The evolution of science fiction has been shaped by technological advancements, social changes, and diverse authors.

The genre originated from classic works like Mary Shelley's Frankenstein and H.G. Wells' The Time Machine.

Authors like Isaac Asimov and Frank Herbert expanded the genre with works like Foundation and Dune.

The 1990s emergence of cyberpunk, led by William Gibson's Neuromancer, significantly shifted science fiction to explore technology and humanity.

The genre has evolved, incorporating diverse perspectives from authors like Ursula K. Le Guin, Margaret Atwood, and Octavia E. Butler, who explore themes like social justice and dystopian futures.

Liu Cixin's novel The Three-Body Problem won the Hugo Award, introducing Chinese science fiction to a global audience.

Liu Cixin's work has popularized Chinese science fiction worldwide, influenced by the Cultural Revolution and China's scientific advancements.

Science fiction helps disseminate scientific knowledge and makes complex concepts accessible to a broader audience.

Science fiction is a global phenomenon, with authors worldwide exploring themes like artificial intelligence, space, and environmentalism.

The science fiction industry in China has grown notably, with authors like Wang Jinkang and Liu Cixin contributing to the genre.

The genre's evolution has been marked by adaptation into various forms of media, increasing its global reach and appeal.

Science fiction will likely remain a powerful tool for exploring the human condition and modern world complexities.

Scientists are using science fiction novels to simplify complex ideas and promote awareness of scientific concepts.

The future of science fiction looks promising, inspiring research, curiosity, and innovation with new authors, themes, and technologies.

The popularity of science fiction has led to growth in conferences, awards, and publications, providing a platform for authors, scientists, and fans to share ideas.

The evolution of science fiction has been shaped by technological advancements, social changes, and diverse authors.

The science fiction genre has been influenced by social and technological advancements, exploring themes like artificial intelligence and space travel.

The genre has been shaped by social and technological advancements, with influences from authors like HG Wells and diverse contributors, including women and people of color.

Women writers, including Chinese authors, have thrived in science fiction, focusing on women's issues.

The internet has removed writing barriers for non-male writers, enabling them to reach a diverse audience.

Contemporary science fiction authors use various techniques, including blending memoir and sci-fi, to build immersive worlds.

Charlie Jane Anders uses control of focus and frame to manipulate time in her narratives.

Understanding others' perspectives and accepting memory's flaws are key to rendering real people in science fiction.

History is crucial in world-building, making a story's world feel lived in.

Nnedi Okorafor's Binti series explores the intersection of technology and culture in Africanfuturistic science fiction.

Okorafor's work has expanded the scope of science fiction to include diverse perspectives and experiences.

N.K. Jemisin uses science fiction to discuss societal reality and reflect people's current fears.

Jemisin's worldbuilding challenges societal assumptions on both macro and micro levels.

Worldbuilding is essential for creating immersive worlds, involving techniques like artificial languages and mythical creatures.

Contemporary science fiction authors use diverse techniques, including genre-bending, to build immersive worlds.

Authors like Victor Manibo and Jeff VanderMeer craft mysteries within science fiction worlds.

Science fiction has become more relatable and immersive through diverse characters and world-building, reflecting the contemporary world.

Diverse casting is needed in sci-fi, as its lack implies people of color have no future.

Major franchises now feature better racial diversity and authors like Brandon Sanderson explore mental health and create relatable characters.

Sanderson's worldbuilding is precise and believable, with well-paced storytelling that keeps readers engaged.

The science fiction genre has been used to promote social justice, with authors like Liu Cixin and N.K. Jemisin exploring complex social issues.

The genre critiques ideologies and promotes diverse perspectives on gender, identity, and politics through satire and irony.

Satirical literature promotes awareness and stimulates change by expanding social consciousness and motivating readers to engage in social issues.

Science fiction literature simplifies complex scientific concepts and promotes scientific awareness among readers.

The genre has evolved with authors like Dan Brown making scientific concepts accessible through fiction, explaining complex topics like quantum mechanics.

Solarpunk imagines hopeful futures of social justice and harmony, promoting coexistence and positive change.

Reading fiction, including science fiction, can increase empathy and inspire positive change by promoting social justice.

Science fiction can promote social justice, challenge dominant narratives, and inspire positive change by reflecting community problems and teaching good values.

The genre is influenced by various factors and can inspire positive change by challenging current values.

Science fiction is a growing genre in China, promoting scientific quality, innovation, and curiosity.

Resistance literature, including science fiction, challenges oppression, promotes social justice, and preserves collective memory.

Speculative fiction can inspire social change by imagining a problem-free world.

Authors like N.K. Jemisin use science fiction to promote kindness and reflect societal fears, encouraging readers to build a better world.

Science fiction literature promotes social justice, challenges dominant narratives, and inspires positive change, offering diverse perspectives from various demographics.

The science fiction genre has evolved significantly with contributions from women and authors of color.

Chinese female writers have thrived in science fiction, with four anthologies of their fantasy novels being published.

The internet has helped women and queer writers by reducing publication barriers and providing a platform for diverse voices.

Black authors still face obstacles in publishing and post-publication support, often limiting their books' earning potential.

Publishers have been criticized for overlooking diverse black experiences, leading to inauthentic representation.

Sensitivity readers are increasingly used in publishing to correct authors' missteps on race and gender.

Sensitivity reading has been criticized for interfering with an author's autonomy and stifling diverse voices.

The We Need Diverse Books campaign has helped increase diversity in children's literature, including recognition for Indian American authors.

Publishers have launched imprints and initiatives to champion diverse voices in children's literature.

Empowering teams and fostering open communication can promote diversity and inclusion in science fiction.

Daveed Diggs highlights the importance of diversity in science fiction, finding its lack frustrating.

Sci-fi franchises have increased racial diversity.

The evolution of science fiction has been shaped by technological advancements, social changes, and diverse authors.

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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.

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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.

The genre originated from classic works like Mary Shelley's Frankenstein and H.G. Wells' The Time Machine.

What is considered the first true science fiction novel of the modern era, which foreshadowed genetic tinkering?

Authors like Isaac Asimov and Frank Herbert expanded the genre with works like Foundation and Dune.

Who are considered great masters of the golden age of science fiction?

The 1990s emergence of cyberpunk, led by William Gibson's Neuromancer, significantly shifted science fiction to explore technology and humanity.

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Content: Fiction

10 Vintage Book Series From The ’90s To Read This Year

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The 1990s are back in a big way, and Gen Z is loving every minute of it. For Millennials like me, it stings just a little to hear the ’90s described as “vintage” — or even, gulp, old — but so it goes. If you want to get in on the fun, I’ve got ten must-read vintage book series from the ’90s for you to read this year.

Without question, the last decade of the 20th century was a weird time, mostly due to rapid technological advancement and changes in the way we consumed media. Concerns over the intersection of corporatism, consumerism, and technological development nurtured the burgeoning cyberpunk genre.

When the decade began, the World Wide Web hadn’t been invented yet. By the turn of the century, Google had entered its beta phase, and companies like Angelfire, Geocities, and LiveJournal made it possible for anyone to make their own website. It’s no surprise, then, that the well-trodden world of print publishing embraced recorded and digital copies in the 1990s.

In many ways, the ’90s feel like an awkward teenager, caught up between the wealth-flaunting of the plasticky — and relatively low-tech — 1980s and the sleek, all-chrome, the-future-is-now stylings of the 2000s. The best 1990s book series are just as all-over-the-place as the rest of the decade…and you’re going to love them.

10 Vintage Book Series From the ’90s to Read This Year

Earthseed by Octavia E. Butler

This sci-fi trilogy may be unfinished — author Octavia E. Butler died while writing the third installment, Parable of the Trickster — but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t dig into it this year. The first book, 1993’s Parable of the Sower centers on Lauren, a Black teen born with the ability to feel others’ pain. When American society collapses under the weight of climate change, capitalism, and corporate greed, Lauren leaves her gated community and founds a new religion based around humanity’s ability to adapt for survival.

Foreigner Universe by C.J. Cherryh

An ongoing series at the time of this writing, C.J. Cherryh’s Foreigner launched her series of the same name in 1994. Two-hundred years ago, the Phoenix, a ship carrying colonists and supplies from Earth to a far-flung space-station-to-be, crashed on an already-inhabited planet. Tensions between the humans of the Phoenix and the ruling atevi people led to an all-out war, which ended with total separation of the two races. Total separation, except for one man: Bren Cameron, emissary to the atevi, and the only human welcome in their society.

African Immortals Series by Tananarive Due

Vampires are making a comeback these days, so now’s the perfect time to check out Tananarive Due’s African Immortals series. Jessica seems to have built a picture-perfect Miami life with David…until the murders begin. As a killer stalks closer to home, David reveals that he’s not who he seems to be. He’s actually a 400-year-old Ethiopian vampire, and his people are demanding he return to his homeland, or else.

Shadow Children Series by Margaret Peterson Haddix

Only the first installment of Margaret Peterson Haddix’s Shadow Children series actually came out in the 1990s, but it’s still worth reading this year. Set in a dystopian version of the U.S., in which parents are only allowed two children, the series follows Luke and Jen: kids whose families have hidden them from the rest of the world for their entire lives.

Cousins Duology by Virginia Hamilton

Fair warning: this book is much heavier-hearted than other titles on this list. Cammy’s jealousy toward her wealthy cousin, Patty Ann, morphs into a more complex emotion following the other girl’s death. Patty Ann died saving another cousin, Elodie, from drowning. Did she do it just to spite Cammy? And how is Cammy supposed to feel, now that her cousin and archnemesis is gone?

Anastasia Krupnik Series by Lois Lowry

One of the most challenged book series of the 1990s, Lois Lowry’s Anastasia Krupnik series spans nine titles, beginning with 1978’s Anastasia Krupnik. Only the last two books, Anastasia at This Address and Anastasia, Absolutely, came out in the ’90s. Trust me when I say that Anastasia’s trials and tribulations are basically timeless, however. And if nine books aren’t enough for you, know that a four-book spinoff series centered on Anastasia’s kid brother launched in 1988 with All About Sam.

