Chapter 4

After giving it serious thought, Lin Han began to quickly sift through his mind. The word count requirement for this writing contest was relatively low, suggesting that they were looking for short stories.

To create a sci-fi world with just ten to twenty thousand words was no easy task. Fortunately, he had read countless magazines in the past, and now he had a wide range of options to choose from.

First, it had to be an outstanding novel, but not necessarily the best of the best, so that he wouldn't be too disadvantaged if the copyright was taken. If the quality was too low and it didn't even pass the submission, it would be a huge embarrassment.

After much deliberation, he finally settled on the novel "The Village Teacher." This novel, with its precise twenty thousand words, had a very tight structure and was hailed as the best sci-fi short story of 2001.

"The Village Teacher" is one of the representative works of the famous sci-fi novelist Liu Cixin. Without a doubt, Liu Cixin is a leading figure in Chinese sci-fi literature, having received numerous honors. The Galaxy Award was like his backyard, and before Lin Han came to this world, he even won the prestigious Hugo Award from the World Science Fiction Society and was nominated for the American Nebula Award, with his works selling well both domestically and internationally.

Lin Han had read this novel more than once, and each time he felt tears welling up in his eyes. Beyond its sci-fi content, it was also an article reflecting the reality of education, possessing the most incredible ambiance in the history of Chinese sci-fi.

The story is about a village teacher who devoted his entire life to a small village. On his deathbed, he taught the students Newton's three laws of motion.

After the interstellar war between carbon-based and silicon-based life forms ended, the carbon-based life forms emerged victorious. The leader of the carbon-based life forms decided to create a vacuum bag in the universe to prevent the silicon-based life forms from making a comeback. Before setting up the vacuum bag, they needed to test the level of civilization on the planets, only eradicating the lower-level civilizations.

When these aliens came to Earth, they selected the students from the small village. The students loudly recited the laws their teacher had taught them on his deathbed, passing the test.

In short, this village teacher and a group of children saved the Earth. The novel has two plotlines: one is the protagonist Li Baoku, and the other is the interstellar war in the distant Milky Way.

Li Baoku was a tragic figure. His parents died when he was three, and he grew up under the care of another village teacher, who died while protecting him from a hungry wolf.

Li Baoku, who survived, returned to the village from the outside world and took over the position of the village teacher, teaching all the subjects to the students.

However, Li Baoku, who unfortunately contracted esophageal cancer, could only give the children one last lesson. Lin Han slowly recalled the content, and the tens of thousands of words appeared in his mind, clear and terrifying.

Sitting in front of the computer, Lin Han's hands flew over the keyboard. He chose this novel for the contest to secure a good ranking. If a sci-fi novel of the quality of "The Village Teacher" couldn't get recognition, he would need to reconsider his positioning.

Often, writing a good novel, essay, or poem doesn't require too many fancy techniques; it just needs to hit the right point.

What Lin Han found most surprising about "The Village Teacher" was its structure. The overall construction was very clear, using a large amount of contrast to highlight the key points.

The impoverished and dying village teacher is the savior of Earth, and the village students, who lack educational resources, become the heroes who save Earth. The small village contrasts with the vast Earth, and the small Earth contrasts with the powerful carbon-based life forms.

The novel is filled with contrasts. The story of the village teacher is common, and such reports are not rare. However, when placed in the context of the universe and combined with scientific imagination, it transforms the mundane into the extraordinary.

In this novel, looking at humanity from outside Earth and examining oneself from a distant perspective is something only a sci-fi novel can achieve.

To become famous in the sci-fi world, one must have a unique selling point. Although there are many types of sci-fi novels, they must stand out. "The Village Teacher" has the potential to attract widespread attention and discussion.

Using this novel as a foundation, Lin Han could achieve a development momentum of not making a sound until he made a stunning impact.

With the complete novel in his mind, he didn't need to make many revisions, so his writing speed was quite fast. He also carefully revised the characters' dialogues to make them more fitting to their identities.

Lin Han grew up in a rural area and attended a village primary school. His class had more students than in the novel, but the school was demolished two years after he graduated.

Therefore, he had a deep understanding of this kind of life and could provide dialogues that matched the characters' personalities and the surrounding environment.

Of course, punctuation and other details were also important, as they demonstrated the author's rigor and professionalism. It would be hard to believe that someone who couldn't use punctuation well could write a good article.

The sound of the keyboard clacking was continuous. Lin Han's typing speed wasn't fast, but he didn't need to think much, so he could write over three thousand words in an hour.

Every two hours, he would stand up from his chair to stretch his neck and eyes, then continue writing, fully immersed in the process. After about six to seven hours, he finally finished the novel.

He saved the document and reviewed it word by word, checking for typos. After confirming there were no errors, he opened his email and sent it to the submission email address published by the "Science Fiction World" magazine. The only thing left for Lin Han to do was to wait patiently, as it wouldn't be a matter of a few days whether it was accepted or not.

Now he was glad he hadn't chosen to be a web novelist, as he would have to maintain daily writing, which would be a huge torment. Choosing to be a traditional writer allowed him to rest for a long time after finishing a book, and he could write when inspired and put it aside when not, as long as the editor didn't pressure him to submit.

Drinking coffee, he wrote from the afternoon until the evening. Lin Han stretched his neck, feeling that his life was quite rich and colorful. To better understand this world, he opened his somewhat old computer and began searching for his name.

After all, the original owner was at least a notable figure in the entertainment industry, even though he was now a shadow of his former self. Understanding the original owner's experiences through the media was a subtle experience.

The original Lin Han was just an ordinary office worker, going to work on time every day and developing his small hobbies in his free time, such as reading sci-fi novels and discussing and sharing them with like-minded friends.

He never imagined that he would wake up one day to become a fallen genius director. Being a celebrity was very unfamiliar, and he wondered if he would be asked for autographs while walking on the street.

This was a serious matter, but it was quickly proven to be an overreaction.

Reborn in this life, he decided to be a mundane literary youth.

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