Modern Renaissance Woman

Meet Charissa Ong Tse Ying: a bestselling author, the visionary behind Penwings Publishing, and creative tech aficionado who challenges you to judge a book by its cover

- Kiran Pillay

Charissa Ong's tale of success in publishing begins with a scenario that would be relatable to many. While working at an advertising agency, the mindless drag of routine work was getting her down. "It didn't bring me joy to create social media content every day, and although I did enjoy dabbling in front-end coding, I realised that I had a lot of words left in me that needed an outlet," she recalls.

In her free time, Ong staved off the boredom by penning poems to share on Instagram. "I posted once every two days or so, just to feel like I had ownership over something and a chance to craft authentic works."

After two years, Ong's followers began to request that she be published a thought that had never crossed the poet's mind. Upon investigation, the outlook seemed grim. "Eight years ago, it was practically unheard of for fictional books to get published [in Malaysia]. The market focused primarily on educational books, and the covers were all so ugly!" Ong laments, unwilling to make peace with the thought of relinquishing complete creative control to publishers with no imagination. The solution seemed obvious at this point-to self-publish.

"I didn't expect I would have to convince my family with a presentation deck on Google Slides. I had worked out a road map and told them I would use my own money to do this," Ong says. Having no experience in publishing, Ong's family advised her to consult with someone experienced, which led her to an educational book publisher. They advised her that she would be better off launching her own publishing house if she planned to publish more than one title.