TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Taiwanese American translator Lin King (金翎) said Taiwan is the only Mandarin-speaking country without literary censorship during a lecture in Canada, CNA reported on Tuesday.

King, a National Book Award winner, said the freedom to publish without fear of state control gives Taiwanese writers rare creative space and allows people to express their thoughts honestly.

Compared with the US, Taiwan’s democracy now feels stronger because people can still speak freely, she said, adding that the US is showing signs of self-censorship.

King praised Taiwan’s transition away from authoritarian rule as a global example of democratic success, saying the country’s experience shows how a society can build democracy through perseverance.

She noted that more translators are working to bring Taiwanese literature to global readers, but only about 3% of books published in English each year are translations.

Two or three translated works now reach major English-language publishers such as Penguin Random House and HarperCollins each year, she said, but getting more attention for Taiwanese literature “is still a long fight.”

King won the National Book Award in 2024 for translating Taiwanese author Yang Shuang-zi’s (楊雙子) “Taiwan Travelogue” into English.