see themselves reflected in books. Conversely, children from dominant cultures need to see others represented in various and multifaceted ways. Unfortunately, books about and especially written by people of color still do not reflect our population.

I am proud to write for an organization that is intentional about highlighting marginalized writers. All people deserve to tell their own stories and have those stories heard. For too long, the powerful have shaped the narratives about marginalized populations. I’m hopeful that our efforts at Book Riot are helping to right that wrong.

A surprising, but super cool, side effect of writing for Book Riot is that people share books with me all the time. Often, I receive under-the-radar gems that I would never have found on my own. Thus, I figured readers might appreciate the opportunity to check out some of these lesser known titles.

10 Picture Books You (Probably) Missed

Christopher Changes His Name by Itah Sadu and Roy Condy

While most of the books on this list are relatively new, I decided to start with this hidden gem. I discovered this book when I was planning a teaching unit about names and I’ve loved it ever since. Throughout this humorous tale, young Christopher keeps changing his name after being inspired by historical and cultural icons. Ultimately, he realizes how special he is, just as he is.

Always Anjali by Sheetal Sheth and Jessica Blank

With a name like Mikkaka, I empathize with characters like Anjali. While Christopher changes his name because it’s too common, Anjali has the opposite problem. When she gets a new bike, she can’t find her name among the novelty license plates. Additionally, kids begin to make fun of her name. Ultimately, however, Anjali learns to appreciate her name and celebrate her culture.

Phenomenal AOC by Anika Aldamuy Denise and Loris Lora

This picture book biography is a beautifully illustrated account of congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio Cortez’s journey to politics. It chronicles AOC’s rise from a child in the Bronx to becoming the youngest congress member in United States’ history. Rich with references to her Puerto Rican heritage, this book is an inspirational look at the life of a truly phenomenal woman.

Three Bunny Sisters by Raveena, Diya, and Amisha Duggal

Three human sisters under the age of 13 wrote this cute story to inspire others. With an impressive resumé of charity work, the Duggal sisters are all about giving back. Thus, the bunnies in their book learn how to help other bunnies in need.

One Hundred Percent Me by Renee Macalino Rutledge and Anita Prades

What are you? Where are you from? Most children of immigrants hear questions like this daily. The multiracial main character in this picture book definitely does. However, rather than letting other people define her, she proclaims that she is 100% herself.

Wutaryoo by Nilah Magruder

Similarly, the creature at the center of this picture book is one-of-a-kind. There are no other animals like her. She searches the world for answers, finding adventure along the way.

The Kite of Dreams by Pilar López Ávila, Paula Merlán, and Concha Pasamar

Children across the world play with kites. In this story, we see children from various countries playing and dreaming. The kites carry their dreams high into the sky. This book offers a glimpse into many different cultures. If you enjoy this one, you may also like López Ávila’s With a Butterfly’s Wings.

Super Satya Saves the Day by Raakhee Mirchandani and Tim Palin

When Satya wears the cape her super mama made for her, she feels unstoppable. However, when she has to face a day without her super apparel, she is worried it won’t go well. This is an adorable story about facing your fears and being your true self.

The Color of Your Skin by Desirée Acevedo and Silvia Álvarez

When Vega’s classmate asks to borrow her “skin-colored” colored pencil, Vega wonders whose skin he means. She thinks of all the people she knows and the range of colors that match them. This is a very cute exploration of racism in everyday language and it’s handle beautifully and in an age-appropriate way.

I Am Ruby Bridges by Ruby Bridges and Nikkolas Smith

For decades, we’ve been telling and retelling the story of Ruby Bridges. As a civil rights icon, young Ruby was the first Black child to attend her local all-white elementary school. Now, Ruby Bridges tells that story in her own words, through the eyes of her 6-year-old self. This is undoubtedly a must-read.

Zigglebee by Lana Bailey

Okay, so this one is a bonus and an exception. It’s not a picture book yet. The young author, Lana Bailey, composed five stories within the book’s pages, leaving space for readers to illustrate. Lana’s twin sister, Laila, has Jacobsen syndrome and is nonverbal. However, Lana learned that Laila enjoyed interacting with her through art and storytelling. Her book invites readers to connect and create, using our imaginations.

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Content: SFWA Market Report – April 2023

Welcome to the April edition of the SFWA Market Report.

Please note: Inclusion of any venue in this report does not indicate an official endorsement by SFWA. Those included on this list pay at least $0.08/word in at least one category of fiction. This compilation is not exhaustive of all publication opportunities that pay our recommended minimum professional rate. Additionally, SFWA adheres to our DEI Policy when making selections for this report. We strongly encourage writers to closely review all contracts and consult our resources on best contract practices.

New Markets

Impossible Worlds
The Off-Season: An Anthology of Coastal New Weird (Upcoming)

Markets Currently Open for Submissions

Analog Science Fiction & Fact
Apex Magazine
Asimov’s Science Fiction
Assemble Artifacts Magazine
Beneath Ceaseless Skies
Cast of Wonders (Recently Opened)
Clarkesworld Magazine (Recently Opened)
Escape Pod
Factor Four Magazine
Fantasy & Science Fiction (F&SF)
Fantasy Magazine (Recently Opened)
Flame Tree Fiction Newsletter
Habitats Magazine
Infinite Horrors
Infinite Worlds
Islandia Journal
Issues in Earth Science
khoréo magazine (khoreo) (Recently Opened)
LatineLit
Lightspeed (Recently Opened)
Little Blue Marble
midnight & indigo
Nature: Futures
PodCastle
PseudoPod (Recently Opened)
Reckoning
riddlebird (Recently Opened)
Robotic Ambitions (Recently Opened)
Samovar
Small Wonders (Recently Opened)
The Big Issue (Recently Opened)
The Deadlands
Uncharted Magazine

Markets Recently Closed for Submissions

CatsCast
Cosmic Roots and Eldritch Shores
FIYAH
Metastellar (Originals)
Zooscape

Other Opportunities

If There’s Anyone Left Micro-Fiction Contest

Upcoming Market Changes

Cast of Wonders‘s “Banned Books Week” theme ends soon.
Cast of Wonders‘s Limited demographic submission window: young authors begins and ends soon.
Cosmic Roots and Eldritch Shores‘s Submission Window begins and ends soon.
If There’s Anyone Left Micro-Fiction Contest‘s Submission Window ends soon.
khoréo magazine (khoreo)‘s Submission Window ends soon.
Lightspeed‘s General science fiction, short fiction ends soon.
Lightspeed‘s BIPOC-only fantasy, short fiction begins and ends soon.
Lightspeed‘s General fantasy, short fiction begins soon.
Robotic Ambitions‘s Limited Demographic Submission Window: marginalized writers ends soon.
Strange Horizons opens soon.

