Science Fiction World (Sci-Fi World; SFW) (Chinese: 科幻世界, Kehuan Shijie), begun in 1979, is a monthly science fiction magazine published in the People's Republic of China, headquartered in Chengdu, Sichuan.[1] It dominates the Chinese science fiction magazine market, reaching a peak circulation of 300,000–400,000 copies per issue for a time after 1999, as a result of coincidentally publishing an issue matching the essay topic of the gaokao for that year, memory transplantation, which earned recognition from Xinhua.[2][3]
 | |
| Editor | Liu Chengshu |
|---|---|
| Categories | Science fiction magazine |
| Frequency | Monthly |
| Circulation | 130,000 |
| Founded | 1979 |
| Country | China |
| Based in | Chengdu, Sichuan |
| Website | www |
History and profile
editThe magazine was established in 1979 with the name Science Literature.[4] In August 2007, the editor of Science Fiction World, Yang Xiao, organized the Chengdu International Science Fiction and Fantasy Festival, the largest such event ever held in China.[5] An estimated 4,000 Chinese fans attended the four-day festival.[6]
New editor and staff rebellion
editIn March 2010, the staff of the magazine issued an open letter attacking new editor Li Chang for actions including: cancelling contracts with Chinese science fiction readers and authors; refusing to buy stories from authors, forcing the editors to write the stories themselves; ordering that foreign language editors do all translations into Chinese themselves instead of buying translations, and art editors create the illustrations themselves instead of hiring artists. He also interfered with advertising, replacing the magazine's front cover with an advertisement for a school. All of these malfeasances were claimed as causes for the recent severe drop in SFW circulation, to a low of approximately 130,000.[7][8][9] Investigations by China Youth Daily and others verified the accusations,[10] and by 4 April Xinhua reported Li Chang's ouster.[11] Later, Yao Haijun became the deputy director of Science Fiction World.[12]
References
edit- ^ Brave New World of Chinese Science Fiction
- ^ Tidhar, Lavie (7 September 2015). "Science Fiction, Globalization, and the People's Republic of China". The Science Fact & Science Fiction Concatenation. Retrieved 2023-12-12.
- ^ Song, Han (14 November 2017). Xu, Yijia (ed.). "韩松：《科幻世界》38年来点燃着千千万万人的想象力". Reprinted in The Paper.
- ^ "China's Science Fiction World". Concatenation. Retrieved 5 October 2016.
- ^ 2007 Science Imagination Future
- ^ Why a Canadian sci-fi author is loved in China
- ^ Open letter (in Chinese)
- ^ Ansible 273; April 2010
- ^ Bao Daozu, "Magazine Editor Under Fire," China Daily, 23 March 2010.
- ^ Martinsen, Joel. "MAGAZINES: Science Fiction World Topples Its Editor"; Danwei.net 1 April 2010
- ^ Xinhuanet report (in Chinese)
- ^ "Paper Republic Link: Three Body trilogy by Liu Cixin to be translated".