The Fraud Squad explores what she believes to be universal sentiments of confusion and uncertainty that come with growing up and transitioning into different stages of life. “When I started writing [the novel], I was 21 and one year away from graduating and becoming a full-time adult. I felt like a mess; I didn’t know what I wanted from my career and life,” she says. Falling into the zone between young adult and adult fiction, Zhao hopes that the novel speaks to a larger audience through its relatable characters and themes.

But completing an entire book is no easy feat, despite the wealth of inspiration Zhao can rely on thanks to her previous stints in the media industry. She admits that the foray into fiction was surprising to her as well, as she had doubts as to whether she had the “creativity and stamina” to complete an entire novel.

The adjustment from media to fiction comes with its own challenges: “It’s my name on the book cover, so every word I write will be tied back to me. It’s a little scary and makes me feel rather vulnerable, but I’m also excited by the opportunity to explore my personal voice,” she shares. Forging ahead with determination, Zhao reveals that writing is very much a passion project—she is less concerned with sales and what is trendy—and she enjoys how much it differs from her day job in tech, “crunching numbers and building dashboards”.

It was a daunting task for Zhao to secure a publisher, let alone bag an international book deal. She reveals that the hardest part was not losing confidence in herself, or allowing a rejection to affect her sense of self-worth. From signing with a literary agent to sending out manuscripts to multiple publishers, she remained hopeful that her text would appeal to an audience, ultimately receiving multiple offers before signing with one familiar with books written by fellow women of colour. The Fraud Squad is published by Penguin Random House, which will also publish her next novel, Valley Verified.

Zhao stresses the importance of writing for genuine enjoyment—admitting that she might struggle to write if it were for her sole livelihood—not to “chase after some deal or accolade”, or the hopes of standing out from the throng of authors. Instead, she focuses on penning narratives that resonate with audiences around the world.

The desire “to fill in the blank pages in history” led Amber Chen on an imaginative journey, one that explores the relationship between Qing emperor Huang Taiji and the consort he supposedly loved the most, Harjol. It is a union that has long been romanticised in Chinese novels and dramas, but much remains unknown about the love story. Chen’s book, Of Jade and Dragons, sets the romance in a reimagined fantasy setting—and this is her first venture into the traditional medium, after focusing on web novels for the past five years.

Chen has always been fascinated by Chinese history and culture, conducting methodical research into the various dynasties and historical figures over the years, “discovering a treasure trove of characters and stories that I hope to be able to write about in the future”. After landing a television adaptation for her web novel, The Cutting Edge, Chen began to realise the potential for her writing to go even further and endeavoured to get her works published.

However, the creative transition is not without its difficulties. “Traditional publishing has significantly more restrictions than writing online ... having to meet certain stringent industry guidelines. A web novel can have unlimited chapters, but published books have to keep to strict word count norms,” she shares. Furthermore, traditional books often require several rounds of extensive editing, something she admits isn’t typically needed for her web novels.

Chen’s professional training is in screenwriting, which explains her inclination for fast-paced, cinematic and action-driven scenes in her works. Besides, the writing style is fairly common in most young adult fiction texts, drawing her to the genre. When it comes to writing, she is less concerned with standing out, focusing instead on producing work that she would personally choose to read, and finding “a group of like-minded people who appreciate the stories I’m trying to tell”.

The hard part, however, is securing an international book deal, which can be a long-drawn and tedious process at times. According to Chen, the larger publishing houses only consider manuscripts submitted through an agent. “Authors often joke that publishing is one giant waiting game because every stage of the process involves long periods of silence and continuous refreshing of your email inbox,” she quips.

Nevertheless, Chen submitted hers to over two dozen editors before she received an offer from Penguin Random House within two years of completing the manuscript. She speculates that the recent wave of interest in books about Chinese fantasy and mythology is a contributing factor. Other considerations include the story’s marketability and sales potential, in what she calls a “very subjective industry”.

Another challenge she has had to overcome is recognising that traditional publishing is often a collaborative journey, with agents, editors and beta readers heavily involved in the process. Her advice to young authors is to not be too protective with their work when faced with large volumes of feedback, adding that “everyone is only trying to make the book even better” through the process.

The pandemic left in its wake a lasting impact on Lee Wen-yi’s upcoming debut novel, The Dark We Know. For one, Lee revisited her long-abandoned projects, including writing short stories, which she submitted to various publications. At the same time, she also made a commitment to complete her novel.

Taking inspiration from the song Those You’ve Known from the musical Spring Awakening, the book follows an art student who is forced to return to the hometown she ran away from. Back at home, she reluctantly reunites with her childhood friend as they uncover and try to stop a supernatural entity that has been taking the lives of people living in the town.

Lee never intended to write in the young adult horror genre. While she admits she is not a fan of horror movies, the genre appealed to her when it came time to write her novel. “Horror is about emotion ... something about the intensity of the environment lets you get so visceral, raw and vulnerable,” she says.

The book touches on themes of devastating loss, isolation and connection, something that Lee herself was going through during the lockdown. “I wrote the whole first draft in a few weeks during lockdown, after I’d left my university friends in the UK for the last time. I was holding on to a lot of grief which I only really acknowledged later [on],” she says, adding that her novel was a search for hope in the things she was processing at the time.

Upon completing her first manuscript, Lee began pitching to various international agents. The path to a debut novel is a winding road marked by unexpected turns. For Lee, her path was also filled with a lot of anxiety, uncertainty, and waiting around.

Fortunately, the long wait was worth it as multiple publishers were interested in her novel, including Gone Girl’s Gillian Flynn. An author Lee looked up to, Flynn loved the manuscript and wanted to acquire it. “[While] I knew she had an imprint with Zando Projects, I didn’t know sending it to her was even an option, much less [the fact] that she was sent [a copy] and had already read it,” Lee says. Her book is set to be released next year.

Looking back, becoming an author was not something Lee “considered seriously” until 2020, when she stumbled onto publishing communities on Reddit, and X, formerly known as Twitter. These communities provided her with the resources to understand the industry better, reigniting her passion for writing which she says has always come naturally for her. “I don’t think I’d be able to stop even if I tried.”

Since her primary school days, Lee would write books and pass them around to her friends. At that young age, she already saw herself as a professional writer, albeit in a way where “kids dream about future careers with no sense of what it actually entails”. As she got older and busier, her passion to become a professional writer was put on hold. But once the steps of getting her book published crystallised, the thought of being an author became a lot more concrete
and plausible.

While Lee currently works in the local publishing industry, she has yet to take on writing full time, even as she considers it “a full second job” and would constantly find herself writing during lunch breaks or commutes. “Balancing between [both jobs] is something I’m still trying to really figure out,” she says. “At the end of the day, it’s something I’m happy to carve out time for because it’s something I love. It doesn’t usually feel like something I’m forcing myself to get done.”

NOW READ

15 books written by women and for women in 2023 you’ll want to add to your reading list

15 must-read non-fiction books of 2023 selected by Front & Female

Author and diversity practitioner Karen Loon on getting more women on boards