Writing English Science Fiction as a Spanish speaking writer

Nicolaysen

Thank you for sharing your experiences! It’s not something I’ve considered often as a native English speaker, but I definitely understand the hurdles

Arowriter

I am looking for beta readers to critique my stories and give me sincere feedback about my work.

Cheeky as they say. Since you’ve only made one submission, what don’t you like about the queues here?

More on topic: Wow, I’ve never considered I might not have access to pretty mainstream genres because of the language(s) I speak, especially not if I know a very widely spoken language.

Lvocem

I have bad news for you my friend. You have an uphill battle. America loves its stereotypes, particularly when it comes to African Americans and Latinos. Notice that while many Latino directors are doing great in Hollywood, they are all doing American themes, and they became famous down there not here.
So how do you grow homegrown Latino voices? Difficult as shit. And you may think that intellectuals, college institutions, would be beyond that, they are not. Discrimination in this country is not only endemic, it’s part of the fabric of culture.
You can be Tonto. But not Kemosabe, the Lone Ranger. And how naive that sounds when you realize that Tonto means idiot in Spanish, and Kemosabe means Que mas sabe, he who knows most in English. It it insidious. But then you think. This is a thing of the past. Not now. Good God, it’s 2024. Yet it persist.
When I started, I sent out 10 stories under my real name. Thanks to the new technology of Submittable I was so pumped, so happy that now I would break through. Well, with in two months of the ten pubs I sent out 8 had declined and eventually all declined, most without even reading it.

Angry as I was, thinking my stories were not that horrible. Full of doubt of course. I sent them out under a pen name. I picked 10 new pubs of equal caliber and sent the same stories out. Within two month about 6 or more were reading the stories. I knew because in Submitabble it becomes a bright blue. I was full of hope. Maybe my work was not that horrible. Maybe my writing was not useless. But maybe it just was.

Four publications accepted the work and the following year four more accepted more work and several stories won awards. As long as I was not a Latino.

America has a hard time understanding the latino narrative. But the only way out of that is to show more real narratives. Listen to John Leguisano and while he is comedy it’s truth.

If you write science fiction, do not stop. Keep going, but do not try to create American style stuff. Be unique. Why not incorporate Jorge Luis Borges into your ideas, or other writers that moved character and story in a unique way. Embrace who you are. Also incorporate other voices that are not even Latino. I learned so much from Haruki Murakami, Salman Rushdie or writers from around the world that in a way it does not even matter.

Produce, be proud, and keep hammering what you do.

Ellearre

Hi,
I can imagine how hard it is to write in a 2nd language. I taught English to non-native speakers for a LONG time (off and on since 1995), and I know the challenges. I’ve tried to write fiction in Spanish, and even though I’ve also taught it for years, I’m still not as able to write a competent story in Spanish, even though I’d like to. So I get the challenge.

And I’m a fan of sci-fi, even though it’s not what I write. I haven’t seen much sci-fi in Spanish; but then again, I haven’t looked much for it.

I’d be happy to take a look at your work if and when you post. Just let me know.
Elle

Cwarkentin

Growing up, I didn’t realize what SF I was missing by only reading English. To be fair, this was a long time ago and if WaldenBooks at the mall didn’t have something, I didn’t know about it. But in my late teens, when I started reading novels in French, I was, first, dismayed to discover that Philip K. Dick’s works were readily available in French translation but almost impossible to find in English, and that in all my time reading SF in the US, I had never even heard of Lino Aldani and Stefan Wul! Even now, almost none of their work is available in English. It’s only in the last few years that Stanislaw Lem and the Strugatsky Brothers have been readily available in English, and they’re bigger than Asimov, Clarke, and Heinlein in some parts of the world.

Some things have changed. In the 20th century, it was taken for granted that Americans wouldn’t read translations outside of a few high culture authors – Umberto Eco and Peter Høeg did fairly well for themselves but not a lot of others. SF was “genre” fiction and its audience was presumed to be completely disjoint from high culture. Now, it doesn’t work like that at all. Publishers love translations of popular foreign works, audiences are much more used to them, and no one looks down at “genre fiction” anymore, not since JK Rowling got rich writing children’s books.

I see a lot of Chinese SF work in translation, which is funny since 25 years ago I was repeatedly told that no one in China reads SF and there was no market for it.

As a translator, I sympathize. My Spanish is good enough that I could maybe help, but I’m not sure I have the time to volunteer and work on my own projects. I might encourage you to just write in Spanish. It’s a big enough market, it’s just as literate, and these days it’s closer to the traditional publishing structure that just about dead in English.