Hatfords and Malloys Series by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor

Also known as Boy/Girl Battle, the Hatfords and Malloys series follows seven kids — the four Hatford brothers and the three Malloy sisters — as they duke out a deeply entrenched rivalry over the course of 12 installments. In The Boys Start the War, the Malloys have just moved to West Virginia from Ohio. Too bad they’re horning in on the Hatfords’ turf. If hijinks in the vein of Home Alone and The Parent Trap are your style, you owe it to yourself to read this series.

Dark Elf Trilogy by R.A. Salvatore

Dungeons & Dragons players, take note! Legendary drow ranger Drizzt Do’Urden debuted in the 1988 sourcebook, The Savage Frontier, before appearing in R.A. Salvatore’s Icewind Dale trilogy. If you want to jump right into Drizzt’s backstory in the drow metropolis of Menzoberranzan, however, you’ll want to start with the Dark Elf trilogy: Homeland, Exile, and Sojourn. Fair warning, though: these novels play into the problem of fantasy racism by casting Drizzt as a drow who isn’t innately evil — a problem that Wizards of the Coast has promised to fix in future iterations of the game.

Maizon Trilogy by Jacqueline Woodson

Another coming-of-age middle grade series, Jacqueline Woodson’s Maizon trilogy follows BFFs Margaret and Maizon as they’re separated and reunited. In Last Summer with Maizon, Maizon’s accepted at Blue Hill: a prestigious, majority-white boarding school. That means Margaret will have to weather huge life changes, including her father’s tragic death, without her bestie by her side. The second installment, Maizon at Blue Hill, tells Maizon’s side of the story. A third book, Between Madison and Palmetto, brings the girls back together for a new adventure: growing up.

Thrawn Trilogy by Timothy Zahn

OK, so, first things first: there are three Thrawn trilogies. This one, published between 1991 and ’93, was the definitive sequel to Return of the Jedi. Until the Star Wars Extended Universe was retconned by Disney, that is. Timothy Zahn has since published two more Thrawn trilogies — Thrawn and Thrawn: Ascendancy — both of which are well worth reading. You just can’t beat this classic Star Wars EU trilogy from the 1990s, however.

Want to read more vintage book series from the ’90s? Be sure to check out this list of must-reads from the 1990s and these ’90s tie-in books.

What time period produced science fiction works that included idealogies such as capitalism, and communism, and also threats of nuclear power, racism, pollution, and more?

The genre has evolved, incorporating diverse perspectives from authors like Ursula K. Le Guin, Margaret Atwood, and Octavia E. Butler, who explore themes like social justice and dystopian futures.

What is considered a major breakthrough in science fiction publication?

Liu Cixin's novel The Three-Body Problem won the Hugo Award, introducing Chinese science fiction to a global audience.

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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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Liu Cixin's work has popularized Chinese science fiction worldwide, influenced by the Cultural Revolution and China's scientific advancements.

Science fiction helps disseminate scientific knowledge and makes complex concepts accessible to a broader audience.

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.

Science fiction is a global phenomenon, with authors worldwide exploring themes like artificial intelligence, space, and environmentalism.

Title:

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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The science fiction industry in China has grown notably, with authors like Wang Jinkang and Liu Cixin contributing to the genre.

Title:

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
Small number
"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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The genre's evolution has been marked by adaptation into various forms of media, increasing its global reach and appeal.

Science fiction will likely remain a powerful tool for exploring the human condition and modern world complexities.

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Content: 【 Printing 】
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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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What concepts does Ishiguro's literary science fiction novel bring up?

Scientists are using science fiction novels to simplify complex ideas and promote awareness of scientific concepts.

The future of science fiction looks promising, inspiring research, curiosity, and innovation with new authors, themes, and technologies.

The popularity of science fiction has led to growth in conferences, awards, and publications, providing a platform for authors, scientists, and fans to share ideas.

The evolution of science fiction has been shaped by technological advancements, social changes, and diverse authors.

The science fiction genre has been influenced by social and technological advancements, exploring themes like artificial intelligence and space travel.

The genre has been shaped by social and technological advancements, with influences from authors like HG Wells and diverse contributors, including women and people of color.

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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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Women writers, including Chinese authors, have thrived in science fiction, focusing on women's issues.

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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.

What is considered a major breakthrough in science fiction publication?

The internet has removed writing barriers for non-male writers, enabling them to reach a diverse audience.

What is considered a major breakthrough in science fiction publication?

Contemporary science fiction authors use various techniques, including blending memoir and sci-fi, to build immersive worlds.

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Content: Same Memoir, Different Planet: An Interview with Charlie Jane Anders

November 10, 2021 § 2 Comments

by P.J. Powell and Natalie Lockett

In Never Say You Can’t Survive, Nebula- and Locus-award-winning science fiction author Charlie Jane Anders blends memoir, anecdote, and expert writing advice into a how-to guide for writers on using creativity to get through hard times.

P.J. Powell and Nat Lockett interviewed Anders for the Brevity blog, exploring how memoirists can use a sci-fi master’s writing tools to convey defining moments of their past.

Nat & P.J.: You talk about getting into a character’s head and transporting yourself to another place when you write sci-fi. Could a memoirist think of their past in the same way?

Charlie Jane Anders: Totally. The moment you turn something that really happened into a story, it [moves] beyond an unprocessed series of events that you’re putting on the page as they happened. You massage it. You create a narrative around it. You channel your imagination and try to create a scene and a moment—try to draw people in and push them through a chain of events with a certain logic. Real life never quite has that cohesiveness.

Memoir, personal essay, and creative nonfiction require a lot of the same muscles, strengths, and ideas fiction does. You can still do a lot of the stuff in Never Say You Can’t Survive in terms creating characters, plots, scenes, momentum, and through-lines. Even if you’re writing about real people, you’re still kind of turning them into characters.

N & PJ: What can you do in sci-fi writing that could help someone telling a true story?

Charlie Jane Anders: You can do what we can’t in real life: control the focus and the frame; juxtapose things.

In reality, you can’t cut directly from a person saying something to that person doing the exact opposite. Those things might happen three weeks apart, but in your story – fiction or nonfiction – you can skip that time and cut right to the next important action.

You can also slow down or speed up time. Live in a moment for pages, then go through 100 years in a paragraph. And while you’re writing, even as you’re emotionally inhabiting the characters in the moment, there’s a part of you that can be building in an extra layer of meaning and allowing us to see the bigger picture. You can depict that layer through what the characters notice and see, the narrative itself, or the order in which you present things.

N & PJ: What advice do you have for rendering real people in written recollection?

CJA: Part of how I deal with my past is trying to understand what really happened. If you put yourself in the shoes of other, real people, that can be powerful. It’s hard to do, and there’s nothing wrong with telling your story as you see it. Just know other people might see things differently. Sometimes, oftentimes, I’ll have a version of events in my head that’s like, “Okay, this happened and this happened,” but then I’ll go back and find actual facts or documentary evidence proving my recollection is flawed and it didn’t quite happen the way I think it did.

It’s really liberating and healthy to realize we all fudge the past a little bit. Your perspective is always going to be limited, and you have to accept that and try to get a reality check as much as you can. But at the same time, yeah, it’s your story, it’s your experience. You’re writing about what you feel happened. I’ve written personal essays where I was like, “Okay, I know everybody, we all agreed at the time this is what happened,” and then I’ll write it and people are like, “Oh, is that what happened? I mean, I feel like…” Because time has passed, and our recollections may have diverged.

Memory is weird.

N & PJ: As someone whose stories can take place anywhere from augmented-reality San Francisco to a space society orbiting a living blob, what world-building advice can you give to people writing creative nonfiction?

CJA: The thing people and worlds have in common is they’re meaningless without a history. Real or made-up people don’t exist out of nowhere; they’re a product of all the things that have happened and the choices they’ve made. It’s the same with the settings where your memoir takes place.

In The City in the Middle of the Night humans have been living on this other planet for hundreds of years, and I had to keep going back and thinking of that so the settings and characters would feel real. Everywhere you look, you see the past. We know there were wars between these two human cities because there’s this war memorial. Later, we go to a garbage dump, and there’s random, weird crap from the war effort and back when these two cities used to trade.

Real life is like that, too. New Orleans after Hurricanes Katrina and Ida will always look different than New Orleans before. I read an article about Confederate statues standing for over 100 years. People got used to them being there. Why? To understand that you have to understand not just the Civil War, but Reconstruction, Jim Crow, and this mythology of the lost cause people created in the South after the war.

A sense of past makes the world of the story feel lived in; it helps us understand why the characters are the way they are.

N & PJ: Never Say You Can’t Survive is about writing to help us as individuals and as a society through tough times. Why is the concept of “story” so important in fiction, nonfiction, and life?

You can present a million statistics and facts, and it doesn’t make any difference. People are swayed by anecdotes, narratives, and emotion. Not so much information, as by the emotional content of, “Here’s a really compelling story.”

I’ve worked as a journalist and you’re taught that, yeah, you might have a ton of facts showing there’s a problem, but you need a narrative hook. If this problem affects lots of people, [find] a person affected by the problem, make them a character in your article, and show us their journey. Show us how it affects them personally. Nobody is going to care if it’s like, “Oh, a million people had this problem.” Who cares? I can’t encompass that. My brain can’t wrap itself around a million people doing a thing.

But if I’m like, “Oh my gosh, this specific person had this problem and I feel really bad for them” and there’s a picture of them looking really sad, or, “Oh, they did this thing and they’re awesome” and they look really happy, that’s how we process the world, and that’s a huge challenge for anybody who’s trying to get us to grapple with abstract things like climate change, pandemics and other nebulous, hard-to-encompass problems.

Stories are powerful. Stories are what the world is made of. If you can tell a story that’s compelling, whether it’s made-up or real, it could change people’s views of the world. It can rewrite our ideas about reality and that’s powerful and important.

___

P.J. Powell and Natalie “Nat” Lockett co-host Write Away with Nat and PJ, a podcast where they explore writing and books they love by interviewing authors and publishing professionals. (More writing advice and conversation with Charlie Jane Anders will be featured on the November 15, 2021 episode.) P.J. Powell’s short fiction and essays have been published in Evening Street Review, Valparaiso Fiction Review, Youth Imagination, and other placesNat Lockett is an author and essayist with nonfiction work featured in Herstry and Across the Margin. Her first novel, The Dead King, is currently haunting editor inboxes via her agent Tara Gonzalez of Erin Murphy Literary Agency.

