Chicanonautica: Xicanxfuturism News and Other Strange Phenomena

 

by Ernest Hogan

Palabras del Pueblo and my “Gonzo Science Fiction, Chicano Style” class are over. I’ve got two stories, my reaction to the mass deportation that’s coming to your town soon, and a Chicano space opera, that need their final, annoying, nerve-wracking, goings-over to get them in shape to send them out to editors (I call it the literary pick and shovel work). Then . . . things began to happen . . .

That would make a great beginning for a sci-fi story–uh oh, I’m stuck in writing teacher mode . . .

The big news is the anthology, Xicanxfuturism: Grito for Tomorrow, will be split into two volumes. Turns out it was too big. Too much Xicanxfuturism going on. A renaissance, if I can steal a word from the Eurocentric sphere. It's probably for the best, each volume will be cheaper. 

We don’t want to overwhelm or intimidate the potential world-wide audience. Yes, I believe that. I have fans in England and Australia, my work has been translated into Greek, Portuguese, Russian, and Polish, and those are just the ones I’ve been able to track down.

I righteously dream of an intergalactic barrio!

The new plan is:

Codex I: Xicanxfuturism: Gritos for Tomorrow - Coming late August/September 2025

Codex II: Xicanxfuturism: Gritos for Tomorrow - Coming February 2026

My story “A Wild and Wooly Road Trip on Mars”--a new adventure of Pacho Cohen, Mariachi of Mars--will be in Codex II, but I will be promoting both volumes. You’re not going to want to miss this major cultural event!

And that ain’t all . . .

I’ve got some deals in the works that are related to Xicanxfuturism. They have to do with art, and I’m not going into any specifics yet. I hate it when people shoot their mouths about something they’ve got pending before it's all been nailed down. “My agent is talking to the studios about making my unsold, unfinished novel into a TV series . . .” Shut up and finish the damn novel, tell us about the deals later; if they don’t work out (and most of them don’t), make the story amusing.

As for other weird things out in the so-called real world . . .

I keep seeing people who look like they escaped form my stories: modern-day adelitas, ciberbandidos, civilians in camouflage, women watching telenovelas on their phone (on the bus), middle-aged punks in full regalia, an ex-con telecoordinating: “When you get it, make sure it’s stable . . .”

Another great sci-fi opening . . .

I keep getting texts from something that calls itself the Arizona Ministry of Communications . . .

Somehow, despite the wars and encroaching fascism, even though it may be sick, I find myself feeling optimistic. Why not? Without some positive vision to hope for, to fight for, what’s the point of living?

Ya gotta keep an eye on what’s coming. That’s what futurism is all about.

And Xicanx need futurisms, too.

I’m feeling good about sending out stories and finding a publisher for my novel Zyx; Or, Bring Me the Brain of Victor Theremin.

As we plummet into another summer of extreme heat warnings and executive orders . . .

Ernest Hogan is weaponizing his Ancient Chicano Sci-Fi Wisdom.