All posts tagged: news

Burning Language: New And Queer Chinese Voices

Editor’s Note

For the rest of the world, China’s 2008 Summer Olympics—with its $40 billion budget, dramatic “Bird’s Nest” stadium, and the lavish spectacle of its opening ceremony—marked the ascension of a new economic superpower onto the modern stage. Since then, new generations of Chinese youth have grown up into a society constantly rippling with changes, inundated with globalization, technology, and consumerism.

Bird's nest stadium from Beijing Olympics 2008

Beijing, China – The national stadium built for the 2008 Summer Olympics & Paralympics

Today, the West views China with curiosity, suspicion, and a sense of enigma and threat. Chinese literature translated into English is still predominantly written by older authors from the period of World War II, Maoism, and the Cultural Revolution. This leaves the up-and-coming generation of Chinese artists, now dealing with wholly different lifestyles and a wholly new set of concerns, all too often neglected.

In proposing this special folio to The Common, I wanted to showcase perspectives from this younger generation, bringing the breadth and dynamism of their subject matter, style, and voice to an English-reading audience. I also wanted to combat the blind spot in publishing queer voices from China, and several of the pieces selected are from writers writing either explicitly or implicitly from a lens of non-heterosexuality—which is sometimes comparable to Western norms of LGBTQ+ identity and sometimes not.

In the poems, stories, and translations in this folio, we find writing which is interested in the stretchiness and flexibility of language across cultures and tongues. In experimental and hybrid pieces such as The CAO Collective’s “qiào bā ,” Jolie Zhilei Zhou’s “Der Knall,” or Cynthia Chen’s “When the TOEFL robot asked us…,” diasporic poets who have immigrated abroad use imagination and irreverence to push the boundaries of English, which is their second or even third language, resulting in pieces which are delightfully fresh and defamiliarized.

The stories and lyric pieces reveal a generation restless for art, creation, and newness, but mired down also with a deep sense of generational anxiety, pressure, lack of direction, and identity confusion, as in Ruonan Zheng’s essay on her time reporting on the Chinese underground for Vice China, Yun Qin Wang’s poem “the first rain,” Yunhan Fang’s story of a romance between two women in the aftermath of a devastating earthquake, and K-Yu Liu’s story of a dormitory of mentally ill teen girls sent to train at a competitive running facility.

Some of the pieces also deal with the disorientation caused by the super-rapid development of technology and communications, such as Yan An’s cheeky poem “Photo of Free Life in the E-Era.” Meanwhile, Jianan Qian’s short story “The American Scholar” cleverly turns the Western gaze on the “Eastern Other” back on its head by inhabiting the perspective of an American scholar who is shocked by the sex and kink scene in China.

Finally, traditional Chinese artifacts are reinvented and made modern with Shangyang Fang’s translations of Song Dynasty Ci poetry, which experiments, breaks from, and rewrites lines by poets written over a thousand years ago. Li Zhuang molds a story of China’s first and only female emperor, Wu Zetian, into a poetic lesbian fanfiction. And visual artist and writer JinJin Xu showcases an installation and collective poem taken from her research into nüshu (lit: “women’s script”), a writing system only for women denied access to education which has existed for centuries.

I selected the pieces for this folio hoping to break apart some of the preconceived notions Western readers may bring to their view on China. The writers collected here showcase the scrappiness and energy of a younger generation clamoring to be heard. I hope that you enjoy these poems and stories, which are unexpected, sharp, sometimes uncomfortable, and very often tender; above all, they powerfully evoke the restlessness, dreaminess, quickness, and intensity of youth.

—Cleo Qian, guest editor

 


 

This portfolio was edited by Cleo Qian. Cleo Qian is a queer writer and poet who is the author of the award-winning short story collection LET’S GO LET’S GO LET’S GO (Tin House, 2023). She is a 2024 MacDowell Fellow and a 2025 Notre Dame Storozynski Writing Fellow.

