1978 Synthetic Writers

Chapter 196 The Mysterious Best-Selling Writer from the Eastern Country
"Half an Hour for Lunch" is a manuscript that Li Qingquan had not adopted before, written by Shi Tiesheng.

After all, ideas and concepts are gradually liberalized. Li Qingquan is an outstanding editor, but he cannot be without his limitations.

Jiang Xian was very excited when he heard it. Isn't this just handing a good manuscript to him?
"Half an Hour for Lunch" is an unpublished work of Shi Tiesheng and also his famous work. It was published in a small magazine at the time and was later reprinted in "Selected Novels", causing great influence and controversy.

It is said that whenever the Beijing Writers Association held a meeting, no matter what the topic was, the final topic would turn to the debate on "Half an Hour for Lunch", and Shi Tiesheng was therefore admitted as a member of the Beijing Writers Association.

This phenomenon continued until 1983 when an article entitled "My Distant Qingping Bay" was published.

After listening to Zhang Dening's words, Jiang Xian told her to make another appointment with Shi Tiesheng for the manuscript and help him publish it in "Beijing Literature and Art".

Jiang Xian still had great confidence in Wang Meng. Wang Meng later served as editor-in-chief of "People's Literature" and did an excellent job in editing. During his tenure at "People's Literature", he launched a series of good works and led this "royal publication" to its peak.

Back at the courtyard in Jingshan East Hutong, Rao Yuemei came up to Jiang Xian and complained to him.

"You don't know, in just a short while, four or five groups of people have come to our house, all looking for her. Our yard is like a guesthouse. How long will she stay here?"

"She'll go back to Shanghai after staying here for a while. She didn't have a place to stay in Beijing, so I invited her here."

"So many people are looking for her, who is this person?"

Jiang Xian took a sip of water and said, "She is the editor of Harvest and the daughter of Ba Jin."

"Whose daughter?"

"Ba Jin."

"Ba Jin's daughter?!"

Rao Yuemei's expression was wonderful, "Why didn't you tell me earlier, kid? You brought such an important person into our home without saying a word."

"Comrade Rao Yuemei, you are a snob, aren't you?" Before his mother picked up the broom, Jiang Xian had already gone to the yard with a pot in his hand.

His father had already built a ceiling in the yard, which was made of reed mats, fir poles and bamboo poles. The reed mats on the top were movable and could be rolled up or down to adjust the brightness.

At the junction of the shed and the house, there is a framed iron window screen to prevent birds, mosquitoes and flies.

Jiang Xian took a sip of hot tea from the mug, then scooped a ladle of water and splashed it all over the courtyard, creating a cool world.

"Jiang Xian, how is the manuscript?" Li Xiaolin came back strolling, and as soon as he saw Jiang Xian, he became concerned about the whereabouts of "The Rite of Initiation".

Jiang Xian had nothing to hide, so he told Li Xiaolin about the dispute within the leadership of Beijing Literature and Art over The Rite of Initiation.

"So, the subject matter of "The Rite of Initiation" is indeed a bit sensitive, and it's not that easy to publish." Li Xiaolin helped him analyze it first, and then showed an expectant look on his face, "How about giving it to "Harvest"?"

"Not yet. There might be a chance for this matter to turn around." Jiang Xian said cryptically.

Hearing this, Li Xiaolin sighed and felt uncomfortable.

This is an occupational disease of editors.

This is what it’s like to be an editor. When you see a good manuscript, your eyes light up, you can’t contain your excitement, and you can’t wait to edit it and present it to readers.

As we were talking, it was time for dinner. We had lentil noodles sprinkled with a spoonful of mashed garlic, which was quite delicious.

Jiang Xian and Li Xiaolin sat in the yard, holding a bowl, and Li Xiaolin talked to him about the manuscript.

"Your article "Rice" is well written. I read it on the train when I came to Beijing. I just went to see Wan Fang and she said she had also read your novel recently and had waited in line for three days in a row at Xinhua Bookstore before she could buy it."

"Wan Fang?"

"She is Mr. Cao Yu's daughter. I have been friends with her for many years. She is a little older than you.

I told her about this Jingshan East Hutong, and she said her mother lived in this hutong when she was a child. She also heard her mother talk about her experience of living here when she was a child. She said that her mother and her good aunt were carried into a car together while they were sleeping, to protect Mr. Li Dazhao from leaving the city.

"Really?" Jiang Xian was surprised.

He knew that Mr. Cao Yu had three wives, and Wan Fang's mother was the second one, the daughter of Deng Zhongchun, a famous family in Anhui.

