1978 Synthetic Writers

Chapter 519 A Collective "Awakening"

"Feng Xiaogang has written it?!"

Just like when the Chinese national football team qualified for the World Cup, this news quickly spread among the screenwriters of "Haima," causing a huge uproar.

It's so scary.

Everyone is stuck on the text.

So you actually wrote it first?
So they all went to Feng Xiaogang to read his masterpiece.

After reading the script for Feng Xiaogang's episode, everyone couldn't help but give it a thumbs up.

"I admire you."

"Well written!"

The people at Haima had never heard of Feng Xiaogang before, but the script he wrote was really good; it showed a high level of skill.

The essential
After reading it, you'll feel that this is exactly how the TV series "Stories from the Editorial Department" should be written.

"Old Feng, how did you suddenly become so insightful? Give us some pointers." Liang Zuo was a bit taller than Feng Xiaogang, and he spoke with his head down, showing that he wasn't ashamed to ask questions.

"Harmful."

Feng Xiaogang waved his hand, "It's not that I've suddenly become enlightened. When I was writing, I tried my best to imitate the style of the boss's novel, that one called 'The Playboy'."

"The Troublemakers? What 'The Troublemakers'?"

"Boss, you even have this novel?"

"Never heard of it."

"."

"Ugh, I just wrote it recently."

With Feng Xiaogang's promotion, the novel "The Troubleshooters" quickly gained popularity in the courtyard of the "Haima Film and Television Creation Center".

"Awesome! This novel is written in a way I could never write," Wang Shuo exclaimed, slapping his thigh in admiration.

“The story isn’t complete enough,” Wei Ren said.

"Hey, you really shouldn't say that."

Wang Shuo immediately said, "I think the beauty lies in this. Although no complete story is written, and all the plots are fragmented, it is itself a microcosm of our society today. The novel represents the state of the entire society in transition."

The reason we can't tell a complete story is because life itself has become fragmented.

The story has ended, and its meaning has been lost.

You could say he wrote about fashion models, bikini-clad women, and stage actors dressed in costumes from different eras walking the runway together. In short, no matter how they dressed up, there were always cheers from the audience.

Isn't this a perfect reflection of the confusion in people's minds today?
No matter how you play, there will be people watching, people cheering, and people joining in the fun, but no one needs to take it seriously; just be true to yourself.

"Well, that's quite insightful," Liang Zuo chuckled.

"No one's novels are as insightful as others'; just look at how people write them."

Wang Shuo immediately began reciting lines from the novel "The Troubleshooters": "Life is like playing football. You may not score a single goal in the whole game, but you still have to play your heart out because the audience is cheering you on. Life is about running around and listening to others cheer you on."

"How well written! If you ask me, the boss has really seen through the world, almost become an immortal. In his eyes, life is just like that; the whole world is playing games, and whoever takes it seriously loses."

"Well said!" Yu Hua couldn't help but applaud Wang Shuo.

Wang Shuo has a very strong presence in the "Hippocampus" community. Although he is a bit introverted, you should never let him open up. Once he does, he can talk a lot and he talks very well, making you want to keep listening.

"What kind of character did our boss have when he was a kid?" Liu Heng pondered, scratching his forehead.

"What's wrong?"

"After watching his film 'The Troubleshooters,' do you know what it reminded me of?"

"Animal Ferocity?" Liang Zuo asked tentatively.

"correct!"

Liu Heng slapped his thigh, looking particularly excited, "How did you know?"

"The 'playboys' are a common character in the boss's novels. Didn't he write about a group of playboys in 'Ferocious Animals' before?"

"Yes! The novel 'Ferocious Animals' is from several years ago. I read it more than once. It was so well written, especially the main characters, who were so vivid."

Someone was smoking animatedly in front of the traffic control tower, exuding an air of 'arrogance and self-importance as he stood on the street,' his 'eyes filled with indifference and contempt,' making his 'well-behaved peers,' who were queuing up under the guidance of their teachers, feel rather ashamed and uneasy.'
"Wow, this is so well written! The language is so beautiful! The characters of these 'little rascals' are portrayed so vividly and realistically. If you don't know how the boss could write such a wonderful story, he absolutely doesn't believe it."

Liu Heng's words were quickly agreed upon by everyone.

No one is born a writer.

Like ordinary people, they all have to go through their own lives and choose a way to make a living. Their understanding of the world and people is inseparable from these experiences.

