Author, educator, literary traveller Catherine Khoo, has been writing and publishing since 1988. She shattered the traditional Japanese male enclave in 1995 when she became the only woman editor-in-chief of two Japan-based international magazines published in Singapore. She created Singapore’s very own Young Author Scheme in 2003, mentoring under-18s to pen their first novel. In 2020, the Asia Young Author Award was born, with Malaysia and the Philippines joining the ranks of young writing talent with published works.
Catherine is author of the Asia’s Lost Legends series: eight delightful picture books which explore love, patience, forgiveness and tenacity through the eyes of children. She’s now working on a historical family saga which allows her to explore her roots…..and tracing it all the way back to the Khoo village in Xiamen! Exploring her love for all things ancient, she headed to Adelaide to pursue a Masters of Curatorial and Museum Studies. With this under her belt in 2025, Catherine is now creating a historical fiction series, based on three siblings’ adventures along the ancient Silk Route.
Catherine founded the Catherine Khoo Writing Foundation in 2010, which seeks to inculcate the values of camaraderie and empathy in writing projects that have meaning and social value.
Blending her love for history with a lifelong passion for writing and publishing, Catherine now volunteers as Publications Director of Genealogy Society Singapore and contributes her insights as a member of the NLB’s Library Consultative Panel.