Kevin Kwan

Kevin Kwan, born in Singapore in 1973 or 1974, is an American novelist celebrated for his satirical novels. He grew up in an established Chinese Singaporean family; his great-grandfather, Oh Sian Guan, was a founding director of Singapore’s oldest bank, the Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation. Kwan’s paternal grandfather, Sir Arthur Kwan Pah Chien M.D., was Singapore’s first Western-trained ophthalmologist and was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II for his philanthropic work. In 1984, at the age of 11, Kwan relocated with his parents to the United States, settling in Clear Lake, Texas. He attended Clear Lake High School, graduating at 16, and later studied at San Jacinto College and the University of Houston-Clear Lake, earning a BA in Media Studies. His educational journey continued with a BFA in Photography from Parsons School of Design after moving to Manhattan.

Before his career as a novelist, Kwan worked at Interview Magazine and Martha Stewart Living, and for Tibor Kalman’s design firm M&Co. In 2000, he established his own creative studio, counting Ted.com, the Museum of Modern Art, and The New York Times among his clients. Kwan’s writing career began with editing ‘I Was Cuba’ in 2007 and co-authoring ‘Luck: The Essential Guide’ in 2008. The genesis of his most notable work, ‘Crazy Rich Asians,’ came in 2009 while he was caring for his ailing father. Inspired by reminiscing about his childhood in Singapore, he penned the novel, which was published in 2013 and became a global bestseller. The book was adapted into a highly successful film in 2018, for which Kwan served as an executive producer and sold the film rights for a nominal fee of $1, ensuring creative control.

Following the success of ‘Crazy Rich Asians,’ Kwan released the sequels, ‘China Rich Girlfriend’ in 2015 and ‘Rich People Problems’ in 2017, completing the ‘Crazy Rich’ trilogy. In 2018, the trilogy notably held the top three positions on The New York Times bestseller list. His novel ‘Sex and Vanity’ was published in June 2020 and subsequently acquired for film adaptation by Sony Pictures. In 2024, Kwan continued his literary output with ‘Lies and Weddings.’ His contributions to literature have been widely recognized, including being named one of Hollywood’s Most Powerful Authors by The Hollywood Reporter in 2014, and being included in Time magazine’s list of 100 most influential people in 2018, the same year he was inducted into The Asian Hall of Fame.