Deelo316

@Abacero202 Thank you for sharing your dilemma and request. You have given me a new perspective and those Twilight Zone episodes you mentioned are among my favorites.

As for the language differences, consider contacting @Lmdewit , who has had writing and traditional publishing success in Spanish and English with her fantasy novels. She has shared some of her journey in threads here and I suspect she can provide valuable insights.
Blessings!

Lmdewit

There aren’t many SciFi original stories in our country, alas, nor Fantasy either! As Deelo316 mentions, I have published in English with a small pub, and that same book here in Mexico with Penguin. To say those who’ve interviewed me are flabbergasted that I am Mexican and write Fantasy, it’s not putting it lightly. I’ve heard that there are so few fantasy romance stories in Spanish–but then I don’t write about Latino lovers or passionate love stories either… I just write who I am, not who I represent or any stereotype. Just what I love.
Here in Mexico, though, non fiction rules. I think at least 70% of books sold are non fiction, so it is an uphill for us too!

CC was my home for many years. I read you just submitted one story. I strongly recommend you submit and critique a lot. Good luck!

Rodrigocr

I’m a Chilean SFF writer, so I can relate. My first year or so of writing I kept grammarly on all the time as a sort of safety-blanket.

I don’t neccesarily try to write as a Latin American— whatever that would mean — but what I do when I’m writing about things on Earth is use Latin American settings, mostly Chile, but also Bolivia, Perú, Brazil, etc. I also always assume that the US and EU are no longer going concerns, that power has shifted elsewhere.

I’m currently working on a far-future extra-solar space opera, where our current nations and races are meaningless, but where all the names of planets, habs, etc, are based on Latin American religions. It’s a small detail, but I like the feeling.

I’m not very succesful yet, but I have about a dozen pro-level story sales so far and I’m having fun!

Lvocem

Dude this is wrong. Don’t you know from all the SF movies ever made that the only place in earth extra terrestrials care about is LA and or New York.

(Awesome. Keep doing what you’re doing.)

Deelo316

This book might interest you. You too, @Lvocem @Cwarkentin

Cwarkentin

@Lvocem

I wrote an editorial once that started with something about how: “Every American, deep in the marrow of their bones, knows that one day God will reach down and smite New York and Los Angeles clear off the face of the Earth.”

@Deelo316

This book? I’m debating if I should order it in the original Spanish, but it’ll take me a lot longer to read that way.

image593×1000 123 KB

Deelo316

Simon and Schuster is publishing the English translation.

Whatever works better for you.

Betsie

Sorry Tonto is not ‘idiot’ in Spanish… it means ‘silly’ Now you want ‘idiot’ then you can use, ‘idiota’ ‘baboso’ ‘pendejo’ there are many more !

Lvocem

How do you arrive at that conclusion. You googled it? You translated it and that is what it gave you?

Let me tell you.

“No seas tonto, as lo que dever hacer.”

“Que nino mas tonto, no debería salir.”

Whenever you say the word tonto in Spanish, you imagine a person drooling. Not just being silly.

Of course idiota is the more correct translation, but still it’s an extremely derogatory term. In English silly is not derogatory. In Spanish SO YOU KNOW, tonto, is extremely derogatory.

So put that in your pipe and smoke it.

Betsie

Smoke it??? Nah don’t need shit like that. However estupido siendo nacida en Mexico dire saber lo que quiere decir la palabra!!! You are thinking ‘retard’ which is NOT ‘tonto’ deja de ser idiota y metelo por donde quires

Abacero202

My point is that in some cultures and countries, like mine, there are not many authors and writers of some genres, like Sci-Fi. Of course, there are Spanish-speaking sci-fi authors, but not as many as in the US or other countries more familiar with this genre. Trans-language (if the word exists: grin) writers are more unusual since it is more comfortable to write in our native language. That’s mi case. Is not a language problem, is a market-readers situation.

Abacero202

A closer translation to “tonto” could be “fool.” In most Latin American countries, “tonto” is not a serious offense; it is more like a call not to do or say foolish things. “Idiota” or “estúpudo” could be more serious expressions, and they could even be considered as insults, depending on the context and situation when the words come into the conversation or discussion.

Arowriter

Yeah, I got that. Some things are (said to be) untranslatable, but a whole genre?

Abacero202

I will love to read your story! Please let me know when it is published! ¡Felicidades por tomar el reto! Deseo que su obra sea un éxito, y deseo poder leerla pronto. Saludos.