Rebirth 2004: A lone figure in the literary world

Chapter 136 The Details of the International Writing Program
Although the Great Lakes region in 2005 had begun to rust due to industrial hollowing out, it had not generally deteriorated to the level it would have more than a decade later; the population and tax sources were still there, and it had not completely declined.

Susan was indeed familiar with the area. She and Huang Jiefu took turns driving, and their daily distance did not exceed 200 kilometers. They traveled leisurely, eating and playing along the way. Only Zhang Chao was more miserable, as he had to write all the way, which could be said to be working day and night.

I went to the casino in the Indian reservation, visited the sites of the War of Independence, visited the Mall of America in Minnesota, and watched Niagara Falls...

The group finally arrived at the University of Iowa two days before the International Writing Program began.

Huang Jiefu was going back to China to work, and Song Jia was also going back to film "The Cliff" - she convinced director Zheng Xiaolong with her explosive acting skills. Both of them flew to New York first, and then took a direct flight from New York back to Yanjing.

So in the end, only Susan and Zhang Chao were left in the car.

When they saw the main building of the University of Iowa, which looked like the White House, Susan stopped the car and said to Zhang Chao, "The journey is over, you can get off..." There was a strong reluctance in her tone.

Zhang Chao smiled and said, "Thank you for your hard work along the way. I wonder if you will get 'extra compensation' this time?"

Susan said: "In fact, three days after leaving New York, I almost forgot about it. If it weren't for the $2000 weekly deposit information reminding me regularly, it would have been a perfect trip."

Zhang Chao said: "It is because of this 2000 US dollars that the trip is perfect."

Susan also laughed. Before leaving, she asked Zhang Chao, "Do you mind if I write this into an article? You are an interesting person. I think Americans should get to know you."

Zhang Chao said: "No problem. But after I finish writing, I hope I can be the first reader."

Susan nodded in agreement.

Then the two said goodbye, and Zhang Chao carried his luggage and went to the "Creative Writing Center" of the University of Iowa according to the instructions on the invitation letter.

Although the University of Iowa is not a top-ranked university in the United States, its "Creative Writing" course is world-leading. The "International Writing Program" was first co-founded by Nie Hualing and her husband, Paul Engel, the director of the "Creative Writing Center" at the time and also a poet.

The International Writing Program is not a "boot camp" in nature, as the invited writers must have published at least one book. Its original intention is to introduce talented writers to the writing community at the University of Iowa and provide them with an optimal creative state to promote their creative writing.

Later, as the Cold War situation changed, the "International Writing Program" became more and more a refuge for writers in politically unstable regions. But such invitations are expensive - in the 80s, the cost of each invited writer exceeded US$8000.

At first, the funds were raised by Nie Hualing and his wife, and partly by the University of Iowa and the American News Department. However, as the influence of the program expanded and fundraising ran into difficulties, the National Academy of Sciences of the United States began to become the main funder of the IWP program in the 70s.

The U.S. House of Representatives began to have a decisive influence on the selection of writers invited by IWP.

Before 1979, almost all the "Chinese writers" invited to the "International Writing Program" were from Taiwan and Hong Kong. After the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and the United States in 1979, the U.S. House of Representatives required that the two "Chinese writers" quotas each year be given to mainland writers, and Taiwanese writers were no longer invited.

However, due to Ms. Nie Hualing's personal attachment to Taiwan, she still insisted on inviting Taiwanese writers to participate in IWP. However, IWP would not bear this part of the expenses and she would need to raise it herself.

The first batch of mainland writers invited in 1979 were Xiao Qian and Bi Shuowang. In the 80s alone, Ai Qing, Ding Ling, Wang Meng, Ru Zhijuan, Wang Anyi, Xu Chi, Chen Rong, Wang Zengqi and others were invited to participate.

Although this plan was inevitably tainted with some political colors under the leadership of the U.S. Academy of National Intelligence, China and the United States were still in the honeymoon period at the beginning of the establishment of diplomatic relations at that time, and there were many illusions between each other, so overall it was still mainly based on communication and creation. Americans believed that they could conquer every writer who came here with their grand material civilization and open and inclusive cultural spirit.

