2 Chinese writers shortlisted for prize

By Mei Jia (China Daily)
Updated: 2011-04-02

BEIJING – Chinese writers Su Tong and Wang Anyi have been shortlisted for the prestigious 2011 Man Booker International Prize.

Established in 2005 as a complement to the Man Booker Prize, the international prize is a biennial award for international fiction writers whose work is written in or translated to English.

This is the first time that Chinese writers have been shortlisted for the prize. The two are among a total of 13 contenders – including Philip Roth and John le Carr – from eight countries.

Su, 48, a native of Suzhou, Jiangsu province, said on Friday that he was pleased to hear the news, likening it to a warming spring breeze.

“But it’s only a breeze, and it won’t disturb my ultimate task at the moment – concentrating on the novel I’m working on,” he said.

The Nanjing-based writer established international prominence by winning the 2009 Man Asian Literary Prize with his seventh novel, The Boat to Redemption. Also winning were Jiang Rong in 2007, with Wolf Totem, and Bi Feiyu in 2011, with Three Sisters.

Su, a prolific writer, is also known for the novella Wives and Concubines, which was turned into Zhang Yimou’s film Raise the Red Lantern.

Wang, a native of Nanjing, currently serves as the chairwoman of the Shanghai Writers’ Association.

Her most famous novel, The Song of Everlasting Sorrow, traces the life story of a young Shanghai girl from the 1940s to her death in the 1980s.

Carmen Callil, a judge for the prize, said: “They (the Chinese writers) tell us so much about China, the China of our own times, and the past: better than any history book.”

Literary critic Meng Fanhua said the Chinese writers’ contributions are “their successful record and reflection on the unique experience of being Chinese”.

Meng said the two writers are both from Southern China, where the experience of the country’s globalization and development in recent decades is vigorously represented.

Su is not certain about the range of his influence internationally, strengthening his “independent exploration of a literary path that differs from any of others”.

Professionals and critics believe this first inclusion of Chinese writers among the contenders shows recognition and better knowledge of the country’s writing among international audiences and will provide a launching pad for the writers to get wider appeal abroad.

“I hope the choice of them as candidates will signal to the rest of the world what richness there is in Chinese writing,” Callil said, adding “already, there is a great deal of interest” in that.

Callil says both Su and Wang are great writers, even if read in sometimes disappointing translations.

“Many of the Chinese writers I read deserve better translators and publishers” to have better access to international readership, she said.

The Australia-born publisher, writer and critic calls for proper English translations of Chinese works, “a kind of universal English, so that one culture does not impose upon the other”, compared with the ones in “American English”.

Marysia Juszczakiewicz, with the Hong Kong-based Peony Literary Agency that has represented Su Tong in copyrights, said international literary awards are important platforms for Chinese writers to meet the international readers.

“I am delighted that more Chinese writers are winning and are shortlisted for literary prizes,” she said.

The name of the winner will be announced in Sydney on May 18. The award brings a 60,000 British pounds ($96,000) prize for the winner and a chance of 15,000 British pounds for the translator.

Previous winners are the Albanian novelist and poet Ismail Kadar in 2005, Nigerian writer Chinua Achebe in 2007, and Canadian short-story writer Alice Munro in 2009

Talking about his chance of claiming the prize, Su said with typical Chinese modesty and humor: “It’s just one out of 13, a negligible chance.”

China Daily

Peony Literary Agency’s Creative Writing Workshop in Singapore, with support from the National Arts Council – The Story and The Pitch

On February 25, 2011, Peony Literary Agency held a successful interactive creative writing workshop in Singapore, The Story and The Pitch, supported by the National Arts Council. The first of many, this interactive workshop provided aspiring writers with all the knowledge essential to initiate them in the international publishing industry and to launch themselves as professional authors. The event was held in the Living Room at The Arts House, which used to be the old Parliament building in Singapore.

The speakers of this event are Marysia Juszczakiewicz and Fran Lebowitz. Marysia Juszczakiewicz is the founder of Peony Literary Agency and has extensive experience of publishing in both the UK and Asia. Fran Lebowitz with over twelve years of experience as a highly successful literary agent in the US publishing industry specialising in pop culture and fiction, now runs a Singapore agency that specialises in editorial services for writers and screenwriters.

