'Do Not Marry Before Age 30' pitched at 'leftover' women

[Photo provided to China Daily]

Chen wrote the book in English before getting it translated to Chinese.

"There were so many questions that came up in the translation process ... So we had to make a lot of choices and on some occasions we made up some new words," she says.

Chinese columnist Li Xiaodiu says Chen's smiling photo on the book's cover is attractive and reminds the reader of strong women like the Chinese-American TV host and entrepreneur YueSai Kan.

Chen was deeply inspired by Kan from the time she was an intern on the TV host's team.

"Amidst such breakneck change (in China)...Chinese women are now faced with many other options," Kan says in the book's forward, adding that Do Not Marry Until Age 30 will help women figure out the options.

Chen's next book is due in the spring of 2017. The book will tackle a broader topic, one that concerns both men and women: how to find your dream career. Her unorthodox career path, from real estate to writing, is proof that finding the perfect job is not an easy task. According to Chen, what's important is identifying your passions and recognizing your greatest strengths.

"Because if we find all those things we can channel our greatest strengths and what we love to do and create value in the world that's unique to us," she says.

As deputy mayor of Los Angeles, Chen definitely had the platform required to enact big changes.

For example, a "cash for college" program was designed to narrow the intergenerational education gap in that city and give more people a chance at higher education. It eventually became a statewide program, signed into law by then-governor Arnold Schwarzenegger.

But her influence declined after she was no longer deputy mayor. Though she may no longer have the type of influence that helps young people gain access to colleges, Chen feels a different kind of power as a writer today.

Mei Jia contributed to this story.