Publishers pay students big cash
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Before graduating from Peking University's School of International Studies in July, Kato Yoshikazu, from Izu, Japan, had four books published including his autobiography How Far Is It from Izu to Beijing (released in June). His fifth was published recently and a sixth will soon.
While studying at the university, he wrote columns on international affairs for several famous media including the Financial Times and news magazine Oriental Outlook. His burgeoning reputation attracted the attention of publishing houses in China.
"Every day there're publishing houses contacting me for contributions," he told the Global Times. "Publishing books gives me a chance to communicate with Chinese readers. It also lets more people know about me."
However, getting books published in Japan, where writers' age and experience are more valued, is not so easy according to Kato, 26. "Chinese publishing houses are more tolerant toward young writers," he said.
Kato is not the first college student to have his work published. More and more students are seeing their words reproduced in book form.
Hou Bohan, a 20-year-old English sophomore at Zhejiang Normal University, will soon have his second book published, Qiancheng, a novel about teenagers and the psychology of young people, next month.
"My books are a record of my life. Continuously writing allows me to think more deeply about life," said Hou.
Job marketability
Writing can gain students an advantage when it comes to the competitive job-market, as their books help them stand out.
Li Jing graduated from Ludong University in Yantai, Shandong Province with a bachelor's degree in Chinese literature. Her university is third-tier one, but she found an admirable job as a TV reporter in Huozhou, Shandong.
Before graduation, she worked as a campus reporter and had two books published, a news report collection and a businesswoman's biography. They helped her when applying for the job, up against masters graduates from famous universities.
"When I took out my books, my employers immediately showed a strong interest in me, " said Li. "They said my advantage was my experience not my diploma." The increasing number of college writers has boosted publishing companies' profits.
Enjoy Reading Era is a Beijing-based book company targeting female readers aged 16-30. Of its 200 writers, 20 percent are college students, according to Hou Kai, the company's boss.
The company collects a large number of contributions from students every month, he said.
"Most college students are not in the public eye, so we tend to stress their writing qualities rather than their identities. If their work is exceptionally good, we'll try to promote them more," he said, adding that some contracted student writers make 100,000 yuan ($14,861) per year.
Generally speaking, student fiction writers enjoy rights of authorship, while non-fiction writers are less likely to see their names in print, Hou Kai said. A lot of non-fiction books are produced through "cutting and pasting" from students' own online archives.
"Because of the low requirements, college students can more easily find channels to publish their books. But the quality of these cut-and-paste books is not so good. Some students even refuse to have their names attached as they may feel ashamed," said Liu Xiangya, boss of a Beijing-based book company.
Two sides of a coin
It is a different situation from 20 years ago. With the impact of the Internet and increased consumption, publishing houses' first concern is the needs of their readers and the market, not the quality of the books, according to Xie Youshun, a Chinese literature professor at Sun Yat-sen University in Guangdong Province.
"College students can express themselves and share their true thoughts through their books, which is a progress," said Xie.
As they are deeply influenced by the mass media rather than classic reading, the quality of their books appeals at various levels, and people don't expect too much depth from them, he said.
"College students' understanding of human nature and society is not very deep or comprehensive," Hou Kai said. "They can write interesting stories but they can't steer their topics through a larger and deeper theme."
During interviews, the Global Times found an interesting phenomenon: Student writers seldom read their peers' books or regard others' work as interesting or valuable. "Their books are flat - they don't appeal to me or fulfill my thirst for reading," student Hou said.
