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Geling Yan (; born 16 November 1958) is a Chinese-American author and screenwriter.


Early life

Yan was born in
Shanghai Shanghai, Shanghainese: , Standard Chinese pronunciation: is a direct-administered municipality and the most populous urban area in China. The city is located on the Chinese shoreline on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the ...
, China in 1958. She is the second child of Yan Dunxun and Jia Lin. She has an elder brother Yan Geping (严歌平). Her father is an alumnus of the College of Architecture and Urban Planning of
Tongji University Tongji University is a public university located in Shanghai, China. It is affiliated with the Ministry of Education of China. The university is part of Project 211, Project 985, and the Double First-Class Construction. Tongji is one of the ...
. Yan began performing as a dancer at age 12. She served in the
People's Liberation Army The People's Liberation Army (PLA) is the military of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and the People's Republic of China (PRC). It consists of four Military branch, services—People's Liberation Army Ground Force, Ground Force, People's ...
in Chengdu, during the
Cultural Revolution The Cultural Revolution, formally known as the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, was a Social movement, sociopolitical movement in the China, People's Republic of China (PRC). It was launched by Mao Zedong in 1966 and lasted until his de ...
in Tibet and later as a journalist in the
Sino-Vietnamese War The Sino-Vietnamese War (also known by other names) was a brief conflict that occurred in early 1979 between China and Vietnam. China launched an offensive ostensibly in response to Vietnam's invasion and occupation of Cambodia in 1978, whi ...
, achieving a rank equivalent to lieutenant colonel. Yan holds a bachelor's degree in literature from
Wuhan University Wuhan University (WHU; 武汉大学) is a key comprehensive public university in Wuhan, Hubei, China. It is directly affiliated with and funded by the Ministry of Education of the People's Republic of China, Ministry of Education of China. The un ...
, and a Master's in Fine Arts in Fiction Writing from
Columbia College Chicago Columbia College Chicago is a Private college, private art college in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Founded in 1890, it has 6,493 students (as of fall 2021) pursuing degrees in more than 60 undergraduate and graduate degree programs. It i ...
.


Career


Works

Her first novel was published in 1985. She is the author of such novels as ''The Banquet Bug'' (published as ''The Uninvited'' in the UK) and ''The Lost Daughter of Happiness'', as well as a story collection entitled ''White Snake and Other Stories''. Several of Yan's works have been adapted for film, including '' Xiu Xiu: The Sent-Down Girl'', which was directed by
Joan Chen Joan Chen (simplified Chinese; 陈冲; born April 26, 1961) is an American actress and film director. She made her film debut in the Chinese film ''Youth'' (1977) before starring in the film (1979). She came to the attention of American audien ...
, and '' Siao Yu'', directed by
Sylvia Chang Sylvia Chang (born 21 July 1953) is a Taiwanese people, Taiwanese actress, singer, director, screenwriter, and producer. Early life Chang was born in Chiayi County, Chiayi, Taiwan. She dropped out of school when she was 16 and started her career ...
and screenplay co-written by
Ang Lee Ang Lee (; born October 23, 1954) is a Taiwanese filmmaker. His films are known for their emotional charge and exploration of repressed, hidden emotions. During his career, he has received international critical and popular acclaim and List o ...
.
Zhang Yimou Zhang Yimou (; born 14 November 1950) is a Chinese filmmaker.Tasker, Yvonne (2002). "Zhang Yimou" i''Fifty Contemporary Filmmakers'' Routledge Publishing, p. 412. . Google Book Search. Retrieved 21 August 2008. A leading figure of China's Cinem ...
, the Chinese director of '' To Live'' and ''
Raise the Red Lantern ''Raise the Red Lantern'' is a 1991 period drama film directed by Zhang Yimou and starring Gong Li. It is an adaptation by of the 1990 novella '' Raise the Red Lantern'' (originally ''Wives and Concubines'') by Su Tong. A Chinese-Hong Kong c ...
'' adapted her novella ''13 Flowers of Nanjing'' to the screen as '' The Flowers of War'', and his movie ''Coming Home'' was based on Yan's novel ''The Criminal Lu Yanshi''. She has worked on other scripts including a biography of
Mei Lanfang Mei Lan (22 October 1894 – 8 August 1961), better known by his stage name Mei Lanfang, was a notable Chinese Peking opera artist in Chinese theater, modern Chinese theater. Mei was known as the "Queen of Peking Opera". Mei was exclusively know ...
, the Peking opera star, for Chinese director
Chen Kaige Chen Kaige ( zh, s=陈凯歌, link=no; born 12 August 1952) is a Chinese filmmaker. A leading figure of the fifth generation of Chinese directors, Chen is known for his visual flair and epic storytelling.Berry, Michael (2002). "Chen Kaige: His ...
.