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Content: Watch the video “City Reading Festival 2024 ”
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The “City Reading Festival 2024 ” sponsored by the New Newspaper Media Chinese Media Group ended on June 2.
The 10-day event invited many well-known overseas writers and scholars to share and discuss.
"Lianhe Zaobao" also recorded three of them for online viewing by readers who were unable to attend.
Song Mingwei: The success of "Three Body" does not mean that science fiction literature has become mainstream
Dr. Song Mingwei, professor and chair of the Department of East Asia at American Wesleyan College, uses the success of the Chinese science fiction novel "Three Body" as an entry point to talk about the rise of the subject in China.
After the English translation of “Three Body ” became the first Asian author to win the award in 2015, the film of Liu Cixin ’ s other sci-fi book“ Wandering Earth ” was also released in 2019, which successfully set off a sci-fi boom.
This has led many readers to believe that Chinese science fiction has flourished.
In fact, the success of "Three Body" depends on the good work itself, excellent translation and market operation also helped the novel open up overseas markets and make it popular internationally.
And the eyes of translators and publishers.
However, Professor Song Mingwei believes that the success of "Three Body" only makes science fiction from the original humble position, to the center of the stage of literature, but does not mean that science fiction literature has become the mainstream.
He also revealed that there are still very few active Chinese science fiction writers, and there are only a handful of science fiction works that can be published every year.
The public who want to understand the role of Professor Song Mingwei in "Three Body" is regarded as "unmarketable" and almost impossible to publish, so far it has become internationally famous science fiction, can click on the link to watch the full video of the sharing session.
Wang Jinkang: Inspiration comes from the breadth of knowledge and contact with things
Wang Jinkang, author of one of the "Four Heavenly Kings" of Chinese science fiction novels, once choked when he talked about the challenges faced by Chinese science fiction writers in their early years.
But because "three bodies" into the international, but also let Chinese science fiction attracted attention, so that he and other science fiction writers have a feeling of bitterness.
He believes that science fiction and mainstream literature are not the same, in addition to paying attention to scientific knowledge, in the use of words must also be very accurate, can not just pay attention to the beautiful text.
Wang Jinkang, who was originally an engineer at the oil drilling rig, began writing novels in middle age, saying that in the early years, most of the people who wrote science fiction around studied engineering, but now there are many science fiction writers who are liberal arts students.
Want to know where the inspiration for science fiction writers comes from? Is science fiction based on science or imagination?
Interested readers can click on the link to watch the full video.
You know how to get lost in exchange for something unexpected. ”
When many people travel, they will generally do their homework or go online or apply to find Raiders, find card spots and food.
Xu Zhiyuan, a Chinese writer and host of the program, believes that "actively getting lost" in tourism is a good choice, and in the strange and uncertain environment of travel and life, the understanding of the world has been expanded.
He was once the chief writer of the Economic Observer, and only began to travel because of a sentence from the editor-in-chief.
The harvest of Xu Zhiyuan's travels is often unexpected because he is "lost".
In particular, he mentioned that he is easily interested in "neglected historical figures."
At the same time, he also believes that although travel is full of unknowns and makes him feel upset, it is tourism that can expand people's understanding of the world.
He describes everyone as a moving spiritual world.
Xu Zhiyuan's humor also made the whole lecture very relaxed, as if following his footsteps, from the Aihui - Tengchong line across China, and then to Calcutta, India, Cairo, Egypt and other places.
The public who missed the wonderful sharing of Xu Zhiyuan can click on the link to watch the full video recording.
Please like and share Morning Post Club Facebook account for discount information

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Content: Embracing Diversity: Indian American Children's Literature Booming in the US

Rajani LaRocca, an Indian American author of children's books, has been awarded the John Newbery Honor Medal.
Sreya Sarkar
The Indian American
Published:

This year, Rajani LaRocca, an Indian American author of children's books, has been awarded the John Newbery Honor Medal for Children's Literature for her book, "Red, White, and Whole."

It's no ordinary feat as the award presented by the Association for Library Service to Children, a division of the American Library Association, is the oldest children's book award in the world.

This brings to the fore that books about India and by Indian authors are gradually making an entrance into the mainstream.

Children's Literature in the US is Increasingly Seeing Diverse Voices

Madeline Tyner, the librarian at Cooperative Children's Book Center (CCBC) in the University of Wisconsin-Madison, discussed over a phone call why the most recent data they collected shows an increase in diversity in children’s literature.

“Every year the number of books by and about people of colour are increasing, but in the last two years with the pandemic slowing down people’s lives and clearing more time for them to reflect and the reboot of social movements like Black Lives Matter following the George Floyd incident, there seems to be a genuine interest in diverse voices."
Madeline Tyner, Librarian, University of Wisconsin-Madison

She believes nonprofits like We Need Diverse Books also played an important role in changing the perception of American people towards diversity.

She said, “Their 2016 online hashtag #WeNeedDiverseBooks campaign not only made schools and libraries more aware of the need and demand for more diverse representation when it comes to children's books but also pushed the publishing industry in the US towards a major transition.”

The numbers show a sharp leap in the publication of children's books featuring Indian culture and written by Indian American authors.

In 2008, based on CCBC data, out of 3,000 books, 98 featured Asian stories of which only two books were published with Indian American protagonists written by Indian American authors. Since then the way CCBC collects data has undergone a change. In 2021, out of 3,356 children's books, 351 featured Asian subjects. Of these, the number of books on Indian subjects is right at the top (67). As of creators, in 2021, 73 books had an Indian author or illustrator.

Increase in Representation of Indian Americans

Tyner said, "Compared to other Asian countries and ethnicities, books about India and Indian people are well represented now."

For their best-of-the-year list, Tyner stated that they included several books about Indian American characters including LaRocca’s Red, White, and Whole. "It is a middle-grade historical novel-in-verse about an Indian American girl whose mother is diagnosed with leukaemia."

“We chose some other books, too, like American Betiya by Anuradha A Rajurkar, What Am I? by Divya Srinivasan and Supriya Kelkar’s That Thing About Bollywood. What we appreciate about them is that the characters are full, complex human beings who sometimes embrace and sometimes struggle with balancing the many facets of their identities."

'Promoting Diversity in Children's Books Fosters Empathy': Rajani LaRocca

Rajani LaRocca sounded excited about the recent award. When asked why she chose to write for children, she said, “I believe that promoting diversity in children’s literature fosters empathy in them, which is very valuable for the world. Growing up in Kentucky, I didn’t see my experiences or even someone like me in any book. When I revisited writing much later, in my forties, I wanted to bring the specifics of my experience as an immigrant.”

LaRocca attributed the increase in the demand for diverse representation to the launch of imprints by mainstream publishers looking to raise the profile of diverse voices in children’s literature like HarperCollins’ Quill Tree Books or Penguin Random House’s Kokila, as well as to independent publishers championing diverse voices like Lee and Low Books.

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Capturing the Indian American Immigrant Experience & Going Beyond Tokenism

She also pointed out the initiative of We Need Diverse Books in mentoring and providing scholarships to people of colour and getting diverse books to schools.

She said that several Indian authors and illustrators are collaborating and coalescing around children’s literature in America now, like Supriya Kelkar, Nidhi Channani, and Sandhya Prabhat. “They are doing good work and supporting each other as a tight community.”

Both Tyner and LaRocca acknowledge that the publishing industry moves rather slowly and it will still take time for books on diversity to become mainstream properly but they are hopeful for the future.

What is most interesting though is the growth of complexities in the material being published by Indian American authors. Tyner said, "The details of their culture and identity are naturally woven into their lives and the narrative. They feel like real people; not like tokens or stereotypes." There is an added focus on authentic characters and experiences.

LaRocca mentioned the uniqueness of being Indian American and an immigrant. “There is something about being an immigrant that brings a bitter-sweet feeling of being caught between two different worlds.” Her prize-winning book, Red White, and Whole bears a complex texture involving heritage, fitting-in, science, poetry, Hindu mythology, and 80s pop music.

As we celebrate her book winning an esteemed award and steep in the fuzzy feeling of what that means for the Indian American community that has embraced her writing generously, LaRocca has a special message for the grown-ups in the Indian American community.

She wants them to keep pushing for the need to encourage diversity in children’s literature but also reminds them about understanding the need to write all kinds of stories, not just those focusing on the Indian American identity because that is what will make their work more mainstream and universal.

(The author is a public policy professional based in Arlington, Massachusetts.)

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Content: Best American Science Fiction and Fantasy 2024 ToC Released

Series editor John Joseph Adams and guest editor Hugh Howey have released their selections for the Best American Science Fiction and Fantasy 2023.

From the large number of stories that series editor John Joseph Adams screened for this year’s collection, he picked the 80 best pieces (forty science fiction and forty fantasy) to submit to editor Hugh Howey for a blind reading, so that the prestige of the venues or author bylines were not a factor. (The ones Adams designated as notable are shown in a table at the link). Howey then selected 20 for publication (ten science fiction, ten fantasy.)

The book will be released on October 22, 2024.

Here is the Table of Contents with the 20 stories they thought the best.

