Deolinda do Carmo Salvado da Conceição

was born in Macau, 1914 and passed away in 1957 at Hong Kong's St. Paul's Hospital at the age of 43.
She was  the fourth of eight brothers, daughter of António Manuel Salvado and Áurea Salvado.
Deolinda finished high school with distinction and studied English in Hong Kong.

She married Luís Alves in Canton in 1932 at the age of 18.
During the Pacific War, she was headmistress of the Portuguese School of the Refugees in Hong Kong, wrote and translated telegraphic news service from English to Portuguese for the daily newspaper "A Voz de Macau" (the voice of Macau).

Still during this perilous period she left for Shanghai where she lived for some time with her first husband Luís Alves and their children José (Joe) and Rui.

After being released from a Japanese concentration camp, she came to Macau with her two sons and joins the staff of "Notícias de Macau" (Macau News).
At the same time she teaches English and Shorthand at the Macau Commercial School.

In 1948 she marries her newspaper colleague António Conceição.
Of the abundant production at the "Notícias de Macau" there are fashion articles, literary and artistic reviews, editorials, chronicles and short novels.

In 1951 she gives birth to her third son António.

In 1956 she visits Portugal for the first time with her husband and younger son. Her two elder sons had already left for Portugal and Brasil.
That same year, Francisco Franco, a Portuguese publishing house published her only book, "Cheong Sam - A Cabaia" at the time that an incurable disease is diagnosed.

The book came to receive the most enthusiastic literary reviews in Portugal, namely by the top critic of the time, João Gaspar Simões.

Deolinda bravely spends her remaining time trying to visit as much of Portugal as possible.

She returns to Macau in 1957 with her husband and youngest son and is immediately hospitalised in Hong Kong where she passes away.

Her only book is re-edited in 1979 by the Macau Government, through the efforts of her younger son.
In the Commemoration of the 30th. anniversary of her demise, in 1987, the Macau Cultural Institute launches a second edition of her book, while a photo biography exhibition and book is launched for the first time. A third edition would follow soon.

Scholars from Chinese Universities study her work, while papers are published in the United States about her work and a Chinese translation of her book is launched by the Macau Cultural Institute.

In 2002 Gavea-Brown publishes part of her book based on a compilation of Macau writers translated into English by Professor David Brookshaw. The book is titled "Visions of China - Stories from Macau".