The Coode Street Podcast Episode 683: China Mieville and 25 Years of Bas Lag
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Aug 12, 2025 
Join China Mieville, a renowned British science fiction and fantasy writer celebrated for his Bas-Lag novels, as he reflects on 25 years since the release of 'Perdido Street Station.' He shares insights into his youthful creativity and how it evolved over the years. The conversation delves into breaking fantasy norms, his struggles with fan expectations, and the legacy of his beloved series. Mieville also touches on literary movements and the impact of sociopolitical contexts on storytelling, revealing his thoughts on the balance between authorial freedom and audience connection.
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Time Warps Around Long-Lived Books
- China Mieville finds it surreal that Perdido Street Station is 25 years old yet still feels new to readers.
- He experiences a pleasing melancholy about time and the book's ongoing discovery by new generations.
Deliberate Scarcity Protects a Setting
- Mieville deliberately made each Bas-Lag book standalone to raise barriers to endlessly returning to the world.
- He prefers scarcity over surplus to avoid overusing a beloved setting.
Early Drafts Began At University
- Mieville started a proto-Perdido story in 1994 and revised it heavily later.
- He wrote it from a youthful urge for exuberant, undisciplined worldbuilding that he couldn't replicate now.
