An Evening with Cixin Liu and John Scalzi at the Clarke Center

Cixin Liu, China’s most beloved science fiction writer-and one of the most important voices of the 21st century-joins celebrated American science fiction writer John Scalzi at the Clarke Center to discuss their work and the power of speculative worldbuilding.
Cixin Liu, or Da Liu, as he is affectionately called by his fans, is the most prolific and popular science fiction writer in the People’s Republic of China. Liu is an eight-time winner of the Galaxy Award and a winner of the Hugo Award. Translated in English by Ken Liu, The Three-Body Problem achieved major acclaim, including recognition by former president Barack Obama. Prior to becoming a writer, Liu worked as an engineer in a power plant in Yangquan, Shanxi.
John Scalzi won the 2006 John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer, the 2013 Hugo Award for Best Novel for Redshirts, and his debut novel Old Man’s War was a finalist for Hugo Award. His other books include The Ghost Brigades, The Android’s Dream, The Last Colony, The Human Division and Lock In. He has won the Romantic Times Reviewers Choice Award for science fiction, the Seiun, The Kurd Lasswitz and the Geffen awards. Material from his widely read blog Whatever has also earned him two other Hugo Awards. His latest book is The Consuming Fire.

[@Vastin]

I love moments like this when despite all our cultural differences and tensions, we can come together around a celebration of the human imagination.

[@miguelangelbalderas5576]

Chingón!!! Excelente Interview!! Regards from 🇲🇽🇲🇽🇲🇽🇲🇽🇲🇽🇲🇽🇲🇽🇲🇽🇲🇽🇲🇽🇲🇽.

[@cyc20976]

Fascinating interview of this chinese author, you wouldn't have guessed he is a software engineer, but his mind works like a sociologist and that reflects also in his writing style.

[@denglinzhiniao]

He is an electric engineer ,not software engineer

[@KevinXueCN]

@@denglinzhiniao Actually Liu is the network engineer in a power station.

[@georgiasingh3607]

@@denglinzhiniao 他是学软件的，只不过在发电站工作而已

[@noeditbookreviews]

Perhaps he's a psychohistorian.

[@doburu4835]

Two of the best SF author of the 21st century.

[@xushenxin]

This translator is very good!

[@SaposaBear]

Kudos to the organizers for pairing these two together. I just realized both Liu and Scalzi write with the conceit of extraterrestrial intelligence being hostile via the Dark Forest and Prime Real Estate, respectively. The breadths of world building are literally out of this world, and both have a tinge of suspense in them, owing to the nonlinear narrative. Great authors!

[@gulasch2700]

Finally an awesome interpreter

[@Veganrevwithzombies]

Thanks Clarke center!

[@kenmolloy1645]

I loved reading both of their books 👍

[@zipeilei4840]

Fun fact, Liu is an engineer at a dam in my home province! He probably is not working at the dam anymore lol.

[@ViolentFEAR]

But he did for quite a while, long after he already was quite well known.

[@sucui3285]

Reported by the New Yorker, he’s quite happy with the less demanding job offer since he could spend a lot of time writing stories during the tenure

[@caesarzx]

It’s not a dam, a power plant.

[@xushenxin]

I think the Dam life is more calm comparing with life in big city like Beijing, which gives him time and atmosphere to think about sci fi stuff.

[@Nondescript48]

This book doesn't get nearly enough discussion online. I think a TV series would help.

[@Nondescript48]

3 Body Problem, I mean.

[@fizzzenith7992]

@@Nondescript48 it's on such a vast scale though.. the production cost would be unimaginable

[@Ryan-nm6te]

in china. there are animations of three body problem.

[@codingr2863]

kzbin.info/door/65g-hPcIKXofqtxnlciFiQfeed

[@letisriva8581]

Good for you. Netflix is gonna do that

[@theunpossiblefile]

Clarke’s 2001 & Rama were among the best of any kind of fiction I ever read. Red Shirts & Android’s Dream got me started on Scalzi. Ball Lightning & 1st book from Three Body Problem with Liu last year. Just finished Annihilation Score by Stross. To put me in the right frame of mind for CV19 & stranger than fiction reality.

