There are people who are willing to work within the system, and people who don't want to work with the system at all.
Yiyun LiRegarding heroism, I grew up in a culture where you learn about heroes and heroines all the time. In a way, when you call someone a hero or heroine, it's the same as calling them a villain.
Yiyun LiTo write about a struggle amidst the struggling: one must hope that the muddling will end someday.
Yiyun LiSome people in China don't look at freedom of speech as an abstract ideal, but more as a means to an end.
Yiyun LiIn film, you have to present everything on the screen so it's the opposite of what I usually do with storytelling. It forced me to think about how people walk, where they sit at that moment. With Princess of Nebraska, it was just fun to watch because the movie was so far from the story. It was very much a different story.
Yiyun Li