The much missed J.G.Ballard wrote back years ago after we asked him to speak at a CCS workshop on Cultural Fictions:
Thank you for the invitation, but I’m afraid that age and the pressures of work mean that I have to decline.
But I wish you all the best – I’m not sure whether you see me as inside or outside s-f, and either way a victim of its overreaching success. In fact I think you’re rather stretching definitions if you include recent novels like Super-Cannes and Millennium People as s-f. But calling something s-f is a traditional way of defusing the threat, and academia, especially the Eng Lit departments, has a lot to feel threatened by – its beloved mainstream is now a parched riverbed – no great novel has been written in English since – Catch 22? – more than 40 years ago. I wonder why?
Sincerely,
JG Ballard
(transcription SF, thanks)
Trinketization 
Here is my attempt:
Dear Dr Hutnyk
Thank you for the kind invitation, but I’m afraid that age and the pressures of work mean that I have to decline.
But I wish you all the best – I’m not sure whether you see me as inside or outside s.f., and either way a victim of its overarching / overreaching? success. In fact, I think you’re rather stretching definitions if you include recent novels like Super Cannes and Millennium People as s.f. but calling something s.f. is a traditional way of defusing the literal and academia, especially the English Lit department has a lot to feel threatened by – its beloved mainstream is now a parochial river bed – no great novel has been written in English since Catch 22? – more than 40 years ago. I wonder why?
Sincerely
J G Ballard
Date: Fri, 14 Jun 2013 09:42:49 +0000
To: drewish@hotmail.com
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Here is my attempt:
Dear Dr Hutnyk
Thank you for the kind invitation, but I’m afraid that age and the pressures of work mean that I have to decline.
But I wish you all the best – I’m not sure whether you see me as inside or outside s.f., and either way a victim of its overarching / overreaching? success. In fact, I think you’re rather stretching definitions if you include recent novels like Super Cannes and Millennium People as s.f. but calling something s.f. is a traditional way of defusing the literal and academia, especially the English Lit department has a lot to feel threatened by – its beloved mainstream is now a parochial river bed – no great novel has been written in English since Catch 22? – more than 40 years ago. I wonder why?
Sincerely
J G Ballard
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No offence to the above contribution, but there’s a few errors in it (threat not literal, not a kind invitation, overeaching, parched commas, use of + -, merger of words) and so have offered this here. DT
17/3/06
Dear Dr Hutnyk,
Thank you for the invitation, but I’m afraid that age and the pressures of work mean that I have to decline.
But I wish you all the best – I’m not sure whether you see me as inside or outside s-f, and either way a victim of its overreaching success. In fact I think you’re rather stretching definitions if you include recent novels like SuperCannes + Millennium People as s-f. But calling something s-f is a traditional way of defusing the threat, and academia, especially the Eng Lit department, has a lot to feel threatened by – its beloved mainstream is now a parched riverbed – no great novel has been written in English since – Catch 22? – more than 40 years ago. I wonder why?
Sincerely
JGBallard
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is it overreaching or overarching?
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Agree with the amendments – definitely “threat” and “parched riverbed”. Funny how I inserted “kind”, without it being there. I think it is “overreaching” rather than “overarching” -thanks to DT.
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