Karen Ma was born in China, raised in Hong Kong and Japan, and educated in the U.S. She holds a M.A in Chinese Literature from the University of Washington (Seattle, U.S.) and is fluent in English, Mandarin Chinese and Japanese. Formerly a news reporter for Kyodo News and NHK Radio Japan, she has also written for The International Herald Tribune, New York News Day, The Japan Times, Kyoto Journal, South China Morning Post and the Delhi-based Mint. She is also the author of the non-fiction book, The Modern Madame Butterfly: Fantasy and Reality of Japanese Cross-cultural Relationships (1996 Charles E. Tuttle) She currently teaches Mandarin Chinese at an international school in New Delhi, India. She lives with her husband and their two children.