On October 6, 2016 he brought news that writer Mayi Pelot had died, “one of the pioneers in writing futuristic tales in Basque.” This news highlighted more details about Pelot's contribution: his appearance in Maiatz society since its inception, his participation in the creation of the journal, and the publication in May of two collections of futuristic stories: Memories of Tomorrow (1985) and Telecommunication (1987). He also wrote: a work on Hinduist thought and various poems.

The tribute will take place on March 16, 2019. First, in the round table, Josune Muñoz, director of the Skolastika space, dedicated to the study of the literature of women in the world, Itxaro Borda, who met Pelot first hand, especially in the meetings of Mayo, and Arrate Hidalgo, who has edited and translated science fiction works and has organized a festival in this regard. The program will discuss the author's trajectory, memories of the time he published his works and the panorama of feminist science fiction. Next, members of the literary podcast "Jerezade Archive" will make a dramatic reading of Pelot's texts. On the other hand, the editorial Maiatz has republished all of Pelot's work in one volume, among other things, Borda, and they will take the opportunity to present the book. At the end, Amaia Álvarez, a member of Uria Sareinak and organizer of the group, explained that they will offer a lunch, “to discuss together what has been said and heard so far”.

“To Recover The Forgotten Writers”

Sareinak will not only pay tribute to Pelot, but will also do so on the occasion of his anniversary. Álvarez Uria explains this to us: “The group was born in 2007 with the objective of looking at the Basque literature from a feminist perspective, and within this objective is, among other things, the recovery of female writers from oblivion”. For example, two years ago, they recognized Marijane Minaberri, together with the Basque association of Baigorri, and this year, they wanted to do something similar. According to Álvarez Uria, “it is small tributes that we have organized, small efforts to make these creators known and recognize their contribution”. In any case, he has pointed out that the process of elaboration of these has been “beautiful”, as the people of the surrounding area have shown a warm and grateful attitude. Finally, Álvarez Uria has emphasized that these types of acts are enriching, as in this year’s organizational process “they have been able to qualify the panoramic photography of Basque literature almost 40 years ago”.

Precursor of science fiction in Euskera

One of the pioneers of science fiction in Basque literature is, above all, Pelot. Álvarez Uria: “Just like the Black Mirror series looks at some of the most important fears or concerns of our time, their futuristic tales and their science fiction stories looked at the conflicts of the time. Or as The Handmaid’s tale of dystopia talks about women’s oppression and gender norms, her narratives show us the relationships between men and women and women who take power.”

In any case, the voices we have brought to this article have also emphasized other characteristics. According to Muñoz, for example, Pelot overcame “the new Euskera, the batua, the reluctance to use it in any subject”, made “an effort to bring Eastern spirituality closer” and reread “the classical world and mythology”. For his part, Itxaro Borda tells us about his “humility and the intention to insist on his path”. And he adds: “It caught my attention and caught my attention, then, in creating his fantasies, how he invented Euskera, elliptical, as if the verb were to disappear into space. At first it’s hard to read, but then, as it gets used to, a special environment grows in the reader’s mind.”

Hidalgo, like Borda, mentioned the work of language: “For me, it is very significant what he did with neologisms as far as Euskera is concerned. In the interviews he made it clear that Euskera was capable of being the language of science and, therefore, of science fiction, although English and Greek predominated. Therefore, in his stories there are endless neologisms he used to describe the worlds of the future, creating intelligible and interesting spaces between his imagination and the reader. Pelot named Ray Bradbury among his sources, and I think it's obvious at the most poetic moments of his stories. And I am very grateful for every contribution from those who explore the poetic side of science fiction.”

Hidalgo knows the world of science fiction very well, but in 2010 he first met Pelot’s work, in which he discovered “science fiction written in English by women and feminists.” Hidalgo, who at the time lived in the United Kingdom, did not continue his search. In 2017, however, he returned to Bilbao “and to the Basque” and returned to search for: “I saw that tomorrow’s memories were on the internet and I started reading them, along with Zarautz’s science fiction team. It was a very special experience for me, also for the group, because in its fiction the mirror is very close to us: it was a different experience, after so much looking at the mirrors of the problems of American writers.”

The Spider of the Balls

The female authors are often read out of their time and context, and this isolation impairs the interpretation and recognition of their work. This is not what I say, but Joanna Russ, who nearly 40 years ago studied the mechanisms of destruction of literature written by women – and, by the way, also wrote science fiction works. To avoid this isolation we have asked our rapporteurs to sew a spider's web around Pelot.

Muñoz has placed it on several networks: “Chronologically, it is one of the authors who, in the 70’s and 80’s, intended to open new linguistic and literary avenues and forms. As for the genres and literary themes he cultivated, I would place him among the most daring and imaginative writers. Finally, I would say that it is a clear example of the female writers that we have to recover and reclaim.”

According to Hidalgo, most of Pelot's science fiction references were men, as the author himself tells us in his interviews. In addition, the political environment of the 1980s Westerners is also notable in its fiction, “especially the terror of an atomic conflict derived from the Cold War and the development of awareness of pollution.”

In any case, Hidalgo has also represented a different network: Pelot himself quotes “the aesthetic of the Heroic Fantasy that became fashionable in the 1980s and how it is reflected in the Plist-plast story. La Ursula K. In this story I see the hand of Le Guin and that of another writer today who deals with the work of women and the invisible conflicts between women: The hand of Argentina Laura Ponce. This network is not necessarily unreal, even though I've intuited or invented it. After all, Pelot's fiction will always be turned into interviews with today's and tomorrow's fictions. That is, at least, my hope.”

We open the way, we follow the way

“To the extent that science fiction in Euskera begins to develop and reach complexity, I hope that Mayi Pelot, besides being considered ‘the pioneer woman of Basque science fiction’, receives the attention that his fiction deserves: both in the field of science fiction and in the field of literature in general,” says Hidalgo.

Borda also mentioned this need for historiography, highlighting the collection of all Pelot's work: “Interested readers will be able to access this collection and collect it in the networks of interest of literature, as it is a landmark, if at some point you had to make history of science fiction in Euskera.”

In addition to the back, looking forward, Muñoz explains that “we have reached a certain oasis”. This year two women have published science fiction works in Basque: The world that Maite Darceles brings in the Heart (Alberdania) and Garazi Albizua la Naturaleza (Denonartean). Is it the beginning of something? This is what Muñoz believes, and Hidalgo reaffirms in his suspicions, anticipating that this year two very special publications will arrive. “I think we are on the verge of a very disastrous time for science fiction in Euskera, and this reappearance of Mayi Pelot’s fiction is an unbeatable sign,” he summarized.

So, that reader, you know, if you want to know more about Pelot's work and imagine possible futures, this Saturday, starting at 5 pm, you have a quote in the gaztetxe Zizpa of Baiona.