Writers gather to discuss global appeal

More online writers joining the forefront of the literary mainstream and the increasing global appeal of Chinese writers will be featured topics during the upcoming ninth National Congress of the China Writers Association.

Nearly 1,000 writers, including overseas Chinese writers, will gather in Beijing for the four-day meeting beginning on Wednesday. The congress meets every five years.

He Jianming, vice-president of the association, said on Monday that he feels the meeting will be a vigorous reflection of the Chinese writing scene. The eldest participant will be 101-yearold Ma Shitu, whose novel has been turned into the hit movie Let the Bullets Fly.

Tang jia Sanshao, an online writer known for his persistent updates of 8,000 to 10,000 words daily for 12 years, was among the first online writers given membership, joining in 2006.

titles of contemporary Chinese works are translated for the global market each year.

“I have many expectations for the future development of online literature, as I’m honored to be the first online writer elected as a member of the national committee of the ninth congress,” he said.

“Younger writers bring fresh blood to the urban literature. We’ ll see more support for them,” he added.

Vice-President He said that in the five years since the eighth national congress, 2,253 writers have joined the association, bringing the total number of members to more than 10,000.

Among the new members, 40 percent are under age 45, 27 percent are female and 13 percent are online or freelance writers.

He added that the association is conducting research on newly arising literary forms, reinforcing its basic function of “being an important social force that enables literature to prosper, and promoting efforts to build a culturally advanced society”.

In recent years, the association brought 367 writers to live among villagers and to write about their grassroots experiences, and it has sent 150 writers to re-experience the route of the Long March.

Each year, about 100 titles of contemporary Chinese works are translated for the global market, and more Chinese writers are winning international awards, including the Hans Christian Andersen Award for children’s book authors and illustrators and the Hugo Award for science fiction or fantasy works, He said.

Writer and literary critic Cao Wenxuan said, “The China story is an endless resource to write about, but it should be told from the perspective of, and for the sake of, all human beings.”

At the meeting, Cao will also join the other writers in discussion of President Xi Jinping’s speeches on literature and culture.