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Charlie Jane Anders uses control of focus and frame to manipulate time in her narratives.

Understanding others' perspectives and accepting memory's flaws are key to rendering real people in science fiction.

History is crucial in world-building, making a story's world feel lived in.

Nnedi Okorafor's Binti series explores the intersection of technology and culture in Africanfuturistic science fiction.

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

Okorafor's work has expanded the scope of science fiction to include diverse perspectives and experiences.

N.K. Jemisin uses science fiction to discuss societal reality and reflect people's current fears.

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Content: Julia Nagel/Sun Photography Editor

Fantasy author N. K. Jemisin speaks at a Bartels World Affairs Lecture in Klarman Hall on Oct. 4.

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N.K. Jemisin Gives Bartels World Affairs Lecture, Speaks on Building a Better World

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N. K. Jemisin, best-selling science fiction and fantasy author well known for her book trilogy “The Broken Earth,” spoke about building a better world at this year’s Bartels World Affairs Lecture on Wednesday, Oct. 4 at 5:30 p.m. in a packed Rhodes-Rawling Auditorium. Jemisin spoke about how building fictional worlds helps her discuss the reality of our society, and concluded by calling on the audience to make choices in order to build the world they wish to see.

Following her talk, Jemisin joined a panel of Cornell faculty to kickstart the latest Global Grand Challenge: The Future. Global Grand Challenges bring together people and resources to understand and develop solutions to humanity’s most urgent challenges. The first challenge launched in 2019, and this year’s challenge, “The Future,” focuses on how to employ creativity to build a more equitable and sustainable future world.

Supported by the Henry E. and Nancy Horton Bartels World Affairs Fellowship, the Bartels World Affairs Lecture is an annual, signature event hosted by the Mario Einaudi Center for International Studies that brings renowned individuals to Cornell’s campus to speak on international matters with students and faculty.

Seats at the event sold out and an estimated 330 people attended. In-person watch party tickets were made available as well, where attendees live streamed the lecture from an adjacent classroom near the auditorium. More than 270 local, national and international viewers who registered through eCornell also streamed the event live.

Vice Provost for International Affairs Wendy Wolford said that in addition to launching this year’s Global Grand Challenge, this event also fits into Cornell’s academic year theme of Freedom of Expression. Wolford explained that the world building, kindness and empathy in Jemisin’s work encouraged the Einaudi Center to select this event as the launch for the University’s new Global Grand Challenge.

“The theme of this new challenge is fittingly ‘The Future.’ With this challenge, we invite all of you, students, staff and faculty to step back from the immediate questions of your studies, your work and your research, to think about the world you want to live in,” Wolford said. “The Global Grand Challenge calls on us to go beyond the cutting edge… to imagine what the world would look like if we asked not just what can I do, but what do I want? What do we want?”

Jemisin began her lecture by describing her background in higher education, in which she spent 20 years working as a career counselor, academic counselor and director of experiential education before becoming an author. Jemisin writes science fiction and fantasy novels that explore a variety of themes, including power, cultural conflict and systems of subjugation.

“Many of the questions I tend to get are: Why science fiction? Why fantasy? Why would you, an ostensibly intelligent and mature person, write this kid’s stuff? And I tell people the same thing that Octavia Butler has said in interviews, which is in science fiction, I can do anything,” Jemisin said during her lecture.

Jemisin explained how people’s fears in a specific time period are reflected in their writing, especially in science fiction. She cited underlying fears of the sexual revolution displayed in 1960s feminist science fiction as an example.

“There’s another misconception out there that typically happens, which is that people think of science fiction as being about the future. They think of fantasy as being about the past,” Jemisin said. “It’s neither. Science fiction and fantasy are actually about our present world.”

Jemisin also described the process of science fiction worldbuilding on two levels — macro and micro. Macro worldbuilding involves creating the physical world of a story, including planets, continents, climate and ecology. Micro worldbuilding is crafting the society the characters will exist in, which includes species, morphology, racialization and power, among other things.

“The point of this [worldbuilding] exercise is to get people to start questioning their assumptions,” Jemisin said. “Understanding how our society functions is a lot more constructive than they think, so it’s important that I get across that all of this is changeable.”

Jemisin also spoke about how real people build worlds, and how our current world is not arbitrary, but rather the result of a series of choices. She emphasized that different choices remain possible, and that our understanding of ourselves and self-identity is evolving. Jemisin encouraged the audience to consider reasons for both creating and resisting change.

“We are being blasted with a constant firehose of disinformation which is fueled by a whole lot of money,” Jemisin said. “The only thing that we can do in order to resist this is begin to question and push back on how we became the society that we are and begin to recreate that society in our own design.”

Following her lecture, Jemisin joined a panel with Cornell faculty members Prof. Anindita Banerjee, comparative literature and feminist, gender and sexuality studies; Prof. John Albertson, civil and environmental engineering; and Prof. Kaushik Basu, international studies and economics. Each professor took turns briefly speaking about how their field of expertise relates to building a better world, and Jemisin followed with her thoughts.

“We see society now envisioning futures and being bold, making pledges of decarbonizing our energy supplies, decarbonizing our economy and setting ambitious timelines on which to do that,” Albertson said. “It’s relatively straightforward to plan the direct linear path of what you need to do there. But the question is: where are all the other parts of society that are touched by each of these changes?”

Asher Bergmann ’26 said his goal going into his sophomore year was going to more school  events, and was excited to find this lecture as someone who reads a lot of fantasy.

“I think she did a good job of not diving too deep into fantasy to where some people wouldn’t be interested, because while she’s a fantasy author, the point of this lecture wasn’t actually writing fantasy,” Bergmann said. “I think she did a good job of balancing her goal with what other people may have come here to see her speak about.”

Annabel Baniak ’24 decided to attend the event at the encouragement of both her professor  and her mom, whose favorite book is “The Fifth Season” by Jemisin. Baniak said she enjoyed the event and left feeling motivated and inspired to create change in the world.

Jemisin left the audience with a message to continue questioning the current world and to work towards building an ideal society.

“I have been having conversations all day with the students here, and they’re thinking ahead of me. I have to catch up. It is an innate part of youth to question our reality, and if the way that we live makes any sense,” Jemisin said. “I have to retain my own youthful questioning. They are right to question reality, and the rest of us need to keep doing that.”

Grace Liu ’27 is a Sun contributor and can be reached at [email protected].

Jemisin's worldbuilding challenges societal assumptions on both macro and micro levels.

Worldbuilding is essential for creating immersive worlds, involving techniques like artificial languages and mythical creatures.

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Quiz: What book universe do you belong to?
Middle-earth?
A world of ice and fire?
Or maybe Dune?
One of the most cherished desires of mankind is to travel through time and space.
But until the time machine is invented, it is successfully replaced by movies and books.
Just click on "Play" or open a weighty volume - and now, please, you are in a completely different universe.
There is no single recipe for a book universe.
Each writer decides for himself how far to go in the study of the world invented by him.
Someone like Clive Staples Luts inhabits the fictional universe with a range of mythical and fairy-tale creatures.
Someone, like Tolkien, creates first some kind of foundation (for example, artificial languages), and then comes up with the whole world.
Sometimes a detailed universe is born out of a single detail.
George Martin, the creator of the world of ice and fire, said in an interview that the source of inspiration for him was the image of a wolf dying among the endless snows.
Today, every reader can choose a book universe to his liking - it can be a fabulous Narnia, harsh Westeros, exotic Dune.
Thanks to the imagination of the creators, we can briefly immerse ourselves in these worlds, as if to visit another dimension.
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Contemporary science fiction authors use diverse techniques, including genre-bending, to build immersive worlds.

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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:

Authors like Victor Manibo and Jeff VanderMeer craft mysteries within science fiction worlds.

Science fiction has become more relatable and immersive through diverse characters and world-building, reflecting the contemporary world.

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.

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Diverse casting is needed in sci-fi, as its lack implies people of color have no future.

Major franchises now feature better racial diversity and authors like Brandon Sanderson explore mental health and create relatable characters.

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OPINION: Brandon Sanderson, the king of fantasy

Why Brandon Sanderson is the the best fantasy author of all time

It’s hard not to feel a sense of adventure when reading of steel singing against steel, horse hooves squelching in a muddy charge. Fantasy encapsulates adventure. It throws you into a new world with concepts to uncover and fresh characters to discover.

I don’t have to tell you that the world has been graced with many fantastic fantasy authors.

But I will.

J.R.R. Tolkien, George R.R. Martin and J.K. Rowling are just a few topping a seemingly never-ending list. I love them all, but must give my condolences because one writer stands above the rest:

Brandon Sanderson, the greatest fantasy author of all time.

With over 71 books, putting out 3,000 words everyday, Sanderson is an incredibly prolific writer. You’d think with how many pages he’s put out that his books would become a slog.

I love fantasy, but with so much worldbuilding and description, it can get long-winded. Tolkien, I’m sorry, but your “Lord of The Rings” trilogy is guilty of this.

Brandon Sanderson expertly avoids this.

“I choose Brandon Sanderson over other fantasy authors because of the pacing of his writing,” said Rory Peterson, a fourth-year Western Washington University student. “Not once when I started reading “The Stormlight Archives” did I feel flooded with exposition.”

I want to bring Tolkien back into the conversation real quick. I think “The Lord of the Rings” is a beautiful piece of literature, but that’s exactly the problem.

Compared to other authors, Sanderson is often accused of writing simple prose. Sanderson even admits it.

“My prose is usually intended to convey ideas, theme, and character, then get out of the way,” he wrote in an article on his website.

While Sanderson explained his reasoning, I have still heard this claim thrown as some sort of insult. I don’t understand it. There are so many more aspects to a good story than just flowery writing.

“People read for a variety of reasons, and the way somebody writes isn’t always why somebody is reading,” said Katie Bray, an adult services librarian at the Bellingham Public Library. “People are often reading for ideas or an understanding of the world, and it is okay to like somebody if they are very plot heavy.”

