Hello again, Dear Reader
A new book, a new cover, a new platform, and all the goings-on you might have missed while I was gone...
Welcome, readers, new and old
It’s been a bit since I last sent one of these, and a lot has happened in the interim! You’ll have probably noticed that I’ve moved my newsletter to Substack, but aside from a few formatting changes, I expect things will continue mostly as they always have, with monthly-ish news, event updates, recommendations, and musings. I’m excited to be back, and I’m excited you’re all here.
In case you missed it
Some news from the break…
Last fall, A Thousand Steps into Night was longlisted for the National Book Award for Young People’s Literature 2022. What an unexpected surprise! To see this goofy little demon book/feminist fantasy road trip recognized on a national level? I could not have been more honored. The whole list is incredible—be sure to check them out when you have the chance!
In March, I took my first steps into middle grade by contributing a story to the anthology You Are Here: Connecting Flights, edited by Ellen Oh. You Are Here is the first offering from Linda Sue Park’s new imprint, Allida, and it features a star-studded lineup of East and Southeast Asian American authors, including Linda Sue Park, Erin Entrada Kelly, Grace Lin, Mike Chen, Meredith Ireland, Mike Jung, Minh Lê, Ellen Oh, Randy Ribay, Christina Soontornvat, and Susan Tan. I feel so lucky to have gotten the chance to work with and learn from these powerhouse writers and to help launch Allida with not one, not two, but six starred reviews! Ask for it at your local bookstore or library, or check out the buy links here.
We announced my next project, a YA fantasy reimagining of Seven Samurai and The Magnificent Seven, about seven restless warriors and their search for home. It’s called Kindling, and it’s out March 5, 2024, and I’m so excited to share the cover with you before it’s revealed on social media—the colors, the ferocity, those war-weary babies readying for one last battle! My deepest gratitude to designer Kathy Lam and artist Kiuyan Ran for this incredible introduction to the Kindling world. Buy links are up on Amazon and Barnes and Noble (other online retailers should be available soon), but for now you can add it Goodreads or share on Instagram, Twitter, Tumblr, or Facebook when the announcement goes live tomorrow!
And now for the cover…
Come victory or come death
Once, the war was fought with kindlings—elite, magic-wielding warriors whose devastating power comes at the cost of their own young lives.
Now, the war is over, and kindlings have been cast adrift—their magic outlawed, their skills outdated, their formidable balar weapons prized only as relics and souvenirs.
Violence still plagues the countryside, and memories haunt those who remain. When a village comes under threat of siege, it offers an opportunity for seven kindlings to fight one last time. But war changed these warriors. And to reclaim who they once were, they will have to battle their pasts, their trauma, and their grim fates to come together again—or none of them will make it out alive.
From bestselling and award-winning author Traci Chee comes a gut-wrenching, introspective fantasy about seven lost soldiers searching for the peace they once fought for and the future in which they’re finally daring to believe.
What I’m into these days
What I’m reading: Catfish Rolling by Clara Kumagai. Set in a world in which a massive earthquake has unsettled time, this YA fantasy follows Sora, a Japanese-Canadian teenager searching for her lost mother in startlingly beautiful “zones” in which time runs faster or slower than the rest of the world. It’s a lovingly crafted exploration of the relationship between grief and time, and it comes out this fall!
What I’m watching: This is old news at this point, but last year I watched and fell in love with Everything Everywhere All at Once. Since then it’s won multiple awards for writing, directing, editing, and acting, and they’re all so very deserved. It’s funny and sobering and heartfelt and off-the-wall. It’s about a Chinese American family running a laundromat. It’s about a multi-universal war. It’s about a mother and daughter. It’s about failure. It’s about choosing your path. I suspect it might be a perfect movie, and it’s one I’m going to treasure for years to come.
What I’m growing: I’m still gardening, and this year I tried growing tulips! Some varieties did better than others, but my favorite was Pink Star, a stunning double-flowered beauty with shades of peach and cream in addition to the promised pink.
What I’m eating: Have you tried this recipe for Chez Panisse’s blueberry cobbler? It’s best when blueberries are in season (I’ve tried it with frozen and it’s just not the same), and it’s perfect topped with fresh whipped cream.
What I’m working on: Thanks to my job, which often requires working at a desk all day, I’ve struggled with neck and shoulder pain for years. But I want this to be my job for the rest of my life, so last fall I enrolled in physical therapy, which was literally a life-changing decision. I have less pain, more strength, and a host of stretches, exercises, and tricks to help me get through each day. Since graduating from physical therapy, I’ve also joined a gym, so I can keep working on building what my PT calls “postural endurance,” or the ability to keep doing the job that I love so much.