Tag: author

Eugenia Kim was born in 1952 in White Plains, New York, to parents who immigrated to the United States between World War II and the Korean War. Because her father had worked for the US military government in Korea, Eugenia’s family had certain privileges which allowed them to relocate to the United States during the interwar period. Eugenia was born while her father was working for the Voice of America, and soon afterwards the family moved to the DMV, where she spent most of her childhood in Tacoma Park. Both of her parents were deeply involved with the early Korean American community in Washington, D.C., her father a minister of the Methodist Church and her mother a local contact for fresh kimchi for Asian restaurants in the area. After college, Eugenia worked in hospitality, then in graphic design, before going back to school for an MFA in creative writing; today, she is the author of two published novels. Believing that creative expression is a powerful means of meditating on one’s identity, she encourages anyone who has ever struggled with the question “Who am I?” to turn to storytelling for an answer.

Marie Myung-Ok Lee is the author of the acclaimed novel The Evening Hero, a darkly comic story about a Korean American doctor in rural Minnesota facing retirement and the resurgence of long-buried secrets from his past. A professor of creative writing at Columbia, Marie grew up in the rural town of Hibbing, MN, in a community very much like the one in her novel, where her father was the area’s only anesthesiologist. In a lively conversation with Juliana and Catherine at her home on the Upper West Side, Marie shares stories about her parents (who were among the earliest Korean immigrants to the States, arriving in 1953) and their determination to raise their four children to be as assimilated as possible, not even revealing their Korean names. Juliana and Catherine hear about Marie’s short-lived days as a pre-med student at Brown, her post-grad years at Goldman Sachs while working on her first book (the YA novel Finding My Voice) and the origins of the influential Asian American Writers’ Workshop, which she co-founded with three friends at a downtown diner 31 years ago. They also discuss Marie’s lively social media profile and her now-famous advocacy for cannabis treatment to treat severe autism, inspired by her son, Jason.

In recent years we’ve seen a boom of Asian American actors in film and TV. But for decades, John Cho was practically the only one. He first came to fame in 2004 playing Harold in the Harold and Kumar films, a role that challenged many people’s ideas about what a leading man could look like. He’s built his career thoughtfully ever since, taking roles (Sulu in the Star Trek films, Spike Spiegel in Netflix’s Cowboy Bebop) that don’t play into negative stereotypes. The son of a minister, Cho was born in Seoul and moved to the States when he was six. He has just written his first book, Troublemaker, a middle grade novel about a 12-year-old Korean American boy’s experience of the LA riots. In a candid and open conversation, Cho recalls his own experience of 사이구(SaIGu), his memories of growing up in the church and the bottled up anger he’s often felt as an Asian American man. Juliana and Catherine also get to hear about Cho’s love of Little House on the Prairie and how books helped him through his peripatetic childhood.

Join us for our seventh edition of Writers Block with author Yoon Choi! You will be able to listen to Yoon speak more about her book and her personal story. Also get a chance to ask her your questions first-hand and get to know her in an exclusive Zoom room. Limited spots available.

Join us for our sixth edition of Writers Block with author Jung Yun! You will be able to listen to Jung speak more about her book and her personal story. Also get a chance to ask her your questions first-hand and get to know her in an exclusive Zoom room. Limited spots available.