You can explore complex thoughts without pretentious prose.

For instance, the biology of Roshar, the fictional setting of Sandersons’ “The Stormlight Archives,” is just as believable as Earth’s – with everything from insect life spans to weather cycles explained with great precision.

Characters make or break stories. Fantasy is no exception.

“At the heart of my favorite fantasy is a focus on complicated relationships between characters,” said Kiik Araki-Kawaguchi, a creative writing professor at Western, via email.

Sanderson can birth complex and realistic characters along with the other lords of fantasy, but he does something I often don’t see — he explores mental health in a way that weaves the characters’ struggles into their magical powers and arcs. This makes for a story that flies by without you even noticing.

“As a reader, I don't always want to have the experience of directly being taught a lesson,” Araki-Kawaguchi said.

Shallan Davar is a character who struggles with multiple personality disorder and can also create illusions. She will project these illusions for others to see, or she’ll wrap them around to get a new face. This results in Davar constantly changing bodies as she works to find herself.

Another character, Kaladin Stormblessed, suffers from depression. He gets his powers from an oath he made, so we watch his power ebb and flow as he struggles to stay motivated.

These characters, along with many others, build a story not just of epic adventures, but of people who struggle with the same things as you and I. They are heroes, but they’re still human.

I love fantasy and I adore so many different authors. Great fantasy authors have an incredible talent to make their stories come to life. They all deserve respect, but Brandon Sanderson deserves a crown.

John Oakes

John Oakes (he/him) is an opinions reporter for The Front this quarter. In his free time, he writes fiction and not much else. You can find his work in Etherea Magazine as well as other venues. You can reach him at johnoakes.thefront@gmail.com.

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Sanderson's worldbuilding is precise and believable, with well-paced storytelling that keeps readers engaged.

The science fiction genre has been used to promote social justice, with authors like Liu Cixin and N.K. Jemisin exploring complex social issues.

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]

The genre critiques ideologies and promotes diverse perspectives on gender, identity, and politics through satire and irony.

Satirical literature promotes awareness and stimulates change by expanding social consciousness and motivating readers to engage in social issues.

Title:

Content: Intellectuals: satirical literature a window to promote awareness and stimulate change
T + T - normal size
Ironic literature in the Arab world is the art of highlighting contradictory facts and negative societal ideas through the ages through poetic or prose images that are tempted to resist them, and stop them, without resorting to direct attack, and one of the advantages of satirical writing is that it delves deep into reality through satirical stories and situations, which contributes to clarifying the dark, painful and funny aspects of daily life.
Satirical Templates
In the context of the writer Mohammed Al Habsi, Acting Director of the Department of Literature at the Dubai Culture and Arts Authority « Dubai Culture »: The satirical literature is in fact a genus of literature characterized by sophistication and uniqueness, and the writers of this type of literature are counting on fingers in the Arab world, and its plots are not accessible to everyone to express, and this type of literature is desirable and attractive to the reader. Arabic as well as contemporary forms of it.
Knowledge Perspectives
Al-Habsi adds: When we talk about satirical literature, we refer to literary works that reflect and discuss the issues and problems of modern society.
It is of great importance in our world today, for several reasons, first and foremost, it expands the horizons of knowledge and social consciousness.
Through his novels and stories, he presents different experiences and opinions on topics such as social justice and cultural identity.
It helps the reader to understand and appreciate those experiences, and promotes mutual understanding and empathy among members of the community.
Community Motivation
Jordanian writer and novelist Jalal Girgis believes that satirical literature plays an important role in raising awareness and stimulating social change.
Writers and poets work to use the power of words to make a positive impact and motivate people to think and act.
Stories and satirical novels can stir emotions, motivate readers to engage in social issues and work towards change, and on the other hand, his poetic or prose texts are a refuge from reality and life pressures.
It provides an opportunity for relaxation and reflection.
Game of Contradictions
Egyptian writer Hadeel Ghoneim points out that satirical literature is one of the finest literary arts produced by the human novel because it involves monitoring the impulses of life expressing hopes and pains, through its fusion in the crucible of reality, which may provide an outlet for creativity and imagination for writers and readers alike, through the provision of sharp criticism in the context of humor and literary pleasure.
It is based on very difficult and precise technical methods that require manipulating the scales of things.
The writer scoffs to suggest the truth by turning the meaning and changing its significance to the opposite of what the reader has to search for the writer.
Comedy of the situation
On the importance of satirical literature in shedding light on the issues of contemporary society, Egyptian comedian Mohamed Salem said: During my performance of Stand Up Comedy, we use many texts that carry ridicule and humour to reveal the obstacles and problems faced by society, making them more acceptable and influential.
We can also deal with family issues in a humorous and playful way.
We address family challenges and tensions in a way that attracts attention and stimulates reflection.
In addition to expressing negative values in the family such as domestic violence and gender discrimination in a way that calls for laughter and open discussion on these issues, which may be a source of inspiration for future generations due to its humorous and playful nature.
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Science fiction literature simplifies complex scientific concepts and promotes scientific awareness among readers.

The genre has evolved with authors like Dan Brown making scientific concepts accessible through fiction, explaining complex topics like quantum mechanics.

Solarpunk imagines hopeful futures of social justice and harmony, promoting coexistence and positive change.

Title:

Content: Solarpunk – a worldview that imagines hopeful futures of social justice, planet-friendly technologies, decentralisation and harmony – has come quite a long way since its first appearance in an online article in 2008. Today this genre of science fiction is being explored by multiple authors, poets, academics and critics all across the world. The ultimate goal of these stories and the associated politics is to imagine and work towards a future of coexistence, which acknowledges our kinship and interdependence with all beings big and small, as an alternative to wandering about a zombie apocalypse or sinking in dystopian gloominess.

After the publication of the much-acclaimed anthology Multispecies Cities: Solarpunk Urban Futures, the editors decided to publish another anthology focusing on creatures, the more-than-human allies who would live with and among us in a possible future. The editors, Christoph Rupprecht, Deborah Cleland, Melissa Ingaruca Moreno, Norie Tamura, Rajat Chaudhuri and Sarena Ulibarri have collectively brought this second offering, a second anthology titled Solarpunk Creatures, three years after the first.

A multispecies imagination

Explaining the rationale for this collection of stories, the editors write in their introduction, “Where Multispecies Cities sought to broaden the spotlight and highlight the multitude of actors on the stage, Solarpunk Creatures introduces a whole new cast of more-than-human protagonists: organic and digital, alien and fantastic, tiny and boundlessly large.” These creatures are not only restricted to animals and plants but also include AI who take the role of the main protagonist in some of these engaging tales. “The AI characters that made it into the anthology are gentle and loveable – not disturbing and often a malevolent presence that is unsettling the role and value of artists around the globe,” explains the introduction. In these stories, AI creatures do not try to destroy or dominate humankind but often are companions and co-participants in humanity’s engagement with a hopeful and sustainable futures.

Christoph Rupprecht, Deborah Cleland, Melissa Ingaruca Moreno, Norie Tamura and Rajat Chaudhuri have efficiently and strategically framed the “Introduction” by referring to other critics and writers who have discussed multispecies communities such as Robin Wall Kimmerer’s memorable Braiding Sweetgrass. It would also not miss the careful reader’s notice that the team of editors, true to the sense of community harboured by Solarpunk, represent far-flung regions of the world and that the book also includes at least two stories written by collectives. The editors have also provided tasting samples of the stories in the anthology which will intrigue and draw the readers to explore the book.

“Multispecies imagination can heal us from our chronic isolation from nature,” the editors write. The lucid introduction, which will interest academics and genre-readers alike, ends with this possibility of healing, it says, “breath-taking encounters and a sense of wonder, await not only among the stars, but at the end of every one of the countless threads connecting us to the world and its inhabitants.”

Indian writers

Apart from writers from advanced industrialised countries, this anthology, like the one before it, has also featured stories from the Asia-Pacific region among which we have three stories by Indian writers, Priya Sarukkai Chabria, Rimi B Chatterjee, and Tashan Mehta. Casting its net wide this anthology has managed to portray multifarious perspectives, problems and ideas of people spread out across the globe, weaving them together into thought-provoking tales.

Tashan Mehta’s “Leaf Whispers, Ocean Song” is a beautiful tale about the influence of Opi, a deep sea creature on the life of humans when it arrives on the coastline of Goa. Opi is showcased as a humongous yet loveable creature who somewhat transforms the lives of humans. Here, this alien creature does not come from the sky but from the ocean and as soon as it reaches the shore, Opi is perceived differently by different people. While the local fishermen call it “a visiting God from the sea”, marine biologists, conservationists and researchers wish to study and understand this creature. On the other hand, the linguists in the story, Jen and Lu are interested in studying Opi’s language and Jem soon admits that the speech of this creature is “too vast. Its sound, scent, song, feeling, thought – just everything…” The presence and effect of this creature are beyond human understanding because Opi somehow seems to unite animals like dogs, crabs and starfish – something unimaginable to humans. This story, rejecting anthropocentric beliefs, reiterates the fact that humans are just a tiny part of the wide unknown world around us. This is best conveyed by Jen when she says, “…[Opi] is a reminder of how insignificant we are, of how life plays out in a magnitude we cannot imagine.”

From a sea creature, we move on to a comet in Priya Sarukkai Chabria’s story “Flyby”. Comet Izumi is the protagonist of this memorable tale which blends poetic language with a capacious imagination, to portray the dynamics of non-human beings which are boundlessly large. Chabria writes, “Unlike planets, beautiful and rounded as melons, with moons circling and circling them, comets are loners, each speaking a unique language of elliptical orbit and ellipses from sight. Pilgrims of the universe, they plunge in and out of the neat orbital paths of the planets, streaking their immense fiery tails over unknown skies”

Readers can also visualise the future of the Earth through the eyes of Comet Izumi, “A series of climatic changes has altered Earth’s topography; begun by Capitalocene greed in the brief human geological epoch…Earth’s invisible armour that protects life, the radiation shield is temporarily ripped.” Though the story may seem to showcase destruction in the beginning, it gradually takes a soothing turn towards hope and most importantly, towards the importance of sound which has the power to regenerate life. The author has beautifully blended the wisdom of ancient texts in this unique solarpunk narrative which will definitely help us think far beyond our limited human and planetary sphere of being.