The workshop dealt with a wide range of topics, including: Why do you write? The Idea, the Characters, the Plot, Discussion with relevant information on the publishing industry, The Importance of an Agent, How to Present and Market Yourself as a Writer, and Pitching your work, Creative Writing Exercises and Points to Remember.

The participants of this event came from different backgrounds, each with unique stories to share and eager to learn more about the publishing industry for creative writing, which made the workshop both extremely lively and highly informative.

Due to the success of the first workshop, Peony Literary Agency is in preparation to organise a more extensive workshop at the beginning of August to which we will be inviting publishers from the UK to speak and the aim will be that participants will get a good overview of the publishing industry and inside tips on how it works.

First Chinese writers shortlisted for top prize

Oliver Chou
Mar 31, 2011

Su Tong

Two decades after the mainland film Raise the Red Lantern, which was nominated for an Oscar, the writer of the book on which it is based is in the running for the prestigious Man Booker International Prize.

Su Tong, along with fellow writer Wang Anyi, are the first two Chinese to be shortlisted for the British-based literary prize. The pair will compete with 11 other finalists from seven countries. The winner, who will receive £60,000 (HK$748,000), will be announced on May 18 in Sydney.

 

“This is partly the result of a worldwide curiosity about China and Chinese life, which has accompanied China’s growing economic power,” said Douglas Kerr, English professor at the University of Hong Kong. “International publishers are seeking out both mainland and diaspora Chinese writers, and Chinese fiction is being translated as never before.

“Contemporary Chinese culture first attracted attention in the form of cinema; now it seems it’s the writers’ turn.” The nomination is based on a candidate’s overall body of work rather than a single novel, and all living authors whose works of fiction are either in English or translated into English are eligible.

 

Beijing-based Su, 48, has more than 20 novels and 100 short stories to his name. The most famous of these is the 1990 novella Wives and Concubines, on which the critically acclaimed Raise the Red Lantern was based. Directed by Zhang Yimou and starring Gong Li, the film was nominated for an Oscar for best foreign language movie in 1992

 

Su won the Man Asian Literary Prize for his novel The Boat to Redemption in 2009. His award was the second among Chinese writers – Jiang Rong won the inaugural Man Asian prize in 2007 for his novel Wolf Totem, while Bi Feiyu was recognised for his novel, Three Sisters, this year.

Wang, a 56-year-old literature professor in Shanghai, rose to fame with the 1996 novel The Song of Everlasting Sorrow.

The Man Booker International Prize was launched in 2005 and is held every two years.

Copyright (c) 2011. South China Morning Post Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved.

Publishers Marketplace Announces Duncan Jepson’s New Book Deal

March 4, 2011
		Fiction: Debut		Filmmaker Duncan Jepson’s ALL THE FLOWERS IN SHANGHAI, about a young Chinese woman caught between tradition and personal desires in 1930s Shanghai, pitched as reminiscent of THE PIANO TEACHER and MEMOIRS OF A GEISHA, to Wendy Lee at Harper, by Marysia Juszczakiewicz at Peony Literary Agency (world). Rights: juliette.shapland@harpercollins.com

Mo Yan wins Manhae Prize

By Kwon Mee-yoo

Anuradha Koirala, 62, the founder and executive director of Maiti Nepal, won the 15th Manhae Prize Thursday.

Manhae Foundation, an organization commemorating poet Han Yong-un, also known as Reverend Manhae, hosts the annual Manhae Prize to honor people who promote peace across the globe. A Korean poet under Japanese colonial rule, Han is most famous for his work “Love’s Silence” and his patriotic activities.

Koirala was formerly an English teacher, but now she fights for the human rights of sex trade victims. She was chosen as the Hero of the Year by CNN in 2010, for saving Nepalese girls sold for sex trafficking.

The literature section of the prize was awarded to Mo Yan of China and Lee Keun-bae of Korea. Mo is a modern Chinese author known for his works such as “Red Sorghum” (1987) and “Big Breasts and Wide Hips” (1996). Lee’s poems are based on sijo, traditional three-verse Korean poems, and he modernized the traditional style in his own way.

Sri Lankan archaeologist S.B. Hettiaratchi won the practice section, for academically analyzing the history of Buddhism of the country.