Take Melville, the author of "Moby-Dick," for example. He was a sailor in his youth, which is why he wrote "Moby-Dick."

Stendhal, who wrote "The Red and the Black," once served as a consul in a small Italian town. After the publication of "The Red and the Black," a saying circulated in society: "If you haven't read 'The Red and the Black,' you can't get by in politics."

There are even more in China.

There are many of them here.

For example, Liu Zhenyun wrote "Tap" because he experienced taking the college entrance examination after being discharged from the army.

There's also Wang Shuo, who served in the navy. His famous essay, "Air Hostess," was also based on this experience.

There are also those who are not present, like Mo Yan, because he served in the military, so his early novels were inseparable from his military experience.

Therefore, Jiang Xian may not be a "playboy" now, but he must have been one before.

"He's probably not just an ordinary troublemaker."

Liang Zuo guessed, "Ordinary hardcore gamers wouldn't reach this level of enjoyment."

After discussing Jiang Xian for a while, the group continued to discuss the novel "The Playboy".

Everyone felt that the novel *The Playboy* was particularly unique. It didn't seem to be writing a story; the whole text read like a script, with a group of people talking back and forth, pure Beijing banter, but it was very entertaining to read. Jiang Xian's language had the ability to create a wider range of enjoyment, for example, this passage:
"I don't want to live anymore," the man said, staring at Yu Guan.

"No, no, don't want to die," Yu Guan muttered, trying to persuade him. "It's better to live a miserable life than to die a good death."

"Fine, I'll live if you tell me to. But give me something to do, I'm annoyed."

"Go to the park, go boating? Go to the movies?"

"This is getting more and more boring," the man said, getting annoyed. "You only ever spout these clichés."

"Then what do you want to do? I'll do whatever you want."

"You'd jump off a building with me—why would I need you to come with me? You're not even a woman."

"Oh, we don't do pimping here. There are places that specialize in that—marriage agencies. If you have too much free time, you can practice calligraphy, enjoy music, or do volunteer work."

"Damn it! After all this fuss, I only spent two cents to register for an appointment and this is the advice you give me? Isn't this just trying to rip me off?"

"I'm not a god, nor am I the person in charge of visas at the US embassy. Personal happiness depends on social progress. Stay calm."

"Do you feel any purpose in life?" the man asked, his eyes burning with intensity.

Looking at the man, Yu couldn't tell if he was being provocative.

“It’s quite exciting.”

"I think you're boring. You're such a boring person that I don't even want to hit you."

"."

Jiang Xian's language is wonderful.

While reading, one can't help but laugh out loud. Moreover, the brief dialogue between a sullen man and a fried dough stick vividly brings the characters to life.

It also contains a kind of linguistic humor, such as "cliché," "pimping," "personal happiness depends on social progress," and "stay calm."

In short, it is easy and enjoyable to read, yet one can vaguely sense some values ​​within it.

For example, this passage:
The sound of Ma Qing speaking rapidly came from the living room. When he paused, a burst of laughter erupted. Just as the laughter subsided, Yang Chong said a few more words, and the laughter resumed.

"Your two colleagues are quite funny!"

“They are my best friends.” Ding Xiaolu paused for a moment, then continued chopping vegetables: “You finally have friends like that.”

“I’m always happy when I’m with them.”

A very brief exchange.

But from this conversation, you can directly grasp the truth that "the best friend is the one who makes you happy."

Moreover, in this casual, conversational context, the word "friend" seems all the more sincere and endearing.

The detailed description of Ding Xiaolu "pausing his hand" suddenly makes this passage seem very precious.

"Old Jiang is truly a natural language user."

Feng Jicai sighed, "Every time I read his novels, I can clearly feel a difference."

Most authors rely on their acquired literary cultivation and life experience to write, but Jiang Xian has his own unique approach.

He has a natural charm.

I can't quite put my finger on it. Perhaps it's an extraordinary attitude of 'effortless mastery, a blend of humor and satire,' something others can neither surpass nor emulate.

"Yes, look here."

Shi Tiesheng excitedly pointed to a page of the manuscript, and everyone crowded around to see it:

"Mom, why can't you understand your daughter's heart!"

"We are the new generation of youth, and we must use our own eyes to see the world."

"But Mom loves you."

"What did Rousseau say?" Lin Bei turned around, craned her neck, and shouted at the "old lady," "What do you need so many things for? Where are you going to put them?"

