In recent months I’ve had the opportunity to connect with Asian-Canadian writers. It’s been a great experience to meet these writers and learn about their work.

One event where this happened was “In Winter, A Poem,” held January 10. I was grateful to be one of 10 writers who read at the afternoon gathering. I was struck by the diversity of writing—fiction, non-fiction, poetry, memoir, and experimental writing—and the resonance of their words. Many thanks to Wiley Ho, author of the just-published The Astronaut Children of Dunbar Street, and Iris Chen (who took the photo with this post) for making it possible for me to read from Journeys to the Bandstand at the event.

Another event was LunarFest. As part of the festival celebrating Lunar New Year, I read from my book on February 16 at Ocean Artworks on Granville Island. The date was meaningful because it was almost exactly two years since Journeys to the Bandstand was published on February 14, 2024. Thank you to Allan Cho, Executive Director of Asian-Canadian Writers’ Workshop, and Iris Chen for enabling me to participate. Kudos also to Cynda Yeasting for the great excerpt from her memoir For Michael, Love Cynda that she read at LunarFest.