 

Contents

Fiction
Paper Summer” by Yunhan Fang
My Five-Thousand-Meter Years” by K-Yu Liu
The American Scholar” by Jianan Qian

Poetry Feature I
“Fan Fiction” by Li Zhuang
“When the TOEFL robot asked us to ‘Describe the city you live in,’ the whole room started repeating that question as if casting an aimless spell” by Cynthia Chen
“Photo of Free Life in the E-Era” by Yan An, translated by Chen Du and Xisheng Chen
“Der Knall” by Jolie Zhilei Zhou

Poetry Feature II
“Departure” & “Visiting Lingyan Mountain” by Wu Wenying, translated by Shangyang Fang
“Return to Lin Gao at Night” by Su Shi, translated by Shangyang Fang
“the first rain” by Yun Qin Wang
“qiào bā: Community Poetry in Translation” by The CAO Collective

Nonfiction
Memories of the Rise and Fall of Vice China, 2015-2022” by Ruonan Zheng 

Art
Against This Earth, We Knock by JinJin Xu

 

Burning Language: New And Queer Chinese Voices
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The Common Magazine Announces 2024-25 David Applefield ’78 Fellow

(Amherst, Mass. August 19, 2024)—Award-winning, international literary journal The Common announced today that Kei Lim ’25 will be the second recipient of the David Applefield ’78 Fellowship. The fellowship, the magazine’s first endowed student internship, was established in 2022 by a group of friends and family of David Applefield, a literary polymath who attended Amherst College and founded Frank, an eclectic English-language literary magazine based in Paris. The David Applefield ’78 Fellowship funds one student intern annually who possesses exceptional editorial and leadership skills. 

Among other responsibilities, the Applefield Fellow coordinates the Weekly Writes Accountability program, leads the Level I section of the Young Writers Program for high school students, and provides research and production support for podcasts. In addition, the Applefield Fellow trains and mentors other interns, and organizes events for the Amherst College community. 

Kei Lim ’25 arrives at the position following two years as an editorial assistant for The Common. They are also Co-Editor-in-Chief of Amherst’s student-run newspaper, The Amherst Student, an instructor for the creative writing nonprofit Cosmic Writers, and have worked in the houses and collections of the Emily Dickinson Museum. Their poem “Evergreen” was published online at The Common.

Lim thanks the more than 50 friends, classmates, and family of David Applefield who contributed to the fellowship fund for their generosity and trust, as well as the magazine’s staff for their continuous mentorship. “I am grateful to continue supporting the wonderful literary community and mission The Common fosters,” Lim said.

About The Common 

The Common is a print and digital literary journal based at Amherst College. Issues of The Common include fiction, essays, poems and images that embody a strong sense of place. Since its debut in 2011, The Common has published more than 1,600 authors from 54 countries. Pieces from The Common have been awarded the O. Henry Prize, the PEN/Robert J. Dau Short Story Award for Emerging Writers, and have been selections and notable mentions in multiple genres in the prestigious Best American series. Each spring, The Common features a rich portfolio of Arabic fiction in translation, introducing English-language readers to new and exciting voices from across the Middle East and North Africa. The journal’s editorial vision and design have been praised in The New Yorker, The Boston Globe, Slate, The Millions, Orion Magazine, and The Chronicle of Higher Education

Beyond mentoring undergraduates, The Common supports educators from high school to graduate levels through The Common in the Classroom and hosts summer writing courses for high school students via The Common Young Writers Program. Read more about the magazine’s programs here.

The Common Magazine Announces 2024-25 David Applefield ’78 Fellow
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The Common Announces 2024 Amazon Literary Partnership Grant

Amazon Literary Partnership Logo

The Common is pleased to announce the receipt of its sixth award from the Amazon Literary Partnership’s Literary Magazine Fund.

“We are honored to receive the Amazon Literary Partnership’s continued support,” said Jennifer Acker, The Common editor in chief. “This grant enables us to show how much we value our authors—by paying them a competitive rate and engaging them through and beyond the publication process.”

The Common plans to use this $5,000 grant to continue highlighting the voices of vibrant literary communities underrepresented in the publishing world. Past funding from the Amazon Literary Partnership most recently supported a portfolio of farmworker writing (Issue 26), co-edited with Lambda Literary Fellow Miguel M. Morales. This new grant will provide direct payments to a diverse group of writers and help them find a global readership via The Common’s integrated print and online publishing platforms.