2024 TABLE OF CONTENTS

FANTASY

  • The Ankle-Snatcher by Grady Hendrix
    from Creature Feature (Amazon Original Stories)
  • Bari and the Resurrection Flower by Hana Lee
    from Fantasy Magazine
  • The Blade and Bloodwright by Sloane Leong
    from Lightspeed
  • Bruised-Eye Dusk by Jonathan Louis Duckworth
    from Beneath Ceaseless Skies
  • Disassembling Light by Kel Coleman
    from Beneath Ceaseless Skies
  • Eye & Tooth by Rebecca Roanhorse
    from Out There Screaming edited by Jordan Peele & John Joseph Adams
  • How to Raise a Kraken in Your Bathtub by P. Djeli Clark
    from Uncanny
  • If Someone You Love Has Become a Vurdalak by Sam J. Miller
    from The Dark
  • John Hollowback and the Witch by Amal El-Mohtar
    from The Book of Witches edited by Jonathan Strahan
  • Resurrection Highway by A.R. Capetta
    from Sunday Morning Transport

SCIENCE FICTION

  • Calypso’s Guest by Andrew Sean Greer
    from Amazon Original Stories
  • Emotional Resonance by V.M. Ayala
    from Escape Pod
  • Falling Bodies by Rebecca Roanhorse
    from The Far Reaches edited by John Joseph Adams (Amazon Original Stories)
  • Form 8774-D by Alex Irvine
    from Reactor
    The Four Last Things by Christopher Rowe
    from Asimov’s
  • How It Unfolds by James S.A. Corey
    from The Far Reaches edited by John Joseph Adams (Amazon Original Stories)
  • The Long Game by Ann Leckie
    from The Far Reaches edited by John Joseph Adams (Amazon Original Stories)
  • Once Upon a Time at the Oakmont by P.A. Cornell
    from Fantasy Magazine
  • Window Boy by Thomas Ha
    from Clarkesworld
  • Zeta-Epsilon by Isabel J. Kim
    from Clarkesworld

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Content: -- -- -- / -- -- --
Site Management
In response to the screening of the arena and the illusion of the collective book
Written by: dr.
Lachen Azouz / Department of Literature and Arabic Language, Biskra
• 13
• 0
In response to (Mohammed al-Amin Bahri) and the idea of sifting the literary arena from some texts..
And the collective book delusion?
There are creative cases that have sprung up from the Facebook space.
Among the childish attempts and scribbles in youth are writers and poets that no one has heard of, and did not consider publishing, but the “popularity ” of their writing and its spread, on Facebook, has made them a serious place in the poetic and novel scene.
Many writers also put the news of their publications and we take the example of the Algerian novelist Mohamed El Amine Saidi, Rafik Jalloul, Nadia Nouacer, Ahlam El Ahmadi, Adel Belgheith, Abdelrachid Hamissi, Nahed Boukhalfa, Shehy Souad, Somaya Mubarak, Ali Dagman, Faisal El Ahmar, Jamal Khadem, Boudiaf Ashour... etc.
A writer who receives the cover plate of his book from the publishing house before it is printed and who slowly goes to the cultural sections of newspapers and literary or miscellaneous magazines puts the cover plate on the page, and in minutes he gets dozens, and then hundreds of readers familiar with his latest edition.
The spirit of interactive writing in the Facebook wall is a “new writing case ”, not only that the Facebook pages include writing, but the murals themselves are written in the language of intersecting text, and what gives them vitality - and thus makes the recipient more interactive - also written, in JavaScript, just orders and physical symbols to know how to operate, the idea of   literary writing differed, is no longer the final result of chasing and mysterious inspiration, in isolation, It is a calm, but also an available inspiration, soon within an inch, and a mechanism of reflection that unfolds in conjunction with action.
As the writing is an experiment and continuous work and the initial emptiness and emptiness, and the writer in its beginnings as a bleeding slaughter, trying in the ritual of the dream to write and grieve and be born in the ferocity of life and its brutality and even if his writings are simple or bad or in a collective book, it is not the right of anyone to quarantine what he publishes or writes, but real attempts will mature with the following readings and life experiences. Sorry there are some who try to appear as Don Quixote fighting the mills of these young people and their writings and attempts (albeit simple) claiming to sift through the literary arena from them and their mediocrity?
Who gave you custody?
Who authorized you to sentence their texts to death?
But do these critics have an intellectual backlash and an imbalance in their perceptions?
And just to remind of these preachers who was a young student and was not aware of anything in science, arts and literature, but was met with severe rebuke from his professors and then come a time and try to destroy the hopes of these young people to stand out is only and say his only concern to make media pops to appear as a hero knight?..
I say: There are reading committees in publishing houses and they are to take care of you and take your hands, O creative writers you have the full right to publish your texts and are creative attempts need to be careful and sober and decipher the first writings are the first but not the last, an experimental subjective stage will mature and integrate with real human experiences and continuous knowledge. The water of open writing, there are those who try to sow frustration and yearning for disappointments.
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Content: "Cultural content on social media".
Seminar at the Bibliotheca Alexandrina International Book Fair
Friday ، 26 July 2024 02: 21 PM
Alexandria Library
Alexandria Jacqueline Mounir
Leave a comment and read the comments of the readers.
The BA organized a seminar entitled “Cultural Content on Social Media ” as part of the Cultural Program of the 19th Bibliotheca Alexandrina International Book Fair, with the participation of content makers Islam Wahban, journalist at Ilama Dot.com, founder of Wahban Library, Tamer Abdou Amin, content writer at Cairo 24, Haitham El-Sayed, content maker and children ’ s story writer, presented by Yasmin Abdallah.
Islam Wahban explained that he sought to connect people with reading through social media, in addition to creating a space between the reader, the publisher and the writer through the launch of an interactive reading group that includes all parties and contains competitions and activities that encourage reading and carry constructive criticism of the published works.
Wahban said that anyone running a cultural platform should follow events on a daily basis and work to produce new ideas that encourage reading and that may result in the emergence of new writers on the scene since every new writer is originally a reader.
Tamer Abdo Amin said that social media platforms may reveal cultural talents, but it is not possible to be certain that all those who appear on social media possess the talent.
He pointed out that a person who has a certain hobby such as writing or reading should continue to practice it daily, even for an hour each day, explaining that continuity and repetition are what contributes to the development of talent and the discovery of weaknesses in each person.
In turn, Haitham Al-Sayed explained that he discovered through directing his content to children that the most important part in dealing with them is participation and away from the use of power without creating space for discussion and understanding, and pointed to the importance of enhancing the abilities of children and discovering their talents without controlling their choices based on convictions that may not be in line with technological development.
As for the beginning of his experience in storytelling and writing stories for children, he said, I found my mother and father helping children and teaching them, and this is what I inherited from them, and I was filling my car with books and stories and moving them to distribute them to young people in my village.

