This last year has been a difficult one, and some communities have been more deeply affected than others. Right now, I am heartbroken by the acts of violence toward Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders. Between the deadly shooting in Atlanta to the thousands of attacks tracked by Stop AAPI Hate, I feel a deep sadness as well as helplessness on what I and DIY MFA can do in response.
First and foremost, hate crimes and violence against Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders is wrong. My team and I will not condone or allow any of this language or behavior in our community.
We have been lucky not to have this ugliness infiltrate our word nerd community thus far, but I want to make something very clear: the racist vitriol and verbal abuse that has permeated certain pockets of social media has no place at DIY MFA. If we see so much as a hint of this in our community, my team and I will shut it down. Clear? Cool.
In moments like this, it is important to amplify voices, particularly the voices of those who may be most harmed by these events. Right now, it is the AAPI author community that needs our support, so we would like to highlight the amazing authors from the Asian American and Pacific Islander community who have participated in our podcast and summits.
Please support these authors by buying and reading their books and spreading the word about their work. If you would like to meet some awesome authors and add some great books to your TBR (to be read) pile, check out the interviews below.
Past Podcast Guests:
Alka Dhillon
Alka Dhillon is a self-help author and founder and CEO of Technalink. Alka was interviewed on DIY MFA Radio in Episode 59: Finding Your Om Factor. If you want to find Alka, you can follow her on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Instagram, or visit her website.
Yang Huang
Yang Huang writes contemporary fiction novels, short stories and essays. Her interview can be found in Episode 217: Write Dangerously of DIY MFA Radio. You can find Yang on her website.
Guy Kawasaki
Guy Kawasaki is a non-fiction author of useful how-to guides on social media, marketing, and business. Guy appeared on DIY MFA Radio along with his co-author, Peg Fitzpatrick, in Episode 27: Social Media for Writers. You can connect with Guy on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, or LinkedIn.
Fonda Lee
Fonda Lee is an author of both adult and young adult fantasy and science fiction. Fonda was interviewed in Episode 262: Inside the Mind of a Worldbuilding Junkie of DIY MFA Radio. To connect with Fonda, check out her website.
Virginia Loh-Hagan
Dr. Virginia Loh-Hagan is an author of children’s books and academic works. Virginia was interviewed on DIY MFA Radio in Episode 284: Adapting Legends While Staying True to the Story. Visit her website, or connect with her on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.
Alexandra Monir
Alexandra Monir is a popular author of young adult fiction across genres like science fiction, paranormal, romance, and mystery. Alexandra was interviewed on DIY MFA Radio in Episode 338: The Dystopian Superhero Story in which she discusses her recently released contribution to the DC ICONS series, Black Canary: Breaking Silence. You can find Alexandra on her website or follow her on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
Veena Rao
Veena Rao is an author of literary fiction as well as a founder, publisher and editor-in-chief of NRI Pulse. Veena appeared on DIY MFA Radio in Episode 334: The Unexpected Female Protagonist. You can find Veena on her website or follow her on Twitter and Instagram.
Abbigail Rosewood
Abigail Rosewood is an award-winning author of historical fiction. Abigail was interviewed on Episode 308: Setting, Characters, and Identity: Your Story’s Ecosystem of DIY MFA Radio. Check out her website or follow her on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.
Shanthi Sekaran
Shanthi Sekaran is an indie contemporary fiction author. She was interviewed on DIY MFA Radio in Episode 132: Capturing Diverse Experiences on the Page. You can read more about Shanthi on her website or on Twitter.
Nisha Sharma
Author of both young adult and adult contemporary romance, Nisha Sharma’s interview can be found on DIY MFA Radio in Episode 268: From Bollywood-Inspired YA to RWA. You can find her on her website or follow her on Twitter and Instagram.
Lauren Sharkey
DIY MFA Columnist and creative non-fiction writer, Lauren J. Sharkey’s most recent DIY MFA article is Dollars and Sense, about reframing your writing career to avoid becoming a starving artist. Lauren was interviewed on DIY MFA Radio in Episode 316: Truth with a Capital T. You can find Lauren on her website or follow her on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
Carol VanDenHende
Carol VanDenHende is a DIY MFA Columnist and an award-winning author of contemporary romantic fiction. Check out her most recent DIY MFA article, What Is Author Brand and How to Craft Yours. Carol is also interviewed on DIY MFA Radio in Episode 328: Book Marketing for Busy Writers. You can find Carol on her website or follow her on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Pinterest.
K.S. Villoso
K. S. Villoso writes speculative fiction with a focus on deeply personal themes and character-driven narratives. Listen to our interview with her on DIY MFA Radio in Episode 292: World Building in Epic Fantasy. Visit her website or connect with her on Twitter and Facebook.
David Yoon
David Yoon is an author of young adult romances and adult thrillers. Read the guest blog he wrote for DIY MFA here: How to Write Sparky Dialogue. David was very recently interviewed on DIY MFA Radio in Episode 353: Making the Shift from YA Romance to Adult Thriller. You can find David on his website or follow him on Instagram.
Summit Interviews:
Guy Kawasaki
Guy was also featured in our Memoir Summit. His interview is called Wisdom in Small Moments.
Fonda Lee
Fonda appeared in our Science Fiction and Fantasy Summit. Her interview is Creating Dynamic Characters through Conflict.
Mona Shroff
Mona Shroff writes adult contemporary romance novels, and she has contributed a #5onFri post to DIY MFA which you can read here: #5onFri: Five Questions to Ask when Writing a Second Chance Romance. She was featured in our Romance Summit. Her interview is The Debut Author’s Journey. To connect with Mona check out her website.
These Summit Interviews will be open until Monday, May 3 at 12pm ET.
Upcoming Episode on DIY MFA Radio
Stay tuned! DIY MFA is featuring the following AAPI authors in upcoming podcast episodes:
Thien-Kim Lam
Thien-Kim Lam is an adult contemporary romance author. You can find Thien-Kim Lam on her website or follow her on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.
Rajani LaRocca
Rajani LaRocca writes middle grade contemporary and historical fiction. Connect with Rajani on her website, or find her on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.
Tasha Suri
Tasha Suri writes young adult fantasy and romance. Read more about Tasha on her website or connect with her on Twitter, and Instagram. You can also sign up for her newsletter.
Gabriela Pereira is an author, speaker, entrepreneur and the founder of DIY MFA.
Please note: We are disabling comments for this post. Here’s why. While we appreciate all the love and support we receive from our community, we are keenly aware that this is not about us. If you’d like to show support for what has been said here, do it by purchasing a book by one of the wonderful authors listed above. Our goal is to keep this post focused on what it’s really about: amplifying Asian American and Pacific Islander voices. If you have something you need to say, reach out to support@DIYMFA.com.