Under this background, IWP can be said to be an important platform for literary and cultural exchanges between China and foreign countries. Domestic writers who have this experience have benefited in their creation, after all, it has greatly broadened their horizons and increased their understanding. Wang Anyi even believes that this experience has a key impact on his writing career. However, with Engel's sudden death in 1991, Nie Hualing gradually faded out of the operation of IWP after 1992 due to her old age. The principle of "political apathy" that she insisted on became increasingly difficult to maintain in IWP, and domestic writers also interrupted their IWP journey.

Ten years later, in 10, a Chinese writer named Su Tong accepted the invitation to attend IWP. In the following years, poet Xi Chuan, Zhang Chao's class teacher Yu Hua, and Mo Yan attended IWP.

However, times have changed, and living in the United States can no longer broaden their horizons, so the impact on their creations is minimal.

2005 can be said to be the last "glory" of IWP in the domestic literary world. In addition to Zhang Chao, the young writer who has been the most popular in the past two years, Chi Zijian and Liu Heng were also invited to be resident writers.

Zhang Chao and IWP didn’t know that this encounter between the two sides would directly lead to the relevant person in charge of the U.S. National Institute of International Relations completely breaking down and cutting off financial support for IWP…

But these are all things for later.

Zhang Chao found the IWP reporting office very smoothly. The deputy director of the IWP project, Carlson Sader, a middle-aged man with a hooked nose, who was in charge of receiving him, asked enthusiastically after seeing Zhang Chao's invitation letter: "Did you have fun these two weeks?"

Zhang Chao smiled and said, "Thank you for your arrangement. Miss Susan is very professional. We had a lot of fun! The scenery of the Great Lakes in the United States is so beautiful!"

Carlson nodded with satisfaction and said, "There are more beautiful places in the United States than just the Great Lakes! You can come to the United States more often in the future and buy a vacation apartment in Los Angeles or Miami - oh, I forgot your identity, you can definitely buy a villa!"

Zhang Chao touched his head to confirm that he had not been pinched by the elevator door. He thought that it would be better for him not to invest in such a dangerous thing as American real estate in the next few years. If he remembered correctly, the subprime mortgage crisis would happen either next year or the year after.

After completing the formalities, Carlson personally took Zhang Chao to Shambaugh House, where the IWP project was located. It was a three-story Victorian-style building that was said to have a history of more than 100 years. Writers could hold lectures, gatherings, salons, or simply read and chat here.

Then Carlson took Zhang Chao to the May Flower apartment, which was specially built for writers from all over the world to stay at the University of Iowa.

Zhang Chao looked at the old building in front of him and asked Carlson, "Do I have to live here? What if I live somewhere else? 'Mayflower' is an interesting name."

Carlson paused before saying, "Living here can help everyone get to know each other better... This is also the original intention of the establishment of IWP, so it is best to live in Mayflower."

Zhang Chao did not comment, but followed Carlson into the building and came to his apartment. Since it was a student apartment, there were naturally other roommates, but they still slept in single rooms and just shared a living room.

At this time, there was already someone sitting on the sofa in the living room, watching TV with his legs crossed. He was also East Asian with black hair and black eyes, thin, wearing glasses, and with an unusually high hairline. Carlson introduced him, "This is Wang Chongkai, a young writer from Taiwan. He is about the same age as you. I believe you will have a lot in common."

Then he said to Wang Chongkai: "This is Zhang Chao, a very famous young writer in mainland China."

Wang Chongkai seemed a little surprised by Carlson's arrival, but he still nodded to Zhang Chao coldly as a greeting. Zhang Chao also nodded nonchalantly without saying anything. The atmosphere between the two sides was not warm.

Zhang Chao saw Carlson was about to leave, so he quickly stopped him: "There's still something to be said!"

Carlson turned around in confusion. Zhang Chao took out a large stack of bills from his backpack and stuffed them into Carlson's hands. He then said, "Our food, accommodation and transportation for the past two weeks cost less than $2 in total! You promised to reimburse us. And please book a first-class ticket for the return flight."

Carlson held the receipt with an embarrassed look on his face; Wang Chongkai stared with his eyes wide open - he had squeezed in the economy class seat that was as narrow as a shrine for 16 hours to get here, so why did Zhang Chao have the right to do so!
(There will be another chapter later. I was too busy today and I’m not sure if I can update during the day, so I didn’t send a notice. Sorry)
(End of this chapter)