The old woman jumped to her feet and retorted, "What did Brinnan say? 'The beauty of marriage is that it makes one feel less lonely when alone.' What did Strymat say? 'The meadow is full of flowers, but the cattle come here and find only fodder.'"

"What did Cervantes say? 'I never stick my nose into someone else's porridge, because that's not my sesame paste bun.'"

What did Roland say? 'From the day she reached 140 pounds, the main thrill of a woman's life has been discovering women fatter than herself.'

"."

"This accumulation is too deep!"

Shi Tiesheng couldn't help but sigh.

The famous quotes that other writers treasure are merely a humorous scene in Jiang Xian's writing.

For him, what cultivated the literary spirit within him was probably not reading.

Reading prompts Jiang Xian to think, but he prefers to treat it as a mocking joke.

His own life experiences are the core of his writing.

"And this sentence is really well written."

Everyone crowded around to take a look and found it was a passage of text.

These words were spoken by Yu Guan, but anyone could see that Jiang Xian was using him as a mouthpiece:
“Listen, we can endure all kinds of inconveniences and be content, because we know that nothing is perfect, and everything is the same everywhere.”

We have no demands on others. Even if our lives are not going well, we don't want to blame others, and in fact, we can't blame others. Besides, we don't feel wronged, so our cynicism comes out of nowhere.

If you are successful, you will help the world, and if you are poor, you will be alone.

Since it's not enough to accomplish anything, we'd rather quietly wait until the end of time.

"This is probably the boss's self-declaration," Liang Zuo muttered, pondering the implication of those words.

This statement seems joking and carefree, but it actually carries a sense of utter pessimism.

While reading, I couldn't help but laugh, but at the same time, I couldn't help but examine my own attitude.

"It's not just this one good line; I think there are so many memorable quotes in this novel!"

Yu Hua, standing nearby, exclaimed, "I copied several lines out!"

"Don't you dare do anything that could 'steal work' from us." Feng Xiaogang became a little nervous.

"That can't be."

Yu Hua pulled out a small notebook and showed everyone the famous quotes from "The Mischievous Swordsman" that he had copied down:
"Personal happiness depends on social progress; remain calm."

"I know these kinds of people too well. They're really frustrated inside, they want to do something but can't, they're ambitious but lack talent, so they just make silly jokes every day to show that they know everything. These kinds of people are the most useless. Don't get involved with them, you won't learn anything and you'll only waste your time."

"The next step after boredom means degeneration."

"I want to hit someone, I fucking want to hit someone. If I hadn't kept telling myself that if I hit someone, I would have to go to the police station and pay medical bills, especially for an elderly person, I might have to support them for the rest of my life, like having another father for no reason, I would have rushed up long ago."

"."

Each of these sentences is not some sanctimonious philosophy; to be precise, it's a playful and lighthearted expression. But it's more down-to-earth and relatable than most lofty and pretentious life maxims.

"I understand."

Liu Zhenyun looked enlightened and asked, "What does it mean to give literature and art, which are caught between elegance and vulgarity, their proper place?"
In other words, if you can see something deeper, then go ahead and read it; if you can't see anything deeper, at least you can have some fun.

"I'm not saying this to be rude, but the boss is really something."

At this moment, Liu Heng admired Jiang Xian to the extreme. "The so-called 'coming from the masses and going back to the masses,' creating works based on what the masses like and want, I think among such a small group of writers in the literary world, only the leader can do this."

As we were talking, Haiyan arrived.

Although he didn't join Haima, Haiyan still didn't mind associating with these writers and would often come over for a visit.

"Hey, where are we going?"

As soon as Haiyan arrived, he noticed Liu Zhenyun turning away and called out to him.

"Writing a script, huh?"

"Aren't you stuck? Have you got an idea?"

"It was stuck before."

Liu Zhenyun frankly said, "However, after reading one of our boss's novels, I'm a little clearer about the nuances I wasn't sure about before, and I roughly understand how to write 'Stories from the Editorial Department'."

"Is it?"

Hai Yan was surprised to hear Yu Hua agree with Liu Zhenyun's statement, saying that after reading the novel, he also felt he had benefited greatly and had more confidence in the script he was working on.

Because he had long been close friends with the writers of "Seahorse," Haiyan knew that the writers were collectively experiencing writer's block when writing scripts.

He was also thinking of giving them some more advice during this trip.

Unexpectedly, all the seahorses that had been constipated for so long suddenly "got it" today.

And it seems to be because of a novel.

"Is it really that effective?" Haiyan asked, half believing and half doubting.

(End of this chapter)