Hago la lucha: La Gorda and the City of Silver

Vintage poster for one of Rafael Lanuza's "Superzán" luchador movies

This past July, at Readercon, I participated in a Latino SFF writers reading with two masterful readers: Daniel José Older and Julia Rios. Since I was doing a solo reading from my novel INK later, I chose to read one of my short stories La Gorda and the City of Silver, which appeared in the Crossed Genres anthology Fat Girl in a Strange Land early in 2012. The story has been one of the best received of any of my short stories, and I had never read it publicly before, so I threw myself into it and tried to match the exuberance and skill of my co-readers.

Like so many of my stories, La Gorda has a political underpinning. Guatemala has one of the highest rates of femicide in Latin America and I knew the fictional luchadora I had created was going make protecting the women and girls of her neighborhood her mission.

The odd thing about La Gorda is that her family life — she is the daughter of a lucha libre filmmaker, and goddaughter to his stable of luchadores — is based on reality. My grandmother actually lived in Ciudad de Plata (City of Silver), the Zone 7 neighborhood in Guatemala I describe in the story, and her next door neighbor was a man called Rafael Lanuza.

Still from Superzán & the boy from space

If you look at the photo at the top of this blog post you will see a poster of one of Lanuza's most popular early films, Superzán y el niño del espacio —Superzan and the boy from space — which, like others of his lucha libre films, was partially filmed in his backyard in City of Silver. I watched, over my grandmother's fence, as scenes from some of Lanuza's luchador short films were being shot, and remember my grandmother introducing the filmmaker to me once. He wore a suit, and a hat, and looked so staid to me — but out of his mind came these wild movies that combined a popular luchador hero and pulpy Sci Fi elements....

While Lanuza went on to earn his fame as Guatemala's leading filmmaker with a non-lucha libre film called Terremoto (Earthquake), the luchador films are the ones my grandmother took us to a Zone 7 movie theater to see.

Still from Superzán & the boy from space

They were super low-budget films (many of Lanuza's actors were his relatives), tacky and over the top, and called forth audience participation on par with that of the Rocky Horror Picture Show at the height of its popularity. But, unlike Rocky Horror, the interaction, the jeers and cheers, were completely unstudied. Just the community reacting to good and evil playing out in black and white on the screen in front of them.

I loved the experience even as I was embarrassed by it.

By the way, my story hinges on La Gorda not being able to become an official luchadora because she is a woman, and while that accurately reflects the world of lucha libre in Guatemala during the 1970s of Lanuza's filmic heyday — it is no longer true. There are luchadoras in Mexican lucha libre these days (though at least one article I've read argues there are still too few of them, and that they are poorly paid compared to their male counterparts).

"The cautionary tale of numero cinco." episode of Angel.

It is interesting to note that as more Mexicans and Central Americans have immigrated to the United States, lucha libre has immigrated with us. So much so, in fact, that the luchadores with their iconographic masks have found their way into more mainstream pop culture. There is a Hellboy as luchador series of books, and even the TV show, Angel, featured an episode with a luchador character.

At their heart, luchadores are populist folk heroes, the defenders of good and of the people. In Lanuza's Superzán movie, the boy from space bears a message of peace, love and goodwill. It is up to the luchador Superzán, along with a couple of indigenous Maya allies, to save the boy from those who would silence him and use his telepathic ability to nefarious purpose.

My stories are often resolved in bittersweet ways. But not La Gorda. Hers is a triumph of community, of ordinary people putting a stop to the predation and evil that takes place in the streets around them.

Because everyone — mask or not — can stand as a hero.

Ándele pues. Haga la lucha.

Ink and La Gorda and the City of Silver are eligible for Hugo, Nebula awards

People in the SFF world are starting to talk about Hugos and Nebulas - the big awards where speculative fiction is concerned. As it happens, I'm not eligible to nominate or vote in either (having just made my first pro rate sale recently) but I do have two works that are eligible to be voted in and on.

