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/ARTS WEEKLY/ LITERATURE-VENEZUELA: Invasion of Eroticism
By Humberto Márquez
CARACAS, Sep 20 (IPS) - Erotic literature has won respect as an art form in Venezuela with the publishing success of the collection "Letra erecta" (Erect Letter), dedicated to this genre which is breathing new life into a sluggish book industry.
The first book in the collection, published by the Alfadil company, is "La columna que dibujaste dentro de mí" (The Column You Drew Inside of Me), by Vivian Jiménez, a Cuban writer living in Venezuela who, with intense references to lesbianism, tells the story of a young woman's sexual initiation.
The novel, winner of Alfadil's first annual prize for erotic literature, portrays "a search for the feminine through a sentimental story that explores the territories of sexuality and eroticism in a refined, effective way," according to the judges.
Atanasio Alegre, Blanca Elena Pantin, Raúl Cazal, Walter Rodríguez and Javier Vidal served on the literature prize's first jury.
"La columna..." made its debut with 2,000 copies printed and the publishing house, which normally prints 1,000 to 1,500 copies, is considering launching a second edition as the bookshops are asking for more to restock their shelves, says Alfadil's general manager, Carolina Saravia.
The 157-page novel sells for the equivalent of 12 dollars, and is set to become a bestseller, which in Venezuelan terms is 4,000 to 5,000 copies sold.
The "Letra erecta" collection includes the publication this month of "Eros y la muerte" (Eros and Death), a novel by Venezuelan author Valentina Saa Carbonell, who was the first finalist in the erotic literature contest, Saravia told IPS.
Also as part of the collection, Alfadil aims to publish "La casa del dragón" (House of the Dragon), by fellow Venezuelan author Israel Centeno.
Twelve manuscripts competed in the erotic literature contest, with some coming from Argentina and Colombia, jury member Alegre told IPS.
"La columna que dibujaste dentro de mí" is the first published novel by Jiménez, 35. She holds a psychology degree from the University of Havana.
"Pornography is something I relate directly to sex, something that is very important in life. But I give eroticism greater transcendence, because it is something one can obtain anywhere," Jiménez said in a conversation with IPS about her book.
A student of the erotic classics by Henry Miller and Anais Nin, she says that even a novel like "Rayuela" (Hopscotch), by Argentina's Julio Cortázar can be considered erotic.
The launch of this collection of erotic literature is thought to be giving a boost to the Venezuelan publishing industry, which is enduring hard times, largely due to the freeze on book imports resulting from currency controls imposed here since February.
Alegre says the publication of the "Letra erecta" titles demonstrates "the bold attitude of a publishing house that does not cower before crisis."
As far as recent releases of other types of books in Venezuela, which Alegre is familiar with, having participated on other contest juries, "youth literature is strong, but it has no way out because of the publishing industry crisis."
Unlike the past, it has become very difficult for Venezuelan titles to get picked up by Spain's publishing houses, because they are "saturated" with material.
"In Venezuela there are no literary agents like there are in Mexico and Argentina. Today, without that intermediary, it is impossible to present an original manuscript to a foreign publisher," said Alegre.
This new erotic addition to Venezuelan bookshelves has arrived at nearly the same time as the release of "Subidos de tono" (a phrase that translates roughly as "risqué"), a collection of erotic short stories by Latin American authors, published by Ekaré, with backing from UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation).
Included in "Subidos de tono" are works by Argentines Cortázar and Mempo Giardinelli, Bolivian Edmundo Paz Soldán, Brazilian Jorge Marinho, Chilean Pía Barros, Colombians Julio Paredes and Marvel Moreno, Costa Rican Carlos Cortés, and Cuban Senel Paz.
Others are Mexico's Hernán Lara Zavala, Peru's Alfredo Bryce Echenique, Puerto Rico's Santos-Febres, the Dominican Republic's Angela Hernández and Venezuela's Federico Vegas.
Although erotic literature had never been presented in Venezuela before as a separate literary genre, the country has a tradition of this sort of narrative.
In 1988, writer Denzil Romero won the "Sonrisa vertical" (Vertical Smile) award, of the erotic collection of the Tusquets publishing house in Spain, with his book "La esposa del doctor Thorne" (Dr. Thorne's Wife), inspired by historical figure Manuela Sáenz, lover of Latin American independence hero Simón Bolívar.
"That book triggered a shock wave among the 'Bolivarian' academics in Latin America, and there were some who wanted to sue Romero for defamation," said Alegre.
Although this is considered a bad year for the book industry, Alfadil has so far put out nine titles, and hopes to reach 20 by the end of the year, says Saravia.
(END/2003)
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