"When They Are Not Writing Novels: Portraits of Taiwanese Novelists During the Martial Arts Strict" Author: Zhu Youxun / Publisher: Dakuai Culture

#朱讥苳 The Taiwanese literary story that received rave reviews when it was serialized is finally published!

# "I hope that through this series of articles, I can help readers of literature to get to know Taiwan's writers and their spirit, will and courage. I also hope to help non-literary readers feel that even if you are not a fan of literary works, the life stories of these people, their passion and persistence for the world, are as exciting as novels." - Zhu Youxun

The more you know their stories, the less you will be surprised by the turmoil in this world, and the more you will believe that the God of literature will eventually reward you for everything.

The process of Taiwanese literature being "discovered" is like the disenchantment of the Enlightenment era, removing all the veils and restrictions on literature. We can see that along the way, Taiwanese literature is like people who are gradually rediscovering their own strengths and are willing to affirm themselves, turning their eyes away from the misled others, and are willing to face their own strengths and weaknesses, establish appropriate evaluation perspectives, affirm themselves, and forge ahead. Literature is the spirit of the nation, and literary history is the process of establishing national identity. The view of literary history may be the confidence in the soul of one's own country.

But how well do we understand our own souls, and how much confidence can we have in our own literature?

This is the proposition that Zhu Youxun gave himself, and "When They Were Not Writing Novels: Portraits of Taiwanese Novelists during the Martial Law Period" is his first answer to this proposition. In this book, he talks about the stories of nine novelists: Zhong Zhaozheng, Zhong Lihe, Ye Shitao, Lin Haiyin, Chen Qianwu, Nie Hualing, Guo Songfen, Chen Yingzhen, and Qi Dengsheng. These novelists have works that have been handed down from generation to generation, but what they did outside of writing novels has also influenced the development of literature in the future. This is a literary story that is approached from a unique perspective. It does not discuss the analysis of the works, but focuses on the many "battlefields" that creators must face outside of creation. What they did when they were not writing novels has a big impact on the future of Taiwanese literature.
He wrote about how Chung Siu-cheng, in addition to his creative work, also worked hard to help local writers who crossed the language gap to stand out in the newspaper pages that were almost all occupied by writers from other provinces. He never just thought about his own works, but also encouraged and helped other writers.
The story of how Chung Li-ho struggled with his frail body and literary ideals, and how he had to face the destruction of political indifference, has become a symbol of the hardships and struggles of Taiwanese literature.
Write about Ye Shitao's transition from novel writing to criticism, striving for evaluation and positioning for the works of Taiwanese writers of his generation that were not taken seriously, encouraging writers to create, and laying out the layout for the future of Taiwanese literature;
Write about Lin Haiyin's efforts to balance province, language, gender and politics, so that more outstanding writers who are different from the official mainstream can have space to publish and cultivate more outstanding creators;
Write about how Chen Qianwu bravely challenged the colonizers' arrogance, looked down upon the obstacles set by Japan or the Nationalist government, and always used his arrogance to surpass that of the colonizers to compete with them;
The story structure of Nie Hualing is even more grand, like a global cultural offensive and defensive strategy map during the Cold War, where people's emotional dreams and political offensive and defensive are mixed together;
It describes how Guo Songfen was unable to return home because of his involvement in the fishing rights movement, but his works describe a Taiwan that many Taiwanese people have never seen;
The book describes Chen Ying-zhen, the most complex writer in the history of Taiwanese literature, and unravels the complex choices made by a young man with humanitarian ideals under the strict martial law system.
Write about the seventh-class student striving to turn himself into a great work of art, regardless of the fact that others have turned away.

These stories condense the novelists' lifelong efforts and persistence, and they also show us how Taiwanese literature strives to find its own way and tell its own story. On the one hand, these stories take us back to the time and space background of the time, restoring the dilemmas faced by novelists when they were creating; on the other hand, they also construct the history of Taiwanese literature from Zhu Yuxun's point of view, especially the history of Taiwanese literature under martial law when political pressure was at its peak.

What is revealed in the "Afterword" of this book is probably the most appropriate to explain the significance of these novelists to Taiwan and why their stories should be told:

Every time I think of Zhong Zhaozheng, I ask myself: If he didn't give up, why would you give up?
Can I, like Zhong Lihe, persist in writing until I can’t write anymore?
Do I have Ye Shitao's fortitude to wait until the ice and snow melt?
Do I have Lin Haiyin's patience and meticulousness to coordinate people for a greater goal?
Can I have the same indestructible self-confidence as Chen Qianwu?
Nie Hualing's vision and sharpness, Guo Songfen's deep thoughts and introspection, Chen Yingzhen and Qi Dengsheng's seemingly opposite but mirror-like persistence...
I don't want to use some old-timer rhetoric like "typical in the past", but I am indeed grateful to them for lighting the way for me in many moments of doubt.
The more I know about their stories, the less I seem to be surprised by the turmoil of the world, and the more I believe that the god of literature will eventually reward everything.
It would be worth it if the readers of this book could get even a little bit of similar power.

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About the Author

Joo Yoo-hoon

Born in Taoyuan, Taiwan in 1988, he graduated from the Department of Humanities and Social Sciences and the Institute of Taiwan Literature of National Tsing Hua University. He has won the Golden Tripod Award, the Lin Rongsan Literature Award, the National Student Literature Award, and the TSMC Youth Literature Award.

He has published the novel collections "Misdelivery" and "Crag View".

The novel "Dark Shadows" uses the professional baseball signing case to explore the face of Taiwanese society; "Where Have All the Ducks Gone on the Lake" explores the power structure issues in the school education system.

The essay collection "Novels That Schools Afraid to Teach" uses the interpretation of classic novels to share works that are not explored in school education but are what many young minds look forward to understanding; "As Long as There Is a Problem, the Novel Can Solve It" analyzes how to use novel techniques to analyze the world, convince others, and gain insight into the confusing information torrent; the two books in the "Writer's Village" series: "Writer's Survival Guide" and "Literary Ecology Guide" use the spirit of field investigation to describe the mysterious details and survival skills of the literary world; "Super Evolution of Writing", co-authored with Zhu Jiaan, teaches students to cultivate critical thinking skills. As long as you know how people think and how the brain works, you can write articles quickly and well.

He co-edited the "Taiwan Seventh Grade Novel Classics" with Huang Chongkai, introducing the new generation of novelists. He founded the e-book review magazine "Secret Reader" with a friend who loves literature. It has been published continuously for three years and is the only literary review magazine in Taiwan.

He is currently the executive editor of the Kiwi version of the high school Chinese textbook, and has columns in media such as the United Daily News, Apple Daily, Business Weekly website, and Think Tank Forum.