The annual literary conference "RosCon" is a landmark event for Russian science fiction lovers.
On the one hand, it is a meeting place for writers, publishers, journalists, literary agents and critics.
These are numerous lectures, seminars, round tables and awards for the best works.
On the other hand, this is an excellent platform where, in a completely informal setting, you can chat with such pillars of Russian science fiction as Sergey Lukyanenko, Oleg Divov or Sergey Chekmaev.
About Lukyanenko's new trilogy
One of the most famous cycles of Sergei Lukyanenko, which also gave life to a huge inter-author project, is “Patrols”.
Even people far from fantastic literature, with the words "Night Watch", will easily remember the title song from the film of the same name.
A new - billed as the final - book in the series, The Eternal Watch, should see the light of day this year.
Also in 2022, the sequel to the trilogy about the Changed, Summer of the Volunteer, should be released.
“Totally unexpected for myself,” says the writer.
- At first I conceived a cycle of seven books, then I decided that it would be a trilogy, I wrote three books.
And he seemed to tell the story to the end.
I wrote them very quickly, in a year.
For three novels, this is generally a good pace.
But I suddenly realized for myself that history did not let go, and now I am writing, publishing my fourth novel on the Internet.
According to the author, the new book will be a direct continuation of the story of the protagonist Maxim, his friends and entourage, but the surroundings will change - the heroes are waiting for a journey not to other planets, but to another reality.
“The action begins on Earth,” Lukyanenko clarifies.
- And then it goes into a different version of reality, where, say, everything went a little wrong.
And now Maxim needs to save a different version of history and return to our world, because otherwise our world will plunge into darkness.”
About returning to old heroes
In 2020, Sergey Lukyanenko, in collaboration with Nick Perumov, released the long-awaited sequel to the techno-fantasy novel No Time for Dragons (1997) — No Place for People.
The story of already familiar characters developed in an interactive format: the authors published new chapters as they were written, and readers got the opportunity to choose the development of the plot, which is why the ending changed as the work on the book progressed.
“Firstly, it was initially promised that the story would be continued,” recalls Lukyanenko.
- Secondly, we wanted to tell what all this can lead to.
“No Time for Dragons” is a story about how a person takes responsibility for the world, how he becomes a protector, ruler, master of the world ... And what happens to him, how can he withstand it.
“No place for people” is a continuation of this theme.
Yes, the hero is the almighty ruler of the fantasy world, he is great, strong, everything is fine, but what does this path lead to and how will he go further?
The interactive writing option was a very curious experiment.”
On Literature in Film and Games
The works of Sergei Lukyanenko more than once went beyond the bounds of literature: there were film adaptations of "Patrols", "Draft", a joint novel with Yuli Burkin "Today, Mom!"
(film "Aziris nuna").
"Watches" acquired several game systems (from card table to online games), and "No Time for Dragons" formed the basis of the computer RPG of the same name.
Now work is underway on new film projects, but fresh games are not yet expected.
“This is a question for game developers in the first place,” says the author.
“I can’t turn a book into a game by myself.
Let them apply, you can always do it.
There are a lot of film projects that have either started, or in the process, or in preparation for some kind of work.
As far as games go, I don't think there's anything new.
So if they come and say: “We want to make a game based on the book “Kvazi” or based on “Magicians Without Time” - great.
I will gladly respond to this.
I love computer games, it's a way for me to get distracted, have fun, and sometimes think about something.
Lukyanenko's colleague is closely connected with the gaming industry - a science fiction writer, head of the scenario section of the Union of Writers of Russia Sergey Chekmaev.
His collection contains over 100 novelizations and screenplays for computer and mobile games such as TimeZero, Destiny, Fragoria, StarQuake, WELL Online, STALKER, Theos: Goddess' Desire, Prime World, World of Tanks and so on.
At the end of March, Roskomnadzor blocked the website of the studio-developer of the game STALKER (GSC Game World).
From the entry in the register of prohibited resources, it follows that access to the site is limited at the request of the Prosecutor General's Office.
In connection with the conduct of a military special operation, the Ukrainian developer company said that it refuses to sell its games in Russia.
“Now there is a project temporarily frozen, it should be released by the end of the year,” Chekmaev reassures fans of the virtual exclusion zone.
— Frequency: Chernobyl.
This is also an adventure game, a survival game, when the main character walks through the territory of the Chernobyl exclusion zone, and it is tied to what we love very much, radio stalking.
That is, at digital or analog stations, at those very “buzzers” - strange stations that transmit some kind of encrypted signal.
The action takes place directly in the Chernobyl zone, and according to the plot, one of these “buzzers” allegedly stands there - the same over-the-horizon radar station “Duga”.
I won’t say what she does, let the players figure it out for themselves, but I think that those who reach the end will be amazed in due measure.
