The Day Before Publication

Today’s the day! The Middle Kingdom is out right now in eBook format on both amazon.co.uk and amazon.com. David was kind enough to send a long a piece from yesterday called “The Day Before Publication,” detailing his thoughts about the recent Chung Kuo developments, the latest goings-on in China, a brief note about Mitt “We’re Fucked” Romney, and some clarification as to the nature of the updated volumes in relation to the legacy books. Thanks, as always, to David for staying in touch with his fan base and providing us with frequent updates. Full text of his piece is after the break. And, if you haven’t already, go get Book 3!

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The Day Before Publication

Okay, it’s one day before the e-book publication of THE MIDDLE KINGDOM, the third book in the
newly re-cast Chung Kuo. Here, in leafy Islington, it’s quiet. Georgia (daughter number three) arrived
back from California yesterday, but she’s sleeping off the jet lag, while Jessica (the eldest), Amy and
Francesca are elsewhere. So I’m pressing on with a bit of work on the most recent Chung Kuo stories
while it’s peaceful. The only sound is the sound of fingers tapping away at keyboards (Sue’s across
the room, busy writing a ‘pitch’ for Corrie – that is, Coronation Street).

This time next week I’ll be teaching a science fiction creative writing course, right here; wrestling
with just what distinguishes writing SF from writing other kinds of fiction. Before then I should have
a lot of news on different fronts. There’s a lot going on behind the scenes, and as soon as I can, I’ll fill
you in with what’s happening. But it’s all good.

If you’ve been following these blogs, you’ll know that one of the things I’ve been following is the
Bo Xilai affair, with the murder of Neil Heywood by Bo Xilai’s wife, Gu Kailai, the police chief, Wang
LiJun’s temporary defection to the West and all the rest of it… Well, finally, as you may have seen
in your newspapers and heard on TV, the matter has reached some kind of resolution, seven
months on, with the official announcement that Bo Xilai – one-time darling of the old school, Maoist
Communists in China – is to face criminal proceedings.

Well, surprise, surprise… What everyone knew seven months ago – that Bo Xilai (in charge of
Chongqing, one of China’s biggest cities) and his wife were taking huge bribes – turns out to be
true. “Who’d’ve believed it?” As Bill Hicks might well have said had he still been around. But that’s
not all he’s charged with. Involvement in Neil Heywood’s death, and his improper sexual relations
with numerous women are also to be raised against him.

But why is Bo Xilai’s fall so significant? Because, even as late as March this year, there was the strong
possibility that Bo Xilai would – in the once-a-decade transition that’s about to happen – become the
next Premier of China, and that – for us in the West, at least – might have proved totally disastrous,
because Bo Xilia openly embraced the old-fashioned views of the Maoists and Marxists that once
held a stranglehold on China’s politics and attitudes towards the West.

This state announcement changes all that. Bo Xilia won’t be at the upcoming 18th National Congress
which begins on November 8th, is therefore GOOD NEWS for all of us in the West. As I’ve said in
these blogs before now, there’s been a right old struggle going on behind the scenes about this
upcoming transition, because it’s probably the most important one since the Communists took
power in 1949.

The seven men who will in all likelihood form the new Politburo Standing Committee – Xi Jinping,
Li Keqiang, Yu Zhengsheng, Zhang Gaoli, Zhang Dejiang, Li Yuanchao and Wang Qishan – will all
have their supporting factions, but it’s thought that the modernisers have triumphed over the more
extreme elements of the CCP. With China set to become the leading economic power in the next
ten years, that’s about as important for our future world as could possibly be, because if the other
guys had triumphed then we’d have been truly fucked. I’ll blog about these new guys – the “Fifth

Generation” as they’re called – over the next few weeks, in the run up to the “big meeting”, the ‘Da’ ,
as it’s called, in six weeks time.

Of course, there’s another minor distraction going on two days before the big handover of power.
Mitt something-or-other will be going head to head with Osama something-or-other to see who ‘s
gonna run the other big economic power of our time. And let’s hope – again – that the right guy
gets in there, too. If Romney brings in a protectionist agenda then we’re (again) fucked. The Great
Depression of the twenties and thirties will seem like a mere rehearsal for what’ll follow.

But hell, what do I know?

Okay. Just before I end this blog, let me clarify something that one or two people have raised
regarding the re-casting of CHUNG KUO. New books 3 to 16 aren’t that different – plot-wise –
from the earlier versions. But they do read one hell of a lot better, because I’ve spent a lot of time
and care reworking them and making them as powerful and fluent as I could. All of the glitches
and stylistic ticks that were in the sequence before now – and which resulted from having to write
one huge volume every year – have now gone. They’ve been written out, and I think it makes an
enormous difference to its readability. Towards the end of these – in books 15 and 16 particularly
– you’ll start noticing small differences where I’ve added a couple of new characters and new sub-
plots, especially as regards Kim and those who surround him by that stage (for instance, there’ll be
a whole new section called “In The Spider Garden”), but… books 17 to 20 will be radically different.
Hey, and remember, I’m busy writing a whole new take on CHUNG KUO with the short stories and
novellas I’ll be producing over the next four years. These alone, I estimate, will form a body of work
at least half as long again as the original ‘epic’ sequence.

Let me also say, for the record, that I am enormously grateful to all of you out there who have
shown an interest in what I’m doing. The fact that there’s a responsive, intelligent audience for
CHUNG KUO is immensely gratifying, and keeps me at it, trying to do my best by you all.

Right. It’s just after mid-day now and two of my girls – Georgia and Francesca -are now up and my
mother’s calling round in an hour and… I’ll call a halt. More tomorrow, on publication day… though
I’ll also be traveling down to the University of Kent, Canterbury to help Georgia enrol and show her
where I spent near on seven years of my life, and doubtless the whole experience will spawn a few
thoughts for one of these blogs, so…

ONE DAY TO GO!!!

David Wingrove

Sunday 30th September 2012