{"id":11468,"date":"2020-08-08T19:44:28","date_gmt":"2020-08-08T19:44:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.sfintranslation.com\/?page_id=11468"},"modified":"2022-03-19T20:08:08","modified_gmt":"2022-03-19T20:08:08","slug":"sft-and-the-sff-awards-an-essay","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.sfintranslation.com\/?page_id=11468","title":{"rendered":"SFT & the SFF Awards: An Essay"},"content":{"rendered":"
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08\/08\/2020<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

From the time I started reviewing SFT* for John DeNardo\u2019s SF Signal<\/em> a billion years ago (that is, November 2014) up until now (with an SFT site that just turned 4 and regular reviews in World Literature Today <\/em>and Strange Horizons<\/em>), I\u2019ve thought a lot about the role that translation plays in the American publishing world, in general, and in the genre world, in particular.<\/span><\/p>\n

I\u2019ve heard for years about a vague assumption on the part of publishers and booksellers that Americans* are \u201cscared\u201d\/\u201dsuspicious\u201d of translated fiction. Sure, that may be true for some people, but I generally like to give readers the benefit of the doubt. Therefore, I don\u2019t think that readers avoid translations because they are scared or suspicious but because this fiction is, at least in America, in relatively short supply. And since reading is often a pleasurable activity, and readers seek out books that they think they\u2019ll like, they probably gravitate toward the known, rather than the unknown.<\/span><\/p>\n

Personally, I\u2019ve always been drawn to non-Anglophone literature, likely because I so very badly<\/em> wanted to travel around the world when I was a kid. My parents thought it was a great idea- in theory. In practice, the money and effort required to drag them, me, my two brothers, and our luggage around the world just didn\u2019t seem feasible. I traveled, then, the only way I could: through books. Not surprisingly, I flirted with translation studies in college and considered applying to Middlebury for a summer (I worked at a daycamp instead). My life could have gone in a very different direction, but when I was told by my professors that I had a better chance finding a literature<\/em> job if I studied American or British fiction, I took their advice and went to grad school for American literature (specifically, Literary Naturalism). Spoiler: I still<\/em> didn\u2019t get a job as a literature professor. I know- quelle surprise<\/em>.<\/span><\/p>\n

Don\u2019t worry, I\u2019m getting to my points. What I\u2019m saying is, not everyone is drawn to translated fiction because they were frustrated world travelers like myself. Some people want to read books from the countries of their ancestors. Some people just randomly pick books off of library\/bookstore shelves with no thought to where or in what language it was written. Some people believe that \u201csomething\u201d is \u201clost\u201d in translation and want to read only books written in their native language (I wager that this goes on, to some extent, in every country). Some people choose books to read based on friend\/family\/industry recommendations. Others pick what they read based on award nomination lists. Everyone has their own reasons for reading, and for liking certain genres. My own kids, for instance, look at me like I just sprouted three more heads when I gently suggest that they, for once, read something that isn\u2019t a graphic novel. After all, I tell them, books can be fun and exciting and entertaining and thought-provoking even if they don\u2019t have pictures in them (the kids aren\u2019t convinced).<\/span><\/p>\n

Since jumping in to the exciting and varied SFT world several years ago, I\u2019ve learned a lot, especially from Cheryl Morgan, Lavie Tidhar, Jason Sizemore, Francesco Verso, and Cristina Jurado, concerning if and how SFT is valued in Anglophone countries (and especially America). Tidhar\u2019s Apex Book of World SF series and World SF Blog, Morgan\u2019s Science Fiction and Fantasy Translation Awards, and Verso\u2019s Future Fiction press have helped me understand where translated speculative fiction stands in relation to the Anglophone speculative fiction that dominates and often overshadows non-Anglophone and translated speculative fiction. Chad Post of Open Letter Books has demonstrated for years that translated fiction accounts for only a sliver of the fiction published in English. Open Letter\u2019s Best Translated Book Award does its part every year to raise the profile of translated fiction in America and introduce stunning and fascinating books to those American readers who might think that the only books worth reading are sitting on the \u201cMost Popular\u201d table right when you walk into the local Barnes and Noble.<\/span><\/p>\n

So translated fiction in America is hard to find (unless you know where to look). Translated genre fiction is even harder to find. Part of the reason is that it just isn\u2019t promoted in the same way as a book written in English by [insert famous, award-winning author here] is. Another part is that, even on the internet, the vast majority of English-language review sites focus on books written in English or only include translations here and there. Without several other countries on all sides of us that contain people who speak different languages, America just hasn\u2019t had the a reason, perhaps, to publish and market fiction in many languages and translated from<\/em> those languages. Yes, we have Quebec to our north and Latin America to the south, so you can sometimes find Spanish-language, bi-lingual, and translated fiction and non-fiction in local bookstores. French-language SFT, though? Perhaps closer to the Canadian border- I honestly don\u2019t know.<\/span><\/p>\n

