Guo Jingming facts for kids

Guo Jingming (Chinese: 郭敬明; pinyin: Guō Jìngmíng), born on June 6, 1983, is a famous Chinese writer, director, and businessman. He is also known as Edward Guo.

When he was in high school, Guo started writing articles online. He used the pen name "Disiwei," which means "Fourth Dimension." This led to his nickname, "Xiao Si," or "Little Four." He became well-known after winning first prize in the New Concept Writing Competition two years in a row, in 2001 and 2002.

His first novel, On the Edge of Love and Pain, came out in 2002. Since then, he has written many popular books. Some of his bestsellers include Ice Fantasy (2003), Rush to the Dead Summer (2006), Cry Me a Sad River (2007), and the Tiny Times series (2008–2012).

Guo Jingming is also a successful businessman. In 2004, he started Island Studio and published Island magazine. He later founded other companies, CASTOR in 2006 and Zui Co., Ltd. in 2010. These companies were very important in China's young adult book market. They joined together in 2019. In 2008, Guo also became the Literary Director at EE-Media.

Since the 2010s, Guo has focused more on making movies and TV shows. He has directed works like Tiny Times (2013–2015), L.O.R.D (2016–2020), The Yin-Yang Master (2020-2021), and My Journey to You (2023).

Early Life and Writing Beginnings

Guo Jingming was born in Zigong, a city in the Sichuan province of China. His father, Cheng Jianwei, worked as an engineer. His mother, Zou Huilan, was a bank clerk.

From a young age, Guo loved to read. His mother bought him many books and helped him understand them. He had an amazing memory and could remember stories after hearing them just once. His mother always encouraged his love for reading.

Guo's writing talent started to show when he was in middle school. He read a lot of Chinese literature and Wuxia fiction, especially stories by Jin Yong and Gu Long. This reading inspired him to start writing his own stories. He began sending his work to magazines.

In 1997, he published his first poem, "Loneliness," in a national magazine called Rensheng Shiliuqi. This poem shared his feelings of sadness during his school years. He earned a small payment for it.

How Guo Jingming Started His Career

Guo's mother encouraged him to join the New Concept Writing Competition. This was a national writing contest sponsored by Mengya magazine. He hoped to win because it used to offer guaranteed university admission.

To prepare, he studied past winning entries to understand what the judges liked. He sent in seven essays, each about 5,000 words long. His stories, "Script" and "Our Last Song on Campus," won first prize in both the 2001 and 2002 competitions.

However, by the time Guo won, the guaranteed university admission was no longer offered. His test scores for university were not very high. He did not get into his dream school, Xiamen University. Instead, he went to Shanghai University to study TV and film production, but he later left the university.

After his first novel, On the Edge of Love and Pain (2002), Guo found great success with his fantasy novel Ice Fantasy (2003). He wrote this book during his college summer break. Since then, he has become one of China's most successful writers.

Moving from his small hometown to Shanghai, Guo felt excited by the big city. He decided to stay there, relying on the fame he gained from the writing contest. In 2003, he started a writing studio called "Island" with five friends. This was the beginning of his successful career as a writer and businessman in the young adult literature market. In 2006, at just 23 years old, Guo became the youngest member of the China Writers Association.

Notable Books by Guo Jingming

Guo Jingming has written many popular books. Here are some of his most famous works:

Ice Fantasy

The Ice Fantasy (幻城) was first published in Mengya magazine and then as a book in 2003. It is a fantasy story about two princely brothers.

Tiny Times

This is a series of three books: 1.0, 2.0, and 3.0. They follow a group of young girls as they grow up in Shanghai. The books explore their friendships, relationships, and work lives.

Legend of Ravaging Dynasties

This book series was written to celebrate Guo's 10 years of writing.

Rush to the Dead Summer

This is a romance novel that tells the story of several young people.

Movies and TV Shows Directed by Guo Jingming

Guo Jingming has also directed many films and TV series:

• Tiny Times (2013)
• Tiny Times 2 (2013)
• Tiny Times 3 (2014)
• Tiny Times 4 (2015)
• Ice Fantasy (2016)
• YES! MR FASHION (2016)
• L.O.R.D: Legend of Ravaging Dynasties (2016)
• Rush to the Dead Summer (2017)
• Cry Me a Sad River (2018)
• L.O.R.D: Legend of Ravaging Dynasties 2 (2020)
• The Yin-Yang Master: Dream of Eternity (2020)

See also

In Spanish: Guo Jing-ming para niños