After Mehta’s sea creature and Chhabria’s comet, we travel to the land of our four-legged friends, in Rimi B Chatterjee’s “Hopdog” which is reminiscent of her “Arfabad” in the previous volume. The story begins with “Dog number 834” who is rescued from a dogfighting ring where “her masters would watch as she and her competitors tore the prey to shred and wolfed down whatever they could snatch from each other’s jaws.” Dog number 834 is finally rescued from a place that smelt of fear, trouble and death by the survivors of Zigsa’s Nest, referring back to Chatterjee’s “Arfabad”. Arfabad is a land inhabited by dogs and everything is dog-sized there, which is where the central character, Zigsa had created a survivarium where dogs could be protected.

The dog of the present story, after trials and tribulations, arrives in this gentler, kinder place of love and happiness. Here, “…for the first time since she could remember, Peaches was sharing space with other breathing creatures that manifestly did not want to kill her.” But can she continue to live there and be protected from all dangers lurking outside? You have to read the story to find out.

AI and other friends

Apart from these engaging and thought-provoking stories by the three Indian writers, Solarpunk Creatures includes a wealth of tales from other parts of the world. “An Inconvenient Unicorn” by Geraldine Briony Hunt is a Solarpunk fantasy set in a distant corner of Arcadia where nothing had grown in the last twenty years due to war: “It was not the sort of war where soldiers take up arms and march against one another, but a war waged in peoples’ kitchens, local pubs and schoolyards.” This land had faced a lot of adversities until a magical creature, a unicorn arrives to rejuvenate the land, bless it with harmony and greenery. “An Inconvenient Unicorn” evokes hope, telling us the importance of preserving the wild and being wary about the false dreams of ecomodernism.

Lyndsey Croal’s “Hunting for Rain”, is written from the perspective of a robotic dog who hunts for rain in a world affected by drought. This AI-guided creature has the ability to geolocate an area even before it begins to rain, hence it can signal people to head for those areas. Here, a robot has not been projected as something alien, industrial or dangerous, instead, it behaves like kin, fulfilling the common responsibility of sustaining life by pointing out where it will rain. When it finally begins to pour, the drought-stricken people give credit to this mechanised dog by patting its head and scratching behind its ears and it absorbs all the love from its beloved humans and wags its mechanical tail. This beautiful tale gives us hope that AI and robots can also be kin and can join with us in more-than-human connections of life-giving, reciprocal care.

Another story, “The Business of Bees” by Andrew Knighton is simple, funny, and memorable. Told from the perspective of the cat, Luna, who is frustrated about the fact that her human hosts don’t seem to notice some weirdness about the bees. Luna gets so curious that she leaves home to find out what the bees are up to. This will definitely be a memorable journey for the curious cat.

This is a necessary collection for a time in the planet’s history when shifts in collective imagination are the need of the hour. In these times of climate doom, growing inequity and injustice, books like Solarpunk Creatures help us think and imagine differently, beyond our insular selves, together and in community with others, human and non-human, visible, invisible or fathomless.

Sayantani Sengupta is a PhD student at St Xavier’s University, Kolkata. She is researching Solarpunk literature and movement.

Solarpunk Creatures, edited by Christoph Rupprecht, Deborah Cleland, Rajat Chaudhuri, Sarena Ulibarri, Melissa Ingaruca Moreno, Norie Tamura, World Weaver Press.

Reading fiction, including science fiction, can increase empathy and inspire positive change by promoting social justice.

Title:

Content: Can Reading Fiction Early in Life Make People More Empathetic?

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Aug 26, 2022

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Image credit: Hitesh Sonar for The Swaddle

“If I had a world of my own, everything would be nonsense.” Alice declared, halfway through her adventures in Lewis Carroll’s wonderland. “Nothing would be what it is, because everything would be what it isn’t. And contrary wise, what is, it wouldn’t be. And what it wouldn’t be, it would. You see?”

With Alice, we learned to embrace a chaos both familiar and unfamiliar to us. There was chaos of meaning — nothing made sense, but everything did. We tussled with the frontiers of logical reality, only to realize that the fiction of wonderland resembled a mad complexity of our real worlds too.

In its purest sense, the book changed our idea and perception of the world. And this poetic association appears to be the governing principle of fictional literature in general: reading, especially from a younger age, offers us a view world of the world that is complex. The diversity of meaning is further linked to making people compassionate and more empathetic — almost as if narratives of imagination deeply alter something within us.

This link bears out in scientific research too. According to one study published in the journal Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin recently, exposure to fiction early in life makes people more conscious of taking the perspective of other people’s realities.

“Fiction, in other words, does more than just give people social practice—by presenting difference, novelty, and even confusion, it underlines the idea of the world as a radically complicated place,” said study author Nicholas Buttrick and colleagues.

Through fiction, readers are introduced to differences in the most vivid, compelling terms. And “even if that difference is not expressed as a different cast of mind, we argue that fictional experience can nevertheless remind readers that the world is complex, not simple; with powerful psychological effects,” the researchers added. Through a series of experiments, they showed that frequently reading fiction in younger years was associated with psychological richness, perspective-taking, and intellectual humility.

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There’s much to credit fiction for; it could heal societies. The connection goes beyond individual empathy; reading fiction is linked to a gradual decrease in violence over time, an increase in the tendency to vote, and even a rise in volunteering and charitable activities. It is no wonder the poet Denise Levertov surmised that fictional literature serves a social function of great literature, such that it awakens “sleepers by other means than shock.”

Aristotle illustrated centuries ago how fiction aids perspective-taking. When we watch tragedy, there are two emotions at play: pity for the character and fear that a similar fate may strike us. Imagination unfolds almost instinctively, where we react to the narrative, compare our situations, and even wonder how we, as individuals outside this manufactured world, would behave. He termed the emotional culmination of this as catharsis, a veritable exercise in shifting our perspective of others. “Just as pilots can practise flying without leaving the ground, people who read fiction may improve their social skills each time they open a novel,” Claudia Hammond also noted in BBC.

The power of fables and epics and fantasies draws partly from their ability to influence our empathy. In 2013, a study published in PLOS One linked this to something called the “transportation theory”: when we read fiction, we are emotionally transported into someone else’s world, absorbing their perspectives and fears and worries, treating them just like our own. And when we begin to identify with characters and internalize their lives, we consider their desires and aspirations more than our own, a 2016 research paper argued. The empathy reflects in our neural mechanisms too. When we read the word “kick,” the brain region associated with physical kicking becomes activated. The experiment showed how the distinction between real-life and fictional narratives fades in translation from reading to understanding.

This is also why fiction’s impact on empathy and perspective-taking is significantly more profound than any non-fiction piece of literature or media. “Specifically, it is easier to experience affect if a message presents information about a single, identifiable individual, than when information is presented about entire groups or using statistics,” argued authors of the 2016 paper. One can imagine themselves in the shoes of one, but never a thousand people. This could be because imagination gives people safety and solace to experience emotions, come to terms with structural inequality and oppression, and even challenge individual biases without feeling threatened.

The brain responds to fictional narratives too. Some experimental studies found that people who often read fiction were better at gauging other people’s thoughts, feelings, and emotions. Psychologist Diana Tami analyzed brain scans to find higher brain activity in regions responsible for simulating what other people think. And those who read fiction most often, the study found, had the highest social cognition abilities.

Arguably, this empathy and ability to frame the world in its abject complexity shapes not only our individual identities, but social and democratic identities too. Brilliant authors over the centuries have entrusted fictional literature, and the realm of reading, as those being “central to a healthy democracy” or even key to understanding the world and “participating in a democratic society.”

Arguably, my favorite reading of the benefits of fiction is how it wakes up people from the slumber of “almost-living.” And once awake, we see the world in a complexity that is both paralyzing and revolutionary.

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Written By Saumya Kalia

Saumya Kalia is an Associate Editor at The Swaddle. Her journalism and writing explore issues of social justice, digital sub-cultures, media ecosystem, literature, and memory as they cut across socio-cultural periods. You can reach her at @Saumya_Kalia.

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Science fiction can promote social justice, challenge dominant narratives, and inspire positive change by reflecting community problems and teaching good values.

Title:

Content: Science literature fests boost scientific temper

If scientists and literary figures come together, we can expedite our mission of developing scientific temper

Scientific temper is a buzzword in the scientific community, and policymakers often use it to highlight one of the specialties of our Constitution and nation. Even before our Constitution came into existence, we had a rich tradition of following scientific principles in our daily life; be it in our architecture, health care, agriculture and music. Of course, this knowledge is kept in the hands of a few elite sections of society.

After independence, our policymakers realized that scientific knowledge and new scientific advances from the western world should be adopted. Accordingly, they

envisioned world-class institutions in the country and the fruits of which we are harvesting today through research and innovation. But even today, science is managed by the scientific and academic community. The science spoken by these elite communities is not digestible to the ordinary person, even though they are reaping the benefits in their daily life.

Myths and superstitions that affect human development are prevalent even in this ‘Amrit Kal’ when we are marching towards a global leader. Many educated people have an aversion to taking vaccines or believing in evolution. Only when all our citizens are scientifically literate, can our country progress in every aspect of human development. This is a challenging task in a country with diverse cultures and traditions. Many science popularization programs have been carried out in the country under the aegis of great institutions like Vigyan Prasar, CSIR-NIScPR (earlier CSIR-NISCAIR) and others. But still, achieving 100 per cent scientific temper seems to be a dream, the problem is that these institutions have their own limitations in reaching every nook and corner of the country.

Moreover, most of the science popularization programs are led by scientists who are from a science background. There are hardly any scientific institutions in the public sector where people from literature or fine arts backgrounds are recruited as scientists. This is one of the major drawbacks of our science communication activities. We need more science communication institutions having human resources trained in science, literature and fine arts, in different regions of the country. Based on the local culture, we need to design different science communication strategies to develop scientific temper in the society.

