Dehumanization and How to Heal - Asian Women Writers Panel

For anyone who missed it, here's the recording of the Asian women writers panel hosted by International Women's Writing Guild.

The panelists had so many brilliant, heart-breaking and inspiring things to say, here is just a small sample:

Dr. Ada Cheng: "When you write yourself out of your own stories, there is no story to tell."

Sarah Lyu: "Dehumanization happens because we don't want to deal with complexity."

Usha Akella: "We couldn't wait around for the change we wanted to see. As poets and writers, it becomes inevitable that you're also an activist."

Michelle Liu: "The reason we remain complacent and silent is because of the privileges we have."

Watch here for more. Please share!

Story "How to Catch a Sun" in Wigleaf & Nominated for Pushcart!

My story “How to Catch a Sun” about life after an eclipse is now out with Wigleaf Journal. Bonus: it’s nominated for the Pushcart Prize! It follows one woman's life across six decades, a couple of wars and two continents - all in about 800 words.

When I first got the yes from Wigleaf, I was visiting a lighthouse in Provincetown, and started jumping up and down, then ran over to Norman Mailer’s grave to jump some more. Why was I jumping? I’ve been addicted to their perfect little bundles of fiction for years, and they’re all perfect because of Scott Garson' sharp editorial eye.

Double bonus: they’ve included a delirious postcard written on the plane on my way back from Nigeria.

Story "The Sudden" in Wigleaf's 2017 Longlist

Last night I had the writerly blues. After a whole day of being at a standstill with my novel, feeling like I didn’t know anything about anything, and couldn’t write a single sentence worth a damn - I ended up binge watching Forensic Files on Netflix because there’s nothing like disturbing true crime stories to make you feel even worse. Then this morning, woke up to surprising better-than-bacon news: my Icelandic short story “The Sudden” made it on this year’s Wigleaf Longlist!

When it was first published with apt Magazine, it was already a joy to be alongside such beautiful and brilliant work, plus Carissa and Randolph are two of the loveliest, most compassionate and dedicated writers/editors/justice-fighters you’ll ever meet. I’m lucky that my bout of creative pessimism was disproved so quickly (thank you Wigleaf!) but it’s a nice reminder to work through the darkness,  to withhold judgment while holding yourself to a high standard. And make your Netflix choices wisely.

Congratulations to all the Wigleaf Top 50 winners!

Story "The Lady Clock" in decomP Magazine

My story “The Lady Clock” is out with decomP Magazine! I wrote this after I went to pick up my orchid from a friend who kindly took care of it during the holidays, and discovered the difficulties of walking down the street with a potted plant. Now that orchid has a home with another dear friend and Granita the cat. Super excited because I’ve been a big fan of decomP for years, they’ve won Best of the Net and other awards and are just perpetually awesome. And how cool is this "time lapse" cover art for the February issue?

Read the story at decomP

The Geneva of Jorge Luis Borges

Is there a better place to read Borges than with the mountains, swans and blue waters of Geneva? Across the lake in Old Town is a gray-stoned building where he once lived, and down by the Rhone river his grave lies in the Cemetery of the Kings. What I love about Borges' prose is how he presents complex philosophies, uncompromising intellect within a fantastical narrative grounded in realism. Right now I'm re-reading "Funes the Memorious" about the man who knows the time like a clock but has no sense of time because he can't forget anything.

Anyone else have a favourite Borges story?

Travel Tip
To visit Borges' Geneva check out these links:
https://www.nytimes.com/books/99/08/22/bookend/bookend.html
http://southerncrossreview.org/64/borges-letter.htm
https://shrineodreams.wordpress.com/2012/02/25/the-tombstone-of-jorge-luis-borges/