In mainland China, Taiwanese books wait in limbo as censors bolster publishing barriers
Mainland editors say new rules and pressure from regulators have slowed publication of Taiwanese literature to a trickle since 2019
In August 2018, Taiwanese writer Lung Ying-tai’s collection of essays – mostly about her love for her mother – was published in mainland China. It became a bestseller.
Lung, who served as Taiwan’s minister of culture from 2012 to 2014, sold nearly 300,000 copies of her book in mainland China – an astonishing figure for a literary work – despite one of the world’s strictest publishing censorship systems.
Three years later, this would become unthinkable in mainland China, where book editors now find it difficult to publish new Taiwanese literature because of growing pressure from regulators.
The restrictions have taken a heavy toll on Taiwanese books, which are often very popular among mainland Chinese readers.