Literary Voices from Shanghai

The panel discussion included writer Nguyen Khac Ngan Vi, the first Vietnamese representative to participate in the Shanghai Writing Program in 2024; Mr. Bi Sheng, representative of the Shanghai Writers Association; Dr. Zhou Limin, Permanent Vice President of the Ba Kim Research Association, and 3 editors-in-chief and deputy editors-in-chief of leading Chinese literary magazines.

Những tiếng nói văn chương từ Thượng Hải- Ảnh 1. — Guests at the seminar shared about their literature.

According to Ms. Zhong Hong Ming, Editor-in-Chief of the literary magazine Thu Hau , literature is one of the great "means" to get acquainted with a city. Conversely, the mark of this place also appears in the works. Because it is an "open" city, Shanghai literature is constantly changing, complex, pluralistic and has an intersection between the new and the old, bearing the mark of the previous generation - the people who came after as well as a variety of topics. Among them, writers such as Ba Kim, Truong Ai Linh, Vuong An Uc... are the inspiration for many young writers.

Mr. Fang Yan, Deputy Editor-in-Chief of the magazine Tu Nam Van Hoc , said that Shanghai writers can be divided into three different groups: those born after 1970, 1980 and 1990. Ms. Lai Yingyan, Deputy Editor-in-Chief of the magazine Shanghai Van Hoc , added that Gen Z writers are also making progress and are gradually gaining attention. Regarding content, she shared that there are two main topics of primary interest: dialogue with oneself, with history, with the country's development process; and exploiting science fiction elements to discuss humanity, morality, and ethics. The latter topic shows a close adherence to the world context, while the first group also raises contemporary concerns: What should one write when life is increasingly homogeneous, everything happens in a process and there are no turning points?

Những tiếng nói văn chương từ Thượng Hải- Ảnh 2. — Nguyen Khac Ngan Vi *(right)* reveals his latest novel is about to be released in China.

The three guests also shared about how to support and foster new writers. Ms. Zhong Hong Ming said that with a history of more than 60 years and a prestigious name in the literary world, each issue of Thu Hau introduces 8-10 impressive novel excerpts. Representatives of Tu Nam Van Hoc and Shanghai Van Hoc magazines also said that their publications have separate sections for young writers.

Talking about the literary cooperation between Vietnam and China, writer Nguyen Khac Ngan Vi shared that during her stay at the Shanghai Writing Program, she observed that this city has very good cultural exchange programs that are worth learning from. In addition, she revealed that the novel Van Sac Hu Vo has been copyrighted by the Shanghai Literature Publishing House, and is expected to be released next August after appearing in the literature semester exam of final year high school students. In addition, Dr. Zhou Limin also told about the memories of writer Ba Kim when he visited Saigon in 1927, showing the special connection between the two countries' literature.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/nhung-tieng-noi-van-chuong-tu-thuong-hai-185250607204409685.htm