Renowned science fiction author and Hugo Award winner Robert J. Sawyer is the guest of honor this weekend at the 81st World Science Fiction Convention in Chengdu. As a long-time friend of the Chinese Sci-Fi community, Mr. Sawyer has visited China a number of times over the past 16 years and received the prestigious Chinese Galaxy Award for Most Popular Foreign Sci-Fi Author. In an exclusive interview with CGTN reporter Gong Ming, he spoke about the development of Chinese science fiction and encouraged Chinese authors to draw from their culture, contributing a unique Chinese perspective to the global Sci-Fi genre. He also discussed the relationship between science fiction and technological advancement.
GONG MING CGTN Reporter "Thank you for having this interview with us. I know you've been to China many times since 2007, what do you think of the changes you've seen in China, especially in terms of its growing interest in science fiction?"
ROBERT J. SAWYER Guest of Honor 81st World Science Fiction Convention "The growth of the industry in China has been spectacular over the last sixteen years. The number one element of course was my friend, Liu Cixin and the 'Three body problem' which won the Hugo reward and opened the west sides to the fact that science fiction in China is every bit as good, maybe even better than what we've been doing in the West. There has been tendency in the West to turn our backs on science. And really, if you have an environment that's hostile to science, science fiction is not prized. Now, here in China, the opposite is true. The government of China has said, to be the world leader in the twenty first century, we must be the world leader in science, technology, engineering and mathematics, the stemma of professions. Here in China, science fiction is celebrated in a way that, unfortunately, it isn't any more, used to, but not any more in the United States or my home Canada."
GONG MING CGTN Reporter "This is the first time the World Science Fiction Convention is being held in China. In your point of view, what does this historic event mean for the global science fiction community?"
ROBERT J. SAWYER Guest of Honor 81st World Science Fiction Convention "World Con was stagnant. It was becoming more and more inward looking and more focused on older works, and the people attended were older. We've seen here is an embracement of science fiction by the young, which is not happening in North America. And an elaborate presentation, a bigger, more expansive and more inclusive World's science fiction convention that has ever existed before. The scope is mind-boggler."
GONG MING CGTN Reporter "Your works often explore the relationship between science and morality. How do you see science fiction's role in helping us navigate complex ethical questions connected to technological and scientific advancements?"
ROBERT J. SAWYER Guest of Honor 81st World Science Fiction Convention "The power of science fiction is that it is a laboratory in which we can conduct experiments about the human condition, that would be unethical, impractical, or impossible to conduct in real life. We are the wake up call, the distant early warning for society. For something new, like, you know, we've been warning about artificial intelligence for seventy years, and now it's here. And people like 'what we do?' Here's what we do, These are the ethical principles that can go wrong, we try to, those of us who do write in the near future about real technology, want to prepare you, so you're not shocked."
GONG MING CGTN Reporter "As a world renowned science fiction writer from a global perspective, what advice would you give to aspiring Chinese science fiction writers?"
ROBERT J. SAWYER Guest of Honor 81st World Science Fiction Convention "Liu Cixin became so powerfully embraced worldwide because his work is so deeply embedded in Chinese history, Chinese culture and Chinese world of view, that it was fresh to us in the West, so we were very excited by it. The future of Chinese science fiction is telling Chinese rooted stories with a Chinese mindset, and trusted that the world will embrace them the way we embrace Liu Cixin."