It is here that literature comes to the rescue. Every literate person will read story books, novels, fiction and poems at some point in life, even if they don’t read scientific books or journals. Literature is one area that we have missed in our science popularization activities. Even children who are not interested in science in the classroom would like to read sci-fiction books like the Star Trek series and similar.

Many ordinary people without any scientific background, have shown interest in reading Biographies of Scientists like “Wings of Fire” by our former President Dr APJAbdul Kalam. Similarly, there are many takers for the sci-fiction books written by Fred Hoyle, Gregory Benford, Carl Sagan, Isaac Asimov, Robert A Heinlein, Arthur C Clarke, Michael Crichton and others.

Even in our classroom, instead of textbooks, if science-based popular science books or literary works are included, we can generate interest in students. Studies have shown that creating connections with literary works will help Engage students in science classes.

Students reported that they were immediately able to see and emotionally engage with the narrative. They might start to appreciate science for its creative potential. Students’ self-assurance in science improves when they see the relevance of scientific concepts to interests they already have. It encourages kids to broaden their horizons and think beyond the box when it comes to their science coursework.

Integrating readings about accountability in science is one way to help students grasp the material. They gain self-assurance as they learn that science encompasses more than one narrow field. Students with a passion for science will find that the sessions push them to develop their critical thinking skills and open their minds to new ideas. They have also inspired many kids to pursue learning on their own time. Innovative ideas and technological advances in science and technology have been reflected by numerous well-known and representative literary works. The important interactions between science and the cultural sphere (with architecture, religion, the Philosophy of the Enlightenment, or literature) throughout history demonstrate that science is a fundamental component of culture.

Jonathan Swift, in his work Gulliver’s Travels (1726), depicts an island, Laputa, which is held up magnetically in the air, and inhabited by men who are totally dedicated to Mathematics and music. Similarly, Jules Verne, in his novel The Mysterious Island (1874) explains the notion of man’s controlling nature thanks to science and technology.

Science also influences the work of Arthur Conan Doyle. The investigation methods used by his literary creation, the Detective Sherlock Holmes, are based on the positivist scientific methods taught to the author as a medical student. In recent times books by Prof. Yuval Noah Harari – Sapiens & Homo Deus — were the best-sellers lucidly, which explain science, even though the author is not a Scientist per se. He recently came out with another book Sapiens: A Graphic History, a Radical graphical adaptation of his best-selling book Sapiens, targeting children and the layman.

Realizing the importance of literature in science communication, the government has included ‘Vigyanka’ (Science literature festival) as one of the main events at the mega science event, India International Science Festival (IISF), which has been celebrated since 2015. The ‘ Vigyanka’ event will bring scientists, literary and fine arts personnel to a common platform. The event was first conceived by Dr Nakul Parashar, Director, Vigyan Prasar, on the lines of Jaipur Lit Festival for the first time and with the help of his colleagues Kapil Tripathi and Maanbardhan Kanth launched it in IISF 2019 at Kolkata.

This initiated a new becoming in taking science communication and science education to the next level. Our science students should be taught to read novels, poems, biographies, etc., to improve their creative skills. The beauty of Storytelling and Poems is that even an illiterate person who listens to them will enjoy and understand scientific concepts.

In this world of trans-disciplinary learning, policymakers should open the doors of scientific institutions to people from a literature background. A good literary work, be it a novel or fiction, or poem, is a mirror of society. It can reflect problems the community faces, virtues of good values and teach people to dream higher. It can even help us document certain traditional knowledge that prevailed during the period. These values are essential for effectively bringing science to the masses. Even today, our policymakers give impetus to scientist-centric science communication. This should change to a collective teamwork of scientists, literary and fine arts persons. We must envision a Nation where scientific temper is imparted to every citizen. For this, we must train our young minds, our school-going children.

We need to design materials that would digest every child, story books, comic books, novels, fiction, poems, etc, that have scientific components in different languages. This will make even students not interested in science learn scientific concepts indirectly. If Scientists and literary figures come together, we can expedite our mission of developing scientific temper in every part of the country and make India a scientific superpower in the Amrit Kaal.

(The author is a science communicator and academic)

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The genre is influenced by various factors and can inspire positive change by challenging current values.

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Envisioning Indigenous Futures: Cannupa Hanska Luger's Transformative Art in Southern California

Discover how artist Cannupa Hanska Luger's installations invite us to consider the legacy we leave for future generations, blending Indigenous knowledge with speculative futures in a thought-provoking narrative.

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In the heart of Southern California, a profound narrative unfolds this September as artist Cannupa Hanska Luger presents a series of installations across three exhibitions. Luger, known for his visionary approach to art, invites us to reimagine the futures of Indigenous peoples through his project, Future Ancestral Technologies. With the 2023 installment titled 'Watheca,' Luger introduces us to mythic scavengers inhabiting a meticulously crafted universe, challenging us to consider the legacy we leave for the generations to come.

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Imagining New Worlds Through Art

Luger's exhibitions span across three distinct venues, each offering a unique lens into the envisioned futures of Indigenous communities. At the Hammer Museum, the exhibition 'Breath(e): Toward Climate and Social Justice' showcases sovereignty suits designed for Indigenous space travelers, blending ancestral knowledge with speculative futures. The Autry Museum's 'Future Imaginaries: Indigenous Art, Fashion, Technology' presents wearable sculptures that serve not only as art but as symbols of resilience and innovation. At the New Children's Museum, 'Science Fiction Creates the Future' offers an interactive landscape where children engage in building their own worlds. This hands-on experience, grounded in environmental and societal values, emphasizes the importance of play in understanding and shaping our world.

The Power of Speculative Realms

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At the core of Luger's work is a deep connection to the concept of place and the reimagining of it beyond human-constructed borders. By engaging with speculative realms, Luger fosters sustainable relationships with our environment, urging us to consider how our actions today will affect the world we leave behind. His critique of the linear concept of time in traditional futurism advocates for an understanding of Indigenous time as a fourth-dimensional space. In this space, art objects become time machines, encapsulating knowledge and technology for future generations. This perspective invites audiences to view Luger's installations not just as art, but as bridges to potential futures.

Challenging and Inspiring Future Generations

Luger's installations do more than envision future worlds; they challenge and inspire us to consider the impact of our current generational values on those who will inherit the Earth. His emphasis on children's play as a medium to reveal these values underscores the potential of art to instigate change. By incorporating elements of science fiction, Luger's work transcends traditional artistic boundaries, creating a dialogue between the past, present, and future. It's a dialogue that not only questions our current trajectory but also offers hope and inspiration for a more harmonious existence with our planet and each other.

In the bustling cities and quiet deserts of Southern California, Cannupa Hanska Luger's art serves as a beacon, guiding us toward a future where Indigenous knowledge and speculative fiction intertwine. As we wander through his exhibitions, we're not just observers; we're participants in a journey toward understanding and, ultimately, transformation. Luger's art isn't just for today—it's for tomorrow, and all the tomorrows that follow.

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Science fiction is a growing genre in China, promoting scientific quality, innovation, and curiosity.

Resistance literature, including science fiction, challenges oppression, promotes social justice, and preserves collective memory.

Title:

Content: Speakers: Resistance literature is a testament to the power of word and change
Speakers saw resistance literature as a testament to the power of the word, change, the challenge of oppression, and the preservation of the collective memory of peoples across different historical contexts.
They pointed out that the literature of resistance is every position taken by the intellectual and creative man in the face of injustice and tyranny to defend human values, freedom, dignity and identity.
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In a seminar entitled "Resistance Literature", held by the Center Salon in cooperation with the Arab House Cultural Forum, where Dr. Dalal Anabtawi and the poet Mohammed Nassif spoke, the participants stressed that the word, painting and dramatic and theatrical work work work to mobilize the energies of peoples and incite them to take action and confront the injustice of tyrants.
Dalal Anabtawi saw resistance literature as encompassing diverse struggles for liberation around the world.
For example, the Palestinian resistance against the Israeli occupation and the anti-apartheid movement in South Africa, in which writers bravely confronted the systematic injustice against them and their people, indicating that Palestinian literature emerges as a powerful form of resistance, embodying the complexities of displacement and exile.
Anabtawi pointed out that Palestinian writers chronicle their experiences through novels, poetry and memoirs, preserve collective memory, and challenge mainstream narratives that marginalize their voices.
From the works of renowned authors such as Mahmoud Darwish to contemporary novels, Palestinian literature stands as a testament to resilience and a call for international solidarity.
Anabtawi pointed out that the term "resistance literature" was launched by the Palestinian intellectual martyr Ghassan Kanafani, in the wake of the 1948 Nakba, pointing out that resistance literature is "literature that is concerned with writing about the conditions of Palestine under occupation, including poetry, prose, story, theater, and all literary arts, which are among the most deadly weapons of the Palestinian people, and the voice of the free people revolting against occupation, oppression and oppression."
Anabtawi argued that resistance literature is a testament to the power of the word to change, challenge oppression, preserve collective memory, and across different historical contexts, and throughout history literature has served as an effective tool for expressing grievances, restoring identity, and mobilizing support for resistance movements.
Literature has played a pivotal role in shaping social movements and promoting the cause of justice, through poetry, novels, essays and memoirs.
Anabtawi reviewed forms of resistance literature such as archives, which she saw as playing a crucial role in preserving history, and theater, which reflects the prevailing social and political currents in society.
Photography has been a powerful tool throughout history to oppose war, violence, and oppressive regimes, and to confront racism and gender norms.
As well as films that are a tool to challenge narratives and mainstream history, especially to express opposition to war and violence, and music with clear and repetitive melodies used to express resistance movements and social movements, to stimulate collective action and to provide criticism of killings and executions by the occupier.
Anabtawi concluded that resistance literature includes diverse struggles for liberation around the world.
For example, the Palestinian resistance against the Israeli occupation and the anti-apartheid movement in South Africa, and the literature of the Palestinian resistance is an exception and very special, because it deals with the issue of a stolen homeland for 75 years, the issue is present in all its files and just like it. He will never leave it, the literature of resistance is alive and forever.
The Iraqi poet and media personality Mohammed Nassif reviewed the concept of resistance literature, saying, "It is every position taken by the intellectual and creative man in the face of injustice and tyranny to defend the noble human values, especially freedom, dignity and identity.
The word, painting and dramatic and theatrical work have a profound effect in mobilizing the energies of peoples and inciting them to take action and confront the injustice of tyrants or aggression or occupation and the history of the conflict in our Arab homeland is full of forms of resistance literature.
Nassif said that the long struggle of our Arab peoples against the occupation and then the Zionist occupation and the heroic pages of our Palestinian people against the Zionists for more than seven decades has produced a vast repertoire of resistance literature, some of which are poetry, some of which are prose and some of which are art.
The history of the struggle is replete with thousands of poetic books that chronicle free Arab attitudes, thousands of novels, stories and plays, and countless fine art and cartoons.
Nassif then spoke about the literature of resistance in Iraq, saying, "At the level of poetry, there are the poets of Iraq who adopted the position of rejection of injustice, corruption and dependence on the occupation, led by Maarouf Abdul Ghani al-Rasafi, for this poet has always been a rebel facing the governments of the British occupation, as well as the poet Badr Shaker al-Siyab, who lived away from Iraq, rejecting the situation he is going through then."
Nassif pointed to the barbaric US occupation of Iraq, where the armed resistance was launched, and the strongest chapters occurred on the land of Anbar, especially the city of Fallujah, and the world witnessed the valor of Iraqis in this city and other cities that burned the ground under the feet of the US invasion, and as usual all peoples who resist injustice and tyranny with Venice, they are synonymous with the bullets.
Nassif recalled the martyr poet Mohammed Saeed al-Jumaili, who combined armed work and resistance literature, carrying a gun to fight the American occupation and organizing poetry at the same time, and his famous poems "Wounded Baghdad".
The poet of resistance was screaming from the wound of Baghdad and at the same time crying over Jerusalem, and all the free poets of Iraq wrote for the wound of Palestine.
As well as the knight of the word and the position poet Abdul Razzaq Abdul Wahed, who remained steadfast on his free position until his last breath, wrote and attacked the occupation and traitors in many poems.
Nassif spoke about Makki al-Nazal ’ s short novel, entitled “Camera of Love and War ”, in which he replaced the camera with the pen to invest all available tools, in order to document the crimes of the occupation, criminal parties, rogue gangs and stray that wreaked havoc in Mesopotamia, carrying out the Zionist-Safavid plans to record their crimes committed in Fallujah, Baghdad and the cities he was able then.

