FAQ

The terms dark romance or dark lesbian romance can mean different things to different people. In relation to my books, it means:

• dark. The relationship starts off with an unequal and abusive power dynamic. The love interest may act as the villain for much of the book. The heroine feels constrained by the love interest, and may in fact be subject to physical constraints on her freedom of movement. There may be themes of reluctance.
• lesbian. The main characters identify as women.
• romance. The plot is centered around the developing relationship of the two main characters. It has a happily ever after (HEA) or happy for now (HFN) ending, meaning that the two characters are together by the end of the series (or book, for a standalone novel).

All my books come with content warnings.

• Wicked and the Willing content warnings
• Save Yourself content warnings
• Captive in the Underworld content warnings
• Breathless content warnings

I give away a limited number of ebooks each year for various reasons, including for readers who live in situations where it’s unsafe for you to buy queer books. If this applies to you, feel free to email me. Alternatively, you could ask your local library to purchase a copy. Queer Liberation Library is a free online library open to US-based folk and they currently hold the ebook versions of Captive in the Underworld and The Wicked and the Willing.

She/her.

陈 Tan (Hokkien; sounds like ‘tahn’)
恋 Liàn (sounds like ‘lee-en’)
语 Yǔ (sounds like ‘you’)

Pronunciation guide: PronounceLianyuTan.mp3

I fit in the following author groups:

• lesbian
• cis woman
• Chinese
• Australian

You can also group me with higher-order classifications, like queer authors, sapphic authors, Asian authors, East Asian authors, South-East Asian authors, Oceanic authors, diasporic Asian authors, poc authors, etc.

I am Malaysian Chinese Australian, and I am Chinese on both sides of my family. I use Malaysian and Australian to indicate migration patterns, in the same way you would say “Asian American” to typically identify a person of Asian descent living in America. I am not multiracial. Please also note there is a difference between being Malay and being Malaysian. I am Malaysian, but I am not Malay.

Sorry, I don’t read unsolicited manuscripts. Try searching for a beta reader, a beta reading group (e.g. on reddit) or joining a local writing group.