Nobel laureate Mo Yan is one of the Shandong authors highlighted in this year's Beijing International Book Fair.

Veteran writer Liu Qingbang, author of The Sacred Wood, believes he sees little hint of feminine writing in Shandong writer Ai Ma's works.

"Ai Ma's writing is sharp and precise like men's," Liu says.

Literary critic Qiu Huadong sees the same in writers Dong Zi and Wang Xiumei, observing that they are humorous and good at a wide range of social topics.

"Members of the Shandong group are heavily under Confucius' influence. They're engaged in the society and their writings are very relevant," Zhang Wei says.

"The other thing that makes the group, including the younger ones, unique is that they're very alert to problems they see. At a time when the society is money-driven and fickle, it's hard to find people looking for solutions and truths," Zhang Wei adds.

"Real writers are rarely professional. Think about the masters. How many of them write for a living? You should always write for the impulse and emotions you can't contain, not the market, publishers or the payment. That's one thing that makes Shandong writers the most promising crew, they generally have other occupations and don't get tired of writing."

"Big animals have calm faces. It's the same with writers," Zhang Wei says. "Shandong writers are better at this, they're more diligent and grounded. For writers, especially the younger ones, they should be careful not to be too smart and speculative."

Critic Qiu, who is also editor of an important literary magazine in China, says he noticed Shandong writers are on a rise because of the efforts by its provincial officials and writers' association.

"If the following decade has a chance to see the rise of a world-class Chinese literary work, it will be in Shandong," says An Boshun, chief editor of the Beijing center of Hubei Changjiang Publishing Group.

He says two conditions will guarantee success for Shandong writers.

One is their ability to endure the loneliness and constant inquiry into their field of writing. The other is that Shandong, Confucius' birthplace known for its great attention to traditional values, has seen a controversial separation from old-school ethics to meet modern-day rules.

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