DENA RASH GUZMAN: MOVES and SHAKES in SHANGHAI
PIPE DREAM’s L.R. Dalby interviews Ms. Guzman on HALiterature, the new book, “MIDDLE KINGDOM UNDERGROUND”, and her experiences with the literary scene behind the Great Wall.
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1. An indie literary scene has flourished behind the great wall, years after the cultural revolution in China. Can you explain the atmosphere of the readings during your stay there? How has HAL Publishing affected the literary scene?
DRG:
There is alternative art and literature in China. For every artist or writer you know, there are thousands more you might like to get to know. Some are dissidents, and some are not. A misconception about art and literature in China is that it is required to be either classical or political. Like anywhere on earth, there are artists and writers living, working and creating. It’s not always a fight to assert politics or inject belief systems with new and radical thinking. Just like anywhere, some write to make a change and some write to illustrate.
HAL operates independently in a larger sense than Westerners are accustomed to - they operate under the radar of Chinese censorship, for the most part, so far. Still, there are themes that are only carefully approached by HAL.
I am most familiar with the lit world in Shanghai, particularly within the English language literature community. This is an inclusive community - there are writers from China, Europe, the US, Canada and elsewhere. Bjorn Wahlstrom, founder of HAL, was born in Sweden and English is his third language. I’ve heard Nathan Fischbacher, another one of our founding fathers, standing around a wine bar shouting Swedish to Bjorn. Nathan is Canadian and speaks German, and even though they are both fluent in Mandarin, English, and god knows what else, they always mix it up.
It’s a complex international city that influences literature like no other I know, despite what the West thinks about their government and censorship. There is a vibrant and flourishing arts community in Shanghai, much like 1930’s Shanghai, and while writing within certain confines does prove a challenge, it is done every day in exciting and illicit ways.
The events are indescribable, really. Completely rock and roll. The two I’ve attended have been held in beautiful spaces - Glamour Bar on the Bund and at River South Arts Center near the River. Glamour Bar is, well, glamorous, with a billion dollar view of Shanghai, and RSAC is in an old warehouse remodeled to perfection, with three floors of work, gallery and performance space. There are rooms upon rooms and it’s decorated beautifully. There are several bars on the property and even the bathrooms are funky and amazing. RSAC built a stage specifically for our launch party that it was big enough for Aerosmith, with lights, sound, and video. After the event a DJ spun for hours. Champagne flowed freely to toast us. It’s really unbelievable and not like any other indie literary events I’ve been to before. HAL knows how to put on a show.
(River South Arts Center before the show.)
Around 300 people came to my last event there: the book launch for Middle Kingdom Underground/Slamhai. I was asked to come feature, and I put on a group recitation of my short story, “A Brief History of Dan Orange of Shanghai.” Though I had to organize it from my farm near Portland, you’d never know. Because of HAL being involved, I had the best performers in Shanghai for my piece, and after one practice run, it went off without a hitch. Five people, myself included, memorized monologues that would tell the story in short form. It worked.
(Dena Rash Guzman presenting “Dan Orange of Shanghai” to a large and enthusiastic crowd in Shanghai!)
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2. You represent HAL Publishing in Portland. What does this entail?
DRG:
I represent HAL in Portland and throughout the US. My main objective is to promote our writers and HAL’s books, and the idea that a certain freedom of expression does exist in the PRC. The proof is in pieces like these:
http://www.haliterature.com/2011/11/mongolian-hooker-knife-fight/
http://www.haliterature.com/2011/11/the-policy/
I spend a lot of time texting and skyping with my editors in Shanghai. It’s sometimes hard to meet up at a mutually agreeable time, Shanghai currently being sixteen hours into tomorrow. We make due, though.
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3. Where could one find books released by HAL Publishing?
DRG:
In the US, we have distribution through Powells.com. HAL’s first book, “Party Like It’s 1984 - Short Stories From the People’s Republic of-”, is for sale now, and “Middle Kingdom Underground” will be as well. HAL has plans to release more titles, including single author books and also ebooks. In China, our books are for sale at Garden Books, Bookworm and “Middle Kingdom Underground” is also available at various bars throughout the city. HAL is setting up a method by which folks in China and nearby can order a copy of their books directly on the website (www.haliterature.com).
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4. Tell me about SLAMHAI!, and other events run by HAL. What do they offer the community?
DRG:
SLAMHAI is a poetry slam that goes out of bounds. HAL screens those involved and there are no rounds before the big event. The last one was a team event – “team vs. team”. There was some serious talent up there. Tom Mangione, Mark Talacko, and Robin Silver come to mind as names to watch out for. The topics range from raunchy to downright pedestrian and they write there, on the spot. The host, W.M. Butler, conducted the last slam like he was a circus ringmaster. It’s really out of this world. The West will be able to view the entire MKU book launch on Bravoflix early next year. Any questions remaining about what it’s like will be duly answered. The whole thing is on film.
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5. I read that HAL’s newest book’s themes are “Vice and filth from China’s underbelly”. Tell me a bit about MIDDLE KINGDOM UNDERGROUND.
DRG:
“Middle Kingdom Underground - Short Stories from the People’s Republic of-” is an anthology of short stories mostly by people who have experienced Shanghai as a place to live and work. An everyday place to do everyday things. Or, every night things like mate, seek chemical stimulation and do things with money that are beyond many of our imaginations - until now.
Authors from all over the world contributed to the book. I have two stories in the book - both are from the points of view of laowai men, or foreign men living in Shanghai. One I wrote with HAL’s founder, Bjorn Wahlstrom. The men in both stories might be considered downright rotten from some perspectives. Having been to China so many times, I am able to see these characters as very human. They both, though very different, are rocket men, or Major Toms - kind of lost in space, only more comfortable with that fact than your typical misplaced astronaut would be.
Other authors include J.P. Flynn, Anna Missing, Renee Reynolds, Tom Mangione, Miodrag Kojadinović, and eleven more. They range from established writers to those being published for the first time.
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6. Lastly, is there anything else you would like to share about your experience with China’s literary scene?
DRG:
I might have been tailed by a government agent at an event at which I read during my last visit. He asked me such weird questions. I guess my answers were right. I’d like to say more, but am afraid to be denied a visa if I do.
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Photographers: Dena Rash Guzman and Renee Reynolds.
