Woman. Warrior. Writer. 7-2022
Lisa Kwong Vol. 3. No. 10 July 4, 2022
Woman. Warrior. Writer. 7-2022
Lisa Kwong Vol. 3. No. 10 July 4, 2022
Aloha,
Meet Woman Warrior Writer Lisa Kwong!
A native of Radford, Virginia, Lisa Kwong is AppalAsian, a member of the Affrilachian Poets, and the author of Becoming AppalAsian(Glass Lyre Press). Her poems have appeared in Best New Poets, A Literary Field Guide to Southern Appalachia, Anthology of Appalachian Writers, and other publications. She teaches at Indiana University and Ivy Tech Community College in Bloomington, Indiana.
To preview Kwong’s poems, check out these links:
http://www.stilljournal.net/lisa-kwong-poetry.php
http://www.stilljournal.net/lisa-kwong-poetry2021.php
How did you come to author your life?
I belong to many different communities; I also don’t belong anywhere sometimes. I’ve been the daughter of laborers in a room of professors’ and doctors’ kids or the “fat” one in a group of petite Asian women. I know the pain of being unseen, unheard, and misunderstood.
Through writing, I want to honor my family, to make sense of being an Asian from Appalachia, to celebrate, to mourn, to heal. I hope that my work can inspire others to be proud of who they are and where they come from. Writing gave me a voice when I didn’t have one. I hope it can help others to speak up for themselves, too.
Kwong’s On the 42nd Anniversary of My Father’s Swim from China, 10/17/2015
When I lived in Hong Kong, many revealed their family’s journey from Mainland China to Hong Kong. People left by foot; they held tight in the hull of a ship; they made a desperate swim through shark-infested water. These tales inspired my title story Swimming in Hong Kong.
I had a chance to record an interview on How To Write Your Divorce Story for the Scarlet Society podcast! I’ve had women tell me that it’s relevant, even to those who are not divorced/divorcing, so check it out!
How to Write Your Divorce Story with Dr. Stephanie Han
The laws that define women’s moral, ethical, educational, and spiritual lives were not authored by women. How does this affect the experience of marriage and divorce?
Marriage is one of society’s most powerful legal and sacred institutions. Divorce is equally profound. REGISTER for BREAK: Write Your Divorce Story Workshop WEDNESDAYS September 7-28.
Explore the meaning of your marriage/divorce within the context of a nuclear/extended family and write your divorce story with a clear understanding of concepts such as Master Narratives, han, kintsugi, phoenix, and more. This class will help you move forward with greater understanding of your actions within the concept of marriage and divorce. My goal is for it to become standard practice for women divorcing to write their story for their legal/and or personal file.
There is a FREE introductory workshop for BREAK: Write Your Divorce Story WEDNESDAY August 3 10-11AM HST. To attend contact writer@drstephaniehan.com with the subject heading BREAK.
Women’s Creative Writing Workshop THURSDAYS 1-3PM (HST) 4 weeks September 8-23. This is a mixed-level workshop that emphasizes voice and narrative. Go to class pages! Limited enrollment.
Intersectionality: Manuscript Workshop TUESDAYS 1-3PM (HST) 8 weeks September 13-November 1. This workshop is for women working on a specific manuscript. Instructor permission only. Contact writer@drstephaniehan.com for further info. Limited enrollment.
Newsletter subscribers may use the code NEWS for a 10% discount for fall 2022 classes (good through August 19) Forward this to a friend!
Previously enrolled students and HI residents may use the code LOCAL for a 10% discount.
UPCOMING EVENTS
Stanford/SPICE East Asia Seminars for Teachers in Hawaii
Next week I teach educators for the Stanford University Program on International and Cross-Cultural Education (SPICE), a K-12 education program of the Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies (FSI). My workshop: Nation and Story: Korean American Identity and Community. If your program needs pedagogical strategies for K-12 teachers of writing, literature, and Asian American studies, please let me know!
Register for my writing workshop MASTER NARRATIVE – A Deep Dive at the 6th Annual SOMOS Taos Writers Conference ONLINE (registration closes Thursday 5PM 7/28).
Watch an interview with me on my workshop, Master Narrative – A Deep Dive.
WRITERS AND BOOKS
Me and the indomitable Sang Hea Kil, author of Covering the Border War: How the News Media Creates Crime, Race, Nation and the USA-Mexico Divide
I’m reading Forbidden City by Vanessa Hua – I’m all in and journeying through nation, feeling, place, and belief. I highly recommend this read! This book took Hua 15 years to research and write—I’m so impressed. This wonderful narrative gives voice to women — herstory…
Creative Hack
Build in empty time during your day. Don’t be afraid to let your mind drift and wander. This is where ideas come into play. Imagination requires space to expand. The less you schedule the better.
Abortion Funds
A nation that denies women the right to control their bodies has no moral ground to stand on. Donate to your local abortion fund. Hawai’i Abortion Fund is a grassroots effort to help women obtain access to abortion, especially women on the outer islands.
For questions about coaching, classes, creativity, or writing drop a line—writer@drstephaniehan.com
My son calls me a troll.
50% of America are not divorced.
How about balancing the writing on this subject about staying married to the Alpha Hotel?