I will be giving an illustrated presentation on "Science Fiction in China" at the meeting of the U.S.S. Hudson Bay Science Fiction Club, on Saturday, January 11, 2014, at 1:30 p.m. at the Auditorium of the Main Branch of the North York Public Library, located at the North York Subway Station, Toronto. You do not need to be a member of the U.S.S. Hudson Bay to attend this open meeting.
The presentation runs approximately 45 minutes. The Hudson Bay meeting runs from approximately 1:30 to 4:30 p.m.
Here's my schedule for Lonestarcon 3, the 71st World Science Fiction Convention, to be held in San Antonio, Texas, from August 29 to September 2, 2013. They're keeping me busier than in previous years with 3 panels, a kaffeeklatsch (my first), and an autograph session (where I usually check my email while everyone else is lining up for someone else like George R.R. Martin). If you're at the convention, please look for me and say hello.
Thursday, August 29, 13:00-14:00. Convention Center, Exhibit A Autographing: Madeline Ashby, Derwin Mak, Byron Reese, David Lee
Summers
Friday, August 30, 13:00 - 13:30. Convention Center, 002B Reading: Derwin Mak
Friday, August 30, 15:00 - 16:00. Convention Center, 007A Asian SF Literature:
What is the state of our genre in Asian countries and languages? Are there
themes and qualities informed by geography?
Panelists: Takayuki Tatsumi (M), Wesley Chu,
Toh EnJoe, Derwin Mak, Mary Anne Mohanraj
Saturday, August 31, 14:00 - 15:00. Convention Center, 007CD What Does SF Tell Us about Dealing with China in the Future?
The Chinese government supports sf magazines, trying to inverse-engineer what
sf did in the USA: inspire interest in science & engineering among the
young. Can this be a useful way to see into China's culture? Can a Chinese sf
community help bring a Communist regime to a peaceful opening toward the
West?
Panelists: Gregory Benford (M), Emily Jiang,
Derwin Mak, Max Gladstone
Saturday, August 31, 16:00 - 17:00. Marriott Riverwalk Hotel, Riverview Room. Kaffeeklatsch: Eileen Gunn, Derwin Mak, Ramez Naam
Sunday, September 1, 11:00 - 12:00. Marriott Rivercenter Hotel, conference 8. Religion and Fandom:
Panelists: Janice Gelb (M), Derwin Mak, Jesi
Pershing, Steven Silver
Calling all Canadians citizens at home and abroad and
permanent residents of Canada:
our national science fiction awards, the Aurora Awards, are now open for
nominations. This year, I have two short stories that are eligible to be nominated in the category of Best Short Fiction - English:
"The Faun and the Sylphide", from Tesseracts Sixteen: Parnassus Unbound, edited by Mark Leslie, Edge Science Fiction and Fantasy Publishing, Calgary, 2012
"Flying Devils", from Shanghai Steam, edited by Ace Jordyn, Calvin D. Jim and Renee
Bennett, Edge Science Fiction and Fantasy Publishing, Calgary, Alberta,
2012.
Also, Shanghai Steam is the first Chinese-theme steampunk anthology ever, so please consider nominating it for the Aurora Award for Best Related Work - English. Editors are Ace Jordyn, Calvin D. Jim, and Renee Bennett. Publisher is Absolute XPress / EDGE Science Fiction and Fantasy Publishing.
To learn more about the Aurora Awards and to nominate
stories and individuals, visit:
The CSFFA charges a $10 membership fee, so both new and returning
members will be asked to pay $10 by Paypal. Renewing members can access
the membership portal and make nominations after paying the membership
fee. New members will receive a Society number by email and can go back
to the Aurora Awards website and submit nominations. Nominees do not
get any sort of monetary gain from the fees. The CSFFA is a non-profit
organization, and its small budget, raised by the membership and voting
fees, goes to administer the awards program and produce the trophies.
$10 is a low price to promote national pride in our science fiction and
to give a small reward to your favourite authors, artists, and fan
organizers.
Help The Dragon and the Stars win an Aurora Award!
Aurora Awards voting is NOW OPEN! Voting procedures are different from previous years'. Now you have to register as a member of the Canadian Science Fiction and Fantasy Association, receive a membership number, and use it to vote online. There is no charge to register as a CSFFA member, but there is a $5.50 voting fee; however, persons attending SFContario 2 (this year's Canvention) will have their voting fee waived.
Here are the instructions from the Constellation Awards on how to vote:
"Here’s how to begin. First go to our membership page
and login. For those that registered to nominate you just have to use your email address and the society number you used before. For those that are new please click the “Register” button at the bottom of the form to sign up. We will send you your society number with a link to click to verify your account.
Once you have logged in you will see at the bottom the voting section with our “Buy Now” button. As in past years, there is a $5.50 fee to vote. If you are a member of Canvention this fee is being waived and you will instead see a “Vote Now” link at the bottom."