[@TheJokieliu]

cv defo gave me some of the "living through huge historical moment as an tiny individual" feeling, similar to the TBP firs book when people just heard about the trisolarians

[@Kondase]

The subtitles for this can be hilarious.

[@ximingfu1426]

这个小哥英语不错

[@johnm1585]

Is there a transcript of this interview available? I can't hear much of what they say.

[@ColtraneTaylor]

Is there a transcript? I can't hear anything in this echoey low volume video!

[@user-ks2gs1cs7f]

要是有个中文字幕就好了～

[@McMurchie]

I wish I was there translating for Big Liu, I get the impression the guy couldn't keep up :(

[@jeremycheng3998]

When is the Three Body Problem movie coming out? 2025?

[@haoranzhang3866]

Nobody knows, but the Wandering Earth will be on in China on Chinese New Year eve.

[@Kai-iq2ps]

Wandering Earth was already out and it was very good even comparing to Hollywood sci-fis. Now I have hope for 3 body movies.

[@macrograms]

I can't believe Cixin Liu is letting Benioff & Weiss anywhere near his books. ..

[@kissmyass682]

Unfortunately there are way worse people than Benioff & Weiss, just look at all the other book adaptations going on right now....

[@Defayyu]

Don’t know why those two are bad for adoption of his books. Nevertheless, he sold the rights to adopt TBP years ago to two nobodies China before he blew up for real cheap unfortunately, so he really has no control.

[@mosesjane9456]

I hope american can make those into tv

[@flyerzy]

why not Chinese

[@doburu4835]

@@flyerzy still at its infancy, film and tv series wise.

[@forthesakeoffreedom]

@@flyerzy even some Chinese prefer Hollywood cound take in, Chinese film industry is lack of expierence and techs in SF movie, We love the 3 body so much that we want it to be a outstanding movie/tv in the first break.

[@LennethValkyrie]

It's coming on Netflix :)

[@hfwang]

search in KZbin, 你将如愿

[@lesliesong7955]

can anyone tell me the name of the interpreter?

[@weihao524]

It’s me.

[@mushroom4rain]

@@weihao524you did an amazing job, thank you 😊

[@Kyoto_Ed]

On a smartphone terrible audio

[@letisriva8581]

He was super nervous

[@renlu95]

Don't think so. You mean he didn't make eye contact with the host and the other author and kept his head down listening to Ken's translation? I believe he was keep thinking thoroughly and he express himself in quite a free and open way. After all, this man has worlds in his brain.

[@aaronlin3823]

You don’t understand geniuses

[@maxluong2]

"The only reward for Three Body Problem in China was a children's award" that's kind of wierd.

[@LoveDeathRobots1]

I need chinese，help me

[@lumpython5351]

Love is about two gender? Excuse me? Confirmed he's homophobic.

[@IbnBahtuta]

The difference between you and him is that he is not suffering the mental stress of gender dysphoria caused by some people's personal sense of their own gender. Their personal sense? What does that tell you, or are you too confused to focus on reality and therefore cannot give a rational reply? The floor is yours lumpython5351.

[@mushroom4rain]

I think you are reading way too much into that statement also you have to remember he is from a different cultural background so perhaps the common ways for people to describe love is in those terms without necessarily implying that’s how he himself feels…there are many authors who write love stories between male and female characters, does that mean in your eyes they are all homophobic as well or does it simply represent one example?

[@IbnBahtuta]

@@mushroom4rain Well, correct me if I am wrong here, currently western children are experiencing difficulty in realising which gender they are. Looking with their eyes, doesn't seem to connect normally in their brain cells. With lumpty he also has problems understanding english , latin, and maths. So.....

[@lumpython5351]

@@mushroom4rain Guess what? I am China born Chinese, same cultural background as him.