The Common Announces 2024 Amazon Literary Partnership Grant
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Weekly Writes 2024: Committin’ to Get It Written!

Weekly Writes signups have now closed. To be the first to hear about our next round of Weekly Writes (January 2025), register your interest with this form.


Need some motivation? We’ve got you covered! Weekly Writes is a ten-week program designed to help you create your own place-based writing, beginning July 29.

We’re offering both poetry AND prose, in two separate programs. Whether you’re the next Dickinson or Dostoevsky, pick your program, sharpen your pencils, and get ready for a weekly dose of writing inspiration (and accountability) in your inbox!

 A graphic advertisement for Weekly Writes, saying "Sign up for Inspiration and Instruction to Meet Your Writing Goals!" 

Weekly Writes 2024: Committin’ to Get It Written!
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Fee-Free Submission Period

Inspired by the mission and role of the town common, an egalitarian gathering place, The Common aims to foster the global exchange of diverse ideas and experiences. As such, we welcome and encourage submissions from writers who are Black, Indigenous, people of color, disabled, LGBTQIA+-identifying, immigrant, international, low-income, and/or otherwise from communities underrepresented in U.S. literary magazines and journals.

In an effort to remove barriers to access, The Common will open for fee-free submissions for two weeks, from June 17–July 1. Outside of that time, submitters with any financial hardship can contact us at info@thecommononline.org for a fee waiver.

Fee-Free Submission Period
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The Common to Receive $15,000 Grant from the National Endowment for the Arts

Amherst, MA — The Common literary journal is pleased to announce its eighth award from the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA). The Arts Projects grant approved for 2024 is The Common’s largest NEA award to date and will support the journal in publishing and promoting place-based writing, fostering international connections, and expanding the audiences of emerging writers.

National Endowment for the Arts' logo.

The Common to Receive $15,000 Grant from the National Endowment for the Arts
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Celebrate Issue 26 at Skylight Books in Los Angeles!

Skylight Books
Thursday, January 25, 7pm
1818 North Vermont Ave., Los Angeles, CA
Free and open to the public
 

With so many California contributors to our Issue 26 farmworker portfolio, we had to have a West Coast celebration! Join The Common for a celebration of writing and art from the seasonal, migrant, and immigrant farmworkers who power California’s vast food and agriculture systems.
  

headshots of guest authors 

Come celebrate with us at LA’s renowned Skylight Books for a reading and conversation about place, immigration, writing, justice, farmwork, and family with contributors from California. All are part of our portfolio of writing and art from twenty-seven contributors with family roots in farmwork. It was co-edited by Miguel M. Morales.

Essayist Amanda Mei Kim writes about the ways that collective power, racism, and nature weave through the lives of rural Californians of color, through the lens of her experience growing up on her family’s tenant farm just outside LA.

Poets Allison Adelle Hedge Coke, Aideed Medina, and Oswaldo Vargas write about the struggle and the beauty of work in the fields and on farms. Their work highlights the nuance and diversity of that experience—queer discovery, activism and protest, shared labor and community.

Artist Narsiso Martinez creates moving portraits and scenes of farmworkers in the fields, painted on flattened cardboard produce boxes discarded from grocery stores. This work is drawn from the nine seasons he worked in the fields of Eastern Washington state, to fund his undergraduate and graduate studies. Narsiso writes, “When I nest images of farmworkers amidst the colorful brand names and illustrations of agricultural corporations, I hope to help the viewer make a connection, or a disconnection rather, and start creating consciousness about the people that farm their food.”

The event will include brief readings by each writer, a short presentation of Narsiso’s artwork, and then a moderated conversation and Q&A. It will be hosted by the magazine’s managing editor Emily Everett. Wine and drinks available!

 


 

Allison Adelle Hedge Coke came of age working in fields, factories, and waters. A labor and environmental poet, Hedge Coke was a sharecropper by the time she was mid-teens and continued manual labor until nearing thirty years of age, when disabilities precluded continuation. Following former fieldworker retraining in Santa Paula and Ventura, California, in the mid-1980s, she began teaching and is now Distinguished Professor and Mellon Dean’s Professor at UC Riverside. She is the author/editor of eighteen books, including Look at This Blue (National Book Award finalist), Burn, Streaming, Blood Run, Off-Season City Pipe, Dog Road Woman, The Year of the Rat, Effigies I, II, & III, Ahani, and Sing.

