Thank you for visiting! I’m Elizabeth Wong, Malaysian author and geologist. I grew up in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, and currently move between KL and London.
I am interested in stories of Malaysia and also of this large world we live in — deserts, seas and rocks. Read more about me, or see read several of my short stories for free, including this story that was published by Wasafiri Magazine about landownership and lotteries, The Landless (free to read with academic subscription, or if you subscribe to my Substack!), or this one about the car dystopia that is Kuala Lumpur, Baby+ With A Car Like Wolverine’s Claws, and this one about lost chances, All Lonely Roads Lead to Old Sembahnang.
My debut novel We Could Not See The Stars was first published by John Murray Press/ Hachette UK. Here’s an interview by Emily Ding of Movable Worlds on the fishing village I had visited for research, and how long it took me to write it (spoiler: ten+ years). Also, if you have enjoyed the novel, please consider leaving a review in Goodreads or Amazon. Reviews really help!
I’ve also started recording my process of writing (or not writing) my second novel on my Substack Novel Thoughts newsletter. I am also sporadically on Facebook | IG | Goodreads. Follow me for updates!
Latest Updates (August 2026)
Still working on the second novel!
In the meantime, if you want to read my short story The Landless, which is a spinoff from the novel, please do subscribe to my Substack, Novel Thoughts, to read for free. Link is in the welcome email.
We Could Not See The Stars is now available as a new ebook edition for readers! Follow links below to order your copy.
Subscribe to Novel Thoughts newsletter
(and get a link to read The Landless for free)
Set in an alternate Malaysia, We Could Not See The Stars follows Han leaving his village, across the Peninsula, to find the truth of where his mother came from — into the forest of Suriyang, so cursed that those who enter return without their memories. A literary speculative novel for readers of Piranesi, The Memory Police and Ocean Vuong.
Fantastical elements and dreamlike sequences that elevate it above the ordinary… A tale of loss, memory, and remembering, this literary speculative fiction surprised me at every turn. — Elaine Lau, Lit Books
We Could Not See The Stars is now available to buy from:
If you are not ready to get a copy, add to Goodreads.
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