Kevin Nyiau also known as Nyiau Kean Wei, Yang Jian Wei () is a

Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...

n author born in

Sungai Petani Sungai Petani ( abbr. Sg. Petani or SP; Jawi: سوڠاي ڤتاني) is a city in Kuala Muda District, Kedah, Malaysia. Sungai Petani is Kedah's largest city and is located about 55 km south of Alor Setar, the capital of Kedah, and 33&nb ...

in 1986.

Life

Nyiau is a

Malaysian Chinese Malaysian Chinese (; Malay: ''Orang Cina Malaysia''), alternatively Chinese Malaysians, are Malaysian citizens of Han Chinese descent. They form the second largest ethnic group after the Malay majority constituting 22.4% of the Malaysian po ...

who spent his childhood in Sungai Petani,

Kedah Kedah (), also known by its honorific Darul Aman (Islam), Aman and historically as Queda, is a States and federal territories of Malaysia, state of Malaysia, located in the northwestern part of Peninsular Malaysia. The state covers a total area ...

state in Northern Malaysia. He received some national fame as a 17 year-old who contacted the Malaysian Ministry of Defence after not being drafted for mandatory military service on a lottery selection system. Unlike others who generally consider it lucky to avoid, Nyiau appealed to the

National Service Training Program The National Service Training Program (NSTP) is a civic education and defense preparedness program students instituted by the Government of the Philippines on 23 July 2001 by virtue of Republic Act 9163, otherwise known as the "National Service Trai ...

to enlist him anyway. He and two other teens received attention for actually volunteering to participate. Nyiau later moved to

Kuala Lumpur , anthem = '' Maju dan Sejahtera'' , image_map = , map_caption = , pushpin_map = Malaysia#Southeast Asia#Asia , pushpin_map_caption = , coordinates = , su ...

and began a career in the banking industry. Unsatisfied with the direction of his life, he decided to alter his projected path and spent a year abroad in

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

and

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

through the working holiday visa program, inspiring his first book ''Hope is at the Turning Point''. Kevin Nyiau later moved to

Phnom Penh Phnom Penh (; km, ភ្នំពេញ, ) is the capital and most populous city of Cambodia. It has been the national capital since the French protectorate of Cambodia and has grown to become the nation's primate city and its economic, indus ...

Cambodia Cambodia (; also Kampuchea ; km, កម្ពុជា, UNGEGN: ), officially the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochinese Peninsula in Southeast Asia, spanning an area of , bordered by Thailand t ...

where he continues to write and blog about his observations on life in different environments.

Career

Nyiau has had a diverse career, working in the entertainment industry as an actor, a model, a singer and as a contestant on Malaysian national talent competitions. He spent two years in the banking industry before leaving for New Zealand and Australia where he did everything from picking zucchinis, coordinating Japanese animation expos, to collecting marine mammal and flora data in the deep sea. His first book, ''Hope is at The Turning Point (希望在转角)'', was published in 2016 by 三三出版社 press.三三出版社
/ref> It is in part, a

travel journal The genre of travel literature encompasses outdoor literature, guide books, nature writing, and travel memoirs. One early travel memoirist in Western literature was Pausanias, a Greek geographer of the 2nd century CE. In the early modern period ...

, in part a subtle struggle to change the course of life with undertones of refusing to accept thoughts of suicide that begin the chronicle. At this point in time, ''Hope is at the Turning Point'' is only available in Chinese. Nyiau has spoken at book events in Malaysia and produced two recordings included with the book titled 无所谓 and I'm Afraid. He also partnered with Befrienders Worldwide Penang, an emotional support network for people experiencing feelings of distress or despair, including those which may lead to suicide, to feature their Suicide Prevention Campaign at the end of his book.

Works

* '' Hope is at the Turning Point (希望在转角)'' (2016)

References

External links

Hope is at the Turning Point , 《希望在转角》book

Author interview

"无所谓"
by Kevin Nyiau, O.P. Music toxin Productions
"I'm Afraid"
by Kevin Nyiau, O.P. Music toxin Productions
Befrienders Penang
{{DEFAULTSORT:Nyiau, Kevin Living people Malaysian writers Malaysian people of Chinese descent People from Kedah Year of birth missing (living people)