Why I Don't Write About Gossip, Zombies, or Gossiping Zombies

Primary Source recently featured me as part of their Asian American author series, asking how young people can relate to my books (perhaps because mine aren't necessarily "commercial" at first glance) and the experience of growing up "between cultures." Maybe I can write about immigrant zombies?

"A story can change the direction of how you view something for the rest of your life," I said, along with a bunch of other stuff which they edited nicely:

February's Flood of Author Visits

Since I spent January teaching in California, I'm traveling here and there during an intense few weeks of author appearances which are usually spread out over January and February. I've been visiting the Max Warburg Courage Curriculum, Needham Free Library, Meadowbrook School in Weston, North Andover Middle School, a children's literature class at Boston College, Underwood School in Newton, and am heading to NYC at the end of this week for a meeting of the United States Board on Books for Young People.

I meet many wonderful educators, parents, writers, and students during winter author visit season, but one of my favorite encounters was last week's appearance at Boston International High School in Dorchester, Massachusetts. This small high school for students not yet proficient in English language hosts newcomers to the United States from more than 25 different countries, some with an interrupted or nonexistent education before arriving due to war or poverty.

You need company when you're growing up between cultures.

When I talked about my own experience of immigrating here and becoming a writer, faces lit up with empathy and understanding. I was a survivor of the life they were experiencing, my very existence sending the message that they, too, might endure a stressful coming of age between two worlds. Thanks, 826 Boston and the Foundation of Children's Books, for enabling this encouraging conversation about balancing the best of both worlds through the power of storytelling.

Bell Rings, Class Over, Memories Remain

You'll have to use your imagination to grasp how much I enjoyed this past month of teaching at Saint Mary's College of California. This wonderful article might shed some light on the privilege of discussing "Race, Culture, and Power in Children's Books" with 25 undergraduates on this beautiful campus nestled in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Or maybe this picture of my cute students will help:

Think of me walking into my parents' house at the end of a long day of preparation and teaching, calling out, "I'm hungry! What's to eat?" And every day, there was a delicious meal, cooked from scratch by Mom, and good conversation with both of my parents.

I stayed in this cozy cottage nearby, perfect for quiet study and reflection, stocked with unlimited firewood and fresh flowers:

Picture me hiking these hills every day (in January, friends -- I live in Boston, remember?):

Oh, and did I tell you MY VERY OWN SON took my class? Talk about Mommy finagling: (1) nest empties, (2) miss him and reading aloud to him, (3) son takes my class, (4) get to read picture books to him again. I'm good, aren't I? Or maybe it's that Someone is very good to me.

Take the Pledge: Join Me for a Net-Free Month This Summer

I'm feeling sucked dry by the internet again, my creative wells drained and shallow. Anyone want to join me for an experiment this summer?

This June 15 - July 15, 2012, we'll stay away from the internet and go old school: reading real books, writing longhand in journals, and napping in the sunshine.

Take the pledge to join me by commenting below.  You don't have to go cold turkey like me, but set a goal for some serious withdrawal (weekends are internet-free, evenings after 5, etc.). I'm looking for FOUR other writers/artists to join me with a full commitment, and after a month of internet-free life, we'll weigh in on the experiment.

Questions About Power in Stories and Storytelling

We're moving to the issue of power in my Jan Term class at Saint Mary's College of California, "Race, Culture, and Power in Children's Books." I thought my Fire Escape folk might be interested in a couple of lists I'm sharing with my students.

Questions to Ask about Power in a Story:

1. Who/what has the power to BE changed?
2. Who/what has the power to MAKE change?
3. Who/what has the power to PREVENT change?
4. Who/what GAINS power and how?
5. Who/what LOSES power and how?
6. What KIND of power does each player have? Where did they get it? Do they use it? Why or why not?
7. How is the child reader/listener empowered or disempowered by the story?

If I Want to Tell the Story of a "Less Powerful" Child ...

1. Why am I writing this story?
2. Could anyone else tell it better? Does that person have a voice I can seek to nurture or empower?
3. Have I held enough babies in that community?
4. Have I done my research?
5. Am I allowing that child/teen character to be whole and real?
6. What kind of power am I giving my fictional child/teen? Is it true to his/her context? Is it culturally appropriate or “western”?
7. Is there an outside “savior?” If so, who is it and why? How much power am I giving that “savior” over the child/teen? 
8. Am I reinforcing a “single story” about that child/teen? (Watch Chimamanda Adichie's brilliant TED Talk if you don't get this one.)

Anything to add?

Hey, We Need More Latino Books ... and More

Popping back on the Fire Escape to share a table we compiled in my month-long course on "Race, Culture, and Power in Children's Books" at Saint Mary's College of California. We'd love to hear your responses to and thoughts about this data. (Thanks, US Census and CCBC!)

Making Mistakes when Crossing Borders in Fiction

I was recently asked by Ed Spicer about common mistakes I've seen when authors cross borders to tell stories. The answer is somewhere in the middle of the interview, but you might appreciate the entire conversation:





NOTE (12/7): I'm heading off the Fire Escape for my winter hiatus, which includes a one-month stint teaching a course on "Race, Power, and Justice in Children's Books" at Saint Mary's College of California during January. I'll be back on the Fire Escape in February, friends! (With one exception -- I'm popping back once in January to review two excellent new picture books about adoption.)

Around the World in 80 Books

Travel the world from your sofa with this superb list of 80 books (.pdf file) covering every geographic region. The bibliography is curated by Kathleen T. Horning of the Cooperative Children's Book Center, and includes contemporary and historical books published here and in other countries between 2001 and 2011. K.T.'s goal is to "give readers here a glimpse not only of life in or the history of other parts of the world, but also of what children and teens elsewhere may be reading." (Full disclosure: My Bamboo People made the list.)

My NANOWRIMO Pep Talk

I was honored this November to serve as one of the pep talkers for the National Novel Writing Month Young Writers Program. Here's the start of my piece (read it in entirety at NANOWRIMOYP):

Dear Writers,

By now your hair needs a trim, your room's a mess, and your Facebook friends are worried you're dead or in a monastery. At this point in a story, voices in our heads whisper that we're wasting time.We should be doing something more valuable, right? Why are we spending hours alone in front of our computers? How does that help a hurting planet?

Don't listen. Storytelling is a powerful act. Stories have the mysterious power to widen hearts and change minds. The human psyche is never quite the same after receiving a story.

In some ways, novelists have even more storytelling power than the best Hollywood directors. Unlike Steven Spielberg or Peter Jackson, we share the direction of our story with our readers' imaginations. Together, an author and a reader cast the characters, create setting, and decide on pacing. Because written and oral stories require more audience participation from story consumers, I think they embed more deeply into the psyche.

We novelists also get access to all five human senses. Moviemakers can provide a top-notch experience of sight and sound, but that's as far as they go. Since our co-director, the imagination, resides within the reader's mind, we also can engage the senses of taste, smell, and touch.

As you're writing, here are three tips to empower your co-director ...

"My Characters are Better Versions of Me," I Said

The lovely Isha Roy of Global India Newswire interviewed me recently while I was in D.C. attending the South Asian Literary and Theater Festival. I talked about the benefits of growing up between cultures, what Americans think of India these days, my gratitude for other South Asian American writers, and a bunch of other stuff, including my forthcoming projects.