PANEL | Inventing Worlds: Fantasy Across Cultures

Speaker: Soyoung Park, Catarina Lilliehöök, and Noletta Chiu

Moderator: Henrik Hoeg

Date: March 7, Sat

Time: 4:30pm - 5:45pm

Venue: Fringe Club - Fringe Underground

Address: 2 Lower Albert Rd, Central

Price: HKD228

Language: English

Format: Panel

Description:
Fantasy is often seen as escape, but for many writers, it is a way of making sense of power, fear, and possibility. In this panel, Soyoung Park, Catarina Lilliehöök, and Noletta Chiu discuss how they build imaginative worlds that reflect real emotional and social stakes. Drawing on influences ranging from Korean speculative fiction and folklore to epic and myth-inspired fantasy, the authors explore how culture shapes world-building, why young protagonists matter, and how fantasy can offer tools for resistance, resilience, and hope. From invented realms to complex moral choices, this conversation invites readers into the craft behind stories that entertain while asking urgent questions about agency, courage, and belonging, in imagined worlds, and in our own.

About the Speaker:

Soyoung Park

Soyoung Park is a New York Times bestselling author from Korea. Her debut novel, Snowglobe, is being published in 13 languages worldwide. With a background in media studies, she has long been fascinated by how the media shapes our values, which inspired Snowglobe and its vision of where we might be headed in the digital age. She listens to K-pop or plays her favorite American sitcoms in the background while writing.

Catarina Lilliehöök

Catarina Lilliehöök is a Swedish author. After her debut book, Blonde Hair, Blue Eyes Looking at China, written in Chinese, which brought her attention in China, followed by Mei Wenti – Om Livet i Dagens Kina, a big seller in Sweden, she has now published her first book of fiction. After living in China and Hong Kong for over two decades, she wanted to blend her Nordic background with Asia in her fantasy novel, The Spirit Dragon’s Keeper. This is the first book in the fantasy series, The Polar Saga.

Noletta Chiu

Noletta Chiu graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in Film Production, making the Dean’s List, from Southern Illinois University. She has entered the licensing industry for over 30 years. She is currently the Executive Director of Medialink Group Limited. In her current role, she provides strategic advice and manages licensing for well-known brands, such as The Little Prince, Sesame Street, Garfield, Popeye, and Emoji, along with popular Japanese brands like Jujutsu Kaisen and Gundam. Ms. Noletta Chiu founded the Little Prince Foundation in Hong Kong in 2023, where she serves as Chairman.

Don’t miss our special offer: Buy 3, Get 1 Complimentary!

Purchase 3 tickets to any events under HKILF 2026 and claim a complimentary seat at one of these exciting talks at Central Library:

•⁠ 3rd March (Tue): On Muscle: The Stuff that Moves Us and Why It Matters (7:00-8:30pm)

⁠•⁠ 4th March (Wed): I Deliver Parcels in Beijing (7:00-8:30pm)

•⁠ ⁠5th March (Thu): Amitav Ghosh: Ghost-Eye (7:00-8:30pm)

To redeem your complimentary seat, email us at [email protected] with:

•⁠ ⁠Your 3 ticket order numbers

•⁠ ⁠The event you’d like to attend

•⁠ ⁠Subject line: Buy 3, Get 1 Complimentary!

Hurry! Offer valid until ticket lasts

ABOUT HKILF

The Hong Kong International Literary Festival (HKILF) inspires the joy of reading by bringing the world’s writers and stories to Hong Kong’s diverse communities. A dynamic year-round programme and an annual festival offer dialogue, entertainment and perspective, while the Young Readers Festival (YRF) motivates students to engage with all aspects of the written word, improving communication skills, while nurturing the art of writing and storytelling.

The annual festival features established and emerging writers from around the world, alongside local literary talents, in a programme that includes panel discussions, book talks, readings, workshops, walks, school programmes, performances, and more.

We are a registered charity non-profit organisation dedicated to bringing the best in the literary arts to Hong Kong. To find more, please visit our official website: https://www.festival.org.hk.

Please note that:

*We are unable to process refunds, please consider your ticket purchase a donation to the festival.

*Photos and videos of participants may be taken during the activities,which may be used by the organiser and the major sponsor for educational and promotional purposes in any way deemed appropriate, including disseminationthrough printed and online channels. Participation in the programme will constitute the participants’ consent to the above arrangement.

*The views and opinions expressed by the speakers do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of Hong Kong International Literary Festival. HKILF disclaims any responsibility for the accuracy or completeness of the information shared by the speakers.

*If the Black Rainstorm Warning or the Tropical Cyclone Signal No. 8 or above is in force 3 hours before the start time of an event, the event will be cancelled and participants will receive a refund. If the Red or Yellow Rainstorm Warning or the Tropical Cyclone Signal No. 3 is in effect, the event will be held as scheduled.

Know what’s Happening Next — before everyone else does.

Get App

Host or Publisher Hong Kong International Literary Festival