If you are a SFWA or WorldCon eligible voter please consider voting for my novel INK (published by Crossed Genres Publications in October 2012)  in the best novel category, and for my short story "La Gorda and the City of Silver" (which appeared in the anthology Fat Girl in a Strange Land in February 2012) in the best short story category.

Neither of them is available to read online beyond Ink's "Look inside" feature on Amazon, but the Los Angeles Review of Books reviewed it on Dec. 27 (click here to read); as for "La Gorda and the City of Silver," if you'd like a copy of the short story to read before you cast your vote, email me at svourvoulias (at) yahoo (dot) com and let me know so I can send you one.

Yes, I absolutely know there is only the remotest of chances my work will be looked at seriously in these categories given the amount of competition out there, but that Latina hope-and-stubborness mix is kicking in, so here you have it.

If you can, please vote.

Link to Hugo awards: http://www.lonestarcon3.org/hugo-awards/index.shtml
Link to Nebula awards: http://www.sfwa.org/nebula-awards/

In la lucha

 5 ... 4 ... 3 ... 2 ...

1 day left before you can get Fat Girl in a Strange Land (with my story "La Gorda and the City of Silver") from Amazon.com and I've decided to set up my own little giveaway here. Participate and you'll be entered into the raffle to receive one of my copies of the anthology.

Okay, here's the catch. You have to do three things and post a comment here so I know to enter you in the raffle.

1) A teeny, tiny bit of research. La Gorda's father was inspired by a real person, a Guatemalan filmmaker who started out filming episodic lucha libre movies that showed before feature films in some Guatemalan movie theaters. His first full-length film featured one of his luchadores and a child from outer space. What's his name?

2) A nod toward those living en la lucha. Femicide rates in places like Guatemala and Honduras are extraordinarily high. I follow Vivas Guatemala@vivasgt and Campo Algodonero@femicidios, in addition to a number of independent Guatemalan women journalists, on Twitter who are serious about drawing attention to the issue. Of course, femicide isn't only a problem in Central America, so go on the net, read something about it (UNICEF issues reports and alerts about femicide rates, for example) and then just let me know here you did - no proof required. I trust you.

3) Insight into who you really are. If you were part of Lucha Libre team, what would your luchador/a name be?

That's it. I'll give you all a week or so before I pick the winner.

Ink, Fat and Inspiration

Where I write.

Last October I found out my story "Flying with the Dead" would be appearing in Crossed Genres magazine and my story "Paper Trail" was accepted for publication in GUD magazine.

I think we hadn't yet crossed over into November when I learned "Flying with the Dead" would also be included in Cross Genres' Year Two anthology.

They are each stories touching upon immigration, growing up in Guatemala and a particularly Latino practice of Catholicism. They were also my first fiction sales after years and years of writing straight journalism.


Fast forward a year, to October again.

First, I learn that this blog is one of three nominees for a Latinos in Social Media (LATISM) award for "Most Inspirational Latin@ Blog."

Next, I find out my story "La Gorda and the City of Silver" will be appearing in Crossed Genres' Fat Girl in a Strange Land anthology, and then, that Crossed Genres Publications will be publishing my novel, "Ink."
 

And again, all of these bits of writing touch upon immigration, growing up in Guatemala and Latino Catholicism. (Okay, not "La Gorda" which has nothing to do with immigration or the Church and lots to do with lucha libre - but we won't go there. For now.)

It makes me wonder about resonances, about the Octobers in my life - those months that, while a gateway into a cold and bleak season, actually bring a harvest of gifts.

Details from my writing space.

Or the notice of gifts to come.

October is a month dedicated to Mary - to whom, as Our Lady of Guadalupe, I have a devotion. My writing has long been a manda (a promise and debt) to her, so perhaps I shouldn't be surprised at what manifests in my life during her month.

Life. Art. Faith. Who can tell where the boundaries are?