The literary era since 1979

Chapter 34 Literature Institute
"hehe."

In the editorial department, Fang Yan found the submission from Lu Dacheng from a pile of letters from authors, and a sly smile appeared on his face.

There is no personal grudge here. This is purely business as usual!

These poems are really not good!

At this moment, Li Yue's sigh came to my ears.

"Why is it that the poems sent to the publishing house lately are always like this?"

“Is it a misty poem?”

Huang Zhongguo, Ji Xiuying and others cast inquiring glances.

"Yes, these poems are really tricky."

Li Yue shook his head helplessly.

Fangyan suddenly became excited. Su Ya wrote obscure poetry. "Teacher Li, why do you say that?"

"Yanzi, you don't know that the poetry world is in chaos."

Li Yue explained that now is the time when the debate on Misty Poetry is most intense. Due to social pressure, some mainstream literary magazines only select and publish Misty Poetry with caution and in a limited manner. Most publishing houses choose to turn a blind eye and do not allow it to be published.

"What about Today?"

Fangyan suddenly realized that it was no wonder that Su Ya's poems, which were obviously well written, were either rejected or buried in the sea.

The root is actually here!

"That's a publication created by people who write obscure poetry. After all, mainstream journals don't publish their poems, so they have to find a place to publish them. To put it nicely, it's called a 'folk publication', and to put it bluntly, it's an 'illegal publication'."

Li Yue said: "It is difficult to achieve success if you just entertain yourself."

Wang Jie said: "But there are many poems in Today that are really well written. When my friends and I read these poems, we felt a strong impact."

"Xiao Wang, do you really understand what they wrote?"

Li Yue said with a straight face, "Misty poetry is misty, obscure, weird, and incomprehensible. People can't get the gist of it even after reading it several times. They seem to understand it, half understand it, or even don't understand it at all."

"Teacher Li, I don't agree with your opinion. I don't understand it, but I can't just say it's wrong, and I can't stop people from expressing themselves. My master told me that we should allow different voices to appear."

Wang Jie expressed her views frankly.

Seeing that the entire editorial office had turned into a debate arena and the atmosphere was becoming increasingly tense and intense, Fangyan pretended to cough a few times.

"Ahem, by chance, I saw an interesting poem. Would you like to appreciate it?"

Li Yue and others immediately became interested and put aside the argument.

Reciting Lü Dacheng's "The Mountaintop" in dialect: "On the top of that high mountain, a white cloud floated over..."

"Ha ha!"

In an instant, there was laughter, filling the whole room.

“Can this be called poetry?”

Wang Jie wiped away the tears from the corners of her eyes.

"It's all nonsense, just like that doggerel, 'It looks like a dog from a distance, it looks like a dog from a close distance, and when you get closer, it really is a dog.'" Li Yue laughed and scolded, "Yanzi, where did you hear this poem? Did you make it up yourself?"

“I read it from this manuscript.”

Fangyan shook the letter in his hand.

"Then this author's poetry level has a lot of room for improvement." Li Yue directly asked him to write a rejection letter.

"No!"

Once the dialect interrupted them, everyone in the editorial department went from being at loggerheads to collectively attacking junk poetry, especially Lü Dacheng's poetry.

The atmosphere in the office became harmonious.

Fangyan asked: "Teacher Li, if I publish my work in an illegal publication like Today, will there be any risks?"

“The author should be fine, but the founder must be in trouble.”

Li Yue shook his head and said, "Illegal publications like this may be banned someday. Last year, the 'Stars Art Exhibition' was dealt with by the Public Security Bureau. I guess the private publication 'Today' will also be in jeopardy this year."

“So which journals can accept and publish Misty Poetry?”

Fang Yan was determined to help Su Ya to the end and get to the bottom of the matter.

"The words of Misty Poetry, "Poetry Exploration", "Mountain Flowers"..."

Li Yue answered them one by one, "Why, Yanzi, do you have any obscure poems to publish?" He suddenly became serious, "You'd better not get involved with obscure poems now. Wait until the controversy in the poetry world is over, then you can publish it. That will be the safest time."

"Teacher Li, you misunderstood, it's not me."

Fang Yan said that he was busy writing novels all day long and had no energy at all, and he was just asking for a good friend of his.

Before Li Yue could speak, Wang Jie's eyes lit up when she heard the word "novel": "Is it the 'spy war' you mentioned? How far has it been written? Do you have it with you? If so, show it to me!"

"I left the manuscript at home. I didn't bring it with me."

Faced with her fatal three-hit combo, Fang Yan raised his hand.

"What a pity."

