10 arrested for writing gay erotica in China as part of nationwide crackdown

Government officials in China are cracking down on erotic fiction writers and their online distribution networks, according to multiple news reports and social media posts, with dozens of writers reportedly arrested in one province and facing years in prison.

Many of the writers specialize in danmei, a style depicting gay romance and sex similar to Japanese manga.

In December, Chinese news site Shuiping Jiyuan reported police had detained more than 50 writers in Anhui province, west of Shanghai, since June. Sentences have ranged up to four and a half years in prison.

At least 10 people have been sentenced for posting gay-themed erotica online, according to open records from the Jixi County People’s Court in Anhui, the South China Morning Post reports.

A “special task force” carried out the arrests of the writers, many of whom published on the Taiwan-based adult fiction website Haitang Literature, Hong Kong’s Sing Tao Daily News and Taiwan’s Pacific Daily newspapers reported.

“One of my friends is an author, who was released on bail, called me from a new phone and told us to be prepared,” one writer posted to the gaming bulletin board NGA, cited by the AO3 [Archive of Our Own] fan-fiction site on Reddit.

“Later, others also reported that their friends had been affected,” the post recounted. “We compared details and confirmed that this is a nationwide crackdown. Moreover, the website’s [Chinese] distributor is indeed in trouble and can’t be reached.”

China’s state-controlled media haven’t reported on the arrests.