I started this site dedicated to SFT because I found, with a little digging, that a surprising amount of SFT exists and is available to English-language readers. My first list grew and grew, so I had to break it into source languages. Then it kept growing and I had to break the list into several tabs. And four years later, you have this site, which includes lists of what is available but also links to freely-available short SFT online, spotlights on specific regions and authors, a list of non-fiction that focuses on SFT (it\u2019s a fast-growing list), tabs on as-yet-unpublished SFT that really should be picked up by Anglophone presses, reviews (both by myself and my fabulous guest reviewers), and more.<\/span><\/p>\n

Which brings me to findability<\/em>. My initial purpose in creating this site was to offer readers a (hopefully user-friendly) place to go to find the SFT available each year. Most people don\u2019t have the time to hunt around the internet for these books. They are available every year through a bunch of different Anglophone publishers (large and small), but are either not advertised as translated fiction or not advertised as speculative fiction, or both. Of course, I\u2019ve had to make decisions as to whether or not a particular novel or collection is technically \u201cspeculative\u201d but that is an entire other library full of books and articles that I\u2019m not going to get into now. You\u2019re welcome.<\/span><\/p>\n

At one point, after collecting a lot of data<\/a> and working my way through it (I wish I had paid better attention in statistics class in high school), I started getting frustrated. Why wasn\u2019t there more SFT and why doesn\u2019t everyone love it like I do why why why<\/em>. Then I heard myself and took a huge step back and breathed. Sure, I could help promote SFT and tell more people about its wonders and why I love it, but no one was going to start reading SFT because I beat them over the head with the ten volumes of the Legend of the Galactic Heroes<\/em> series. And no one was not reading SFT at<\/em> me. It\u2019s just that I\u2019ve had this wonderful reading experience that I want to share, and not having access to a giant megaphone that reaches the ears of everyone who reads in English, I sometimes get frustrated that I can\u2019t convince everyone<\/em> to read at least one work of SFT. So I keep reading and reviewing and tweeting and facebooking and recommending books to my kids\u2019 teachers and my co-workers and neighbors and family members. Many have found out that it is not a good idea to say to me \u201coh, there\u2019s Polish science fiction in English?\u201d or \u201cwhat is wuxia?\u201d Two hours later, they look like they never want to see me again.<\/span><\/p>\n

This (finally) brings me to the major point of this essay: my belief that major Anglophone SFF awards should include a separate translation category.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Those of you who have followed the SFT facebook page and twitter hashtag may remember the conversation a couple of years ago about this issue. In 2018, I asked<\/a><\/span> on twitter why other SFF awards around the world have separate translation categories but Anglophone awards don\u2019t. Not long after, Chris Barkley (a member of the Hugo Awards study committee) contacted me to ask if I would write up in more detail my thoughts about why translated works should be highlighted in major awards. His subsequent post on File 770<\/em><\/a><\/span> explained in detail why he thought that a Best Translated Novel category was necessary and where he agreed with my assessment of the field of SFT. Soon after Chris\u2019s post, Neil Clarke of Clarkesworld Magazine<\/em> wrote a post<\/a><\/span> in which he disagreed with our contention that a translation category would highlight worthy texts that are otherwise ignored by Anglophone readers. Chris then posted a detailed response<\/a>. *(Since I first posted this essay, Bogi Tak\u00e1cs let me know that this exact issue was discussed on a<\/span> ConZealand Fringe panel called \u201cSFF Awards in the 2010s.\u201d<\/a><\/span> Check it out!)<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

I\u2019d like to take this opportunity now to address the major points brought up by Chris, Neil, as well as Cheryl Morgan and Jo Van Ekeren and make my case, here, on the SFT site, for why a separate translation category within Anglophone SFF awards is important to the future of the speculative fiction field. Science fiction, fantasy, magical realism, the Weird- these kinds of fictions ask readers to imagine what\u00a0might<\/em> exist or\u00a0might<\/em> happen, or look beneath the surface of everyday life, or consider alternative perspectives and ideas. Authors writing around the world approach this genre differently, and offer us new perspectives on, say, the spiritual experience in everyday life or the future of genetic engineering. It is important, if we actually do want a thriving, diverse field, to look beyond our own pond, as Francesco Verso says, and out toward the ocean.<\/span><\/p>\n

