Nobody knows movies better than me

Chapter 138 Two short science fiction stories published

The Galaxy Awards' popularity came and went quickly.

Entertainment media are known for their short-lived appeal; Zhang Jun's award win was a hot topic in the newspapers for two days before being quickly replaced by other news.

Whether it's a celebrity's affair, a director's new film launch, or the inside story of a talent show contestant, there's always an even more sensational topic waiting to be discussed.

Zhang Jun was happy to have some free time, but the Science Fiction World magazine was anything but idle.

On the day the September issue went on sale, Jia Si went to the newsstand early in the morning and waited there.

"Boss, has *Science Fiction World* arrived yet?"

The newsstand owner flipped through a few pages, then tossed one over: "Just arrived."

Jia Si took it and saw that the title on the cover read: "Zhang Jun's latest masterpieces, 'Gravity' and 'Interstellar,' are set to ignite another sci-fi frenzy after 'The Martian'!"

He nodded in satisfaction. He had personally overseen the cover design, aiming to capitalize on the buzz surrounding Zhang Jun's Galaxy Award win.

As it turns out, riding this wave of popularity was the right move.

In Shanghai, at a high school, Li Mingyuan, a first-year student, rushed into a bookstore next to the school during a break between classes.

"Do you have 'Science Fiction World'?"

"Yes, I just arrived."

Li Mingyuan took out his money to buy a copy, opened the table of contents, and went straight to Zhang Jun's name.

Gravity, Chapter 1: Floating.

He crouched in the corner, eagerly looking at it.

The story begins simply: a spaceship operating in space is struck by debris and disintegrates. The protagonist, Li Xiao, tumbles in endless darkness, hearing only her own breathing.

"I've run into a problem in the capital."

No reply —

"I—I don't know where I am. I can't see the spaceship, I can't see my companions, I can't see anything."

Li Mingyuan's palms were sweating as he watched, imagining himself floating in the dark space with Earth behind him.

The school bell rang.

He reluctantly closed the magazine and ran back to the classroom.

He didn't hear a single word of the forty-five-minute class. His mind was filled with images of Li Xiao floating in space, the oxygen levels rising...

How can we survive if we have less?

After school, he rode his bike home, threw his schoolbag down as soon as he entered the house, and continued reading.

Li Xiao found the International Space Station, but there were no more spacecraft on the station, making a return impossible. Using the last of her fuel, she piloted the return capsule in an attempt to dock with another spacecraft. "Dinner's ready!" her mother called from the kitchen.

"Wait a minute!"

"What are you waiting for? The food's getting cold!"

Li Mingyuan reluctantly sat down at the dining table, ate a couple of mouthfuls of rice, and then ran back to his room.

By the time he finished reading the last sentence of "Gravity," it was already dark.

"That's it?"

He flipped through the pages repeatedly, confirming there was no next page, and felt a little disappointed.

At 9 p.m. in an office building in Shenzhen, Lin Feng finally finished his day's work.

He is a programmer at an internet company. He is 26 years old and has been working for three years. Every day he faces code and bugs, and his life is as boring as a glass of plain water.

My only pastime is reading science fiction.

He became a fan after watching "The Martian." It's a miracle that a director can write such hardcore science fiction.

On his way home from get off work today, he passed by a newsstand and immediately spotted the name "Zhang Jun" on the cover of Science Fiction World.

Without saying a word, he bought it.

Back home, he cooked a packet of instant noodles and ate while reading. He finished "Gravity" in one go, put down the magazine, and let out a long sigh.

It's not the kind of "wow, that's amazing" kind of good; it's the kind of "good that makes you forget to breathe" kind of good.

Zhang Jun perfectly captured the loneliness and helplessness of the female protagonist struggling to survive alone in space.

Especially the last part, which made Raymond Lam's eyes a little wet.

He recalled lying on the roof of his old home as a child, watching the stars. Back then, there was no smog, and the Milky Way was clearly visible.

He once fantasized that one day he could fly into space and see what the stars looked like.

Later, I went to university, learned programming, and joined a company. I worked overtime until late at night every day, and I had long forgotten what the stars looked like.

He opened "Interstellar" and this time, he read until 2 a.m.

The next day at work, he had dark circles under his eyes, and his colleague asked, "What did you do last night?"

Lin Feng smiled and said, "I read a novel written by Zhang Jun."

"Zhang Jun? That director?"

"right."

"Is it pretty?"

Lin Feng thought for a moment and answered seriously, "Gravity makes people despair, while Interstellar makes people full of hope. Both are worth reading."

The colleague was a little confused: "What do you mean?"

"It means..."

Raymond Lam patted him on the shoulder: "Go see for yourself."

At Tsinghua University, students naturally have a favorable impression of Zhang Jun because of his alumni status. Moreover, Zhang Jun's films are indeed quite good; "The Martian" is also very enjoyable.

Ma Qiang, Zhang Jun's college classmate, had the most complicated feelings towards Zhang Jun.

Don't misunderstand, it's not that Ma Qiang likes Zhang Jun; he's just a little uncomfortable with Zhang Jun's change in status and can't understand it.

Zhang Jun, Bai's classmate for four years, underwent such a big change on the eve of graduation.

