10/01/2008
...the pervasive presence...
“…because of the pervasive presence and aggro PR campaign of the term.”
Even the most pedestrian, ie rude, critics of “speculative fiction” are reaping the benefits of the near-pervasive PR campaign: Karl De Mesa got UP Press to publish his book Damaged People: Tales Of The Gothic-Punk and with it proves once more that the hype should never overtake the fact.
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...are getting published...
“…are getting published in Story Philippines, in the Free Press, in Philippine Genre Stories…”
Alfar mentioned this in the September 24 talk, that there were only five regular outlets for publication – the other two being his annual antho, and Philippine Graphic - for writers in the Philippines and made it out to be a rather depressing thing, and it is, don’t get me wrong, but Alfar neglected/forgot to point out that they were outlets for the English-language writers in the Philippines. When you start to think about enumerating the regular outlets for publication for Filipino-language writers in the Philippines, it’s even more depressing: zero. Kael rightly pointed out the implications and possible ripple-effect of “speculative fiction’s” primarily English-language focus and touched upon very interesting and very depressing ideas in my head that deserve a different far lengthier post than a mere footnote to a text. But for now, I’ll give you this: I really do think that if we had a regular outlet for Filipino-language texts, and fuck how I’ve tried to provide this even for just a few of us, great things will happen. W/r/t “speculative fiction”, I think if Alfar, et al, actually went out of their way to read and study Filipino-language texts in general – Pinoy “specfic” specifically – they’ll have more answers for their issues with Filipinoness in “speculative fiction”.
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...an act of communication...
“…an act of communication…”
And you really just to have to feed the Society Culture Machine Cycle.
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...where things actually get exciting...
“…and that’s where things actually get exciting for me.”
Like in the nonissue of Art vs Commerce, which people will continue to masochistically insist exists all the while texts like Moore and Gibbons’ Watchmen or Ennis’ Punisher or Nolan’s The Dark Knight or fuck even my own The El Bimbo Variations are all happily furthering Art and addressing Commerce, thus proofs that even between Art and Commerce an exciting and excitable middleground exists. People just aren’t problematising it enough... which I will do in a more in-depth post.
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...catch-all definition...
“Right now, the catch-all definition is veering towards universality to the point of careening towards nothingness.”
My issue actually here is more the impetus for this catch-all term, which is really to penetrate the center. Why even bother penetrating the center?
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...old writers...
“…than old writers, ie, like Carl and me.”
Not in age, of course, but in familiarity. I’ve been writing for quite a few years now, but this will be the first time I’ll be associated with “speculative fiction”. As for Carl, he edited an antho once for PSICOM of what he called “speculative fiction”, a book entitled Pinoy Amazing Adventures.
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