Cover of magic fantasy Shadow Slave by Russian writer Barisbi Alborov.[Photo provided to China Daily]
Going global
The first step Chinese online literature took in its global quest dates back to 2001, when works produced by the Chinese Magic Fantasy Union, predecessor of China's online literature platform Qidian, started attracting overseas Chinese-speaking fans. Four years later, Chinese online literature began overseas exploration regarding publication authorizations for digital and print copyrights.
In 2017, WebNovel, a Chinese platform run by Yuewen Group, was launched, marking a milestone in the overseas expansion of Chinese online literature. As an overseas portal offering massive amounts of translated Chinese web novels, it provided international readers with easier and more comprehensive access to quality online novels from China.
Shortly after the launch of the platform, in 2018, WebNovel also began allowing overseas users to create their own works on the platform. Most of their works were observed to be heavily influenced and informed by the worldviews and structure of Chinese online literature.
Since 2020, the platform put these creators more at the forefront of the phenomenon. With increasing investment and stronger support, the platform has been continuously helping more overseas writers realize their writing dreams while improving their livelihoods.
For instance, the platform launched the annual WebNovel Spirity Awards (WSA) in 2019 to reward quality web novels from across the world. In 2022, it worked with top universities in Singapore to launch the Global Author Incubation Project, followed by another program in 2023 to offer writers training on writing skills and IP issues.
In 2024, the platform began applying artificial intelligence in work translation and presented web novels to a wider audience globally, covering languages such as English, Spanish, German, French, Japanese and Portuguese.
By the end of November, the platform had published about 6,000 translated novels, including over 2,000 AI-translated works in 2024. Also, it has cultivated around 449,000 overseas web novelists and published some 680,000 overseas original titles, attracting some 300 million visitors from over 200 countries and regions, said Yuewen Group.