曹可凡专访《十三钗》编剧严歌苓 Cao Ke Fan Interviews “Thirteen Girls”Screenwriter Yan Geling

http://www.sina.com.cn 2011年01月11日10:32  新浪娱乐[ 微博 ]新浪娱乐

新浪娱乐讯 严歌苓，享誉世界文坛的华人作家，是海外华人作家中最具影响力的作家之一。以中、英双语创作小说，其作品无论是对于东、西方文化魅力的独特阐释，还是对社会底层人物、边缘人物的关怀以及对历史的重新评价，都折射出人性，哲思和批判意识等。代表作品：《金陵十三钗》、《小姨多鹤》、《第九个寡妇》、《赴宴者》、《扶桑》等，她几乎每一部作品都获得了各种国内外文学大奖。

在昨天电影《金陵十三钗》的开机现场，一位气质优雅的女士格外引人注目，她就是专程赶来参加开机仪式的小说原作者严歌苓女士，她同时也是电影《金陵十三钗》的编剧之一。

严歌苓女士在发布会后接受了主持人曹可凡的专访，她表示这是她人生中第一次来到现场参加一部电影的开机仪式，是因为“这是一部非常重要的电影，非常令人期待”。

关于小说原作，“始终关注南京大屠杀”

曹可凡：我特别想知道您当时是怎么样的一个契机来写《金陵十三钗》这部小说的？

严歌苓：这是十几年前的一个故事，因为我对南京大屠杀始终很关注，在海外每年都有纪念大屠杀的海外华人集 会，我经常去参加。在1995年我来南京参加一次全世界纪念南京大屠杀的大集会，我就想要为南京大集会这个事情写一个东西，所以我就把这个最早起源美国精 灵女校校长的日记放大了。

曹可凡：你在写的时候是不是就想在大银幕上把它更立体的承现出来？能够更好地展现那段残酷岁月当中很多人性的光芒？

严歌苓：是的，我觉得战争是一个特别奇怪的契机，是很多人格在和平时间不能够展现的一些角落，突然就发生了裂变，这就是一些最平凡的人突然展现最高贵的东西，这就是最开始想让我写这个故事的这个灵感。

关于电影创作，“与张艺谋合作很荣幸”

曹可凡：当你第一次听说张导演想把这部小说搬上银幕的时候您的反应是什么？

严歌苓：非常荣幸！我觉得张导演做这个电影的话，对于我们民族的记忆是一次重新唤醒，会使全世界更加关注这件事情。

曹可凡：刘恒先生有一句非常有趣的话形容你们之间的合作：他在你的小说上动手动脚。这部电影同时吸引了两位一流编剧的加盟，你如何看待你们之间的合作？

严歌苓：我很少认为自己的东西是不可碰的。因为我觉得从小说到电影是两种完全不同的艺术形式。这一次，我们对于小说几乎进行了一次再创作，可以说小说的内容在剧本里面只占到三分之一的份量，我们做了很大的改变。用张伟平先生的话说，它要拍出中国人的血性，要有抗争，有宏大的战争场面。所以，改变小说原有的东西，我是看的很开的。

曹可凡：和刘恒老师的合作是不是很默契，你们俩是怎么分工做这个本子的？

严歌苓：刘恒是我非常尊重的一个编剧，他编剧的很多作品其实我都是读过的，我的案头也有他的一些剧本。他把戏剧架构打造得非常结实之后，导演要我加进去一个女性的视角，特别是小姑娘这样的一个视角，所以我们应该说是各尽其能了，我想可以做到精彩纷呈。

曹可凡：张艺谋导演说《金陵十三钗》的剧本是他20年来碰到的最好剧本，我觉得他说这句话的神情就像母亲马上要分娩的那种兴奋感，你怎么看导演的这番评述？

严歌苓：母亲很难分辨自己的孩子好坏，因为她天天看着孩子有时候难免迟钝。所以，导演面对自己的孩子，还有这样的自信，对剧本有这样的期待，这是最好的事情！也更让人期待拍成电影之后的作品。

