--- description: Find out how R.F. Kuang is shaping the future and defining the next generation of leadership. title: 2023 TIME100 Next: R.F. Kuang image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt921cd444446ca94e/698a40024ee26240d431bb33/time100-next-rf-kuang-2023.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 --- Sep 13, 2023 # R.F. Kuang by Constance Wu  R.F. Kuang R.F. KuangCaroline Tompkins When I began reading R.F. Kuang’s [2023 novel ](https://time.com/6274960/best-books-may-2023/ "undefined")[_Yellowface_](https://time.com/6274960/best-books-may-2023/ "undefined")_,_ I could not put it down. It was thrilling to me to have an Asian American writer write something that is so prescient and engaged with issues such as cultural appropriation, anti-wokeness, cancel culture, and the internet mob, questioning authority and gatekeeping. It’s the kind of story that you can’t stop talking about, which is the kind of television I want to watch—engrossing stories that spark conversation. Like any great artist, she’s not preoccupied with external perception. There is a wildness and freedom to her work that is extraordinary. Her characters are complex and human; nothing feels contrived. --- ### More from TIME --- _Wu is an actor and the author of_ Making a Scene ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"Article","@id":"https://time.com/collections/time100-next-2023/6308472/r-f-kuang/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/collections/time100-next-2023/6308472/r-f-kuang/"},"headline":"R.F. Kuang","datePublished":"2023-09-13T11:00:23.000Z","dateModified":"2026-03-03T00:18:57.922Z","description":"","url":"https://time.com/collections/time100-next-2023/6308472/r-f-kuang/","keywords":["TIME 100 Next","sponsorshipblock","time100nextartists23"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt921cd444446ca94e/698a40024ee26240d431bb33/time100-next-rf-kuang-2023.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"TIME Staff","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/time-staff/"}],"creator":"TIME Staff","articleSection":"","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt921cd444446ca94e/698a40024ee26240d431bb33/time100-next-rf-kuang-2023.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/collections/time100-next-2023/6308472/r-f-kuang/","name":"R.F. Kuang"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"See Everyone on the TIME100 Next List","description":"TIME100 Next, our annual franchise recognizing the rising leaders in health, climate, business, sports, the arts and more.","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/QxIk3IJu/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2023-09-13T11:00:00.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/QxIk3IJu.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/collections/time100-next-2023/6308472/r-f-kuang/","duration":"PT1M58S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/collections/time100-next-2023/6308472/r-f-kuang/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}}] ```