Cyber dweller to bestseller(2)

Middle-class aspirations

The Internet offered Li a platform to reach a wide audience and become a published author, but now she wants to break free of the young cyber writer tag. Her latest book published in English entailing five short stories, The Road of Others, is a step toward her new direction.

Her characters drink cappuccinos, listen to jazz and attend English classes. Li became a symbol of a generation for portraying the "petty bourgeois," or xiaozi. Fans celebrated her romantic individualism and speculated about the woman behind the words. One reader blogged about falling asleep, emotionally exhausted, with her head resting on one of Li's books. The author became the voice of China's emerging middle-class engaged in consumption and detached from life in big industrialized cities.

Her publishing debut came in 2001 with short story Goodbye, An selling over half a million copies. After a moment of brief exposure, Li retreated from the spotlight and shunned public appearances. "The Internet was an experimental playground for me and never influenced my stories," stressed Li, who relocated to Beijing in 2003. "I don't think the Internet changed the face of Chinese literature. Many people of different ages are online and can share their stories. I'm not following what's happening and don't pay attention to it."

Reaching literary maturity

A prolific writer who also pens columns in Chinese magazines Harvest, Writers and Elle, Li also ranks among the best paid in the country. Last year, her income from royalties was listed at 9.4 million yuan ($1.48 million). Over the past decade, Li's stories - many which have been published in Japan, South Korea, Vietnam Germany and the UK - have evolved to embrace spiritual freedom.

Her style has matured to become brighter, exploring more complex themes. Her characters moved from being tormented by angst in big cities to finding harmony with nature. Drawing inspiration from ancient Chinese and Japanese literature, she stills favors individual subjectivity as well as the female experience and perspective.

"My writing has evolved to become more in depth, philosophical and exploratory of human nature," Li said, pinpointing her 2006 novel Lotus and last year's follow-up Spring Banquet as examples. Lotus is a love story that blossoms during a journey in Tibet, while Spring Banquet explores the struggle of preserving traditional Chinese culture under the blitz of foreign influences.

Li, who has a four-year-old daughter, put her experience in advertising to good use to launch a Chinese-language literary magazine featuring stories and photo essays titled O-Pen.

"I teamed up with four writers, including literary translator Hu Lang, to prepare a purely literary magazine with interviews and content translated from foreign languages," she explained. O-pen primarily targets student readers, from high school to university, as well as graduates.

Li's writings might not be everyone's cup of tea, but her legion of loyal fans is proof of her literary success. Nearly all of her books have become best-sellers, with several selling more than 1 million copies. The awaited release of the English version of The Road of Others coincides with her participation at the 2012 London Book Fair.

"Foreign audiences are still unaware of the myriad of young Chinese voices that are not publicized," lamented the writer. In the meantime, she's keeping busy working on her next book, a photographic diary, and planning a trip to South America.