Remember,The Dragon and the Stars is on the ballot for Best English Related Work! To read its stories, go here:
Two Chinese Canadian Writers and Overseas Compatriots Together in Chinese Science Fiction Book
By Wendy Yang
Published in Ming Pao Daily News, Toronto edition, February 8, 2010, p. A2
Overseas Chinese writers are numerous, but those writing science fiction are few. Two Chinese Canadian science fiction writers, with overseas Chinese writers in different countries, have created a book of 18 science fiction and fantasy short stories, to be released on May 11. This will be North America's first all-overseas-Chinese anthology of science fiction and fantasy.
The anthology, called The Dragon and the Stars, will be published by well-known American science fiction publisher DAW Books. It contains 18 short stories from Canada, the United States, Hong Kong, the Philippines, and Singapore. The 18 Chinese authors wrote their stories in English over six months. Five of the authors are from Canada, and they are strong in Canadian sci-fi circles.
Tony Pi was born in Taipei, immigrated to Canada when he was 8 years old, and grew up in Toronto. He earned his Ph.D. in linguistics at Montreal's McGillUniversity and has worked at several universities in Canada. At present, he is administering the graduate program in Cinema Studies at University of Toronto.
For the new book, he wrote the fantasy story "The Character of the Hound". The story centers on a war between the Southern Song and Jin. The ghost of a soldier adopts the word "Dog" as a tattoo on his body and acquires super powers to solve a murder in the army.
Tony Pi likes science fiction, in particular, Japanese manga (comics). "I like to use imagination to explore the present and the past and things that do not exist in the world. I like to create." In 2006, he wrote his first story, "The Stone Cipher", which won second place in the first quarter of the Writers of the Future contest, an international competition that finds cutting-edge science fiction writers. So far he has published 20 short stories, each of about 4,000 words.
Derwin Mak is another Chinese science fiction writer. He was born in Peterborough, Ontario. His father is from Hong Kong, and his mother is Malaysian Chinese. He is a chartered accountant, a member of Royal Canadian Military Institute, and a lecturer at the Institute.
He wrote "The Polar Bear Carries the Mail", about a Chinese company that joins with Inuit in northern Canada to build a spaceport but are opposed by environmentalists. The main character is a Chinese astronaut, and the story involves feng shui problems.
Derwin Mak began writing science fiction in 2001. His 2005 story "Transubstantiation" won the Prix Aurora Award, Canada's national science fiction award, equivalent to the United States' Hugo Award.
He said the new book is significant in correcting the past image of Chinese people and their culture in science fiction, which has been often negative. "The stories in The Dragon and the Stars all have Chinese themes, and many have ethnic Chinese main characters. Chinese culture is 5,000 years old, there are four great inventions of China, and Chinese history is full of scientific and technological development. This is a rich basis for science fiction and should be reflected in current stories."
There are another three Chinese Canadian science fiction writers: Eric Choi, Melissa J. Yuan-Innes, and Elaine Chen. Eric Choi's first story, "Dedication", was published in 1994, making him the first Chinese Canadian science fiction writer.
Derwin Mak says that overseas Chinese are now writing science fiction because North American tastes are changing. First, North Americans are more accepting of Asian culture, such as Japanese manga (comics) and Chinese martial arts movies. Secondly, North American society has become more diverse and inclusive of ethnic minorities in popular culture and creative fields, resulting in the emergence of Canadian Chinese science fiction writers.
Addendum to the English translation:
Eric Choi is co-editor of The Dragon and the Stars. His story "Dedication" won the Isaac Asimov Award for Undergraduate Excellence in Science Fiction and Fantasy Writing (now called the Dell Award for Undergraduate Excellence in Science Fiction and Fantasy Writing).
The original Chinese text refers to The Dragon and the Stars as a science fiction anthology, but it also contains fantasy stories.
Ming Pao Daily News, a major Chinese newspaper, published this article about The Dragon and the Stars in its Toronto edition, February 8, 2010. The reporter Wendy Yang interviewed me and Tony Pi.
作 品集名為《The Dragon and the Stars)》(龍與群星)﹐5月1日將由美國著名科幻出版商DAW Books出版。它收錄的18個短篇科幻小說﹐是由加拿大、美國、香港、菲律賓、新加坡等國家的18位華裔作家﹐在過去半年內用英文創作。其中加拿大有5 位﹐他們是加拿大科幻圈中頗具實力的華裔作家。
他此次為新書創作的奇幻作品為《The Character of the Hound》(犬的特點)。故事以南宋和金國之間的戰爭為背景﹐講述一個鬼魂通過士兵身上的「犬」字圖騰進入其身體﹐使士兵具有超能力﹐解決發生在軍隊內的謀殺案。
畢 家怡從小就喜歡科幻作品﹐尤其喜歡看日本漫畫﹐「我很喜歡用想象來探索現在和過去都不存在的世界﹐我喜歡進行創造。」2006年他創作了第一篇科幻小說 《The Stone Cipher》(寶石密碼)﹐為他贏得了當年第一季度未來作家競賽二等獎﹐這是一項旨在發現新銳科幻作家的國際性賽事。至今他已出版了20篇、每篇大約 4000字的短篇科幻小說。