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Content: Chairman of the Board of Directors and Editors
I'm sorry.
Mohamad Elbaz
Editor-in-Chief
Wael Lotfy
Chairman of the Board of Directors and Editors
I'm sorry.
Mohamad Elbaz
Editor-in-Chief
Wael Lotfy
Novelist Asma Hashim reveals the reasons for absence, distance and the motives of writing
The novelist Asma Hashim is a world of very special narrative regarding the subtraction, flavor and uniqueness..
In her writing, she smells the smell of the South, the daughter of the city, which is open to the cultures of the world with a vision that seeks to dig deep into the depths of the Egyptian and Arab content with its disappointments and aesthetics, as well as its extent consistent with the dream and glow of a writer who knew the taste of difference when she won her first award from the newspaper "Akhbar al-Adab" in the last millennium.
Specifically the nineties of the last century predicted by all critics and writers uniqueness and merit not compatible with this marginalization and distance writing from the world of deep aesthetic narrative years ago, is Asma the one who asks about this dimension, ignoring or that the writer does not acknowledge and do not recognize but do not submit to these nonsense as stated in this dialogue to the Constitution.
• The beginning of Asma Hashem Asma imposed itself with the privacy and uniqueness of the worlds presented by its few texts in the nineties, why all this absence?
(Every time I face the question of where you are I get confused and elude the question and the interlocutor and move away to a distant point related to my relationship with the place I left, often I generalize the reasons misleading my interlocutor between many paths, now I desire to search loudly for the answer to this question I will try to write in detail to invalidate what a friend described me that I am not like sardines who can talk and gossip Answer in more detail whenever possible.
In the 1990s I started writing and I started writing while living there in my village of Aswaniya where the harsh geography and culture of tribal teachings formed the first formulation and true version of the character of this remote place.
I was immersed in this place and living the details of this culture, but the changes that took place in my consciousness made me stand at a distance from him to see his image and re-evaluate these details, my kite was the first attempt that crossed the place and launched from this remote spot.
I remember that all the stories I had written and sent from my village post office were published in all the spaces dedicated to spreading creativity.
My name printed in newspapers and magazines and my later photos were the first booster to continue flying.
I was the pride of the family and of the forgotten village like thousands of remote villages.
I did not write from an area of hostility to my community that I dealt with in a pure spirit of love, those who rejoiced to see my name printed in the newspaper how happy they would be when everyone saw their lives when they knew them.
Tell us about the few years you continued to write after finishing college and before getting married.
The marriage was a separation between two stages I did not understand the difference between them well so I did not take care and did not have precautions to ensure that I continue to write, let me tell you about one of the details of my village, which is clashing with the reasons for my absence.
(The girls of my village, for example, were with the female blooming stage wearing a transparent colored veil that does not cover the head as much as it reveals the beauty of the braids of the hair under that transparent.
The transparent veil was as a declaration that the girl reached the age of marriage after marriage, replacing the transparent colored veil with a black one and continuing the process of hiding the braids covered by Bayshab may allow the existence of colored inscriptions for newlyweds and not only that, but continue the process of concealment to fall on her body completely black clothes changed the names of these costumes and remained the only undeveloped idea is to hide this object that became one man.
I believe that what happened to me was inseparable from this process of concealment, my absence from the scene coincided with my marriage in the same year that I published my first novel, The Indicator of Zero, 2002. I married in the same year, I did not celebrate its publication.
I had to get rid of the books that carry the gifts of my friends, their letters and pictures with them in the few events I participated in.
I had to deny being a writer and settle for my job description, my social description, several practices that set two lines on which to walk the house and the job.
Two lines I hid between them in a deliberate concealment in which the parents who were the source of support for me before, no one did justice to me in my battle to continue to launch my kite, which was fluttering in the colors of iris..
I lost my battle early and was imprisoned within the duties of wife and mother.
Are you the one who put yourself in this situation?
(I don ’ t deny that I have contributed some percentage to my continued incarceration, I am sick with the idea of succeeding where I am.
I was dedicated to the new role of wife and mother to achieve the highest degree of success according to the criteria he set.
This dedication contributed to the completion of the cycle of concealment and indulged in daily details and social relations and of course problems that exhausted a great deal of my soul was on Somayeh (the hero of the index at zero) who had a different spirit until she tampered with the tribal pedigree records to allow others to enter the tribe. Laila blames me and started drawing me exit plans in her own way, which opened the way for others to inspire me to re-scribble paper.
I opened my window on Facebook, opened an account with my name and posted an old photo of me.
My last picture was ten years ago, and I didn ’ t mean to, but I didn ’ t have any pictures of my absence, as if I had intended not to see me in anything I didn ’ t like.
Asma Hashem continues: “On the networking site I was stumbling like a beginner, I realized that I had lost a lot of my ability to communicate.
I spent months behind my window afraid of clashing with a comment or even Ike.
What scared me the most was the approach of an old friend through private messages to ask me where are you?!
_ Asma is writing a love story The title of the group that you returned to the square again Was the title a declaration of your existence?
(I wrote the stories of Asma writing a love story at intervals when Somayeh succeeded in drawing the exit plan I hid my papers under the pillow and in the drawers I used to take them out in my few free times after I finished my jobs outside the house and finished my homework at home and after my youngest children slept I would sneak them out and write.
I had to repair my soul and force the fractures of the wings of my kite was not a suitable title other than this to get rid of the state of concealment other than a title combining my name and the act of writing.
I think I succeeded in choosing the title that links my name to writing to face everyone and continue to fight for my name and writing.
And did you achieve that?
(What preoccupied me after Asma ’ s group writing a love story was to continue the act of writing and my novel was the hustle and bustle of the abandoned palace issued with this dedication, “The glow of creativity that left me how to keep you burning, ” I kept the glow of creativity, but I remained in the state of concealment / absence until I disappeared the unbridled Farida who made the hustle of the abandoned palace in a third of the novel.
She disappeared or hid it and perhaps killed it as a sin.
I think I need more writing and writing to get rid of the shadow of a heavy absence on my soul.
How do you evaluate the scene in light of its handling of your texts?
The scene is packed with many writings and writers who are good at promoting their work.
They can become stars in moments with a series of actions that exploit modern technology and means of communication.
These attract many readers as well as the writers of the Rivot, who in turn attract the attention of some critics who do not have time to discover a new book and writings.
I am the queen of remote areas (I write from their homes) from my own space behind the screen of my device and I deal with the cultural environment from behind the screen of my device.
I don't think our cultural milieu welcomes people like me.
What do you see in the writings of your generation, especially in the last ten years?
(After returning to writing again, I discovered dozens of names that are being written, experiments that have been achieved and others that continue.
The circle has widened a lot, no longer limited to the comrades of the nineties generation, which was our acquaintance with pages of literature and criticism or news of literature, the windows have multiplied and Facebook pages have become private and independent windows offering every day new names I can not remember most of them.
After returning to writing again I had an intense hunger to learn new random reading experiences that lost me a lot of my time and spoiled my mood for days.
Now I don ’ t have time to waste, so I ’ m using friend nominations.
Nothing has changed other than the creative experience accumulated by some because of his continuity, the new methods used by some to promote his writings.
Names gleaned by awards and writings that are quickly extinguished.
Why did the awards, their committees and judges ignore you?
(I was gone for ten years, when I returned I was amazed by the fever of awards that afflicted so many.
Some are writing for a prize!
I didn ’ t think about the awards at the time of my return as much as I was concerned that the glow of creativity kept burning inside me.
Even when my last collection of stories competed for a prize and didn ’ t get one, I wasn ’ t busy looking for reasons why the prize went to another job.
I do not have the slightest sense of injustice and it is mostly due to the taste of the jury and perhaps other reasons that do not concern my writing and do not ignite me.

