Reflections on Attending the First National Poets’ Workshop
参加全国首届诗人笔会有感
Summer of 1990
I received an invitation from Poetry Periodical,
inviting me to Beijing for the workshop.
Thrilled, I could neither sit still nor rest.
The Armored Forces Command Hotel
was where the event took place.
The lecturers were
professors and chief editors from prestigious universities and renowned journals.
Listening to their teachings,
I realized how little I knew.
Though the workshop lasted only a few days,
it became a refueling station for my writing.
From then on,
poetry and I formed an unbreakable bond.
January 1, 2026
Unforgettable Lu Xun Academy of Literature
难忘鲁迅文学院
I was fortunate to be transferred to the Prefectural Federation of Literary and Art Circles,
and boarded the ship sailing on the path of literature.
From then on, I dared not slack off,
believing my literary dream could be fulfilled.
By a stroke of luck,
I received the notice from Lu Xun Academy of Literature.
In the spring of 1999,
I came to Lu Xun Academy of Literature.
The dean was a celebrated figure in poetry circles,
Lei Shuyan by name.
The teachers mastered literature profoundly,
all seasoned through years of practice.
Among them were distinguished professors from various universities,
as well as chief editors of major newspapers and periodicals.
Every lesson they gave,
was about timeless classics.
Every remark they made,
was invaluable advice.
Studying at Lu Xun Academy brought me immense gains.
From then on, I kept my feet firmly on the ground,
climbing toward the heights of the literary world.
January 3, 2026
Meeting Mo Yan
与莫言相见
In the summer of 1999,
I met Mo Yan at the Haidian Book Fair.
We were both alumni of Lu Xun Academy of Literature.
We talked with great delight.
I asked what new works he was working on.
He said he was writing several novellas.
I had his published book Red Mangroves in hand.
He signed on the title page for me as a memento.
Watching my fellow alumnus toil away at writing,
a warm current welled up in my heart.
From then on I hesitated no longer,
strove to catch up and marched forward with big strides.
January 5, 2026
Walking the Red Carpet with Wang Baoqiang
和王保强走红地毯
At an awards ceremony held in Beijing,
gathered elites from all walks of life.
Wang Baoqiang had just finished filming a movie
when he appeared at the venue.
The host led the way onto the red carpet.
Attendees signed and left messages on the signature wall.
I chanced upon Wang Baoqiang,
and stepped onto the red carpet side by side.
More than ten years have passed.
Wang Baoqiang has earned great wealth.
As for me, a writer of words,
I can only sigh in helpless wonder.
There exists a stark imbalance
between mental and manual labor —
a thing full of subtle irony.
January 8, 2026
Youth Volunteers for Borderland Support
支边青年
To develop the farm,
groups of youth volunteers came to support the borderlands.
They hailed from
Shanghai, Hunan,
Hubei, Sichuan,
Gansu and Henan.
They brought fresh vitality,
vowing to transform the farm’s look.
Full of youthful vigour,
many young couples tied the knot.
Generations of military reclamation workers
resolved to build, stabilize and consolidate the borderlands.
February 2, 2026
【作者简介】
About the Author
Gao Chongbing, pen name Gao Chang, male, born in April 1948 in Wannian Town, Nanbu County, Sichuan Province. He currently resides in Turpan, Xinjiang. He began writing in the 1970s and has since published more than 4,000 poems and essays in over 400 media outlets at home and abroad, and released more than 20 literary works. He is an inducted poet of the Chinese Poetry Hall of Fame, No. C0888176. Over 150 of his poems have been translated into foreign languages and circulated worldwide; his poetry has been recited and displayed in both Chinese and English at the Xu Zhimo Poetry and Art Festivals at Harvard University and Cambridge University. His poetry collection Sky Burial (天葬) was published in a bilingual Chinese-English edition by an academic press in Singapore.
His work has won the First Prize at the China Writer Annual Creative Conference, the Gold Award (three times) at the "Motherland is Good" World Chinese Literature and Art Competition, and more than 40 other awards including the Ba Jin Literature Prize, the Bing Xin Literature Prize, and the Lao She Literature Prize. In September 2024, he was conferred the title of International Cultural Image Ambassador. In 2025, he was named one of Time magazine's Cultural Figures of the Year and one of the "50 Top Chinese Poets." He has been reported on and reviewed by more than 300 media outlets at home and abroad, including the overseas edition of People's Daily, China Writers and Artists, Wenyi Bao, CCTV News, China Writer Net, Time magazine, and The New York Times.
Contact number: 13394955590
关于作者
高崇兵，笔名高畅，男，1948 年 4 月出生于四川省南部县万年镇，现居新疆吐鲁番。他自 20 世纪 70 年代开始创作，迄今已在海内外 400 余家媒体发表诗歌与散文四千余篇，并出版文学作品二十余部。他是中国诗歌名人堂入选诗人，编号 C0888176。其百余首诗歌已被译成多种外语并在全球传播；他的诗作曾在哈佛大学和剑桥大学的徐志摩诗歌艺术节上以中英文朗诵并展出。诗集《天葬》由新加坡一家学术出版社推出中英双语版。
他的作品曾荣获中国作家年度创作大会一等奖、“祖国颂”世界华文文学艺术大赛金奖（三次），以及巴金文学奖、冰心文学奖、老舍文学奖等四十余项大奖。2024 年 9 月，他被授予“国际文化形象大使”称号；2025 年，入选《时代》杂志“年度文化人物”及“中国五十位顶尖诗人”。国内外三百余家媒体对其作品进行了报道与评论，包括《人民日报》海外版、《中国作家》《文艺报》、央视新闻、中国作家网、《时代》杂志及《纽约时报》等。