What I can't understand is why Zhang Jun, who clearly studied astronomy, went on to make movies and even succeeded.

He was happy to see his good friend succeed, but at the same time he was a little jealous.

Ma Qiang is currently pursuing a master's degree and plans to continue towards a doctoral degree. In terms of academic qualifications, Ma Qiang already surpasses Zhang Jun, who only has a bachelor's degree.

But while he was just an unknown master's student at Tsinghua University, Zhang Jun already had countless fans.

Ma Qiang also worked as a teaching assistant at the school. That day, he had just finished helping the professor organize documents. On his way back to his place, he overheard several students talking.

Have you read Zhang Jun's new novel?

"I saw them, weren't they called 'Gravity' and 'Interstellar'?"

"Yes, yes, I love 'Gravity.' The feeling of loneliness and despair in space really moved me. What I admire most is the indomitable spirit of the protagonist, Li Xiao."

"I think I was more moved by Commander Liu Hui. He was clearly capable of surviving on his own, but he gave the opportunity to Li Xiao."

"Gravity is alright, but I prefer Interstellar, especially the line 'When I return, you are old and frail, and my breath has covered your entire life.'"

When I saw the scene where Chen Bo met the elderly Chen Mofei, I couldn't help but cry.

Ma Qiang was curious, so he went up and asked, "Hey, what are you guys talking about?"

One student replied, "They are Zhang Jun's two latest short stories, which were just published in the magazine 'Science Fiction World'."

"OK, thanks!"

Ma Qiang immediately went to the bookstore. He knew that Zhang Jun could write novels, and he had bought some copies of "The Martian" as gifts for his friends when the standalone edition was published.

The friend who knew the two were classmates was very surprised and even asked him for Zhang Jun's autograph.

However, Ma Qiang said that he hadn't been in contact with Zhang Jun for several years. Now that Zhang Jun is so famous, he didn't want to cause him any trouble.

Ma Qiang bought the latest issue of "Science Fiction World" from the bookstore, and sure enough, two science fiction novels were prominently featured on the cover, with the words "Latest work by Galaxy Award-winning author and famous director Zhang Jun" standing out.

Ma couldn't wait to take it back and read it, and he read it until after 2 a.m.

The next day, when he appeared in the professor's office with panda eyes, the professor was greatly surprised and even wondered if he had been too exploitative of this student.

Ma Qiang explained, "I was reading a novel last night, and I stayed up a little late."

The professor asked curiously, "What novel has captivated you so much?"

Ma Qiang recommended two novels written by Zhang Jun to the professor, and to his surprise, the professor read them as well.

My daughter recommended it to me, saying it's very good.

The professor exclaimed, "Our Tsinghua University is truly producing a wealth of talent! We have the 'Shui Mu Nian Hua' for singing, Zhang Jun for filmmaking, and now Zhang Jun can even write novels."

After the professor finished his remark, he asked Ma Qiang, "By the way, have you been in contact with Zhang Jun?"

Ma Qiang shook his head: "He's probably very busy, and I don't want to bother him."

The professor said earnestly, "How can you be afraid? You're old classmates, you've been together for four years! Perhaps in the future, you can still help him."

That's true, but Ma Qiang felt that rashly reconnecting with his old classmate was a kind of opportunistic behavior.

The two short science fiction stories, "Gravity" and "Interstellar," received a good response, and just as the wave of public opinion following their Galaxy Award wins had not yet subsided, another round of discussion was sparked.

Most people don't believe that Zhang Jun will actually be able to make science fiction movies in the future, but after these two novels were published, it seems that Zhang Jun is serious about it.

The two novels have also sparked considerable discussion, with some focusing on the plot and others on the difficulty of realizing them. Even knowing how challenging it would be, it hasn't stopped people from imagining the possibilities.

A small minority attacked the scientific validity of the novel, but after "The Martian," most people didn't care.

If science fiction doesn't have any fantasy elements, can it even be called science fiction? It's bound to be illogical. According to these people's logic, all those Hollywood science fiction blockbusters are full of loopholes.

As one Douban user aptly put it: "If these novels were written by American science fiction authors, I guarantee these skeptics wouldn't utter a single word."

The words may be harsh, but they are the truth.

Before Zhang Jun's science fiction novels, science fiction was a niche genre with little public attention. However, the attention brought about by Zhang Jun's unique background expanded the science fiction community.

This is actually a good thing for other science fiction writers, as many of their works have gained attention in the process.

In the past, Chinese science fiction novels only truly broke into the mainstream after Liu Cixin's "The Three-Body Problem" won the Nebula Award and many of his works were adapted into films and television series.

But now, Zhang Jun has used his influence to easily make science fiction break out of its niche.

After the Galaxy Awards, Zhang Jun exchanged contact information with Liu Cixin, Wang Jinkang, and others. They were all very grateful to Zhang Jun because...

Zhang Jun wants his work to be seen by more people.

Many people believe that Zhang Jun's writing of science fiction novels was a way of finally being able to hold back his passion, and also a test of the market.

That's partly the reason, but the bigger reason is that Zhang Jun needs to reserve a spot. If he doesn't write these novels to reserve that spot, by the time the conditions are right to film them, Hollywood will have already made them.