曹可凡：那这次张艺谋导演请了好莱坞一线的演员克里斯蒂安·贝尔，克里斯蒂安·贝尔是位非常勤勉，非常有创造力非常craetivity的演员，他来演你的笔下约翰这样一个人物，你有什么样的一个期待，在这之前你有没有看过克里斯蒂安·贝尔其他的一些戏？

严歌苓：我看过Batman。(《蝙蝠侠》)。我觉得他(对《金陵十三钗》)提了一些非常专业的建议，而且对这个作品非常喜欢的一个人。

曹可凡：为什么能看到他喜欢这个电影？

严歌苓：比如对人物的戏应该增加什么，比如他觉得妓女翻墙的时候掉到教堂的应该做些什么，他提的一些非常细小细腻的建议，证明这个演员已经非常投入到这部电影中了，这是个非常好的现象。

关于创造，“拍世界一流中国电影令人鼓舞”

曹可凡：张伟平先生有一个伟大的目标，要用一个国际一流的团队，来创造一个具有世界一流水准的中国电影，你怎么看待他的这个想法

严歌苓：我觉得这是一个突破性的行为，我觉得世界对于南京大屠杀，特别是日本人到现在都不承认，用这样一个世界团队来做，使世界人民对这件事情的记忆，和对这件事情的反思是非常重要的，我觉得这样一种抱负，不管从文化上，还是在艺术上都特别鼓舞我。

曹可凡：其实中国电影工业有很大发展，但中国电影在海外能够突破亿元美元的除了张艺谋依然是绝无仅有，你觉得中国电影走向世界最大的瓶颈和阻力在什么地方？

严歌苓：我觉得有很多东西从语言上到文化上都是不可翻译的，比如我们的幽默和西方人的幽默。还有就是从政治 到经济上的原因，导致难以得到世界关注，现在中国在经济上和政治上都强大起来，他的文化必然是要被注视。所以，以中国的角度，中国的文化来看事情，来表达 感情，并得到世界的认可，这是《金陵十三钗》正在做的事情，现在是万事俱备，只等电影作品的完成，我们完全有理由相信这是一次走向世界的机会。

The internet’s cyber radicals: heroes of the web changing the world

A generation of political activists have been transformed by new tools developed on the internet. Here, a leading net commentator profiles seven young radicals from around the world

Aleks Krotoski

The Observer, Sunday 28 November 2010

HAN HAN – BLOGGER

Han Han a professional rally driver, bestselling author, singer, creator of a literary magazine and China’s most popular blogger. Photograph: Ym Yik/epa/Corbis

The 28-year-old Chinese professional rally driver, bestselling author, singer, creator of a literary magazine and China’s most popular blogger – indeed, possibly the most popular blogger in the world.

What are your greatest criticisms of the Chinese government and the current political climate there?
The Chinese Communist party puts keeping their political position first above everything. Of course, this is the wish of many political parties around the world. For the Chinese government, the reality is that regardless of whether the people are satisfied or unsatisfied, the party’s position will always be secure. However, they are sometimes nervous, sometimes arrogant and this attitude has caused many tragedies.

What impact do you hope your web activity will have on the political system?
Although China has many idealistic journalists and media figures, the media are still controlled and censored. Although the internet is controlled, when compared with traditional media it better reflects reality. Rather extreme views or false information may sometimes appear on the internet, but it’s only because traditional media fail to take the responsibilities they should take. The government might think the internet is really annoying, but I think it actually helps the government.

How do you think internet-based social change is different in China?
The only difference is English-speaking countries treat the internet as technology, while Chinese-speaking countries treat the internet as medicine.

How did you decide the internet was the best mouthpiece for your views? You already had a profile in traditional media, so why not use them?
It’s faster and more direct. It’s almost impossible to publish sensitive articles in traditional media. Even though others might delete your writing online, at least you can publish your opinion completely. I don’t write articles to oppose a specific party or government; my articles could criticise any party. I’m a writer. How can I call myself an intellectual if I can’t write and publish words as I wish?

Why do you feel you can get away with statements against the government that other people wouldn’t?
The atmosphere is not as terrifying as people in the west may think. Sometime my articles do get censored, but besides those who advocate policy changes and democratic reform, the government actually doesn’t often control or censor writers. The writers here have become smarter: they know what to write and what not to write.

