Canadian sci-fi scribe Sawyer honoured in China

Mississauga man given Galaxy Award for being China's most popular foreign sci-fi writer

CBC Arts

Chinese science fiction readers have honoured acclaimed Canadian writer Robert J. Sawyer with a Galaxy Award at the China International Science Fiction and Fantasy Festival and Conference this weekend.

Sawyer picked up the reader-voted honour, which recognizes the most popular foreign author of the year for his or her body of work, at a gala ceremony Sunday at the Museum of Science and Technology in Chengdu, the capital of southwestern China's Sichuan province.

Sawyer — who lives in Mississauga, Ont., with his wife, poet Carolyn Clink — is the award-winning author of Hominids, Mindscan and The Terminal Experiment.

"The great thing about science fiction is that it transcends national boundaries," Sawyer said in his acceptance speech.

"It's wonderful to be at a conference along with writers from the United States, England, China, Hong Kong, Japan, Russia, New Zealand and Canada. Science fiction really is the literature of planet Earth."

Organized by Chengdu-based Science Fiction World, China's leading science fiction magazine, the four-day festival and conference has attracted more than 4,000 Chinese fans to the city for a weekend filled with panels, lectures, book sales, autograph sessions, stage shows and other events.

In addition to Sawyer, other award-winning authors in attendance include David Brin, Nancy Kress, Michael Swanwick and Neil Gaiman, who spoke on behalf of the foreign guests at Friday's opening ceremony.

"It is important for the world to pay attention to Chinese culture," Gaiman told the crowd during the festival's kick-off, according to local media. "I believe great science fiction will be written by you."

At the ceremony, Chinese officials hailed the imagination of the science fiction and fantasy community.

"A nation's revitalization mostly depends on the taking off of its imagination," said Li Xiuting, an executive of the China Association for Science and Technology.

"Today we have the most imaginative people on the globe here. They can not only boost the development of sci-fi in China, but also enhance human beings' awareness of science and culture."

As the festival winds down in Chengdu, the World Science Fiction Convention will get underway in Yokohama, Japan on Thursday.