Li Yue and the others showed regretful expressions, "Xiao Wang told us about your 'spy war' stuff, and everyone was looking forward to it."

Fang Yan smiled and said, "I think I'll be able to finish writing it in a few days. Then I'll let everyone have a sneak peek."

"In a few days? I remember you should report to the training institute tomorrow, right?" Li Yue saw him nod, "Yanzi, don't stay in the editorial office this afternoon, go home directly and prepare well."

"You're right."

Everyone thought so, and Qia Qia Fangyan thought so too. After lunch, they rode home and packed their luggage.

Bedding, pillows, clothes, washbasins...

It took an entire afternoon. Fang Yan let out a sigh and heard the car bell outside the door. He knew Fang Hong was driving Su Ya back and called her into the house.

"What's going on? Why are you so mysterious?"

“Your poems.”

"Shhh!!"

Su Ya shuddered and made a gesture to keep quiet.

"I finally know why your poems can't be published!"

Fangyan repeated Li Yue's words seriously.

"In other words, it's not entirely because my poems are bad, but the journals I submitted them to simply won't publish obscure poems?" Su Ya couldn't help but choke up and regained her broken heart. "Thank you, Yan Zi, thank you for helping me find the truth behind the rejection!"

"You're welcome."

Fang Yan raised his hand and said, "Although this is the case, I suggest that you don't just submit your work to Today."

"why?"

“Because Today, a civilian publication, is not safe.”

"Do you have any good ideas?"

"I've read your poems, and there are two that shouldn't be considered Misty Poems. How about this: submit these two to Poetry Magazine, and submit the rest of the Misty Poems to Today, Mountain Flowers, and Poetry Exploration, especially Poetry Exploration. Mr. Xie Mian, the founder of Poetry Exploration, is a big supporter of Misty Poetry."

Fang Yan said, "What do you think?"

"I...I have no objection."

Su Ya suddenly stood up excitedly, "Yanzi, you, you simply saved my dream of poetry, I don't know how to thank you..."

"Don't ever say that."

Fang Yan half-jokingly said, "If you really want to thank me, how about this? When you become a great poet in the future, please submit more articles to our Yenching Literature and Art Magazine?"

"What a great poet, are you trying to insult me?"

Su Ya was amused and clenched her fist as if to hit someone.

"That's what you said, just publish it."

Fangyan dodged to the side and his heel hit the luggage.

"Anyway, whether it can be published or not, thank you!"

Su Ya stared at him straight, and noticed from the corner of her eye that there were large and small bags of luggage piled on the kang, "Yanzi, are you... going on a business trip?"

"No, I'm going to the literature workshop."

Fangyan looked around and made sure he had brought everything he needed.

"Literature Institute?"

After his introduction, Su Ya's doubts were slowly resolved and she opened her mouth, "How come you have improved again!"

"I can't help it. I just want to make progress, but someone is trying to stop me from making progress. Comrade Su Ya, you have to work harder."

"Comrade Fangyan, I will definitely do it!"

…………

The next day, early in the morning.

When Su Ya walked out of the house, Fang Yan, carrying large and small bags, walked out of the room with Yang Xia and Fang Hong.

"Yanzi, be careful on the road!"

Fang Yan was greatly surprised when he heard Su Ya's voice. He turned to look at the door of the left wing, but her figure had disappeared.

Without thinking too much, I went straight to the bus stop.

Take bus No. 18 to the terminal.

Since the Literature Institute had just resumed operations and had no school building of its own, it could only be temporarily set up in the Party School in Chaoyang.

There was nothing around, but I could see a few villages. After walking for a while, I finally arrived at a place that could barely be called a "street". There was a very small supply and marketing cooperative with a thick cotton curtain hanging at the door to block the wind.

There is a small post office across the road.

Fangyan walked for three or four minutes and arrived at the school gate.

There was a table not far away, with a small blackboard leaning against it. The words written on it in chalk were clearly written:

"Warmly welcome students of the Literature Institute's Novel Writing Class."

"Little comrade, you are here to report, right?"

An old man with a long, smiling face and sparse hair sat behind the desk, holding a pen in his hand and giving a kind look.

"That's right, teacher."

Fang Yan put down the luggage in his right hand, glanced at the old man and the little girl beside him, "I'm here to report."

"what's your name?"

"dialect."

"Oh, you are Fangyan?"

The old man and the little girl's eyes immediately lit up.

(ps: 1979 to 1980 was the time when Misty Poetry was most controversial. The mainstream poetry community was very opposed to Misty Poetry for a time, and the Today magazine was ordered to be closed in October 1980)

　From Wang Anyi’s essay "Reminiscences of the Literary Institute".

　　
　
(End of this chapter)