As part of RosCon, Chekmaev presented his new project, which will appeal to fans of anomalous zones: an art book on the Metronomicon universe.
This is an alternative version of our world, in which a process called Infiltration began - the emergence of multiple centers of change in the structure of the universe throughout the planet Earth.
“This is the universe of the St. Petersburg artist Alexei Andreev,” says Chekmaev.
- It can be described as a world in which "Stalker" is everywhere.
This is the world of the Soviet Union of the 1950s and 1960s, which was invaded by other physics, other beings.
And this world "digested" this invasion, "connected" it to the national economy.
Where it was impossible to fight, where it was dangerous, he localized these places, where it could be used for the benefit of mankind, everything was used.
Here we present this book - with illustrations, really a very beautiful work.
I am not ashamed of her, because the writers included Sergey Lukyanenko, Oleg Divov, and Andrey Lazarchuk - the composition is very powerful, the illustrations are amazing, literally in a week the book will be released on the shelves.
Sergey Chekmaev
vk.com
© Alexander Vorobyov
About the tasks of science fiction writers
Chekmaev is convinced that the main goal of science fiction is not only and not so much in entertainment, but in modeling options for the future, so that the reader can try them on for himself and decide: does our society need such a future.
To do this, the author released a trilogy of collections under the general name "Dystopia-XXI".
“This is a study of the worlds that could emerge over the next 20-30 years if we cranked up some of the not-so-positive ideologies that exist in the world to the maximum,” says Chekmaev.
- "Merciless tolerance" described a world where there was a normal attitude towards all deviations and sexual deviations.
"Liberal Apocalypse" described a world where liberal ideologies and ideas have completely taken over the world, and what this can lead to.
And the third project, "Families. No", is a world of the future, where the traditional family has been abandoned, and a description of what this could lead to.
Not only fantasy
In addition to science fiction literature, Sergei Chekmaev (a psychotherapist by his second degree) is writing popular science books on a relatively young discipline called destructology.
The first volume of The Complete Guide to Sects and Anti-Sects was released in 2020, and the second, Kill the Biotrash, will be released in 2022.
“Everything that is actively exaggerated on the agenda – Columbine*, Incels, Blue Whale, AUE**, various destructive sects – these are the subjects that the science of destructology deals with.
And our book is about the study of all misanthropic, misanthropic ideologies,” says Chekmaev.
In the context of such topics, one cannot fail to recall another master of Russian science fiction - Oleg Divov, whose “Culling” has been haunting the minds of readers for a quarter of a century.
The novel, whose genre affiliation critics still cannot determine, tells about an alternative Russia, where “good with fists” came to power, which began an active struggle against those who are the subject of study of destructologists: criminals, sects, asocial elements.
The "culling" was constructed so that 50% of readers perceived it as a bright utopia, and the other 50% as a terrible dystopia.
As a result, it turned out that 90% of readers believe that this is a ready-made social program,” Divov notes.
At the same time, the author is convinced that in reality one should not wait for the appearance of the SSA (Social Security Agency - the very culling).
“The more I live, the more I want,” Divov shares his thoughts, “And not even culling, but the Inquisition.
Only not the one with which they frighten us, but the one that actually determined whether a person fell into heresy, why and how to bring him to repentance.
Because this is the most important thing, bringing to repentance.
Something we have never done before.
So that a person understands to what extent he is wrong.
And we just punish - that's all.
And we think it's effective.
No, it's inefficient.
But, to be honest, I don’t see any chances, because it comes down to the fact that some very strict prerequisites are needed for the emergence of such structures.
Second, who will work?
Plus the excesses of the performers.
Everything rests on human material.
About creative plans
“Now I have a choice between several things,” says Oleg Divov.
- And I literally do it on the go.
But, most likely, I will not now finish writing a rather politicized thing called “We are in the time of the plague”, which I have not been able to write for 20 years, but will do something very similar to a classic space opera, only in a road movie format.
There, too, it will be completely unexpected, and the political statement is quite strong, because the working title of the book is The Right to Revolution.
At the same time, the most adventurous surroundings, otherwise people are already complaining that my stylizations of a political detective a la le Carré are very hard to read, like “Foreign Earth”.
Also, by the way, a book that gives answers to so many questions, if you want to see them.
The unexpected combination - a space opera in a road movie format - does not surprise Divov's readers.
The writer's track record includes science fiction, thrillers, and even a bit of fantasy, although the author himself defines the style of his books differently.
“I'm doing a production novel in a fantasy setting,” says Divov.
- I have books about how people work at a car factory, about how mammoths are bred, about how they fly in spaceships.
And how they swear, too.
* "Columbine" ("Schoolshooting") - the movement was recognized as terrorist by the decision of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation of 02.02.2022.
** The international public movement "Prisoner Criminal Unity" (AUE) was recognized as extremist and banned on the territory of Russia by the decision of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation of 17.08.2020.