My husband threw me a fabulous 60th birthday party last weekend, replete with 80’s costumes, music, and WHITE MULBERRY themes! We had white mulberry cocktails, a photo cake of my cover, and book-themed party favors filled with white mulberry tea, pink and green jellybeans, and more.
In Korea, turning 60 is important because it marks a return to one’s year of birth on the lunar calendar cycle. It was so fun to celebrate my rebirth with 80’s music and dancing with family, friends, and neighbors from every decade of my life! We had a blast!
I hope you will allow me to do a small photo dump to share it with you.
Book Production Progress
I enjoy listening to audiobooks and am thrilled that my book will have a narrator I helped to select. She reached out to me a few times these last few months to check on the Korean spelling and pronunciation of words, so I know she is eager and conscientious. I can’t tell you who she is yet, but I found her on social media and discovered she had already posted about auditioning for a part and it was WHITE MULBERRY! She mentioned she had just read an excerpt about songpyeon, the glutinous rice cakes mentioned in my book, and she got such a craving for them she went out and bought some for herself!
Meanwhile, my book is waiting to be printed so it can get into your hands on December 1st!
What People Are Saying About WHITE MULBERRY
Here are blurbs from Alka Joshi and Jimin Han that I have posted on social media recently. And I have more on the Editorial Reviews section of my latest Amazon page here. These authors have been so generous to give their time to read my novel and provide a positive quote. I would be grateful you if you read their books! They’re all so good!
News and Events
My bookstore launch event will be Wednesday, December 4, 2024 from 6:30-7:30 pm at {pages} a bookstore in Manhattan Beach. Thanks to my publicity team, I will be in conversation with the incredible President of the Women’s National Book Association, Natalie Obando. Everyone is welcome! Please register and support local bookstores by ordering your books from {pages} below. It will be ready for you at the event!
A good friend is also hosting a private kimjang party at her home in early December and has invited me to sign books! Kimjang is a Korean tradition of making and sharing kimchi, an essential party of every Korean meal, and a special bonding time. The activity is described in WHITE MULBERRY, and I can’t wait for you to read about it.
My library launch event will take place on Sunday, December 15, 2024 from 3-4 pm at Malaga Cove Library. I am thrilled to be in conversation with Velveth Schmitz, Mayor and City Council member of Rolling Hills Estates, my home town. Part of the proceeds of that event will go to support a local scholarship program. It is open to the public, and you can register and pre-order books through {pages} at the same link below.
Sign up for the event(s) HERE. Pre-order your copy of White Mulberry HERE.
I’m also scheduled for some upcoming podcasts. Make sure you check the Events page of my website to stay up-to-date.
- October 21 @ 2pm PT – Cantina Book Club, Interview with Megan McCarthy Blank
- November 7 @ 11:30am PT – The Writing Table, Interview with Kris Clink
- November 21 @ 1pm PT – Books and Boba, interview with Marvin
- December 4, @ 8pm PT – The Writers’ Forum radio show
What I’m reading
I’m writing and doing research for my sequel, RED SEAL, and really enjoying this book.
Manchurian Legacy: Memoirs of a Japanese Colonist
This is a coming-of-age memoir about a girl of a Japanese colonial family in Manchuria and how her family’s life unravels with the conclusion of WWII. According to one of the book’s blurbs, it provides a unique “autobiographical perspective on the complicated dynamics of self-concept in times of conflict and change where personal experience intersects with historical context.”
My second novel delves into life as a Korean living in Manchuria during this time, so this book has been invaluable in the vivid details, imagery, and emotions the author recollects of the period. I highly recommend it!
September to me usually means back to school, end of summer melancholy, and anticipation for the holidays. But this year, my party and upcoming book launch made it feel like a time of reaching big milestones! I would love to hear about milestones in your life!
Would you like to receive an early copy of WHITE MULBERRY? Email me and let me know about a milestone in your life and I’ll choose one lucky winner to receive one!
Would you like to read WHITE MULBERRY? You can now pre-order my book!
Thank you for following me on this journey and cheering me on. I always love hearing from you. Please comment here.
Oh Rosa! It has been such a joy and true pleasure to watch your writing and publishing journey, first up close and personal, and now from points hither and yon. I’m so happy for you and look forward with baited breath to reading “White Mulberry.”