Taiwan's Diverse Literary Voices Must Stand Together for the World to See: An Interview with Author Yang Shuang-tzu
On May 19, Taiwanese author Yang Shuang-tzu and translator Jin Ling won the International Booker Prize for the novel 'Taiwan Manyou Lu.' In an interview in London, Yang stated the award is a collective milestone for Taiwan's literary community and called on Taiwanese creators to 'come out in droves' to show the world their diverse voices. She believes being 'Taiwanese' is defined by a will to live together and a consciousness of a shared destiny. Inspired by the war in Ukraine, translator Jin Ling has committed to exclusively translating works from Taiwan to advocate for it internationally, criticizing foreign media for ignoring Taiwan's own voice in its reporting.
📋 Article Processing Timeline
- 📰 Published: May 21, 2026 at 10:56
- 🔍 Collected: May 21, 2026 at 11:01 (5 min after Published)
- 🤖 AI Analyzed: May 21, 2026 at 11:04 (2 min after Collected)
Taiwanese author Yang Shuang-tzu and translator Jin Ling won the prestigious International Booker Prize on the 19th for the novel 'Taiwan Manyou Lu'. In an exclusive interview with the Central News Agency (CNA) today, Yang Shuang-tzu expressed her sincere hope that more Taiwanese people and literary works could reach the world stage, saying, 'Let's be seen together.'
Yang said, 'We must come out in droves' to let the world know the multiple voices and diverse faces of Taiwan.
She emphasized that no single book can represent all of Taiwanese literature, nor is Taiwan limited to the image presented by a single work. More than her own next book, she looks forward to more creations from Taiwan becoming known to the world.
## A Quick Guide to the Booker Prize
The Booker Prize has been awarded since 1969, annually honoring a living author for an original novel written in English and published in the UK or Ireland. From 2002 to 2019, it was sponsored by the Man Group and known as the Man Booker Prize.
This award is one of the most influential literary prizes internationally, and several Booker Prize winners have later gone on to receive the Nobel Prize in Literature.
At the award ceremony, Yang Shuang-tzu mentioned in her acceptance speech that looking back at the history of Taiwanese literature, 'for a hundred years, we have been constantly asking: what kind of future do Taiwanese people want? What kind of nation do Taiwanese people want?'
Speaking to CNA today, Yang said, 'When we talk about what Taiwanese literature is, or what Taiwanese cuisine is, what we are really asking is, what is a Taiwanese person.'
Yang believes that 'Taiwanese person' is not something that will ever have a final definition, but will continue to be dynamically defined, forming a 'greatest common divisor.'
As for her personal conception of a 'Taiwanese person,' Yang said it would not be based on 'essentialist' elements like bloodline, ethnicity, or faith and rituals. Instead, it is about the people who live together on this land of Taiwan, who, regardless of their original reasons for coming here, have decided to 'live together and jointly decide what kind of future to walk towards.'
If there is a lack of consensus on this 'togetherness,' and no consciousness of being a 'community of common destiny,' then such a person could hardly be called 'Taiwanese.'
Yang said that having shared experiences is very important: a shared experience could be a political event, a ball game, or a Taiwanese literary work winning the 'International Booker Prize.'
'Whether you are happy or unhappy today because a Taiwanese person won an award,' it is a 'shared experience,' said Yang, and this is the common memory and common foundation before Taiwan takes its next step.
Translator Jin Ling, in her acceptance speech at the ceremony, mentioned that after Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022, she made a clear decision: for the foreseeable future, she would no longer indiscriminately translate any Sino-language work, but would only translate creations from Taiwan.
She stressed that she would continue to do so until one day, 'the sovereignty of my homeland (Taiwan) is no longer a provocation or a joke in the English-speaking world,' and no one says to her without batting an eye, 'I should really go see Taiwan—while it's still there.'
In her interview with CNA today, she mentioned that growing up in Taiwan, she lived in Taipei for a long time and only had Mandarin-language abilities, being unfamiliar with other languages in Taiwan.
After moving to the United States, when Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, she observed that Ukraine was experiencing not just physical aggression, but also aggression at the linguistic and cultural levels. After the full-scale war broke out, many Ukrainian friends declared, 'Starting today, I will properly learn the Ukrainian language.'
Witnessing the awakening of her Ukrainian friends, Jin Ling felt a sense of guilt. She asked herself why, when she could only speak Taiwanese Mandarin, she should spend time translating 'other people's Mandarin,' especially when 'we (Taiwan) have such a small population and land, yet need such a loud voice.'
Jin Ling candidly stated that observing everything happening in Taiwan from the United States gives her a stronger sense of crisis than when she was actually in Taiwan.
She pointed out that foreign media reports on Taiwan often focus on the possibility of a Chinese invasion, while simultaneously lacking due attention to voices from Taiwan or the statements of Taiwanese political leaders. It's as if the discussion is about Taiwan's issues, even Taiwan's survival, yet 'it's always only about US-China relations,' with Taiwan's voice being almost 'completely excluded.'
Jin Ling made up her mind that her time should be spent on 'speaking up for Taiwan.'
Besides having several Taiwanese literary works awaiting her translation, Jin Ling said there is a group of translators in Taiwan and abroad working hard to bring Taiwan's stories to the world, including foreign translators who have long resided in Taiwan.
These translators not only translate works but also build bridges between Taiwan and the world. Jin Ling humorously expressed her hope that she can return to the UK many more times for being nominated for the 'International Booker Prize' for her English translations of Taiwanese literature, and that each time, she would be accompanied by a different Taiwanese author, although doing so might be 'letting Yang Shuang-tzu down.'
