A conference in Xinghua City of Jiangsu Province ranks Chinese fiction in 2015

At a recent conference in Xinghua City, Jiangsu Province, 27 experts and scholars discussed trends in Chinese fiction in 2015. As a result of their discussions, a list ranking Chinese works of fiction was produced.

The rankings, initiated and organized by the Chinese Fiction Institution, have been published for 16 years. As an academic evaluation, its judges are all professionals stressing the artistic and aesthetic values of literature. Therefore, it is acknowledged by many people from literary circles as a reliable ranking for gauging novelty and quality. The rankings are also well known overseas.

There were 25 works listed for 2015. They were recognized as representing the highest quality of fiction created last year.
 

Lei Da, director of the institution, said fiction in China has developed positively in the 21st century. Many renowned writers produced new works, including Wang Meng, Wang Anyi, Zhang Wei, Chi Zijian, Zhou Daxin, Liu Qingbang and Chen Yingsong. At the same time, new faces in this area have innovated and made breakthroughs in their writing on many issues, like immigration and military topics. 

In general, writers showed great courage in exploring ways to grasp and reflect social issues, how to express people’s feelings and emotions, and how to respond to modern society in their works.
 

Many writers began to probe and draw upon experiences of people at the grassroots level, to describe the struggles of ordinary people and their depth in thinking as well as beauty of humanity, instead of simply drawing on big events to create works. Some realist works deal directly with real subjects and social conflicts. Many writers also innovated in terms of narrative methods and the use of language. All are promising signs for a brighter future for contemporary fiction.

Wu Yiqin, deputy director of the institution, cited two full-length novels that ranked at first and second places in this category to demonstrate realist trends in fiction. One is Zhuang Tai, or Stage Decoration by Chen Yan. It depicts a group of ordinary people who are on the verge of being overwhelmed by hardships in life, but still keep within themselves something that allows them to share their warm personalities with others. Another is Distorted Fata by Dong Xi (formal name Tian Dailin). Focusing on academic dishonesty, the text expresses the writer’s thoughts about real life using an  adroit narrative ability.
 

These two works do not abide by time-honored concepts. Rather, they choose to respect the immediate reality, and develop their own logic about life after digging deeply into the personality of figures and their fates.
 

In the category of medium-length novels and short stories, young and middle-aged writers, like Yi Zhou, Pu Xuan, Zhou Xuanpu, Zhou Lili and Wang Fangchen, have developed their own unique writing styles. They are active in the literary vanguard and even becoming a major force in Chinese literature.

Whatever diverse styles and techniques are adopted by different genres of writers, the ultimate goal is to tell Chinese stories in better ways. As deputy director of the institution Li Guoping said, every small change in literature mirrors transformations in society. Through fiction, writers echo society and create keen observations and reproductions of China’s history and reality via their distinctive perspectives.