As some of you might remember, Cheryl Morgan\u2019s Science Fiction and Fantasy Translation Awards<\/a><\/span>, which ran from 2009 to 2014, was a juried award given to the best SFT published during the previous year. The short-form and long-form winners and honorable mentions came from all over the world: from the Netherlands to Japan, from Spain to Hungary, and everywhere in between. Unfortunately, due to time and financial constraints, the award closed down a few years after it launched, but it demonstrated that worthy SFT (much of which has won awards in their native countries) can and should be recognized and promoted to Anglophone readers.<\/span><\/p>\n

Before I get to the main arguments against a separate category for translations, allow me to briefly consider the nature of the awards themselves.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Hugos: these are \u201cscience fiction\u2019s most prestigious award\u201d<\/a><\/span> and are voted on by the members of the World Science Fiction Convention (Worldcon). (Note the word \u201cWorld\u201d here). Let me stop here and say that I have no axe to grind with the Hugos at all\u2013I am not a member of any official organization (SF or not) and I don\u2019t know about any internal workings. I am simply taking \u201cscience fiction\u2019s most prestigious award\u201d and giving it a good-old-fashioned, literary-studies-style close-reading.<\/span><\/p>\n

For the purposes of this essay, I\u2019ll focus just on the \u201cCountry and Language of Publication\u201d section of the \u201cHugo Categories\u201d official rules page:<\/span><\/p>\n

The Hugos are World awards. Works are eligible when they are first published. They can be published anywhere in the world (or out of it), and they can be published in any language.<\/span><\/p>\n

Because the vast majority of Hugo voters currently come from English-speaking countries, works first published in a language other than English are also eligible in their first year of publication in English translation.<\/span><\/p>\n

Because a large proportion of the people who nominate on the Hugo Awards reside in the USA, and because those people often do not get to see works first published outside the USA until those works get US publication, WSFS extends the eligibility of works first published outside the USA. Works published in prior years outside of the USA are eligible if they were published for the first time in the USA in the current year.<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The first part of this explanation- \u201cThe Hugos are World Awards\u201d- crumbles by the time you read to the end. Apparently, any text in any language is eligible for this award. In a perfect world, the Hugos, then, would be a wonderful mix of texts in and from multiple languages. Unfortunately, we don\u2019t live in a perfect world; we live in one where, for decades, Anglophone SFF has been dominant and where some readers in other countries still see Anglophone SFF as the<\/em> SFF (but that\u2019s slowly, and inevitably, changing). And this brings me to the next two major points in this award explanation:<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cBecause the vast majority of Hugo voters currently come from English-speaking countries, works first published in a language other than English are also eligible in their first year of publication in English translation.\u201d\u00a0<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

Because a large proportion of the people who nominate on the Hugo Awards reside in the USA, and because those people often do not get to see works first published outside the USA until those works get US publication, WSFS extends the eligibility of works first published outside the USA.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

So if the majority of Hugo voters come from English-speaking countries and a large proportion of those who nominate on the Hugo Awards live in the USA, what we apparently have here is an award that calls itself a \u201cWorld Award\u201d that is voted on mainly by American readers. And American readers mostly read Anglophone (mostly American, British, Australian, and Canadian) SFF.<\/span><\/p>\n

Hmmm.<\/span><\/p>\n

I looked through the past winners of the Hugos going back to the beginning (1953) and found no translated works (as far as I could tell- let me know if I missed some) until 2015\u2013the year that Liu Cixin\u2019s The Three-Body Problem<\/em> (tr. Ken Liu, Tor Books) won for \u201cBest Novel\u201d and Thomas Olde Heuvelt\u2019s \u201cThe Day the World Turned Upside Down\u201d (tr. Lia Belt, Lightspeed<\/em>) won for \u201cBest Novelette.\u201d Since then, Hao Jingfang\u2019s \u201cFolding Beijing\u201d (tr. Ken Liu,\u00a0Uncanny Magazine<\/em>) has won for \u201cBest Novelette\u201d in 2016 and Liu\u2019s Death\u2019s End<\/em> has been a finalist in the \u201cBest Novel\u201d category in 2017. Nothing since then.<\/span><\/p>\n

Meanwhile, 2017 was one of the best years for SFT ever <\/em>(so far). Sixty novels, 13 collections, 4 anthologies, and 71 short-form works were published in English by such places as New Directions, Open Letter, Indiana UP, NYRB, Dalkey Archive, Yale UP, Orbit, Haikasoru, Knopf, Wakefield Press, Deep Vellum, Clarkesworld Magazine, Samovar Magazine, World Literature Today, Weird Fiction Review, The Dark<\/em>, and many more.<\/span><\/p>\n