When talking about Deng Zhongchun, we have to talk about his younger brother Deng Yizhe. Deng Yizhe is the founder of modern Chinese aesthetics and a great educator. Wan Fang called him the third grandfather. Deng Yizhe lived in Langrun Garden of Yanda University. Wan Fang often visited him. His son, Wan Fang called him "good uncle."

This "good uncle" was elusive and would often disappear from family gatherings as soon as he received a phone call. Wan Fang always felt that her uncle was particularly mysterious and had no idea what he was secretly doing.

Later, this "good uncle" who had been unknown all his life finally became famous all over the world.

This comrade is Deng Jiaxian.

"By the way, the Institute of Literature also invited Mr. Cao Yu to be my instructor."

Li Xiaolin smiled and said, "I heard Wan Fang tell me about this. He said there was a student in the Institute of Literature and Art, but no teacher dared to accept him. Finally, they had to ask his father to accept him. After asking around, I found out that this student was the famous Mr. Jiang Xian."

"Ahem." Jiang Xian's face turned red. "Sister Xiaolin, please stop making fun of me. Do you know when Mr. Cao Yu is free? I haven't visited him yet."

"What an unfortunate coincidence! Mr. Cao Yu is on a visit abroad and will probably be back for some time. We at Harvest have already read your article "Glass Moon Shining on Copper Coin Street" and even had a discussion about it. What you wrote is really amazing. How did you come up with such a subject?"

"My sister also inspired me. She had a hobby of painting, but was firmly bound by her family and gave up this path. I was thinking, what if it was the other way around? Giving up family and choosing hobbies, I suddenly had an idea."

"I see."

Li Xiaolin couldn't help but admire Jiang Xian's keen observation.

Last time, I was inspired by a poem and wrote "Lychee". This time, I got inspiration from the same poem and wrote "Copper Coin Street".

"Your article is very well written. There is no problem with publishing it, but I'm afraid it will cause a lot of controversy after it is published."

Jiang Xian also understood that "The Moon and Sixpence" has been a best-seller for more than a hundred years and its reputation is polarized.

If I like it, I want to read it a hundred times, but if I don’t like it, I can’t even read two lines.

There are actually many such books. Su Tong once said that when he was young, he read "Moby Dick". At that time, many domestic and foreign writers said that "Moby Dick" was a classic among classics, but he felt that it was too gloomy and he couldn't finish reading it after two months.

Of course, "The Moon and Sixpence" is a special one because the protagonist of the book is an extremist who pursues his ideals.

It took Jiang Xian an entire afternoon to correct the places that Li Xiaolin had marked as needing modification.

"Copper Coin Street" has 120,000 words. Li Xiaolin is willing not to serialize it, but to publish the entire 120,000 words in the fifth issue of "Harvest" this year, which is the October issue.

You should know that after the resumption of publication of "Harvest", each issue was printed with about 256 pages, which is about 45 words.

Jiang Xian's article "Copper Coin Street" directly occupied a quarter of the fifth issue of "Harvest", which was a great honor.

Beautiful country.

Indiana University.

Reporters swarmed around, they were from major media outlets, including the New York Times, Los Angeles Times, Washington Post, and Chicago Daily News.
All the cameras were pointed at the center of the auditorium in front, at the big star from the mysterious oriental country.

Cao Yu had just finished his speech on "Modern Drama" in English. His English was of course top-notch, as he translated Shakespeare's famous play "Romeo and Juliet". However, he had not spoken English for 30 years, and his listening was very poor, so when he was asked questions, he needed Ying Ruocheng to help translate.

"What kind of organization are you?"

"We are called the China Dramatists Association, but in fact, in addition to playwrights, it also includes all artists involved in drama activities, stage designers, lighting designers, sound engineers, drama literature researchers, drama school teachers, etc."

“That seems misleading.”

"I hope the American people can understand that, if I am not mistaken, Mr. Dean is well-known for his love of beef, but I believe that there will be other delicacies on the menu he prepared today, such as French fries."

The questioning lasted for a long time, and the reporter from the New York Times suddenly asked a question.

"What is the literary status of the author of "Letter from an unknown woman" in China?"

Ying Ruocheng translated this passage to Cao Yu, who showed a trace of confusion on his face, "Sorry, I don't quite understand what you mean."

The guy from the New York Times repeated the title of the novel several times. Cao Yu looked apologetic but did not answer the question.

After the questions were answered, the directors of the Indiana University Patten Foundation accompanied Cao Yu on a tour of the campus.

"Oh, you are holding an election. I wonder if Mr. Carter can be re-elected," Ying Ruocheng said.