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Content: PAN Jingying: Writing diary self-excavation also practice pen
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Name: Pan Jingying
Age: 26
Occupation: Journalist
Born: Singapore
The evening newspaper news brought me a lot of shock, many social features I have never seen, contact with a variety of people and things, feel a deeper understanding and connection to this land.
Q: Short stories have had a glorious era, Chekhov, Maupassant, Flannery O'Connor, Raymond Carver to Alice Monroe, Chinese modern novels also began with short stories, Lu Xun, Shen Congwen, Zhang Ailing... today seems to have been transformed into the hunting rifle of the literary prize competition, with standard distance and mechanized procedures.
What is the style of a short story to you?
A: I feel that the essence of short stories has not changed, and I have always believed that writing is to record people and things of all ages.
Now the network is developed, the variety of entertainment has enriched our lives, but also cultivate impatient people, reading is time and energy.
I also often face such a problem, when reading mobile phone if there is a new message or consultation, will immediately click to reply or watch.
Perhaps for people who take writing seriously, it seems that there is still a platform for literary prizes.
So the motivation of writing is greatly reduced, which indirectly leads to the diversification of writing styles and becomes formatted.
I still think that short stories are suitable for the current environment, and short stories seem to have both advantages compared to the emotion invested in long stories and the limitations of flash novels.
I ’ ve been a little caught up in the charm of short stories lately, and when I was in college, I had plenty of time to spend days reading novels.
Now after work, the short story is more in line with the work of the office worker, as a bedtime reading, or reading on the bus, can be achieved in one go, both to satisfy curiosity, but also to think deeply.
Relatively stable soil to explore the human heart
Q: Once upon a time there was political censorship and literary factionalism, but now the writing environment seems calm and there is more space (such as the Internet) to publish, is this kind of freedom and freedom, the best time for writing?
A: Every era will face the problems of that era, and I am longing for cyberspace.
I also follow many authors from social media on Instagram, such as Zhang Xi, Immortal, etc., who accurately grasp the sentimental side of modern people, and write a reflection on the city or personal life in the social media that is updated almost every day.
Or the rise of booktuber / booktok in the West in recent years are encouraging phenomena, precisely because of this group of people who love reading and continue to export, rekindle the momentum of a new generation of reading, or make reading a "very trendy" thing, expanding the readership.
In our time there is no political censorship or literary factional struggle, but there is also the freedom to experiment (whether the reader buys or not).
When we went to Huang Kai De's creative class in college that year, we tried various writing methods, including the creation of pictures and texts, the creation of lyrics, and two or three small poems.
On this relatively stable soil, I remember the East and West teacher once said that we can only explore the human heart more deeply to write, and I am also trying to explore.
A: Because I like Chinese? Ha ha ha! That's why I chose to enter the Chinese Department, but writing in Chinese seems to be a natural thing. Maybe all my friends and family around me use Chinese to communicate.
But you also want to record something.
Reading is dominated by female writers.
A: I am an incompetent reader!
It seems that I have not read too many works, if I say that the recent works are more impressive, or Elena Ferrante's Naples Four, the portrayal of women is very impressive, and the mind-set depiction of female friendship is incisive, both jealous and encouraging, the interweaving of two girls' growth trajectories, to female desire as a means of controlling fate, and the violence suffered by the body, etc.
I like Elif Shafak, a Turkish writer whose stories are mostly about marginal figures in Turkish society, mostly written from a female perspective, with dead prostitutes on the streets, mothers killed in honor of their sons, etc. Issues of identification.
Q: Do you have any writing plans?
A: There is no specific writing plan, but I am sticking to a daily diary, whether it is writing at length or scrawling a few words.
It is a process of self-exploration and reflection, and it is also an opportunity to practice writing, and sometimes the work can not give me enough time to write quietly.
After reading the diary for a long time, there are always many surprises, including some of the emotions I can not accurately describe at the moment, suddenly have a clear outline, let me think of writing.
The evening newspaper news brought me a lot of shock, many social features I have never seen, contact with a variety of people and things, feel a deeper understanding and connection to this land.
But the timeliness of news, coupled with the impact of social media, we must keep up with the rapid changes in information.
This kind of fast-paced news reporting and writing is conflicted, so all I can do is record it on my phone when the idea is flashed, wait until I take a vacation and dig it out to see if I can get back what I felt at the time and write what I wrote.
Often, it is impossible to finish the beginning.
The new year, new hope, with a small partner to move forward, seems to be able to continue to write.
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Content: Multiple activities for women and students
Events accompanying the « Sharjah Book » attract the family
The Sharjah International Book Fair offers accompanying events, including a cooking corner, a training workshop corner, and a social media station, which witnessed a large turnout of visitors, through its various activities suitable for women and students.
The Culinary Corner hosts “Shiven ” daily to present the culinary arts and respond to the inquiries of the attendees, while the Workshop Corner offers a series of training lectures for students on the innovation of robots and scientific experiments, while the Social Media Station hosts a number of pioneers of communication platforms to shed light on their experiences and the mechanisms of successful dealing with these means.
The workshop provides many lectures for visiting students and children, in order to support the educational curricula and provide them with the opportunity to engage in the field of creative manufacturing and technical thinking, through the workshops ’ practical training on building robots.
Among the four workshops at the exhibition, the workshop "Making Art with Robots" presented the idea of integrating technical tools and making robots with art by introducing the participating children to the scientific installation group known as "WeDo 2.0".
The workshop, organized by the company « Art Robotics », provided an opportunity to learn the use of the scientific group, and employ it to build a simple robot, and the possibility of programming it according to the designs of various geometric shapes « Spirograph », and drawing them on paper.
The trainer works in the workshop with the participation of the students present to provide the LEGO educational pieces, with some engines and other pieces, and then start to implement a design of a robot, linking circular motion and linear motion, to be able to draw overlapping and repetitive shapes with precision, which makes the idea more like an entrance to the science of mechanics and movement, but with a practical character that is fun and suitable for the target age group.
The technical expert, Ahmed Zarouni, through a lecture delivered at the social networking station, said that the information is many, multiple and useful, and therefore everyone needs three basic information, different needs, as what matters to the person follow books and see a brief overview of each book, in addition to the presence of channels on « YouTube » and « Telegram » remember the advantages of each book and encourage readers to buy, and circulation that contributes to reach books to a large segment of readers. Also, the author and writer can view their books through social media without the need for a publisher.
He stressed that social media platforms can be exploited in a way that contributes to the circulation of useful knowledge among the public interested in them, and to confront the wrong ideas.
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Content: A culture
Date published: 29 January 2022 10: 52 GMT
Updated on: January 29, 2022 11: 25 GMT
The Arab Writer and the Digital Revolution
The end of the age of stardom
In the recent past, the popularity of the Arab poet or writer was determined by the field events that were organized for him in his country or in one of the Arab capitals, or by the interest of the Arab world.
+ A -A
Source: Hossam Marouf - Eram News
In the recent past, the popularity of the Arab poet or writer was determined by the field events that were organized for him in his country or in one of the Arab capitals, or by the public interest in any radio or television interview held with him.
The sales made by the Arab writer remained a secret kept by the publisher, even the writer himself is not aware of it.
In the 1980s, when the late Palestinian poets Mahmoud Darwish and the Syrian Nizar Qabbani were holding an evening in Beirut, Yemen, Egypt or Syria, the hall containing the evening was packed with audiences eager to listen to the two famous stars; due to the long absence of eyes and the lack of television interviews for both, we find the mass rally for any occasion they are present, reached its peak. Number of attendees for several thousand.
Digital Area
Today, the popularity of the Arab writer is measured by his followings on social media sites and the likes he gets on these platforms.
In the digital age, a writer has to create accounts on these sites, which have become one of the hotspots around which people rally.
These platforms have become places to publish new poems, or excerpts of them for poets, as well as places to display paragraphs from novels for most Arab novelists as a form of marketing for the work.
This digital space is also used to advertise the author ’ s new books, and even consult the creators for the audience on the titles of new poetry collections, novels, and cover designs.
The writer began to receive congratulations and congratulations on his new release, by his followers and friends, as soon as the publication of his book was announced.
Digital Celebrity
This is one of the advantages of these sites, that they achieved the digital fame of the Arab writer, and increased the number of followers from other countries, from various parts of the world.
But this repeated case of digital friction, shortened the writer ’ s presence in a place that does not seem real, as the field has another opinion, we find that the writer mobilizes fans and admirers from areas that are often geographically far from where he lives, and when he goes to the field to sign a collection of poetry or a novel, surprised by the number of attendance less than expected, and maybe not more than 20 people, so where have gone hundreds who follow him on digital sites?
An illusion.
These justifications have achieved a new state of diffusion for the Arab writer, as close to being fictitious, as the digital diffusion, expressed by likes and different digital feelings, is basically not expressing the real interest of the follower.
This may overlap with the idea of   like versus like, most of the writer ’ s followers on social media, follow a future interest in the professionalism of writing, and it is strange in the modern reality, resulting from the digital revolution, that most Arab readers aspire to a career in writing.
So, the writer ’ s equation is tied to reciprocity, otherwise...
This means that these platforms have achieved a deceptive sufficiency for the writer, and made him ecstatic with the number of likes and followings, but in fact he finds the exact opposite.
A vacuum.
This shift in the context of the popularity of the Arab writer, made his star more like an air balloon, exploding with ease, and find what is inside a vacuum.
This stardom is no longer comparable to that of Mahmoud Darwish, Ahmed Matar, Ansi al-Haj, Nizar Qabbani, Adonis and other Arab creators.
Darwish led the intellectual cause of the Palestinian people, and succeeded in mobilizing millions of audiences in the Arab world and the world, as he achieved sales of one million books, translated his poetry into 22 languages, and was considered the poet of the Palestinian revolution.
As well as Nizar Qabbani succeeded in reaching a wide public through his vibrant poetry and political positions remarkable, and his support for women, as Ahmed Matar and Muzaffar al-Nawab, prominent political positions, which made their fame more widespread..
If Darwish had existed in the digital age, would he have been so popular?
Isolation.
The difference in this orbit is related to a contemporary pattern of behavior that pushes one towards isolation, the poet in the age of Facebook, used to acquire his positive feelings from the comments of followers and friends, and became indifferent to the problems of reality, and appeared in the contemporary generation of art and literature, a tendency of subjectivity and individualism.
Under an intellectual democracy achieved on social media, everyone has the right to write his opinion as he pleases, and this exempted the writer from the responsibility of leading the masses towards a social position, or a political demand, as in the past, Marx was able to lead the masses to revolt against the bourgeoisie in Russia and Europe.
The writer himself became convinced that his opinion is only one opinion among the millions on active digital platforms, when a few are angry at an event, the writer can not make this number double, his opinion is only one number and no more.
Sociologist Emil Durkheim said, “Only public anger works, ” since social obsession and change are no longer a priority for today ’ s poets and writers as much as passing on subjective experience, a collective global orientation towards knowledge.
And changed social networking sites, to reduce the prestige of the former writer, where the digital friction between the writer and his followers, a regular, removed the barriers between the follower eager for the beauty inherent in the writer's spirit; because of the near-daily friction, and perhaps enter the message box and exchange talk with him, which was not available in the past.
One of them might have fainted just because she saw Nizar Qabbani up close or greeted him, and therefore the contemporary writer lacks all the reasons that made the writer in the past a star, possessing the influential word, and therefore the opinion of the Arab writer turned into a mere number among millions of opinions.
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Content: Sections
Internet Web services Internet advertising
OK will allocate more than 100 million impressions for the program of support of new authors
The social network Odnoklassniki announced the launch of a winter program to support new authors - each participant of the program will receive from 200 thousand impressions of their content for the development of the group in OK.
Thus, new authors in the social network will have the opportunity to collect the first loyal subscriber base in their groups and communities and immediately increase the coverage of their publications.
Those authors who maintain their pages in other social networks with an audience of at least 1 thousand subscribers and want to develop their group in OK will be able to apply for participation.
The blog of the participant should be from any proposed category: from lifestyle to fashion or finance.
You can apply on a special website of the program until December 31, 2022.
Within 14 days, the social network team will check the application of each candidate, after which it will send a notification with the result of the verification and the decision to participate in the program.
In order to get into the program, you must have a decorated group in OK, as well as regularly publish content and follow the rules of group content in OK.
After the approval of the application, the participant will receive educational materials in personal messages to the OK with instructions for promoting his group in the social network and tips for engaging the audience.
This will help new authors to navigate the site more easily and create a content plan taking into account the specifics of the OK algorithms.
As a result, this will make it possible to more effectively manage the attracted audience and the 200 thousand impressions received within the framework of the program.
The new program will complement the opportunities already working in the social network for the growth and promotion of authors.
In May, Odnoklassniki presented a clever algorithm for supporting authors, Lightning, which selects the best new groups in OK and helps them increase the coverage of publications and get the first subscribers.
Also, there are two types of monetization in OK that help authors earn on their content without restrictions: both in video format and in any other content in the news feed of the social network.

