Chiung Yao

Early life

Chen Che and her twin brother were born during the Second Sino-Japanese War in Chengdu, Sichuan, to parents fleeing Beiping (modern Beijing) which fell to Japanese troops in 1937. Both her father Chen Chi-ping (陳致平) and mother Yuan Xingshu (袁行恕) were highly educated. (Yuan Xingshu's cousins include Yuan Xiaoyuan, Yuan Jing and Yuan Xingpei.) In 1942, the family moved to Chen Chi-ping's hometown of Hengyang, Hunan to join Chen Che's grandfather Chen Moxi (陳墨西). In 1944, following the fall of Hengyang, the Chens survived an arduous journey to the provisional Chinese capital of Chongqing, during which they narrowly escaping death and rape several times.

In 1949, along with her family, she moved to Taiwan, where she attended the Affiliated Experimental Elementary School of University of Taipei (台北师范附小|) and Taipei Municipal Zhong Shan Girls High School (台北市立中山女子高级中学). At the age of 16, she published her first novel. During high school she had published over 200 articles. After graduation from high school and failure to enter college, she got married and became a housewife, and at the same time started her writing career. Her first novel, still often read today, is Chuangwai ("Outside the Window").

Chiung Yao's romance novels were very well received in Taiwan when they were first published, and by the 1990s she was also one of the best-selling authors on the mainland. Film adaptations in the 1970s often featured Brigitte Lin, Joan Lin, Charlie Chin and/or Chin Han, who were then collectively known as the "Two Lins and Two Chins".

However her romance novels and film adaptions have also been criticized for their melodramatic plotlines and extremely long-winded dialogues.

In December 2014, Yao sued the producers of the television series The Palace: The Lost Daughter, claiming that the show was plagiarized from her 1993 book Meihualao (Plum Blossom Scar).

Chiung Yao's readership and viewership are predominantly female, owing to her emphasis on the feelings of young women.

As lyricist

Chiung Yao has written Mandarin song lyrics for the following singers:

Lawsuit against Yu Zheng

On 15 April 2014, Chiung Yao released an open letter to China's State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television accusing television screenwriter and producer Yu Zheng of blatant plagiarism "unprecedented and beyond my endurance," seeking the immediate suspension of the broadcast of his TV series Palace 3: The Lost Daughter, which she alleged plagiarized from her 1992 novel Plum Blossom Scar (梅花烙). Yu denied the claim, saying he was a fan of Chiung Yao with no intention of angering her. On April 28, a team led by Wang Jun from Beijing-based Yingke Law Firm filed a plagiarism lawsuit against Yu.

On 5 December, Beijing Third Intermediate People's Court convened the case. Wang Hailin (汪海林), executive director of Chinese Television Series Screenwriter Association, testified as expert witness for Chiung Yao's camp. On December 12, 109 Chinese screenwriters published a joint statement supporting Chiung Yao's lawsuit against Yu Zheng. A day later, an additional 30 Chinese screenwriters made their support of Chiung Yao known.

On 25 December, the court ruled in Chiung Yao's favor, ordering 4 companies to stop distributing and broadcasting The Palace: The Lost Daughter, also demanding Yu Zheng to publicly apologize, and pay Chiung Yao ¥5 million (around $800,000). China Radio International called it a "landmark ruling".