A biomolecule-assisted mild solvothermal process has been successfully developed to synthesize the SnS microflowers with nanoplates, in which L-cysteine was used as the sulfur source and complexing agent. The phase structure, morphology, composition and optical properties of the as-prepared product were characterized by XRD, FE-SEM, TEM (HRTEM), SAED, XPS, TGA and UV-vis spectrum. Results demonstrated that the as-synthesized product is comprised of microflowers with nanoplates, and the nanoplates are 50 nm in average thickness. And a possible mechanism for the growth of the SnS microflowers with nanoplates was put forward and briefly discussed. The proposed solvothermal method using L-cysteine as the sulfur source and complexing agent is very promising for the low cost and large-scale synthesis of other tin chalcogenide compounds. (C) 2011 The Society of Powder Technology Japan. Published by Elsevier B.V. and The Society of Powder Technology Japan. All rights reserved.