Yang Shuang-tzu responded with a laugh, saying that would be a very good development, 'You are not letting me down.' She hopes Jin Ling can come back to the UK often, 'We can fly solo, but we won't break up the band.'
Yang emphasized that she truly wants the world to recognize Taiwan's diverse voices and appearances, to see through literature that there are all sorts of living people on this land.
She mentioned that many people say literature is 'useless,' but one should not underestimate its power. The fact that she was able to continue writing in times of financial hardship is a testament to the power of literature, which gave her 'the power to imagine the possibility of a beautiful future.'
Yang said, 'We must come out in droves' to let the world know the multiple voices and diverse faces of Taiwan.
She emphasized that no single book can represent all of Taiwanese literature, nor is Taiwan limited to the image presented by a single work. More than her own next book, she looks forward to more creations from Taiwan becoming known to the world.
## A Quick Guide to the Booker Prize
The Booker Prize has been awarded since 1969, annually honoring a living author for an original novel written in English and published in the UK or Ireland. From 2002 to 2019, it was sponsored by the Man Group and known as the Man Booker Prize.
This award is one of the most influential literary prizes internationally, and several Booker Prize winners have later gone on to receive the Nobel Prize in Literature.
At the award ceremony, Yang Shuang-tzu mentioned in her acceptance speech that looking back at the history of Taiwanese literature, 'for a hundred years, we have been constantly asking: what kind of future do Taiwanese people want? What kind of nation do Taiwanese people want?'
Speaking to CNA today, Yang said, 'When we talk about what Taiwanese literature is, or what Taiwanese cuisine is, what we are really asking is, what is a Taiwanese person.'
Yang believes that 'Taiwanese person' is not something that will ever have a final definition, but will continue to be dynamically defined, forming a 'greatest common divisor.'
As for her personal conception of a 'Taiwanese person,' Yang said it would not be based on 'essentialist' elements like bloodline, ethnicity, or faith and rituals. Instead, it is about the people who live together on this land of Taiwan, who, regardless of their original reasons for coming here, have decided to 'live together and jointly decide what kind of future to walk towards.'
If there is a lack of consensus on this 'togetherness,' and no consciousness of being a 'community of common destiny,' then such a person could hardly be called 'Taiwanese.'
Yang said that having shared experiences is very important: a shared experience could be a political event, a ball game, or a Taiwanese literary work winning the 'International Booker Prize.'
'Whether you are happy or unhappy today because a Taiwanese person won an award,' it is a 'shared experience,' said Yang, and this is the common memory and common foundation before Taiwan takes its next step.
Translator Jin Ling, in her acceptance speech at the ceremony, mentioned that after Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022, she made a clear decision: for the foreseeable future, she would no longer indiscriminately translate any Sino-language work, but would only translate creations from Taiwan.
She stressed that she would continue to do so until one day, 'the sovereignty of my homeland (Taiwan) is no longer a provocation or a joke in the English-speaking world,' and no one says to her without batting an eye, 'I should really go see Taiwan—while it's still there.'
In her interview with CNA today, she mentioned that growing up in Taiwan, she lived in Taipei for a long time and only had Mandarin-language abilities, being unfamiliar with other languages in Taiwan.
After moving to the United States, when Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, she observed that Ukraine was experiencing not just physical aggression, but also aggression at the linguistic and cultural levels. After the full-scale war broke out, many Ukrainian friends declared, 'Starting today, I will properly learn the Ukrainian language.'
Witnessing the awakening of her Ukrainian friends, Jin Ling felt a sense of guilt. She asked herself why, when she could only speak Taiwanese Mandarin, she should spend time translating 'other people's Mandarin,' especially when 'we (Taiwan) have such a small population and land, yet need such a loud voice.'
Jin Ling candidly stated that observing everything happening in Taiwan from the United States gives her a stronger sense of crisis than when she was actually in Taiwan.
She pointed out that foreign media reports on Taiwan often focus on the possibility of a Chinese invasion, while simultaneously lacking due attention to voices from Taiwan or the statements of Taiwanese political leaders. It's as if the discussion is about Taiwan's issues, even Taiwan's survival, yet 'it's always only about US-China relations,' with Taiwan's voice being almost 'completely excluded.'
Jin Ling made up her mind that her time should be spent on 'speaking up for Taiwan.'
Besides having several Taiwanese literary works awaiting her translation, Jin Ling said there is a group of translators in Taiwan and abroad working hard to bring Taiwan's stories to the world, including foreign translators who have long resided in Taiwan.
These translators not only translate works but also build bridges between Taiwan and the world. Jin Ling humorously expressed her hope that she can return to the UK many more times for being nominated for the 'International Booker Prize' for her English translations of Taiwanese literature, and that each time, she would be accompanied by a different Taiwanese author, although doing so might be 'letting Yang Shuang-tzu down.'
Yang Shuang-tzu responded with a laugh, saying that would be a very good development, 'You are not letting me down.' She hopes Jin Ling can come back to the UK often, 'We can fly solo, but we won't break up the band.'
Yang emphasized that she truly wants the world to recognize Taiwan's diverse voices and appearances, to see through literature that there are all sorts of living people on this land.
She mentioned that many people say literature is 'useless,' but one should not underestimate its power. The fact that she was able to continue writing in times of financial hardship is a testament to the power of literature, which gave her 'the power to imagine the possibility of a beautiful future.'