About...

Dr Yen Ooi is a Hugo Awards finalist writer-researcher whose works explore East and Southeast Asian culture, identity and values. Her projects aim to cultivate cultural engagement in our modern, technology-driven lives. Her PhD research successfully grounds Sino science fiction in its own mode of rationality that stems from ancient East Asian teachings with foundations in relationalism. Using Prof. Roger Ames's theory on zoetology—a philosophy of human 'becomings'—she demonstrates how Sino science fiction is located within the more contemporaneous genre of zoefuturism—a serendipitous convergence of Sino science fiction with other genres like hopepunk and solarpunk that emphasises the relationalist paradigm, whether using ancient East Asian philosophy, indigenous teachings, climate topics, or more. 

Yen is currently Senior Narrative Designer at Fireshine Games. She was narrative designer and writer for Road to Guangdong, a narrative puzzle driving game. She is author of Rén: The Ancient Chinese Art of Finding Peace and Fulfilment (non-fiction), Sun: Queens of Earth (novel) and A Suspicious Collection of Short Stories and Poetry (collection). She is also co-editor of Ab Terra, Brain Mill Press's science fiction imprint, co-director of the London Science Fiction Research Community, and co-founder of Chapunk. When she's not got her head in a story, she can be found mothering or playing games... often together.