Articles - Confession of an outsider.

                          N.PERUMOV

                     CONFESSION OF AN OUTSIDER

               What asshole included Perumov's novel in the nomination?!
                  (Lesha Kerzin; quote from Andrey Nikolaev
               Interpresscon: a particle of life." "Oberham", issue,
               dedicated to Sidorkon-94)

   I will never receive an Interpresscon award. And "The Wanderer" is not
I'll get it too, not to mention the Bronze Snail. I don't know anyone
of those who were “for” or “against” me (with the exception of Sidorov-
cha and Nikolaev). And therefore I have absolutely nothing to lose. And "I'm leading-
living Science Fictionists of Russia", even if they have such a desire,
they won’t be able to give me a hand or not - I don’t give any of them
I know, I haven’t seen it, and, God willing, I will never see it. I'm absolutely free
Boden. I did not belong, do not belong and will not belong to any
which of the groups (and which of them will decide to accept me
- with the Seal of Cain of a person who “betrayed” his beloved fandom
Vasya Zvyagintsev?!). However, thanks to all of the above, I
I can write completely openly, without reticence or shy inconsistencies.
word of mouth Sort of like “notes from an outsider.”
   So, “Interpresscon-94” as it appears after reading
"Oberham" dedicated to him. It's a sad sight. Doomed in advance
everything written not under the influence of the Strugatskys. Let's leave it at a hundred for now.
ron elitist "Snail" and "Wanderer". Theywere created for "their
theirs" and "ours" are awarded. This is normal (I don’t understand why it’s...
Shchegolev blows!). Writers of one direction choose from their
a narrow range of the best. They have every right - I declare without any doubt
what irony.
   Let's talk about Interpresscon - the most democratic in the world
Today is the day of the prize, awarded by popular vote. Here
The only question is: who? As far as I understand, it’s not just amateurs
fiction, science fiction, but only its “social” wing, created
given entirely by the genius of the Strugatsky brothers. This one is mine
a conclusion that is speculative at first glance is confirmed by the fact that in
nominations did not get such strong, professionally put together
works like the novels of Gulyakovsky, Golovachev, or, say,
"Talisman for the Stewardess" by Yatskevich. You can treat it any way you want
to the authors, but we evaluate not their moral character, but their books!
   I also note that in 1993 there were no nominations at all.
one thing in the "Fantasy" genre. And you don’t need to convince me that con-
Any works can be curated among themselves, the main thing is, they say,
their "artistic merits". In my deep conviction,
"fantasy" should be assessed completely separately. At least then
mu, which is built according to fundamentally different laws than SF, one
of which - repetition of clear, well-established in the reader’s mind-
knowledge of archetypes migrated from the good old fairy tales
ki.Example: what kind of Russian fairy tale is it without Baba Yaga and Kashchei the Immortal?
nogo, as well as without Ivan Tsarevich?
   We have not yet reached America. There "Hugo" really revealed
is determined by mass voting of a substantial number of readers.
whom the electorate. Our “fantasy” is just taking its first steps.
And, as far as I know, the SF and "fantasy" reader corps are not
are cut only partially. In my opinion, it would be appropriate to highlight
worthy works in the "fantasy" genre in a separate nomination.
If the fans haven’t read them, then don’t put them to a vote at all.
Ideally, of course, there should be a special “fantasy” award - on-
similar to “The Sword in the Stone”, proposed by the organizing committee of “The Wanderer”.
   In 1994, my unfortunate “cursed by all four official
"Long Churches of the Empire" novel is completely unexpected for me,
the only one in the "fantasy" genre, it ended up on the lists, and even
managed to get four votes! Yes, and two high-ranking
as far as I understand, a member of the Interpresscon brotherhood of special
significantly spent time and energy campaigning “against” the “Ring”
Darkness"! So for me these four voices are a big and pleasant
surprise.
   I’m not writing this to say that I’m not with the right people.
listened, so I ended up in the tail, otherwise... the “Ring of Darkness”, es-
Naturally, there are many inherent disadvantages. The novel is damp. Semi-
who won the "Gravilet" Tsarevich" Rybakov award -work
simply outstanding. I don’t understand how it could compete on equal terms with
him "Another Sky"? In fairness, in my opinion, Rybakov’s novel
should have collected all the awards - including "The Wanderer", and
with an undeniable advantage, not to mention the Belyaev Prize!

                                                     06/25/1994