fictionpage Chapter 61 Talk of Doom
Chapter 61 Talk of Doom
Beijing.
Something strange has been going on lately. For three days in a row, Liu Xinwu, a renowned editor at People's Publishing House, hasn't received a single manuscript.
I had previously commissioned articles from several veteran writers in Beijing, but they kept postponing them with various excuses, and I was unable to submit them for a long time.
Not only him, but several other senior editors in the company were also in a similar situation.
In any case, everyone has become increasingly relaxed these past few days.
This phenomenon, which was unimaginable in the past, has suddenly appeared now.
I inquired with colleagues in the industry and other senior editors.
I learned of an even more outrageous answer.
For example, the number of author submissions received by the editorial department of "Yanjing Literature" had already shrunk to single digits more than half a month ago.
Since the news of the Xinghan Cup National Science Fiction Literature Creation Competition went viral,...
In the past week, the entire publishing house has received absolutely no credits. Suddenly, it seems as if all the authors across the country have vanished into thin air.
The authors certainly didn't just vanish into thin air all at once.
The truth is quite simple: inside and outside the industry, whether newcomers or veteran authors, everyone has gone off to create science fiction.
In addition, recently, Shanghai literature and art publishing houses have been going all out with that so-called "Xinghan Cup" science fiction writing competition, with a huge grand prize of 100,000 yuan, and even 300 shortlisted prizes of 1,000 yuan each...
Good heavens! Not only are authors inside and outside the industry all getting excited about this.
Even among the veteran editors working at these periodicals and magazines, there are quite a few who are already using their spare time to rack their brains to research and create science fiction stories.
There was no way around it; that was a huge grand prize of 100,000 yuan!
Wealth that ordinary people struggle to earn in a lifetime can now be acquired simply by creating a science fiction work, and perhaps one could become that lucky individual.
Even if you don't win the grand prize, first prize, second prize, or third prize...
There are still 300 shortlisted entries!
As long as the work is shortlisted, it will receive a prize of 1 yuan.
To be honest, with such an exorbitant prize money, any creator with a normal mind would be eager to try it out.
What if it actually works!
Moreover, shortlisted works will have the opportunity to be recommended to overseas publishers for publication. The works are highly likely to be published overseas and sold in overseas book markets, earning a lot of US dollars and foreign exchange.
Tsk tsk tsk, who doesn't dream of becoming the next Yu Da science fiction writer?
If creative work can generate foreign exchange for the country, then it would undoubtedly be one of the most impressive achievements the country can boast about.
Those who work for a company are designated to become the darlings of their superiors.
Even those without a work unit will be hired immediately, with plenty of companies ready to take them on.
"All the young literary enthusiasts in the country have been seduced by the Shanghai literary scene!~~"
"That family eats and gorges, monopolizing all the nation's creative resources, leaving us fellow journals starving!!"
"Why should I?!"
"Let's talk about it, what gives the Shanghai Literature and Art Publishing House the right to do this?!"
"Does the Shanghai literary scene have any concept of the overall national picture anymore?!"
"Using money to lure people and guide the creative direction of young writers is blatantly engaging in unhealthy practices. They are trying to ruin the normal development and progress of our domestic literary scene..."
At an internal meeting of the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, Liu Xinwu expressed his indignation and strongly condemned the despicable behavior of Shanghai's literary and artistic circles.
The leaders of the organization were also troubled and overwhelmed.
As a top-tier literary journal in the country, the number of submissions from its own authors has suddenly plummeted to such an exaggerated degree.
I can't imagine what the situation is like in other brother units.
Good heavens, young literary enthusiasts from all over the country are flocking to the Shanghai Literature and Art Publishing House to participate in that so-called "Xinghan Cup" National Science Fiction Literature Creation Competition.
The problem is that the relevant departments have never said that other journals are not allowed to use such generous rewards to attract the creative enthusiasm of young writers.
Moreover, back in Shanghai, thanks to that great science fiction writer Yu, he's been expanding and conquering overseas markets, earning huge sums of money in royalties and foreign exchange back to China.
Over the next five years, foreign exchange earnings are expected to reach as high as US$1.5 million...
Tsk tsk tsk, given this premise, let me ask you this: who the hell has the nerve to bring up the sweeping measures taken by the Shanghai literary scene?!
If you really bring this topic up to the higher-ups, and they retaliate by saying they look down on other people's science fiction writing, then if you think you can do it too, and that your own mainstream writing style can earn you a lot of foreign exchange for the country in overseas markets, then go ahead and do it!
Oh my god!
If they really get a rebuttal from above like this...
