Skip to main content

Multicultural fiction is fun!

Captain's Log, Stardate 02.06.2009

I’m over at Christian Fiction Online Magazine this month talking about hunky guys why multicultural fiction can be for everyone!

Many people tell me, “I don’t know if I’d like your books because I’m not Asian,” or, “I don’t think I’d like your books because I don’t know any Asian people.”

To which I reply, “If you like fun fiction, it doesn’t matter if the heroine is Asian or African American or alien. Fun fiction is fun fiction.”


Click here to read the rest of the article!

Comments

Barb said…
Multicultural fiction is a must! As the body of Christ, we need to mix and mingle more, including in our reading.
Deborah said…
"I don’t think I’d like your books because I don’t know any Asian people"

being Asian, that's really sad to hear that. i'm glad that i make it difficult for people to say that. :)

BTW i made fried rice for the first time last night (by myself that is). i think homemade taste SOOO much better than take out!
Anonymous said…
Hi Camy,

I just want to ask if you know of any online chicklit writers club that are open for aspiring unpublished writers like me?

I'd appreciate any suggestions.

Thanks!
Joy
Camy Tang said…
Hi Joy,
The only really active chick lit group I know of is an online chapter of Romance Writers of America, and it's a bit pricey to join. RWA costs $100 for the first year, and $85 each year after that, and then it costs $25 a year to join the chick lit chapter.

Here's their website: http://chicklitwriters.com/

They have a very active email discussion loop that can be very helpful for new writers, and they are the only group I know of that is dedicated just to chick lit.

Camy
Camy Tang said…
Barb--I think so too!

Deborah--isn't fried rice just awesome???? I make it all the time because it's fast, easy, and cheap and it tastes great!

Camy
tricia said…
How sad that someone would dismiss your books without even trying just because they have Asian characters. I LOVED the stories and it didn't matter that the characters were Asian. Well, actually, it did because I learned new stuff and I think it develops me as a person to expose myself to things that are different than me and not just live in my own little bubble. But to my enjoyment and appreciation of the story as a whole - NO it did not detract from it in any way. that is silly thinking.
Inda Lauryn said…
I write neither romance nor Christian fiction, yet I feel compelled to reply.

I love books from all types of cultures and must say that Banana Yoshimoto is one of my favorite authors of any genre. I just love her characters. I could care less that they are not black or even American for that matter. They are always compelling and make a good story.

I include characters from other cultures for two primary reasons. One: They exist. I don't live in a world with just one race or culture. Two: Some of the people whom I love and care for most in this world are not black. They have had a profound effect in my life, so I try to create characters that reflect the inspiration they have given me. I know it may be in vogue to be multicultural, but I can only write what's in my heart and head whether or not it's trendy.

Yes, I gravitate heavily toward black female authors, but that does not stop me from enjoying texts outside my own experience. To do so would be just ignorant.
Anonymous said…
Hi Camy,
Yes, I have read about the RWA. But not quite ready to get into membership as I'm still concentrating on finishing my non-fiction book about teaching young kids. Will do that very soon. I just figured that there may be some free online groups that I could explore while waiting for the right time to write a real chicklit.
At any rate, thanks so much for the suggestion. Will surely get into RWA soon.
I agree. You don't have to be from a particular culture in order to enjoy books about multicultural characters. We are all people no matter what colour our skin, no matter what our heritage is, no matter what. We all go through similar experiences and can identify with characters. I don't let any of those things interfere with a good book. If it sounds good and the characters are Asian, African American/Canadian, male or female...then I read it. The writing and the story are what's important to me - not the culture or colour of skin of the characters.
Anonymous said…
I'm with you! I'm not Asian and I enjoyed your book. You had a good reply.
Something's wrong with that person.

Popular Posts

I got my cover!

Captain’s Log, Supplemental Blog book giveaway: To enter, go to the blog links below and post a comment there. Eyes of Elisha by Brandilyn Collins Tangerine by Marilynn Griffith I GOT MY COVER!!!! What do you guys think?