Really, all of this comes down to a naming<\/em> problem. If the Hugos are going to be a \u201cWorld Award,\u201d logically they should include works from around the world, in any language. Since that doesn\u2019t seem likely any time soon, and Anglophone readers generally don\u2019t learn multiple languages unless they have to, then the award should (again, logically) stop calling itself a \u201cWorld Award\u201d and start acknowledging that, from the very beginning, it has been and still is an award given to English-language SFF by English-language readers.<\/span><\/p>\n

I find it very<\/em> hard to believe that, for instance, internationally-acclaimed German author Andreas Eschbach wouldn\u2019t be considered \u201cgood enough\u201d to win a Hugo. While his novel The Carpet Makers<\/em><\/a><\/span>, which won the Grand Prix de L\u2019imaginaire for Best Translated Novel (2001), the Ignotus Awards for Best Foreign Novel (2005), the Italia Awards for Best International Novel (2002), and the Prix Ozone for Best Fantasy Novel and Best Foreign Novel (2000), in the Anglophone world it was given\u202613th place in 2006 for \u201cBest SF Novel\u201d in the Locus Awards. [insert lifted eyebrow emoji here].<\/span><\/p>\n

Take Japanese science fiction author Taiyo Fujii, as another example. Winner of two major Japanese awards for his complex science fiction thriller Orbital Cloud<\/em> (tr. Timothy Silver, Haikasoru, 2017), Fujii is also known in the Anglophone world for Gene Mapper<\/em> (tr. Jim Hubbert, Haikasoru, 2015) and three short-form works (you can read two of them at Lightspeed<\/em><\/a> and Unfit Magazine<\/em><\/a>). I have reviewed Gene Mapper<\/em><\/a> on this site and Orbital Cloud<\/em><\/a> on Strange Horizons<\/em>, and \u201cViolation of the TrueNet Security Act\u201d is one of my favorite hard science fiction stories of all time. I understand that there are a limited number of spots in the nomination process, but year after year after year, authors whose award-winning works have been translated into English and are available<\/em> to Anglophone readers are passed over, likely because people don\u2019t know they exist. That, I certainly admit, is a marketing problem, not an award problem per se, but with an award that had its own translation category, in which books and stories by authors like Eschbach, Fujii, Joahnna Sinisalo, Yoko Tawada, Francesco Verso, Karin Tidbeck, Rodolfo Martinez, Gorodischer, and so very many others could be featured and send people to bookstores and publishers\u2019 sites, then a \u201cWorld Award\u201d would make more sense.<\/span><\/p>\n

Then there are the Nebula Awards<\/a><\/span>, which are voted on, and presented by, members of Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America, Inc. and are \u201cgiven each year for the best novel, novella, novelette, and short story eligible for that year\u2019s award.\u201d Though the Nebulas does not bill itself as a world award, it does consider translated works eligible. Johanna Sinisalo\u2019s \u201cBaby Doll\u201d (tr. from the Finnish by David Hackston for The SFWA European Hall of Fame<\/em>, 2007) was nominated for \u201cBest Novelette\u201d in 2008. No other translated work has won or been nominated before or since.<\/span><\/p>\n

This takes me to the World Fantasy Award, a prize that has the word \u201cWorld\u201d in its very title. I wrote a little post <\/a>back in 2017 about the seeming contradiction between calling yourself a world award and reflecting very little of said world. I found 2 SFT novel winners, 1 collection winner, 1 novella winner, and 4 Lifetime Achievement winners (Borges in 1979, Calvino in 1982, Ang\u00e9lica Gorodischer in 2011, and Sapkowski in 2016), as well as a few finalists, between 1979 and 2016. As they say in Russia, bozhe moy<\/em>.<\/span><\/p>\n

On a more positive note, the Best Translated Book Award and the Tiptree Award (recently renamed the Otherwise Award) (Wiscon)<\/a><\/span> have a very respectable track record of recognizing speculative fiction (the former) and translations (the latter). I would give you a list of the SFT awarded by these two organizations but I see that my word count is already over 4k, so I\u2019ll just ask you to take my word for it or search the internet.<\/span><\/p>\n

Of course, several other Anglophone awards also exist, but\u2026you know\u2026word count. Maybe I\u2019ll get to them in another post.<\/span><\/p>\n

And then there\u2019s the whole set of general arguments\u00a0opposing, or at least not immediately embracing, a separate translation category. I\u2019ve listed a few below:<\/span><\/p>\n