Two weeks ago, my debut novel, Four Treasures of the Sky, officially came out (and is available at a local bookstore near you!). The book is about a 13-year-old Chinese girl named Daiyu who is kidnapped one day from a fish market in Zhifu and shipped across the ocean to a brothel in San Francisco. We follow Daiyu’s travels as she escapes from the brothel and journeys through the unforgiving landscape of Idaho with one goal in mind: to make her way back home. With her burgeoning expertise in Chinese calligraphy and a ghostly counterpart named Lin Daiyu, Daiyu must fight to survive in a world that threatens to destroy her, all while seeking the answer to that age-old question: who am I?
The book is historical fiction, set in the 1880s amidst the backdrop of the Chinese Exclusion Act. This is, unfortunately, a period of history unknown by many–we were simply never taught about the widespread anti-Chinese attitudes, legislation, and attacks during our K-12 education. Nor were we taught the large contribution early Chinese immigrants made in the building and growth of this country.
I finished writing Four Treasures as the pandemic took over the world and anti-Asian attacks shot upwards. “It feels timely,” some folks have said to me about the book. “Now, more than ever…” others have said. It is a sad and unfortunate reality for me: yes, this book is timely. But I wish it weren’t. I wish it could stay historical fiction.
Last March, a gunman shot up a massage parlor in Atlanta, killing the people inside–six of whom were Asian women. In response to the attacks, a group of Austin AAPI creatives–PJ Raval, Hanna Huang, Lilli Hime, Andrew Lee, and myself–formed. We spent countless meetings asking each other: What can we do? How can we respond? How do we use our voices and storytelling abilities for good?
Stories Within is the result of those efforts. Along with Lilli Hime, I helped draft a loose script and prompts for the folks interviewed as well as messaging to help shape the short documentary film that you see today. While we fully believed in the power of the #StopAsianHate movement, we also wanted to create something that would encourage Asian and Asian diaspora communities to start sharing their stories, in their own words. Rather than imploring others to stop hating us, we sought to build strength from within, with the ultimate goal of raising awareness and breaking down the harmful monolithic myths imposed upon our communities.
From the beginning, our belief has been in the power of storytelling. We are directors, editors, producers, and writers, after all. I hope that today, you will take some time to watch, listen to, or read a story that calls out to you. And, I hope you find the strength to share your story, too.
Stories Within is a mini-documentary series that aims to not only broadcast the diversity and strength of the Asian American & Pacific Islander population (AA/PI) in Texas, but also respond to rising acts of violence through community and empowered storytelling. Featuring a diverse collective of stories from the AA/PI experience, Stories Within showcases 14 individuals who speak to their younger selves about the acts of racism and discrimination they will face as well as sharing messages of empowerment to bring with them to the present. The film shatters the notion of homogenous experiences and backgrounds across the AA/PI diaspora and highlights the indelible mark that they have made not just on the sociocultural fabric of the United States, but also of Texas specifically.
Stories Within recently won Best Short Documentary at DisOrient Asian American Film Festival and was a top three finalist (and grant recipient) in the inaugural Gold Futures Challenge. Currently on a festival run, the film has been screened at the Cleveland International Film Festival and will be screened at the inaugural Salida Film Festival.
You can view Stories Within in May at the following Central Texas events:
May 22: Screening, panel, & storytelling workshop at ArtPace, San Antonio (co-presented with AAPI for Justice in San Antonio) - 1pm
May 26: Screening and panel at Asian American Resource Center, Austin – 6:30pm
May 28: Screening and Q&A at Austin Bouldering Project, Austin – time TBA