This week on QuéOnnda, we dive into the depths of speculative science fiction and the Mexican publishing market. In the most recent episode of the Colectivero podcast, under the production of Nueva Network, host Óscar welcomed Ari Pérez, one of the most multifaceted voices in the current literary scene. HERE you can listen to the podcast.
Perez, who is a Japanese translator, editor of Rocambolesca magazine and author of the anthology Dangerous Fantasies, unpacked the tensions of a future where humanity could be digging its own grave through technological convenience.
Click on the photo to listen to the podcast
The talk was based on a story by Ari Pérez published in issue 8 of Colectivero magazine.
In this story, we follow Marlow, a man who wakes up in a future where humans sleep for decades while being cared for by autonomous assistants.
Ari Perez revealed that his inspiration was born from an eclectic mix: from the lyrics of 70’s science fiction songs that foretold a future where arms would be “stiff” from lack of use, to the vision of the Eloi’s in H.G. Wells’ The Time Machine.
“It’s a very boring utopia,” said Perez.
“If technology does everything for us, we lose anger, passion and individuality. Marlow wakes up because he feels he’s forgetting his anger, and that anger is what restores him as a human.”
The artificial intelligence and minimalism trap
For the author, the advance of artificial intelligence is a double-edged sword.
Although he is optimistic in the short term because of its benefits in medicine and education, he warns of an existential risk in the long term: absolute homogeneity.
Loss of identity: If everything is within reach without effort, the need to create and study disappears.
The hive mind: Perez warns that we are heading towards a world where being different is meaningless if everyone can “customize” their life in the same way.
The Japanese model: As a translator of Japanese, Pérez integrates cultural minimalism into his work. He suggests that societies that detach themselves from the material might be the only ones capable of surviving emotionally in an environment dominated by automatons.
The publishing ecosystem in Mexico: Between terror and fashion
As editor of Rocambolesca and founder of Anatema publishing house, Ari Perez offered a crude x-ray of the “slush pile” (unsolicited manuscripts) in Mexico. Here are some of the common trends and mistakes:
The rise of horror: This is the most popular genre, although Pérez warns that many stories fall into repetitive formulas, especially in themes of “maternal aversion” or intimate traumas.
Lack of tradition: Perez notes a curious phenomenon: emerging authors read a lot of their contemporaries, but ignore what was written 60 years ago. “As an editor, I detect when a ‘novel’ story was actually told decades ago,” he said.
New niches: Anathema plans to bet on erotic science fiction and “philosophical comedy” texts, seeking to break the rigid structure of the commercial industry.
Ari Perez in Colectivero
For those looking for a space in magazines like Rocambolesca or Colectivero, Perez was direct:
Mastery of technique: “Grammar and syntax are tools. If a writer doesn’t take care of them, why would an editor give him the opportunity?”.
Know the history: Read the classics of the genre to avoid repeating ideas unintentionally.
Innovate from the local: He celebrated the fact that there are more and more Mexican authors who write from their own reality, moving away from purely foreign influences.
The episode of Colectivero is now available on all audio platforms, such as Apple Podcast and Spotify, where you can also listen to other titles promoted by QuéOnnda and Nueva Network, such as Alquimia Interior and Observador Paranormal.
Filed under: Ari Perez in Colectivero
