I am Chinese-American, born in New Jersey and raised primarily outside of Boston, Massachusetts and then St. Petersburg, Florida. I have also lived and attended school in Pennsylvania, Connecticut, Washington, D.C., New York, Taipei, and Shanghai (summer study abroad). I met my husband in law school and we currently live in Miami with our son, Brandon, and dog, Dash.
My son, Brandon, is the inspiration for my stories. When Brandon was very little, I would read a bedtime story (or 2, or 3!) every night to him and then at lights out, Brandon and I would discuss his day and all the events that occurred. We would take turns adding information and make up little stories based on the happenings of the day before going to sleep. I was always searching for children’s storybooks to read to him which touched upon Chinese culture and which included some Chinese (Mandarin) words to teach and/or reinforce his Chinese vocabulary, but had trouble finding them. Most of the books I found were either straight translation or ABC/123 type books with no storyline. So, I started writing my own based on events in Brandon’s life and the little stories we told at bedtime. Brandon Makes Jiǎozi (餃子) is the first “Brandon” story.
Since then, and as Brandon got older, I started writing chapter books and non-fiction holiday books. In addition to my debut picture book, Brandon Makes Jiǎozi (餃子), I have two chapter books: Brandon Goes to Beijing – Běijīng (北京) and Brandon Goes to Hong Kong – Xiānggǎng (香港), and two nonfiction holiday books: Celebrating Chinese New Year and Celebrating Mid-Autumn Festival (co-authored with Y.Y. Chan). I’m working on more books, so stay tuned!