How have you dealt with resistance from your detractors, in particular the Chinese government?
They can only censor my articles, not my thoughts. I can accept this type of censorship. It’s a game, and I’m playing by other people’s rules. I don’t think the government disagrees with the ideas in the articles that were censored; they are afraid of the ideas spreading.

What effect do you feel you are having on the political psyche of China’s youth?
I can’t really influence them in any way, but I hope that when the country is one day in their hands they will remember the past and take good care of this nation. In that world there is no capitalism, socialism, communism or feudalism; there is also no westernisation or easternisation. There is only right and wrong, beauty and ugliness, good and evil.

Where will the most radical change brought about by the web be felt in 10 years?
I’ll answer this question in 2013, when we have confirmation that the world still exists. Otherwise my answer now will be rubbish.

Harvill Secker To Publish Chinese Author Yan Geling

Posted at 7:58AM Tuesday 08 Mar 2011
Book2book http://www.booktrade.info/index.php/showarticle/32396

Rebecca Carter has acquired for Harvill Secker from Marysia Juszczakiewicz at Peony Literary Agency two books by the acclaimed Chinese author, Yan Geling. The first, Nanjing Heroes (to be published in February 2012) is a powerful novella based on real events that happened during the Nanjing Massacre in 1937. It is currently being made into a film by Chinese director Zhang Yimou (To Live, Raise the Red Lantern, House of Flying Daggers) which stars Oscar-winner Christian Bale as the American priest whose attempt to shelter a group of Chinese schoolgirls from the Japanese invaders is jeopardised when prostitutes from the nearby brothel break into the church compound desperate for a place to hide. Translation rights are represented by Peony and have sold so far to Italy, Spain, France, Germany and Vietnam, with a lot of interest amongst other European publishers. The manuscript is currently out on general submission in America. The second novel, Little Aunt Crane, begins with the withdrawal of Japan from China at the end of the Second World War, and is about a young Japanese girl who gets left behind and sold to a Chinese family.

Rebecca Carter, who has been responsible for bringing a number of Chinese authors into the English language, says, ‘Geling’s work is a revelation to me. Her understanding of character, her ability to make historical events seem as if they are unfolding in front of the reader, and the skill with which she tells a story are all incredibly exciting. I can see exactly why Zhang Yimou wanted to make the film of Nanjing Heroes. It brilliantly evokes huge events through the intimate, moving story of a group of characters trapped together and under threat. I can’t wait to see Christian Bale in the lead role, and I can’t wait for readers to discover these books. Geling is one of China’s most important contemporary writers and it is high time she was better known in the UK.’

Born in Shanghai in 1959, Yan Geling served with the People’s Liberation Army during the Cultural Revolution, starting aged 12 as a dancer in an entertainment troupe. She published her first novel in 1985 and has now written over 20 books and won 30 awards. Her works have been translated into twelve languages, several have been adapted for film, and she also writes film scripts (including that for Zhang Yimou’s adaptation of Nanjing Heroes). She may be only person in the world who is concurrently a member of China’s Writers’ Association and Hollywood’s Writers’ Guild of America. She currently lives in Berlin.

For further information, contact:
Rebecca Carter, Editor at Large, Harvill Secker: rcarter@randomhouse.co.uk
Marysia Juszczakiewicz, Agent, Peony Literary Agency: Marysia@peonyliteraryagency.com

牡丹花版权代理公司网站上线 Peony Literary Agency Launches Website (9.27)

牡丹花版权代理公司（原创意工作有限公司）创建了一家新网站（www.peonyliteraryagency.com），网站上公布了关于作者、代理作品以及翻译版权和服务等方面的信息。

作为一家新型文学代理机构，牡丹花版权代理公司致力于在东西方文化之间架起一座桥梁。公司将西方出版方面的经验、多种语言技能、以及与大陆和台湾媒体确立的联系结合起来。

公司代理过苏童（2009年曼氏亚洲文学奖得主）、韩寒以及莫言等作家作品的版权。

（新闻来源：中国图书对外推广网 2010-09-27）

用歡樂寫文革 莫言：小說應超越政治

兩岸文學對談
大陸知名作家莫言（左）來台參加兩岸圖書交易會，與台灣作家駱以軍對談兩岸文學。
記者陳宛茜／攝影