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Content: Russian Federation
Moscow
-5 °
Smart Things6 December 2022 12: 37
VKontakte summed up the results of the content platform
In 2022, the authors earned a record 4 billion rubles, and the views of the tape increased by 30%
Every year, VKontakte shares the results of the year on various topics
The social network sums up the results of 2022 and tells about monetization on the platform, popular topics and new authors - the total number of active author public has crossed the mark of 1.9 million.
In total, more than 6.3 billion pieces of content were published by users.
Marina Krasnova, CEO of VKontakte:
“This year was a record year for VKontakte: our audience exceeded 100 million monthly active users.
Since January 1, users have watched 251 billion meters of the tape - it's like 6263 times around the Earth at the equator.
We see tremendous activity of authors and support their creativity with great joy: we simplify rules for communities, improve monetization tools.
The high involvement of the audience in the updated services and products of VKontakte motivates us to rapidly develop and provide a wide range of tools for self-expression, promotion and increase the income of content creators. ”
Author 's platform: content creation and consumption
This year, VKontakte spoke about the global update of the design of the tape and communities with a focus on bright media content, the individuality of the authors and quick access of the audience to information.
Thus, the social network helps authors to deliver content even more effectively and attract new subscribers.
In 2022, more than 6.3 billion pieces of content were published on the platform: posts, clips, articles, videos, music and other formats.
Thanks to the development of recommendations and increased audience involvement, the number of views of the tape increased by 30%.
VKontakte communities are actively developing: today there are more than 1.9 million active author groups on the social network.
Over the past year, the number of new communities increased by 10%, and the number of user subscriptions – by 28%.
The fastest growing communities were in the categories of psychology, fashion, design, science and medicine, photography, art, dance, music, bloggers.
VKontakte summed up the results of the content platform
Throughout the year, the VKontakte team supported authors, providing more and more opportunities for comfortable creativity, development and monetization of content.
For example, the platform launched the largest program to support authors.
In November and December, within the framework of the large-scale game “Coupon for Random ”, 10 million rubles for promotion are raffled between the authors of the communities.
The social network also launched a series of events for content creators and introduced new community rules that simplified the development of public relations and the monetization of author ’ s content.
Monetization tools: affiliate program and VK Donut
In 2022, VKontakte continued to develop opportunities for content monetization.
For this year, the total income of administrators of VKontakte communities amounted to 4 billion rubles, and the revenue growth of public users using official monetization tools increased by 87% compared to last year.
The basis for this was the partnership program for authors: its participants regularly receive deductions from user views of advertising records in public and news feeds.
This year, the content monetization program began to take into account the views of stories and clips for the first time.
The total earnings of the communities participating in the affiliate program this year increased by 65%, and the record income of the VKontakte public amounted to more than 2 million rubles per month.
Another useful tool for authors in 2022 was the VK Donut monetization platform.
With its help, VKontakte users can always provide financial support to their favorite project or subscribe to regular donations, and the authors can thank in return with exclusive materials, closed promotions or early access to works that have not yet been published.
Following the results of 2022:
- the total amount of donations increased 2.5 times compared to last year - up to 383 million rubles;
- the number of public relations with VK Donut increased by 52%;
- The number of donor-subscribers who financially support authors increased by 81%.
Every day, VKontakte unites millions of content creators.
Authors lead and develop communities, find their audience and share videos, clips, music, photos, podcasts, stories.
The social network team develops algorithms for promoting content in the feed and recommendations, and the authors are helped by an affiliate program, VK Donut and other tools.
Every year, VKontakte shares the results of the year on various topics: music, movies and TV shows, games, memes, technology and others.
This year they are collected in a special section vk.com / 2022, to publish the results of the team Vkontakte will be throughout December.

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Content: Westland Books invites submissions for speculative fiction anthology

NewsDrum Desk
New Update

New Delhi, Jul 31 (PTI) Publishing house Westland Books has invited submissions from budding and established writers of speculative fiction for an anthology of new writing.

The entries, to be curated by author Guatam Bhatia, are to be in the format of short stories (2,000–8,000 words) and novelettes (8,000–20,000 words). The selected works will be published in Westland's new imprint 'IF'.

"When the editors at Westland and I discussed the scope of this anthology, we thought of it as a showcase for the breadth and diversity of Indian SF. We are looking for new stories as well as new voices—from writers old and new. I'm really looking forward to reading the submissions and curious about what the anthology will look like," said Bhatia in a statement.

The winners will be awarded Rs 12,500 for each accepted short story (to a limit of 10 short stories) and Rs 25,000 for each selected novelette (to a limit of three novelettes).

"We are keen to build IF as a home for exciting new writing in the realm of speculative fiction, and this anthology is an attempt to broaden and deepen the list with fresh writing from established as well as first-time writers. We could not have asked for a sharper and more committed editor than Gautam Bhatia to curate the anthology, which we hope to publish in early 2025," said Karthika VK, publisher of Westland Books. PTI MG MAH MAH

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Content: Pixel Scroll 5/15/23 It’s More Like A Big Ball Of Wibbly-Wobbly, Pixelly-Scrolly Stuff

(1) WRITERS STRIKE: MORE THOUGHTS ON AI. Justine Bateman tweeted this warning for SAG-AFTRA members:

(2) FREE HWA AI WEBINAR. The Horror Writers Association will host a free webinar on May 15 about what AI means for the future of writing and publishing to help writers understand the facts and realities of what AI does and what it might accomplish in the future. Register here: “Artificial Intelligence and Writing — What AI Means for the Future of Fiction Writing and Publishing”. James Chambers will be leading the panel, joined by Colleen Anderson, CW Briar, R Leigh Hennig, Matthew Kressel, John Edward Lawson, Angela Yuriko Smith, and Leonard Speiser.

AI and WRITING PANEL UPDATE: Greetings! This Monday, May 15, at 8 p.m. ET, the HWA’s Horror University Online program will sponsor a FREE panel discussion about Artificial Intelligence and Writing. This panel is open to all. You don’t have to be an HWA member to attend.

I’ll be leading a group of seven people who bring a wide range of experience and knowledge as authors, editors, organizers in the horror community, publishers, and technology experts to this conversation. We will discuss what artificial intelligence is, how it works, its limitations, how it might change, and how it might affect writing and publishing. Our goal for the discussion is to provide information and insight for writers, editors, and publishers as a springboard for further conversation and understanding and to help them navigate evolving technology so that it does not ever diminish the work of human writers.