Toilet seat cover

Captain’s Log, Supplemental Update August 2008: I wrote up the pattern for this with "improvements"! Here's the link to my No Cold Bums toilet seat cover ! Okay, remember a few days ago I was complaining about the cold toilet seat in my bathroom? Well, I decided to knit a seat cover. Not a lid cover, but a seat cover. I went online and couldn’t find anything for the seat, just one pattern for the lid by Feminitz.com . However, I took her pattern for the inside edge of the lid cover and modified it to make a seat cover. Here it is! It’s really ugly stitch-wise because originally I made it too small and had to extend it a couple inches on each side. I figured I’d be the one staring at it, so who cared if the extension wasn’t perfectly invisible? I used acrylic yarn since, well, that’s what I had, and also because it’s easy to wash. I’ll probably have to wash this cover every week or so, but it’s easy to take off—I made ties which you can see near the back of the seat. And...

Cover Reveal + New Logo for Year of the Dog, a Mahina Security Novel

A New Look for Year of the Dog (and a Behind-the-Scenes Oops!) What do a dog trainer, a security expert, and a nearly-naked book cover have in common? Let me explain. 😅 Year of the Dog is the first book in my Christian romantic suspense series, Mahina Security, set in beautiful (and sometimes dangerous) Hawaii. It features quirky humor, family tensions, sweet romance, and a mystery involving a missing person—and it’s now available to read in the Christian suspense anthology, Danger in the Shadows , on Kindle Unlimited ! But before that happened, I had a bit of a cover mishap… While creating the ebook cover, I realized that the original stock photo made my heroine look, well, completely nekkid. 😳 She’s actually wearing a tube top in the image, but when I cropped it for the ebook, the top disappeared—leaving her looking very PG-13. To fix it, I did some Canva magic on a strappy top from another image and stuck it onto the model (so she’s decent now). But when I resize...

Excerpt - A HUNDRED YEARS OF HAPPINESS by Nicole Seitz

Captain's Log, Stardate 03.05.2009 Update: Sorry, this giveaway is closed. A Hundred Years of Happiness by Nicole Seitz A beautiful young woman. An American soldier. A war-torn country. Nearly forty years of silence. Now, two daughters search for the truth they hope will set them free and the elusive peace their parents have never found. In the South Carolina Lowcountry, a young mother named Katherine Ann is struggling to help her tempestuous father, by plunging into a world of secrets he never talks about. A fry cook named Lisa is trying desperately to reach her grieving Vietnamese mother, who has never fully adjusted to life in the States. And somewhere far away, a lost soul named Ernest is drifting, treading water, searching for what he lost on a long-ago mountain. They're all longing for connection. For the war that touched them to finally end. For their hundred years of happiness at long last to begin. From the beloved author of The Spirit of Sweetgrass...

Favorite chocolate?

Captain's Log, Stardate 04.22.2008 Lately I’ve been on this chocolate kick. Normally, I’m not a huge chocoholic like Captain Caffeine. I enjoy chocolate, but if given a choice, I’ll usually choose a fruit or custard/creamy dessert over a triple decadence chocolate layer cake or a chocolate-lovers’ downfall brownie. But lately, I’ve been eating dark chocolate squares. I think it started when I went into Joseph Schmidt gourmet chocolate shop in Santana Row. We’d gotten Joseph Schmidt truffles for Christmas, and they’d been fabulous—I can honestly say that they were as good as DeBrand truffles (author Colleen Coble’s favorite). So when I saw the brick and mortar shop in Santana Row, I went in immediately. Inside, this man was buying up stacks—and I kid you not, stacks —of the Joseph Schmidt Belgian Dark Chocolate bars. He raved about them, said they were terrific. A cashier was restocking the display case the man had cleaned out, and I snagged a bar. “I’ve got to try one, after watc...