Speculative fiction can inspire social change by imagining a problem-free world.

Title:

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.

Authors like N.K. Jemisin use science fiction to promote kindness and reflect societal fears, encouraging readers to build a better world.

Science fiction literature promotes social justice, challenges dominant narratives, and inspires positive change, offering diverse perspectives from various demographics.

The science fiction genre has evolved significantly with contributions from women and authors of color.

What is considered a major breakthrough in science fiction publication?

Chinese female writers have thrived in science fiction, with four anthologies of their fantasy novels being published.

What is considered a major breakthrough in science fiction publication?

The internet has helped women and queer writers by reducing publication barriers and providing a platform for diverse voices.

Black authors still face obstacles in publishing and post-publication support, often limiting their books' earning potential.

Title:

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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Publishers have been criticized for overlooking diverse black experiences, leading to inauthentic representation.

Sensitivity readers are increasingly used in publishing to correct authors' missteps on race and gender.

Title:

Content: Cancel Culture

Sensitivity Readers Are the New Literary Gatekeepers

Overzealous gatekeeping on race and gender is killing books before they're published—or even written.

|

Alberto Gullaba Jr. was the type of author that publishers dream of having in their catalogs. A first-generation college grad, a child of working-class immigrants, and the recent recipient of a Master of Fine Arts degree from the prestigious University of California, Irvine, program, Gullaba was a debut novelist with a gift for visceral and vivid prose. His first book, University Thugs, had all the makings of a smash hit. A work of character-driven literary fiction steeped in immersive vernacular, it tells the story of a young black man named Titus who is trying to make his way at an elite university in the wake of a criminal conviction—all while the school is being rocked by racial scandals, not unlike the racial reckoning that consumed so many American institutions in the summer of 2020.

Gullaba's agent knew he had something special, and he was excited for a big submission push. But on the eve of sending the manuscript out to publishers, the agent suggested Gullaba update his bio to emphasize his racial identity. Publishers, he reasoned, would be excited to support a young black writer fresh on the literary scene.

There was a problem: Gullaba is Filipino.

"We had never met in person," he tells me, laughing. "I guess you can't really judge who's black or not based on a name like Alberto, and Gullaba is just ethnically ambiguous enough that it could be from Africa? I don't know."

What was clear, immediately, was that something had changed. The agent wasn't excited anymore. Actually, he seemed downright nervous, and he started asking for significant changes to the manuscript.

"The guy's frightened," Gullaba says. "God bless him, that's the reality of that world."

At first, Gullaba was asked to add an Asian character—east Asian, specifically, perhaps a Pacific Islander. Then it was suggested that Titus' wingman, the biggest secondary character, should also be assigned an Asian identity. And there was one more bizarre twist: Another agency employee, who we'll call Sally, was brought in at the eleventh hour to read the book and provide additional feedback.

"My agent was like, 'I don't want to do this, it makes me very uncomfortable,'" Gullaba says. "But then he says it."

Sally, the agent explained, was black.

Known as sensitivity readers, or sometimes authenticity readers, consultants like Sally are a growing part of publishing, hired to correct the pre-publication missteps of authors who don't share the same traits—or "lived experience," to use a favored buzzword—as their characters.

The sensitivity reader's possible areas of expertise are as varied as human existence itself. One representative consultancy boasts a list of experts in the usual racial, ethnic, and religious categories, but also in such areas as "agoraphobia," "Midwestern," "physical disability, arms & legs," and (perhaps most puzzlingly) "gamer geek." Another one lists individual readers with intersectional qualifications: Depending on the content of your novel, you might hire a white lesbian with generalized anxiety disorder or a bisexual, genderfluid, light-skinned brown Mexican with a self-diagnosis of autism. Every medical condition, every trauma, every form of oppression: Sensitivity readers will cover it all.

Unsurprisingly, the rise of sensitivity readers has proved controversial. Those who support it insist that they're no different from subject matter experts, not unlike the physician who proofreads a medical thriller to make sure the science is right. Critics, on the other hand, balk at the idea that being a member of a given demographic automatically conveys special knowledge about how everyone else in that group thinks or feels. (In Gullaba's case, his sensitivity reader had been born in the Caribbean and raised in the U.K. The idea that she could speak to the "authenticity" of a young, black ex-convict's experience at an American university was comical.) At a moment of ascendant identitarianism in so many institutions, sensitivity reading seems part of a larger, insidious trend in the arts: one that stigmatizes imagination and would, taken to its logical conclusion, make fiction itself categorically impossible.

Whatever else sensitivity readers are, they're a recent development—born in the small but influential corner of the literary world known as young adult (Y.A.) publishing. The Y.A. literary scene has always been a reliable incubator for incoming moral panics, dating back at least as far as 1975's puritanical spasm over sexual content in Judy Blume's Forever…: It's always been easy to get people amped up if you can invoke the specter of a vulnerable young person being harmed by a naughty book. In this case, you can see the seeds of the great media diversity eruption of summer 2020 in a Y.A. controversy from six years earlier.

In 2014, the same year Michael Brown's death in Ferguson, Missouri, helped spark the first wave of the Black Lives Matter movement, a survey by the publisher Lee & Low revealed that just 10 percent of the books published for young readers included multicultural content. The Y.A. community was scandalized, and authors rushed to address the issue.

Suddenly, every other book deal announced that year seemed to involve a multiracial cast of characters repping the whole rainbow of sexual orientations, alternative gender identities, and physical and mental disabilities. But rather than solving the problem, the new enthusiasm for diverse characters fueled a new outrage: No matter how multiracial the characters, the authors were still a bunch of white ladies, as were the editors, the marketing folks, the designers, and the publicists. It was white people all the way down.

Publishing is a longtime bastion of liberalism, but it is also an elite profession, largely inaccessible to all but the independently wealthy (or at least those with the means to live in one of America's most expensive cities on less than $40,000 a year). Between the notoriously low salaries and the limited opportunities for advancement, publishing houses had struggled for decades to attract and retain minority employees, a problem for which they were generally apologetic without ever embarking on the kind of bottom-up industry renovation that might actually fix it. But now they were being scrutinized by a new, young activist cohort—and the demands for change, amplified by social media, were starting to get loud.

Enter the sensitivity reader.

To understand why publishing would go all-in on a practice that not only interferes with an author's creative autonomy but traffics in crude stereotyping to boot, you need to know one crucial fact about sensitivity readers: They're cheap. The average cost of a sensitivity read is a few hundred dollars per manuscript, and it's a freelance job. This made it a godsend to publishers who wanted to merely look like they were giving people of color a seat at the table but didn't want to go to the trouble of buying all those additional chairs. Retaining a freelance stable of racial, ethnic, and sexual minorities created the appearance of diversity for a fraction of the cost.

Within the writing community, the practice was more complicated. In theory, sensitivity readers were a way to write outside your identity without causing offense by "getting it wrong." But the emerging consensus, especially in Y.A., was that it was even more wrong to stray outside your lane in the first place. In a particularly revealing 2018 feature on the culture website Vulture, a sought-after sensitivity reader expressed profound contempt for the authors whose manuscripts she was paid to vet.

"These writers think they're doing the world a service. Like, 'Look at me, I'm showing up for the social-justice movement.' But the problem is that they're showing up and they're taking a seat," she said.

The implications were clear: If you were a white author writing black characters, you were taking up space that could have gone to a more deserving marginalized writer. If you needed a sensitivity reader, then was this really your story to tell?

These questions don't serve as a deterrent for everyone. In the intervening years, sensitivity readers have become de rigueur—in young adult fiction, but also, increasingly, in work for adults. Sometimes a publisher will insist on this extra step; sometimes, a conscientious writer will seek it out on his own. The prevalence of the practice is more sensed than studied—there's no data on what percentage of books go through this sort of vetting—and it's highly variable depending on the writer's own genre and community; the ultra-woke author of prestigious literary fiction is a lot more likely to request or receive a sensitivity read than, say, a hard-boiled crime novelist.