The genesis of this panel came a few months back when I heard a lot of chatter online, in the news, and in my writing groups about AI and what this technology means for writers. The sincere anxiety and uncertainty expressed in those conversations made me think the HWA’s Horror University Online could be a good platform to open a fact-based conversation to address these very real concerns and help people wrap their heads around it.

Likewise, I thought, it would be a good forum in which to discuss what the future might hold because, whether we like it or not, we must now work in a world where AI exists. How can human writers, editors, and publishers avoid AI pitfalls? What should we expect on the business side of our industry, such as changes to contract language, submission guidelines, and so on? What are elements of AI we must watch most closely to protect what we do as writers, editors, and publishers? These are just some of the things our panel will discuss.

Among of the core missions of the HWA and Horror University are to support writers, help them develop and improve, help them succeed, share knowledge, and build community. This panel is aligned with those goals. I encourage everyone interested to register at the link below. We will be taking questions during the panel. Even if you can’t attend the live session, you may access the recording.

(3) FIYAH GRANTS. FIYAH Literary Magazine is taking applications for its Grants. Full details at the link.

The FIYAH Literary Magazine Grant Series is intended to assist Black writers of speculative fiction in defraying costs associated with honing their craft.

The series includes three $1,000 grants to be distributed annually based on a set of submission requirements. All grants with the exception of the Emergency Grant will be issued and awarded as part of Juneteenth every year. The emergency grant will be awarded twice a year in $500 amounts.

(4) NAVARRO SHARES EXPERIENCES. The Horror Writers Association continues its thematic Q&A series: “Celebrating Our Elders: Interview with Yvonne Navarro”.

Do you think you’ve encountered ageism? If so, how do you counteract or deal with it?

Yes, I do. Thanks to self-publishing, younger authors will accept a shamefully lower amount of money for books while older, experienced authors still want to be decently paid for their work. Recently, a younger writer with less experience in a certain media tie-in universe in which I have worked extensively was chosen over me for a project. Unless someone has a mystical wand, I don’t see any way to fight this

(5) ABOUT PTSD. Francis Hamit says, “This is the best, most comprehensive article about PTSD I have ever read:  This is a condition that I’ve suffered from most of my life and, based upon observation I think that many people in Fandom are also afflicted.   Others in Fandom are unkind and go out of their way to make PTSD worse.” “Understanding PTSD in Security Professionals: Unveiling the Impact and Effective Approaches for Support and Recovery” at Security Guards.

PTSD Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is a mental health condition that can develop in individuals who have experienced or witnessed a traumatic event. It is a complex disorder that affects the mind and body, causing significant distress and impairing daily functioning. In this article, we will explore the key aspects of PTSD, including its causes, symptoms, diagnosis, and treatment options….

(6) THE HOLE TRUTH. At Speculiction, Jesse Hudson is ready to send for the coroner: “Tailspin: The Decline of Hulu’s The Handmaid’s Tale Series”.

…A lot of shows have plot holes, and The Handmaid’s Tale is no exception. I will not go into detail here. But I will say that they are coming faster and with more frequency. Where Atwood’s novel (aka Season 1) is a tightly wound tale in a finite setting whose pieces fit nicely together, each subsequent season frays this rope. Where characters once acted and behaved according to the personalities Atwood established, they begin to deviate in ways that seem more plot-serving than character-oriented. The show’s writers need to get Person A from point 1 to 2, so they introduce situation X, a situation that goes beyond the limits of the world already established (i.e. plot hole). Or they introduce decision point Y, which keeps the wheels of plot moving but don’t seem true to character or setting. I read a shit-ton of books. I am a forgiving person in plot-hole land. But the series has become too much. It has lost touch with the ground it grew from and now floats in the sky above, the ground only in sight. Nothing is interesting when everything is possible…

(7) MEMORY LANE.

1984[Compiled by Cat Eldridge.]

This novel was published by Bantam the same year R.A. MacAvoy won the Astounding Award for Best New Writer. I’m very fond of her as she would write The Black Dragon series, Tea with the Black Dragon and Twisting the Rope.

Our Beginning this Scroll is from the first novel of the Damiano series and it too is called Damiano.  It was published by Bantam Books in 1984 with the cover illustration by Jim Burns.

It is a fantastic series and the Beginning which follows gives you a taste of what this novel and the series as a whole is like. So let’s get started…

A string buzzed against his fingernail; the finger itself slipped, and the beat was lost. Damiano muttered something that was a bit profane.

“The problem isn’t in your hand at all. It’s here,” said Damiano’s teacher, and he laid his ivory hand on the young man’s right shoulder. Damiano turned his head in surprise, his coarse black ringlets trailing over the fair skin of that hand. He shifted within his winter robe, which was colored like a tarnished brass coin and heavy as coins. The color suited Damiano, whose complexion was rather more warm than fair.

“My shoulder is tight?” Damiano asked, knowing the answer already. He sighed and let his arm relax. His fingers slid limply across the yew-wood face of the liuto that lay propped on his right thigh. The sleeve of the robe, much longer than his arm and banded in scarlet, toppled over his wrist. He flipped the cloth up with a practiced, unconscious movement that also managed to toss his tangle of hair back from his face. Damiano’s hand, arm, and shoulder were slim and loosely jointed, as was the rest of him.

“Again?” he continued. “I thought I had overcome that tightness months ago.” His eyes and eyelashes were as soft and black as the woolen mourning cloth that half the women of the town wore, and his eyes grew even blacker in his discouragement. He sighed once more.

Raphael’s grip on the youth tightened. He shook him gently, laughing, and drew Damiano against him. “You did. And you will overcome it again and again. As many times as it crops up. As long as you play the instrument. As long as you wear flesh.”

Damiano glanced up. “As long as I … Well, in that case may I fight my problem a good hundred years! Is that why you never make mistakes, Seraph? No flesh?” His toothy smile apologized for the witticism even as he spoke it. Without waiting for an answer, he dropped his eyes to the liuto and began to play, first the treble line of the dance, then the bass line, then both together.

Raphael listened, his eyes quiet, blue as lapis. His hand still lay on Damiano’s shoulder, encouraging him. Raphael’s great glistening wings twitched slightly with the beat of the music. They caught the cloudy daylight and sent pearly glints against the tiles of the wall.

Damiano played again, this time with authority, and smoothly passed the place where he had to change the meter—two strokes, very fast, plucked by the middle finger. When he was done, he looked up, his face flushed with success, his lower lip red because he’d been biting down on it.

(8) TODAY’S BIRTHDAYS.

[Compiled by Cat Eldridge.]

  • Born May 15, 1856 L. Frank Baum. I adore The Wizard of Oz film and I’m betting you know that it only covers about half of the novel which is a very splendid read indeed. I’ll confess that I never read the numerous latter volumes in the Oz franchise, nor have I read anything else by him. Nor have I seen any of the later adaptations of the Oz fiction. What’s the rest of his fiction like?  There is, by the way, an amazing amount of fanfic out here involving Oz and some of it is slash which is a really, really scary idea. (Died 1919.)
  • Born May 15, 1877 William Bowen. His most notable work was The Old Tobacco Shop, a fantasy novel that was one runner-up for the inaugural Newbery Medal in 1922. He also had a long running children’s series with a young girl named Merrimeg whom a narrator told her adventures with all sorts of folkloric beings. (Died 1937.)
  • Born May 15, 1926 Anthony Shaffer. His genre screenplays were Alfred Hitchcock’s Frenzy and Robin Hardy’s The Wicker Man. Though definitely not genre, he wrote the screenplays for a number of most excellent mysteries including the Agatha Christie-based Evil Under the Sun, Death on the Nile, and Murder on the Orient Express. (Died 2001.)
  • Born May 15, 1948 Brian Eno, 75. Worth noting if only for A Multimedia Album Based on the Complete Text of Robert Sheckley’s In a Land of Clear Colors, though all of his albums have a vague SF feeling to them such as Music for Civic Recovery CentreJanuary 07003: Bell Studies for the Clock of The Long Now and Everything That Happens Will Happen Today which could the name of Culture mind ships. Huh. I wonder if his music will show up in the forthcoming Culture series?
  • Born May 15, 1955 Lee Horsley, 68. A performer who’s spent a lot of his career in genre undertakings starting with The Sword and the Sorcerer (and its 2010 sequel Tales of an Ancient Empire), horror films Nightmare ManThe Corpse Had a Familiar Face and Dismembered and even a bit of SF in Showdown at Area 51. Not sure where The Face of Fear falls as it has a cop with psychic powers and a serial killer.
  • Born May 15, 1966 Greg Wise, 57. I’m including him solely for being in Tristram Shandy: A Cock and Bull Story. It is a film-within-a-film, featuring Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon playing themselves as egotistical actors during the making of a screen adaptation of Laurence Sterne’s 18th century metafictional novel Tristram Shandy. Not genre (maybe) but damn fun.
  • Born May 15, 1971 Samantha Hunt, 52. If you read nothing else by her, do read The Invention of Everything, a might be look at the last days in the life of Nikola Tesla. It’s mostly set within the New Yorker Hotel, a great concept. I’m avoiding spoilers naturally. She’s written two other genre novels, Mr. Splitfoot and The Seas, plus a handful of stories.

