High-School Drop Out Turned Prodigy Writer
From Danwei: Lin Qianyu, author of Carefree: A Crusade Legend (逍遥·圣战传说), is one of this year's hottest young authors. His experiences - dropping out of high school to pursue his writing - recall those of 90s teen phenom Han Han, and his writing style has been said to top that of hot seller Guo Jingming. His fantasy novel, written in 50 days, was the grand prize winner in Sina's online writing competition, and the jury made up of luminaries like Jin Yong, Hai Yan, and Cao Wenxuan called him a prodigy.
Lin Qianyu after his image retooling. Lin himself summarizes his high school and writing experiences this way:
- 2002: Second year. Everyone is worried about deciding between science and humanities, but I am frustrated over "what is clearly a one-hour class stretched out to three days." So I drop out of school and leave. School is a grave where time is wasted and youth consumed - this is my real reason for dropping out - to find some quite. Although the principal and the teacher do not understand and try many things to detain me, I am set on going. Now I see that time as a hero in the wind, coming and going without cares.
- 2004: I start putting my rejected writings online. Turns out there are lots of people who say they are impressed by them. I try to show them my published writings, but people say they are trash. I am puzzled - where's the money in being impressed? Trash has royalties. Are worthless things actually priceless?
- 2005: I come to Beijing. I encounter some people and some events. But they're pretty much eroded by the dazzling neon lights. I write Carefree: A Crusade Legend.
Links and Sources
- BQ (Chinese): Youth Lit
- Image from Dangdang (Chinese): Carefree cover image
- Sina (Chinese): Lin Qianyu blog
- Sina (Chinese): Carefree: A Crusade Legend serialization
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