Those who put stock in sensitivity reads seem to mostly imagine that the practice offers a form of insurance, preempting allegations of this -ism or that -phobia, although it rarely pans out that way.

When The Men, Sandra Newman's sci-fi novel in which everyone with a Y chromosome suddenly vanishes from the face of the earth, came under fire for what critics termed the "transphobic" implication that people with Y chromosomes are men, one of the chief questions was whether the author had engaged a trans sensitivity reader. But when Newman said that yes, she had, the outrage only multiplied. Why had she hired only one sensitivity reader? Did she think this was an excuse?

"That only makes it WORSE," one commenter wrote, "because you're claiming you KNOWINGLY did this."

Indeed, not even the professionally sensitive are safe when a cancellation comes calling. In 2019, sensitivity reader Kosoko Jackson frantically pulled his own Y.A. debut novel after he was called out for setting a gay romance against the backdrop of the Kosovo War. (As is typical of these controversies, it's hard to parse exactly what Jackson did wrong, but the complaints mainly focused on the offense of "centering" the wrong identity category—in this case, two American boys—in a story set amid a real-life tragedy that mainly affected people of another identity category.)

And yet, despite the rampant toxicity and the inconsistency in which books get canceled and why, some writers have come to see sensitivity reads as simply part of the process, a thing you do to check the boxes for both "good writer" and "good person." ("Just got my sensitivity read edits back, and it was…eye-opening," reads a recent, cheerful email from a friend who was self-publishing a Y.A. novel. "Turns out I'm your typically oblivious white man!") And while I've never used sensitivity readers for my own work as a novelist, I have agreed to perform the service for someone else who wanted a woman's perspective on a novel-in-progress—which ironically turned out to be exactly the sort of imaginative exercise that sensitivity readers are meant to obviate. My job was not to offer my take on the book, as a woman. It was to scrutinize the text from the perspective of a woman who was not me, someone far more sensitive and prone to taking offense than myself—a person whose perspective, thought, and feelings I could only imagine. But per the rules of sensitivity reading, I was allowed to do this, while the author, due to lacking the proper chromosomal and/or genital configuration, was not.

At the time, I felt the fundamental tension, even absurdity, inherent to what I was doing: suggesting edits that would take all the teeth out of the story, all for the sake of placating the type of person who would invariably just find something else to be offended by.

Sensitivity readers are still most prevalent in Y.A. publishing, but the ideology that fueled their rise is beginning to crop up elsewhere. Sensitivity reading is becoming more commonplace in adult books, as the belief that it's dangerous to draw too far outside the lines of your own experience takes hold not just among authors but in publishing houses and media; one much-discussed 2019 article in Vulture interrogated 10 authors about the decision to write diversely, under the querulous headline, "Who Gave You the Right to Tell That Story?" Hollywood and academia are in the midst of similar spasms. Can a nondisabled actor be permitted to play Richard III? Does Scarlett Johansson have the right to take the role of gender-bending gangster Dante Gill from a more deserving, more authentic trans man? Can an academic study and publish on black urban feminist ideology if she's neither urban nor black? Invariably, what begins as a call to consult with members of a given identity group before telling stories about them evolves into the suggestion that you should just sit this one out. Imagining the interior life of someone from another identity group? That's appropriation. That's literary blackface. That's not yours.

In one recent controversy from north of the border, documentary filmmaker Barry Avrich used an award acceptance speech to make an urgent call for more black stories, saying, "It doesn't matter who tells them; we just need to tell them." The response was swift, and severe: "We absolutely agree with Barry when he says there are so many stories to tell, it's just like, why are you the one that has to tell them?" quipped the executive director of Canada's Black Screen Office.

At the moment, it's unclear how obligatory all of this is at the major publishing houses. There are whispered rumors of this or that author having a contract canceled when a sensitivity reader declared the work unacceptable. (I tried unsuccessfully to get one of these writers to talk to me for this piece.) There was a first-person account from author Kate Clanchy, who parted ways with her publisher after concluding that her sensitivity readers only wanted to "create a book that would play better on Twitter, not one that is better written." But given that it's tantamount to outing oneself as the author of work too offensive to publish, those who have books canceled for "sensitivity" issues remain unlikely to say so publicly.

More broadly, the rise of sensitivity reading seems to reflect an obsession with policing language in service of a hypothetical person who is not only maximally sensitive but also not very smart. We've even seen the advent of the first artificial intelligence sensitivity reader, as Google Docs rolled out a new feature designed to help users tailor their work to be more "inclusive." The results were amusingly disastrous; among other things, the bot repeatedly scolded writers for the publication Motherboard to consider changing the publication's name. But the A.I. will eventually learn restraint, as long as users duly let it know when it's overstepping. Human sensitivity readers, on the other hand, will surely be motivated to find increasingly esoteric forms of offense, in accordance with the very human desire to keep themselves in business.

In the meantime, we can be grateful for the constitutional rights that protect our written expression, because sensitivity reading reflects exactly the kind of sprawling, big-budget bureaucratic ethos that government actors would love to impose everywhere if they could: the love child of George Orwell's fictional Ministry of Truth and Ibram X. Kendi's fantasy Department of Antiracism, tasked with monitoring all public expression for expressions of wrongthink (though perhaps they'd call it "misinformation").

The irony is that sensitivity reading is, in itself, an exercise in exactly the kind of offensive generalizing it purports to help authors avoid—not just in the way it traffics in crude stereotypes about how people of a given race, gender, or sexual orientation move through the world, but in whose interests it ultimately serves. This is a practice driven primarily by the fears of privileged editors, agents, and publishers, and that is who it protects, too often at the expense of the diverse authors whose work they claim to champion. Writers such as Alberto Gullaba Jr. are sidelined, sandboxed, scolded away from taking creative risks, by oblivious white people whose own imaginations can only extend as far as the next cancellation.

As for Gullaba, the quest to racialize every character in the book so that it matched the author's identity eventually reached its inevitable conclusion when his agent asked him to make Titus Filipino.

"We're playing this horse trading game, with races, with little woke beats," Gullaba recalls. "Eventually he broaches the idea of, this needs to be your story. Your identity. The Filipino experience."

In the end, he chose to release University Thugs independently and pseudonymously, in its original incarnation. (The book is now available on Amazon.) He is now at work on his second novel. If an agent suggests a sensitivity read, he intends to decline.

"Realizing it came from good intentions," he says, "I want to be gracious, and politely and confidently refuse."

Sensitivity reading has been criticized for interfering with an author's autonomy and stifling diverse voices.

The We Need Diverse Books campaign has helped increase diversity in children's literature, including recognition for Indian American authors.

Title:

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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Publishers have launched imprints and initiatives to champion diverse voices in children's literature.

Empowering teams and fostering open communication can promote diversity and inclusion in science fiction.

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Empowering A New Class Of Agency Creatives

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Amber is the Co-Founder & CEO of Invisible North.

For leaders of creative agencies, the heartbeat of our success resides in our people and their ideas. Creating a balanced agency ecosystem demands that the team feels valued, supported and heard, equipped not only with the tools for their craft but also the empowerment to experiment, push boundaries and boldly innovate.

Today, a major shift is underway, marked by the integration of emerging technologies like AI and thus a fear of job security with automation. And with it, there is a persistent undercurrent—the sense among many creatives that their work is being undervalued.

As leaders steering through this transformative journey, we recognize that these new tools and processes, though intimidating, harbor the potential to spark increased creativity when truly understood and approached with intentionality. Over the years, I’ve uncovered a few tried-and-true methods to help empower teams to utilize these new tools, experiment and enhance their craft amid our evolving industry.

Create Safe Spaces

Agency leaders play a pivotal role in shaping the company narrative for their teams and uplifting them from within. It begins with fostering an environment for open communication in which team members are comfortable expressing their concerns, ideas and opinions, especially at a time when many have mixed feelings about bringing AI into the workplace.

To truly empower our communities, we must acknowledge these emotions and encourage a workplace where they can feel valued and motivated. In doing so, their best work can come to life.

We have a strong culture in our agency of show-and-tell, inspiration trips/research and challenges. If there are areas that team members want to learn about, we find time to dig into research, insights and workshops with best-in-class partners so that we can enhance collective brain trust and overcome the fear of unknown barriers to comfort and flow.

Champion Wins

In a creative field where individual expression and innovation are highly valued, it’s crucial for leaders to create an environment that fosters personal inspiration. Getting results from soup to nuts on a project is not an easy feat—so much goes into it across departments. Oftentimes, we move from one project to the next and forget to stop and celebrate the wins or embrace the learnings. By acknowledging the diverse efforts it took to bring the campaign to life, along with any new tools or methods used, you’re reinforcing the efforts needed to create success.

We use our monthly companywide newsletters, quarterly town halls and biannual all-team meetings to share individual, team and project accolades alongside other agency updates.

Embrace Change

The introduction of new technologies in any space often triggers a fear of the unknown. Teams should view these changes as catalysts rather than inhibitors. Through thoughtful integration strategies, leaders can help harness emerging technologies to enrich the creative process rather than impede it.

We’ve seen time and time again that when you curate a supportive environment to freely experiment, magic happens. It is imperative to encourage teams to explore with new tools and also hold space to share their discoveries. That’s where the real learning begins. It’s also essential to tackle any concerns or anxieties team members may have, leading with transparent communication throughout.

Foster Community

Emerging technologies will inevitably shape the way agencies and creatives approach their craft, ultimately opening new doors for how we tell stories, create experiences and personalize content. No matter the changes, the thing that must remain constant is continuing to prioritize the people who truly make the work special.

As the heartbeat of the creative process, we must protect our community above all else—recognizing their anxieties, celebrating their experimentations, championing their well-being and helping them navigate this new frontier. So, as we embrace a new year, let’s carry these principles forward into 2024—a commitment to cultivating a community that not only adapts to change but propels it. Let’s create a legacy of inspired, valued and empowered creative professionals.

Forbes Agency Council is an invitation-only community for executives in successful public relations, media strategy, creative and advertising agencies. Do I qualify?

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