About Writing

Tsering Dondrub: In the early 1980s, entertainment was scarce, and reading novels and poetry was the main form of entertainment.

After the Cultural Revolution, some literary newspapers and magazines were gradually established, which became the only form of entertainment in schools. Some teachers and students imitated the literary works in these publications and created their own, and I was one of them. My first novel was published and won an award from "Tibetan Literature," which greatly encouraged me, leading to an unstoppable wave of creativity.

My literary creation started as a form of entertainment, but later became something very important. For me, working a job is a side business, purely for earning a salary to survive. My main focus is literary creation.

In my works, I am quite sensitive to religious and social themes, which I write about frequently, while love stories are relatively few.

Zhang Wan: So far, which of your works do you like, and what were they written for?

Tsering Dondrub: I have always liked Western literature. Early on, I was particularly influenced by the works of Maupassant, Chekhov, and Gogol. Since the early 1990s, I have subscribed to the literary magazine "World Literature."

Later, I was influenced by the works of Kafka, Solzhenitsyn, and others. The works of Colombian writer Gabriel García Márquez have had a greater impact on me.

                                July 13, 2024

Tsering Dondrub was born in October 1961 in Henan County, Qinghai. From the age of 7 or 8 to 13, he worked at home herding livestock, and from 13 to 21, he attended school. He has worked as a middle school teacher, in judicial documentation, and in historical writing. He retired early in 2013 to focus on literary creation. Since 1982, he has published over two million words of novels in Tibetan and Chinese. Some of his novels have been translated into English, French, German, Japanese, Swedish, Dutch, Hungarian, and both old and new Mongolian, and have been included in textbooks for universities in Tibetan and Mongolian regions as well as some overseas universities. He has won numerous domestic and international literary awards.

Tsering Dondrub was born in October 1961 in the region of Madoi, Qinghai. He worked as a herder from the age of 7 to 13, and from 13 to 21, he attended school. He has worked as a middle school teacher, in judicial documentation, and in historical writing. He retired early in 2013 to focus on literary creation. Since 1983, he has published over two million words of novels in Tibetan and Chinese. Some of his works have been translated into various languages including English, French, German, Japanese, Swedish, Dutch, Hungarian, and both old and new Mongolian, and have been included in textbooks for universities in Tibetan and Mongolian regions as well as some overseas universities. He has won numerous domestic and international literary awards.