Novels in English

* ''The Banquet Bug'' (written in English, published as ''The Uninvited'' in the UK 简体版《赴宴者》) * ''The Lost Daughter of Happiness'' (tr. Cathy Silber, Chinese title ''Fusang'' 《扶桑》) * ''The Flowers of War'' (tr. Nicky Harman, Chinese title ''Jinling shisan chai'' 《金陵十三钗》) * ''Little Aunt Crane'' (tr. Esther Tyldesley, Chinese title ''Xiaoyi Duohe'' 《小姨多鶴》) *''The Criminal Lu Yanshi'' (adapted into a movie, titled '' Coming Home'')《陆犯焉识》 * ''The Secret Talker''


Novels in Chinese (Chronological order of publication)

* 绿血 * 一个女兵的悄悄话 (''Yi ge nü bing di qiao qiao hua)'' * 雌性的草地 * 草鞋权贵 (In 2009, the name was changed to Shuangjiang《霜降》) * 扶桑 (''The Lost Daughter of Happiness'' ) * 人寰 (In 2009, the name was changed to ''Xinli Yisheng Zaima'' 《心理医生在吗》) * 无出路咖啡馆 * 花儿与少年 * '' 第九个寡妇(The Ninth Widow)'' * 一个女人的史诗 * '' 小姨多鹤(Auntie Duohe)'' * 寄居者 * 铁梨花 * 陆犯焉识 * '' 金陵十三钗(The Flowers of War)'' * 补玉山居 * '' 妈阁是座城(A City Called Macau)'' * 老师好美 * 床畔 * 舞男 * '' 芳华(Youth)'' * 666号 * 小站 * 蜃楼


Short stories in English

* ''The Landlady'' (tr. Lawrence A. Walker) * ''Disappointing Returns'' (tr. David Haysom) * ''White Snake and Other Stories'' (tr. Lawrence A. Walker)


Title

She is a member of the Hollywood Writers Guild of America, the Writer's Association of China, and the
Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS, often pronounced ; also known as simply the Academy or the Motion Picture Academy) is a professional honorary organization in Beverly Hills, California, U.S., with the stated goal of adva ...
.


Censorship in China

As of 11 February 2022, Yan was censored on China's internet after commenting on the atrocity and government cover-ups in the Xuzhou chained woman incident and agreeing with Zhou Xiaozheng's assessment that
Chinese Communist Party The Communist Party of China (CPC), also translated into English as Chinese Communist Party (CCP), is the founding and One-party state, sole ruling party of the People's Republic of China (PRC). Founded in 1921, the CCP emerged victorious in the ...
leader
Xi Jinping Xi Jinping, pronounced (born 15 June 1953) is a Chinese politician who has been the general secretary of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and Chairman of the Central Military Commission (China), chairman of the Central Military Commission ...
is a "human trafficker" who imposed a large sum of money for "donation" on foreign families who adopt Chinese orphans.
Baidu Baike Baidu Baike (; zh, c= 百度 百科, p=Bǎidù Bǎikē, l=Baidu Encyclopedia, also known as Baidu Wiki) is a semi-regulated Chinese-language collaborative online encyclopedia owned by the Chinese technology company Baidu. Modelled after Wiki ...
showed "Sorry, the page you're visiting no longer exists" for Yan's entry. The search results for Yan's name on
Sina Weibo Weibo (), or Sina Weibo (), is a Chinese microblogging ( weibo) website. Launched by Sina Corporation on 14 August 2009, it is one of the biggest social media platforms in China, with over 582 million monthly active users (252 million daily ...
became unavailable.


Personal life

Yan's ex-husband is Li Kewei; they divorced in the 1990s. In 1992, Yan married her second husband Lawrence Walker in
San Bruno, California San Bruno () is a city in San Mateo County, California, United States, incorporated in 1914. The population was 43,908 at the 2020 United States census. The city is between South San Francisco, California, South San Francisco and Millbrae, Cali ...
. Walker is a diplomat. They have no biological children together, but have adopted a Chinese girl, Yanyan.严歌苓:做一个在美国畅销的中国作家
Retrieved 2017-01-14


References


External links


Geling Yan's website

Geling Yan at Peony Literary Agency

Geling Yan profile
a
Paper Republic
*
Book Browse
Biography * https://web.archive.org/web/20080121031733/http://www.redroom.com/author/geling-yan
Yan Geling
Video produced by '' Makers: Women Who Make America''
Geling Yan on BBC Radio 4 Woman's Hour, 19 November 2015 (07:18 to 15:55)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Yan, Geling Chinese women short story writers Chinese dramatists and playwrights Chinese women dramatists and playwrights 1958 births Living people Chinese women novelists Chinese novelists Short story writers from Shanghai American writers of Chinese descent People's Liberation Army officers Chinese journalists 20th-century Chinese short story writers Wuhan University alumni Columbia College Chicago alumni Chinese military personnel of the Sino-Vietnamese War