The United States is more liberal. Director Murphy boldly revealed that Carter was defeated and Reagan was more favored by the people of the United States. He also introduced Reagan to them, "He is a Hollywood star from the entertainment industry, very handsome."

"Oh?" Cao Yu was incredulous. "You want to elect a Hollywood star as president?"

This really made Zelize angry.

Reagan was tall, handsome and had a good image. He gave himself a nickname: Woman's Glutinous Rice Ball.

He had affairs with countless women and had affairs with more than 50 Hollywood actresses, including Marilyn Monroe.

As Murphy chatted, he talked about the novel mentioned by the New York Times reporter during the interview.

"You may not know that this novel has been selected by the American 'Monthly Reading Club' as a specially recommended novel in July this year."

A fellow traveler, a handsome brown-haired boy who looked like Elvis, couldn't help but interrupt.

"This is definitely the favorite novel among young people in New York in July! It's hard to imagine that this novel was written by a Chinese!"

“Chinese novels?”

Both Cao Yu and Ying Ruocheng were a little surprised, as they had never heard of such a person in their country.

"Could it be Mr. Lin Yutang's posthumous work?" Ying Ruocheng made a guess.

Mr. Lin Yutang is not well-known in the country, but he is a best-selling author abroad.

His books are simply bedside books for people in Europe and the United States, and "Moments in Beijing" even earned him a nomination for the Nobel Prize.

"Moment in Peking" is actually "Moment in Peking". This translation was given by Lin Yutang, not the translation "Moment in Peking".

That’s right, the original manuscript of "Moment in Peking" is the English manuscript, and the Chinese manuscript is the translated version.

After Lin Yutang finished writing it, he thought he was not capable of translating the novel into Chinese, as he felt his writing skills were not good enough. He initially asked Mr. Yu Dafu to translate it, but unfortunately Mr. Yu Dafu passed away, and it was finally completed by other people and became "Moment in Peking".

"What is the author's name?" Cao Yu asked.

“string.”

This is obviously a pen name. Even Americans don't use words like "strings" or "guitar strings" to name themselves. It sounds too ugly.

Cao Yu and Ying Ruocheng were confused. After the dinner, they said goodbye and returned to the hotel.

The people from the foundation also left in their cars.

The handsome brown-haired boy was still chatting with the people around him, "If I have the chance to go to China, I will definitely visit String. He wrote an amazing love novel."

"Shut up, Donald." Republican Paul cursed disdainfully, "When did you start to like literature?"

The handsome brown-haired boy from the Democratic Party immediately started to tremble. “You should shut up, Paul. I want to tell you that no one knows literature better than me.”

The election is approaching and the atmosphere is full of tension.

The handsome brown-haired boy gave him an international friendly sign, "You know what? Stupid Republicans, you're already going to lose the election."

Paul tilted his head, "Really? Don't forget that Reagan is just a liberal. Is he really a member of your Democratic Party?"

"Will Reagan turn to the Republicans? Don't dream."

The handsome brown-haired boy put his hands on his waist, grinning and aggressively saying, "The Republicans are such a bunch of idiots."

On the other hand, the royalties for Jiang Xian's English translation of "Letter from a Stranger" that was submitted overseas were finally remitted.

Shi Songqing helped him try to submit it to The New Yorker. It was originally just a try, but unexpectedly it was actually successfully submitted.

This is a well-regarded comprehensive magazine of knowledge and literature in the United States.

It has published works by Haruki Murakami (Norwegian Wood), Salinger (The Catcher in the Rye), and Philip Roth (Zuckerman Unleashed).

Jiang Xian's novel appeared on the other side of the ocean.

As for the pen name string, it was just chosen randomly by Jiang Xian.

He didn't find it offensive.

This is much better than a certain writer's name Shipship.

As for royalties, in the United States they are calculated based on the number of words.

At that time, the saying of $1 per word was popular in the United States. $1 per word was a reflection of the status of the writer.

Well, the first people to receive this treatment were "pig teammate" Xiao Mo and "the light of Judah" Xiao Xi.

The remuneration offered by The New Yorker to Jiang Xian naturally did not meet the celebrity standard of "$1 per word", and only gave him 70 cents per word.

The full text of "Letter from an Unknown Woman" is about 30,000 words.

The New Yorker paid Jiang Xian a total of $21848.4.

This is probably the largest amount of royalties Jiang Xian has ever received since he started writing.

"It's better to submit the same manuscript to multiple journals."

(Today's post is short and weak, so I'll post it first. Tomorrow's post will be normal. A relative is getting married today, so I'm going to collect some information.)
(End of this chapter)