“The number of words determines how much you pay; normally it costs thirty thousand RMB for twenty thousand words, including five or six pictures. We can negotiate after we read the work.”

Asia City, which publishes magazines across Asia in cities like Kuala Lumpur, Singapore, Hong Kong and Bangkok, has put its Shanghai title up for sale -- but it comes with a few strings attached.

A popular magazine which translated foreign literature into Chinese has ceased publication.  Some readers have written that much of their foreign literature knowledge and information was gleaned from reading the magazine: “There are tons of pop and fashion magazines, but there is no tiny space for a serious literature translation magazine. That’s so sad!”