Lauren Ho's world of crafting tales and perfecting punchlines

'I knew I wanted to combine my love for stand-up with my love for Malaysia, so that’s how the (new) book came about,' says Ho. Photo: The Star/Low Lay Phon

For Malaysian author Lauren Ho, who grew up reading book series like Fear Street and Sweet Valley, there was a decided lack of characters in the books who resembled her and her peers.

“These books tend to centre very Western perspectives, so I always thought it would be nice to see more young adult fiction with protagonists that look like us, that feature our stories,” says Ho in a recent interview.