Chinese Writer to Serve 10-Year Jail Sentence for Gay Novel

In a sobering example of anti-LGBT censorship, an author has been sentenced to over ten years in prison for writing and selling an erotic gay novel in China.

The writer is known online by the name Tianyi, but has been identified by the surname Liu, according to Chinese media. She was arrested in 2017 after her novel, Occupy, sold over 7000 copies on the internet.

The book is about a “forbidden love affair between a teacher and a student” and is reportedly ripe with “graphic depictions of male homosexual scenes,” as well as violence.

Pornography is illegal in China, with a 1998 law condemning the sale of over 5000 copies of something like an erotic novel as a severe crime. This pre-internet law is what resulted in the 10.5-year sentence handed down by a Wuhu county court on October 31.

But many users of the Chinese social media platform Weibo are outraged at the harsh punishment, drawing attention to the case using the hashtag #Tianyi.

"Those found guilty of rape get less than 10 years in jail. This writer gets 10 years," one Weibo user pointed out.

Liu reportedly confessed to writing the novel after she was arrested last November, and told police she made around $30,000 USD from Occupy and other erotic novels.

Four other people will also serve time and be required to pay fines for their involvement in the book’s publishing.