(9) COMICS SECTION.

(10) MAKES YOU WONDER. “Wonder Woman’s daughter Trinity arrives in upcoming DC comic” reports Entertainment Weekly. Yeah, I’m sure you’re asking that question, too, but the article doesn’t answer it.

Wonder Woman has been a superhero, a feminist icon, and a movie star over the decades, but this year she’s going to add another title to her resume: mother.

IGN revealed on Friday that DC Comics is introducing Trinity, Wonder Woman’s daughter, in the upcoming anniversary issue Wonder Woman #800. She was created by writer Tom King and artist Daniel Sampere, who are taking over the monthly Wonder Woman comic when it relaunches with a new issue #1 this September….

(11) IT WILL TAKE YOU BY SURPRISE. Jennifer Hawthorne encourages everyone to check out this “super-cool space-themed art.” It lives up to her billing! “Astronaut sculpture from an ex-physicist” at Reddit.

(12) CSSF VIRTUAL BOOK CLUB CHOICE. The Gunn Center for the Study of Science Fiction has announced their final Virtual Book Club Event of the academic year. To join them Friday, May 19 at noon (Central) for a virtual meeting, register here.

For the month of May, the Center has chosen short story, “We Travel the Spaceways” by Victor LaValle.

Otherworldly interference in real world New York City? Or delusions? For the answer, follow two strangers in an astonishing short story of faith and hope. Grimace is a homeless man on a holy mission to free Black Americans from emotional slavery. His empty soda cans told him as much. Then he meets Kim, a transgender runaway who joins Grimace on his heroic quest. Is Grimace receiving aluminum missives from the gods, or is he a madman? Kim will find out soon enough on a strange journey they are destined to share. Available for free with Amazon Prime account.

(13) ALTERNATE MCU. CinemaBlend eavesdrops on his commencement address at USC where “Kevin Feige Talks Forks In Life And How Robert Downey Jr. Only Landed The Iron Man Role After Marvel’s ‘Top Choice’ Passed”.

The Marvel Cinematic Universe is, in great, the powerhouse that it is today due to the efforts of studio head Kevin Feige and the countless individuals who work at Marvel Studios. Of course, an actor by the name of Robert Downey Jr. deserves some credit as well, as his debut performance as Tony Stark in 2008’s Iron Man helped to propel the film to box office success. After all these years, it’s honestly hard to imagine anyone else playing the role of the mustachioed hero except for Downey. Believe it or not though, he wasn’t the studio’s “top choice” for Stark, as the other name they had in mind passed. Feige recently recalled that situation while discussing forks in life and more during a recent speech….

Oscar nominee Clive Owen is certainly a gifted actor and could’ve been an interesting choice for Tony Stark. Entertainment enthusiasts probably know him best from his performances in CloserClose My EyesSin City and more. While the notion of him playing the character is intriguing, I don’t think he could’ve brought Tony Stark the way that Robert Downey Jr. did….

… “And that is the unwritten rule of luck – not getting your first choice might just be the greatest thing that can happen. Because you know what’s better than getting your first choice, getting the right choice. In our case, of course, that was Robert Downey Jr., and the first movie we ever made as a studio ended up being one of the best reviewed and highest grossing movies of the year.”

(14) VIDEO OF THE DAY. [Item by SF Concatenation’s Jonathan Cowie.] This month’s Sci-Fi Sunday over at Isaac Arthur’s Futures YouTube channel is on “Hive Worlds”.

Science fiction often shows us dark, grimy, dystopian mega-cities in the future, but are such planet-wide cities possible, what would they be like, and how many people could they hold?

[Thanks to Michael Toman, SF Concatenation’s Jonathan Cowie, Cat Eldridge, Daniel Dern, Jennifer Hawthorne, Francis Hamit, Mike Kennedy, Andrew Porter, John King Tarpinian, and Chris Barkley for some of these stories. Title credit belongs to File 770 contributing editor of the day Randall M.]

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Content: Science Fiction Conference Concludes at Jeddah Book Fair with "Anime" and "One Thousand and One Nights"
Specialists, writers and experts discussed the most important issues during 8 sessions and workshops
Part of the sessions of the Science Fiction Conference in Jeddah
The Commission for Literature, Publishing and Translation concluded yesterday the Science Fiction Conference, which is being held for the first time in the Kingdom, coinciding with the Jeddah Book Fair, held in (Super Dome).
Through eight sessions and a workshop, specialists, writers and experts discussed a number of issues related to science fiction, fantasy and anime, in addition to global trends in the manufacture of science fiction and sound fiction books, books and novels in film and television, and a number of related topics and themes.
In the first session of the second day of the conference, entitled "Pioneers of science fiction, fantasy and anime", the participants discussed the challenges of women in writing about science fiction and the worlds of fantasy and anime, reviewing some of the difficulties they faced during writing in this art, and how they overcome them to reach what they are today. The last three.
During the second session, which was entitled "Global Trends in the Science Fiction and Audio Fiction Industry", it discussed the most important challenges facing the audiobook market, as well as ways to turn science fiction fiction into attractive audiobooks, a statistical review on the rise in the Arab world towards audio books, the presence of 8,000 Arabic audiobooks available through audio content applications, pointing to the growth of audiobooks and listeners following the Coronavirus epidemic to 400%. I have the podcast; the number of listeners in 2015, 200 million listeners; while this number increased in 2022 to reach one billion listeners of various podcast materials.
On their most prominent experiences in this field, a number of Saudi writers and authors, who enriched the content of science fiction with a number of novels that appeared on the shelves of libraries and publishing houses, talked about a number of issues and topics related to science fiction and fantasy, and explained the difference between science fiction and fantasy and the change of concepts and culture of the new generation, which has become more comprehensive.
In the fourth session, entitled "One Thousand and One Nights: The Fantasies of the Old World", intellectuals agreed on the validity and merit of keeping the novel (One Thousand and One Nights) under consideration, as it has a progressive vision of history for each creator, and that it suffers from an old and new crisis "old as texts that carry in the eyes of some, and a new crisis after being honored externally", and referring to its pivotal role in music, Video and many literary and cultural fields.
The fifth session is entitled "Books in Film and Television".
Licensing, Copyright and Production ", which deals with intellectual rights that take place between the author and the production company and are subject to contracts agreed by the parties and are not subject to certain terms.
Noting that the literary agent represents the lawyer for the author or writer of the novel, and that the Arab world is very late in appointing a literary agent; but it began to spread in the present time, and facilitate the writer to devote himself to writing without thinking about the stages of publication and others.
In a session entitled (Beyond the series "Stranger Things"), she stressed that the confident director faces all obstacles and challenges, and that imagination helps to get out of the traditional roles, but it needs a lot of training, especially in scenes of fighting, and sometimes taking risks if there is no alternative.
The session reviewed the series (Altered Carbon) and the most prominent stations and scenes that the work went through to turn it on TV, in a session entitled "Soul, Body and Memory in Science Fiction", and talk about the construction of plot, scenes and sites, fantasy works that are seen from different perspectives and locations and different images on paper, and the difference in reality in changing some events and characters, and talk about innovation in technology and moving between bodies in a quarter. A century, and the emphasis on creative things in the content until it becomes a film, and the importance of the creative crew of directors, designers and artistic vision, to put the content better; where things start small and then grow to come out to the viewer with a beautiful fantasy plot.
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Content: Storytelling for more diversity | Oasis of Culture | DW | 06.03.2022
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A new generation of writers is breaking away from Western clichés, recounting immigration and colonialism, and changing the way they view history.
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