Narsiso Martinez (b. 1977, Oaxaca, Mexico) came to the United States when he was 20 years old. He attended Evans Community Adult School and completed high school in 2006 at the age of 29. He earned an Associate of Arts degree from Los Angeles City College, and a BFA and MFA from California State University Long Beach, where he was awarded the prestigious Dedalus Foundation MFA Fellowship in Painting and Sculpture. Drawn from his own experience as a farmworker, Martinez’s work focuses on the people performing the labors necessary to fill produce sections and restaurant kitchens around the country. His portraits of farmworkers are painted, drawn, and expressed in sculpture on discarded produce boxes collected from grocery stores. His work has been exhibited both locally and internationally. His work is in the collections of the Hammer Museum, Amon Carter Museum of American Art, MOLAA, University of Arizona Museum of Art, Long Beach Museum of Art, Crocker Art Museum, Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art at the University of Oregon, and the Santa Barbara Museum of Art. Martinez was awarded the Frieze Impact Award in 2023. Martinez lives and works in Long Beach, CA.

Aideed Medina is a Pushcart Prize-nominated poet, spoken word artist, and playwright, and daughter of Miguel and Lupita Medina of Salinas, California, and the United Farm Workers movement. She is the author of 31 Hummingbird and a forthcoming full-length poetry collection, Segmented Bodies, from Prickly Pear Press.

Amanda Mei Kim writes about the ways that collective power, racism, and nature weave through the lives of rural Californians of color. Her writing has appeared in The Common, The New York Times, PANK, LitHub, Brick, Tayo, Eastwind Magazine, DiscoverNikkei, and Nonwhite and Woman. Poems are forthcoming in an anthology from Haymarket Press. She is a member of this year’s Changemaker Authors Cohort and a de Groot Writer of Note. She is a former Steinbeck Fellow and California Arts Council Fellow. Amanda is the founder and lead researcher for Kanshahistory.org, which publishes the property transfer records of Japanese Americans who had their farms taken during World War II. Her professional work focuses on agriculture, equity, and ethnic media. She is also a creative strategist for Hmong American farmers who are being persecuted by their local government. Amanda is writing a memoir-in-essays that uses her family’s 125-year history as agricultural workers to show how people of color created a more just and sustainable food system. More at www.amandameikim.com.

Oswaldo Vargas is a 2021 Undocupoets Fellowship recipient. He has been anthologized in Nepantla: An Anthology Dedicated to Queer Poets of Color and published in Narrative Magazine and Academy of American Poets’ “Poem-A-Day,” among other publications. He lives and dreams in Sacramento, California, for now.

Celebrate Issue 26 at Skylight Books in Los Angeles!
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The Common Magazine Announces Inaugural David Applefield ’78 Fellow

(Amherst, Mass. November 2, 2023)—The award-winning, international literary journal The Common announced today that Sam Spratford ’24 will be the inaugural recipient of the David Applefield ’78 Fellowship. The fellowship, the magazine’s first endowed student internship, was established in 2022 by a group of friends and family organized by David Whitman ’78, in honor of his late classmate and roommate, who was a literary polymath, international activist, media entrepreneur, and the founder of Frank, an eclectic English-language literary magazine based in Paris.  

The Common Magazine Announces Inaugural David Applefield ’78 Fellow
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Issue 26 of The Common

Issue 26 cover: light pink background with a turnip and greens

Issue 26 launches on November 6, 2023


Click here to purchase your print or digital copy, starting at just $8.

After November 6, browse the Table of Contents, including online exclusives, at thecommononline.org/issues/issue-26.

Love Issue 26’s portfolio of writing from the farmworker community? Donate to support The Common’s mission to feature new and underrepresented voices from around the world.

Interested in teaching Issue 26 in your class? Click here to explore your options and resources.

Issue 26 of The Common
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