Welcome March! Happy Lunar New Year and I hope you had a wonderful Valentine’s Day! Below are more updates to my publication journey and a few fun pictures. Thank you for following along!

Editing Progress

I just finished the second round of edits for WHITE MULBERRY and it is going smoothly. The overview notes from my editor were only three single-spaced pages this time instead of ten! That doesn’t include the detailed comments embedded in the manuscript itself, which were many.

My novel is getting tighter and stronger, and I’m excited about the revisions. The manuscript has more character agency, tension, inner conflict, and stakes. I dug even deeper to bring historical events to life, develop richer connections between characters, and make the conclusion more suspenseful and impactful. When my husband, Mark, read this last version, he cried. He was moved, and I hope you are too when you read it!

I am now in my third pass of edits, or line-editing. My editor gave me one page of notes and I’m focusing on fine-tuning sentences, grammar and flow. My editor, Tiffany Yates Martin, is amazing and I’m holding up her book below. As I mentioned in last month’s newsletter, I refer to it often and I highly recommend it! A writer said revising is like a body strengthening program at the gym. The more you do it, the stronger you get. It feels like I’m training for a mini-MFA in creative writing. It’s hard, but I’m seeing the results. My next deadline is mid-March and then my manuscript will go to copyediting. Stay tuned!

Joey keeps me company under my desk and his workout is chewing my slippers!

 

Interviews & Podcasts

I was fortunate to be interviewed by Jennie Nash, the founder of Author Accelerator, and the interview will be featured this month in her Memoir Certification class. She was my first writing instructor fifteen years ago, my former book coach, and is a dear friend. During the interview, Jennie asked me questions about turning my family memoir into fiction, my publication journey, and not giving up. Check out my interview here!

I also just found out that WHITE MULBERRY was featured in a podcast! The Books & Boba podcast previews recently-announced deals of books written by Asian American authors, so this episode was recorded back in July 2023 when my deal first got announced in Publisher’s Weekly and Publisher’s Marketplace. It was fascinating to hear my book talked about by others. I want to reach out to Books & Boba to see if I could be on their podcast as a guest speaker. The podcaster said my book was something she would definitely want to read! Listen here to the podcast segment. I’m the first book they discuss!


Events

This month, I will be in conversation with Alka Joshi, the bestselling author of The Henna Artist, as part of the PV Reads Community Read event hosted by the Palos Verdes Library District. I’m so honored to be a trustee of this spectacular library, a fellow author, and a part of this rich community celebration. I love Alka’s book, and it reminds me a lot of WHITE MULBERRY because it’s the untold story of a strong female heroine from a different time and place who readers root for. Please come on March 15th at 6 pm if you’re in the area!

My last writing event at AWP in Kansas City was enjoyable and stimulating. I participated in a panel called “Stop Being So Dramatic” where I read an excerpt of my book and talked about techniques to deal with traumatic events in story. It was nerve-racking, but the audience was so supportive and engaging. I reunited with some writing friends and met some amazing new ones! They are kind, talented and accomplished authors, and I am lucky to call them friends. I loved the Kansas City Central Library too where a whole street was covered in famous books!

What I’m Reading

This part of my newsletter is dedicated to books that have inspired me to become a writer.

On Gold Mountain by Lisa See is the true story of the author’s Chinese American family in Los Angeles spanning one-hundred years. It reads like a novel but is rich in research and family anecdotes. It was first published in 1995, before See’s other popular novels, and was the first book that inspired me to write a family memoir of my own. I had never read a memoir of an Asian American family before, and it gave me the courage to try to write one myself. I met the author at a book signing not long after it was published, and more recently a few years ago when I had the opportunity to interview her. It was thrilling to meet my writing idol in person. She was so warm and supportive!

Picture of the Day

I appreciate you following me on this journey and cheering me on. I always love hearing from you. Please leave a comment below if you have time.

Happy Year of the Dragon!