This news will probably spread throughout the country in less than three days.
Besides, the leaders in the publishing house aren't all just sitting around doing nothing; they've also seriously read and studied the works of the great science fiction writer Yu.
To be honest, aside from the writing style and wording being a little lacking, the stories written by Yu Da, a great science fiction writer, are truly extraordinary, with unparalleled creativity and unmatched storytelling.
It is truly a good story that can bring readers the greatest possible relaxed and enjoyable reading experience.
To put it bluntly, Yu's creative path is completely different from traditional literary stories. He has truly created a new world and taken the art of storytelling to its extreme.
In contrast, what everyone has always recognized and pursued is that literary creation must have literary merit, seriousness, criticality, educational significance, and so on.
These habitual approaches to literary creation, which implicitly carry far too much "significance," are they not, to some extent, too rigid, too dogmatic, and even on the verge of becoming conventional, formulaic, and stereotypical forms of modern literary creation?
The higher authorities have been calling for a full emancipation of the mind and a courageous pursuit of innovation.
At this level.
The literary scene in Shanghai has undoubtedly taken the lead in doing so.
The literary scene in Beijing is undoubtedly seriously lagging behind, and has become a backward group with problematic ideology and cognition.
However, it is one thing to realize that you have a problem.
But whether one is brave enough to reform oneself and quickly adjust direction when one realizes there is a problem is another matter entirely.
Anyway, the idea of making the publishing house immediately turn around and follow the trend of Shanghai Literature and Art Publishing House to organize a national essay competition and other activities is something that the leaders of the publishing house believe is absolutely not something that can be adjusted in a short time.
Therefore, the true sentiments of the organization's leaders naturally morphed into, "If I follow the trend, wouldn't that be admitting a strategic failure for our organization?!"
Moreover.
No one is lucky forever, and no flower blooms forever.
This so-called science fiction trend will eventually pass.
As the old saying goes, the foundation of China's economic development determines the upper limit of people's spiritual world and cognition.
In the realm of literary creation, the most suitable environment is essential for the growth of truly brilliant literary fruits.
Science fiction, as the name suggests, is the public's yearning and fantasy for a better, more technologically advanced future.
This concept, conjured out of thin air, is like building a skyscraper on a sandy beach.
Sooner or later, a wave will come and destroy even the most beautiful beach castle in an instant, like a dream bubble.
"You all need to reach a consensus and publish more editorials in newspapers and magazines in the near future to popularize the basic theories of literary creation among the general public. After all, the masses need guidance!"
The leadership of the organization gave important instructions.
Liu Xinwu and the other veteran editors immediately understood; they were just subtly undermining and badmouthing their Shanghai counterparts.
A leader from the publishing house said that as long as the right entry point is found, this unhealthy trend of science fiction writing competitions in Shanghai can be completely dismantled.
To be honest, among Liu Xinwu's friends, there are some who work in scientific research. Recently, he happened to hear about a rather dramatic and upsetting incident.
It is said that a certain department at the Shanghai municipal level, in order to curry favor with that great science fiction writer Yu, instructed comrades at the Shanghai Science and Technology Bureau to quickly build a computer capable of perfectly solving Chinese typing input for scientific research.
It is said that Yu, a science fiction writer, wants to play with high technology for creative work, using cutting-edge technology products such as computers to write manuscripts.
I must say, this guy surnamed Yu truly lives up to his reputation as a maverick science fiction writer; he actually dares to think about all sorts of ridiculous and outlandish things.
The key issue is that those high-ranking officials in Shanghai have become bewitched, allowing the Science and Technology Bureau to pursue scientific research and innovation for their own selfish desires.
More importantly, after thorough deliberation, the comrades at the Science and Technology Bureau pessimistically discovered a harsh reality:
It seems that in the future, in a world where high technology such as computers and the Internet is everywhere.
How to efficiently solve the most fundamental problem of computer Chinese information processing: Chinese character input.
Based solely on the current domestic scientific research capabilities.
They simply cannot come up with any effective solution.
Liu Xinwu then decided to use this as the starting point for his editorial articles.
He wants to use the most ruthless and cold-blooded scientific reality to wake up those Chinese people who live in a world of fantasy about a high-tech future.
Don't be fooled by the fact that Yu, a great science fiction writer, has published a few science fiction stories overseas.
In the field of high-tech development, our country seems to have truly caught up with the developed Western world.
Science fiction stories are toxic; they mentally paralyze the Chinese people and hinder them from developing a correct understanding of science and technology.
Yes, that's right, let's start spraying (scratch the word "spray")!