A Tradition of Gathering: Taiwanese American Writers at AWP 2025

Written by

[gallery columns="2" size="medium" ids="23842,23843"] For the third year in a row, TaiwaneseAmerican.org founder Ho Chie Tsai and editor-in-chief Leona Chen hosted a Taiwanese American Writers’ Dinner during the annual Association of Writers & Writing Programs Conference (AWP). This time, we gathered at Pine & Crane DTLA, and immediately began chatting —first in the queue, then at a long table where we rotated seats to ensure new connections. These conversations could happen anywhere,…

Read More »

Now accepting submissions: 2025 Betty L. Yu and Jin C. Yu Creative Writing Prizes, in Celebration of Taiwanese American student and adult writers

Written by

TaiwaneseAmerican.org is pleased to announce the 2025 Betty L. Yu and Jin C. Yu Creative Writing Prizes. Created in 2021 in collaboration with Taiwanese American author Charles Yu, the Prizes are intended to encourage and recognize creative literary work by Taiwanese American students, and to foster discussion and community around such work. In 2022, the prize expanded to include a separate middle school category for 6th-8th grade applicants, judged by Alvina Ling. In 2023, we added an additional…

Read More »

Gloria Chao on “Ex Marks the Spot,” Diasporic Storytelling, and the Puzzles That Reveal Us to Each Other

Written by

Gloria Chao is one of the most prolific writers of our generation, and I was thrilled to speak with her about her latest YA novel, Ex Marks the Spot. We've previously discussed her 2023 release, When You Wish Upon a Lantern, and I was delighted to find that her newest book revisits similar riveting themes—young love, intergenerational tenderness (and misunderstandings!), and family rivalries—while presenting them in an entirely fresh and unexpected way. I am always drawn to the depth and…

Read More »

How bilingual author & pediatric music therapist Isabelle Engler is raising the next generation of Taiwanese Americans

Written by

“Raising the Next Generation” aims to feature and connect stories of Taiwanese American parenthood, caretaking, and community-building across generations. We want to hear from our community on the unique challenges they navigate, the resources and tools they can share with each other, and the triumphs they want to celebrate with us all. We want to showcase and serve how Taiwanese American families are increasingly complex and diverse. They may include transcontinental relationships, intercultural…

Read More »

Community Resources for Taiwanese American Parents & Families

Written by

Originally compiled in August 2024  by Leona Chen for the Taiwanese American Foundation Parents Weekend program Running updates at: bit.ly/taf-parents Intergenerational Communication/Third Culture Parenting Taiwanese American identity formation Multilingual Education Resources (Chinese/Mandarin & Taiwanese Taigi)   Intergenerational Communication/Third Culture Parenting [中/EN] This ABC Life/ ABC養成記 (Blog 部落格) - thisabclife.com 30歲ABC的反思：移民家長除了升學要注意什麽 Reflections…

Read More »

Real You Mandarin: Angela Lin on Empowering American-born Mandarin Speakers to have Adult Conversations

Written by

Real You Mandarin is an online language course created by Taiwanese American and Taiwanese co-founders Angela Lin and Jane Liu. Angela is Taiwanese American, with extensive language learning experience across multiple languages and learning techniques. As creator and co-host of the But Where Are You Really From? Podcast, she has spent years discussing the unique cultural and identity challenges faced by Asian Americans, and brings that exploration as inspiration for this course. Jane, a…

Read More »

Charles Yu, Shawna Yang Ryan, Alvina Ling select 2024 Creative Writing Prize Winners

Written by

We are pleased to announce the 2024 cohort of honorable mentions, finalists, and grand prize winners of the Betty L. Yu & Jin C. Yu Creative Writing Prizes, established in partnership with TaiwaneseAmerican.org in honor of Yu’s parents, who are longstanding Taiwanese American community leaders. In its third year, the prize expanded to include adult writers of all life stages. Their work will be published on TaiwaneseAmerican.org throughout the year. Now in its fourth year, the prize saw…

Read More »

NOW CASTING: First-generation Taiwanese immigrants, 60+ years

Written by

"Life Lessons from Ah-Ma and Ah-Gong" is a documentary about first generation Taiwanese immigrants passing on their wisdom, stories, and skills to their grandchildren and the next generation. Click here to see a teaser on the website. From cooking, fishing, and gardening to history, language, and Taiwanese etiquette, the subjects of these lessons will unlock personal histories and deep memories, providing an intimate lens into the early years of a diverse Taiwanese American community pushed and…

Read More »

Gathering Taiwanese American Writers at AWP 2024: “I wish I had this community growing up.”

Written by

On Lunar New Year’s eve, we again gathered an expanding cohort of Taiwanese American changemakers in the literary world who’d convened in Kansas City for the Association of Writers & Writing Programs Conference (AWP). Our Year of the Dragon dinner was hosted at Chewology, led by recently James Beard semifinalist nominated-chef Katie Liu-Sung. We were touched by Katie's vision to bring Taiwan to Kansas City, where there are relatively fewer Asian Americans compared to coastal enclaves.…

Read More »