Lijia Zhang

Lijia Zhang (; born May 12, 1964, in Nanjing) is a rocket-factory-worker turned Chinese writer, columnist and public speaker. She describes herself as a communicator between China and the world and has given talks at conferences and institutions about contemporary China. She has lectured at many universities around the world including Stanford University, Harvard University, Columbia University, New York University in the U.S., Monash University, the University of Sydney in Australia, and Leeds and the University of Nottingham in England.

Early life and education Zhang was born into a poor worker’s family in Nanjing, yet she dreamed to become a writer. At the age of 16, she was dragged out of school and began working in a military factory that produced inter-continental missiles. During the decade at the factory she taught herself English. In 2003, she was able to attend Goldsmiths, University of London, where she earned a master's degree in creative writing.

Career Her articles have been published in many newspapers and magazines, including South China Morning Post, The Japan Times, The Independent, The Guardian, Newsweek, and the New York Times. She comments on China’s social and political changes, with a keen interest in gender issues. She co-authored China Remembers (OUP, 1999) and her memoir "Socialism Is Great!": A Worker's Memoir of the New China, was published by Atlas & Co. and Random House and has been published in eleven countries. During the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, she served as a producer for the BBC crew reporting the games. She was the subject of a BBC TV documentary Peschardt's People. Sponsored by the United States Department of State, she was a fellow on the University of Iowa's International Writing Program in 2009. Her first novel, Lotus, about prostitution set in modern day Shenzhen, was published in 2017 by MacMillan.

In 2018, she was given Mulan Award in England for her contribution to arts and literature. She is a regular guest on ABC, BBC and CNN.

Personal life Zhang was married to Calum MacLeod, a British reporter for USA Today. In 2018, she moved from Beijing to London with her two daughters.