When chef and writer Jess Eng tried pitching her first story about Taitung, Taiwan, no one wanted it. This was around 2022 and the story was about the Luye Red Oolong, a bug bitten tea with a honey-sweet flavor. Its naturally occurring honey-like sweetness comes from a biological defense from the leaves being nibbled on by small green leaf hoppers. Eng was a younger, greener freelance writer at the time and she received a response that many writers received at the time, your topic is too niche. She…
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