A Community Voices article this week inspired one comment that took the writer's topic to a new and broader dimension of discussion. On March 3 Alan DeNiro lamented a lack of science fiction and fantasy among works of adult fiction nominated for the book awards (Minnesota Book Awards need to be fixed.)
“And that’s a problem”, DeNiro argued, for literary reasons.
Indeed it is, commented Bryan Thao Worra three days later. But a part of the problem that many Minnesotans might miss is that “works of the fantastic” are sometimes the only safe way for refugee writers to portray their experience without endangering “families and friends in their former homelands.” That’s the new dimension.
Here is his discussion-expanding comment in full:
Bryan Thao Worra• Alan raises some great points, and while I don't anticipate there being much change within the Minnesota literary culture in the immediate, I do believe it's important for us to consider broadening the space of discourse and recognizing the merits and contributions of speculative literature, be it fantasy, science fiction, horror and so forth.
I've mentioned it in other forums, but for many of of Minnesota's refugee communities who are rebuilding in the aftermath of civil wars, we are seemingly faced with a scenario that pressures us to tell 'memoirs' and historical non-fiction or realistic fiction, which of course is problematic given that many were 'Secret Wars' or conflicts where truth and reconciliation efforts are still a work in progress.
Some of us just don't get to speak very directly about our experiences.
In this day and age, many Minnesotan refugees cannot write openly about the events they experienced because that can have 'unintended' or 'very intended' consequences for families and friends in their former homelands. There are many instances works of the fantastic can provide a protective layer for constructive discourse and help a community to sort out the tangle of its journey.
In other instances we are seeing a strong level of soft and hard censorship emerging on genre fiction, especially work that suggests alternate history, romanticization of previous regimes, superstition, etc. and I cannot help but think that our refugees must now write to the very limits of our imagination. Taking on the imaginative MUST be prioritized with memoir and histories when an authoritarian system is trying to destroy hope and free thought.
If the Minnesota Book Awards and other institutions cannot consider books of the fantastic and the futuristic for the impact and significance they can have for our local readers and those abroad, I think that would be tragic.
And, for even more in-depth discussion, see Bryan Thao Worra's blog post, Refugee nerdery. Remember, reader comments are the lifeblood of community conversation in the Daily Planet. Join in. Agree or disagree. Praise or criticize. Be brief, be civil, be heard!
A Community Voices article this week inspired one comment that took the writer's topic to a new and broader dimension of discussion. On March 3 Alan DeNiro lamented a lack of science fiction and fantasy among works of adult fiction nominated for the book awards (Minnesota Book Awards need to be fixed.)
“And that’s a problem”, DeNiro argued, for literary reasons.
Indeed it is, commented Bryan Thao Worra three days later. But a part of the problem that many Minnesotans might miss is that “works of the fantastic” are sometimes the only safe way for refugee writers to portray their experience without endangering “families and friends in their former homelands.” That’s the new dimension.
Here is his discussion-expanding comment in full:
Bryan Thao Worra• Alan raises some great points, and while I don't anticipate there being much change within the Minnesota literary culture in the immediate, I do believe it's important for us to consider broadening the space of discourse and recognizing the merits and contributions of speculative literature, be it fantasy, science fiction, horror and so forth.
I've mentioned it in other forums, but for many of of Minnesota's refugee communities who are rebuilding in the aftermath of civil wars, we are seemingly faced with a scenario that pressures us to tell 'memoirs' and historical non-fiction or realistic fiction, which of course is problematic given that many were 'Secret Wars' or conflicts where truth and reconciliation efforts are still a work in progress.
Some of us just don't get to speak very directly about our experiences.
In this day and age, many Minnesotan refugees cannot write openly about the events they experienced because that can have 'unintended' or 'very intended' consequences for families and friends in their former homelands. There are many instances works of the fantastic can provide a protective layer for constructive discourse and help a community to sort out the tangle of its journey.
In other instances we are seeing a strong level of soft and hard censorship emerging on genre fiction, especially work that suggests alternate history, romanticization of previous regimes, superstition, etc. and I cannot help but think that our refugees must now write to the very limits of our imagination. Taking on the imaginative MUST be prioritized with memoir and histories when an authoritarian system is trying to destroy hope and free thought.
If the Minnesota Book Awards and other institutions cannot consider books of the fantastic and the futuristic for the impact and significance they can have for our local readers and those abroad, I think that would be tragic.
And, for even more in-depth discussion, see Bryan Thao Worra's blog post, Refugee nerdery. Remember, reader comments are the lifeblood of community conversation in the Daily Planet. Join in. Agree or disagree. Praise or criticize. Be brief, be civil, be heard!