For AAPI Month, do yourself a favor and ask:Are your Asian parents right and you should have been an accountant, not a writer? FREE Decision Tree: https://www.sophiachang.com/freebie

Madonna. Babs Bunny. Sophia Chang.

The trifecta of reinvention. (In my childhood dreams, at least.)

Kevin Chung from Standout Creatives interviewed me on Substack LIVE and this is Part 1: my origin story about reinvention as a survival mechanism.

Find out how losing my eyesight led to extremely smutty Harry Potter fan fiction—and the launch of my writing career including a Reese's Book Club fellowship. We talk about social media destroying your ability to think for yourself and the Ronny Chieng lesson I try to embody every time I pick up the mic.

IN THIS EPISODE:

• Why reinvention is survival, not a self-help meme or a marketing ploy
• How a silhouette can be racial (?!)
• Going blind and wheelchair-bound—and writing my way out of it
• Getting the Reese's Book Club fellowship
• The Be The Most You writer manifesto: you are what makes your writing

Timestamps:

00:00 When I Grow Up, I Want to be Famous...

01:01 Madonna and Babs Bunny: My Reinvention Idols

02:19 How Can A Silhouette Be Racist?

03:02 Reinvention as Survival, Not a Self-Help Meme

05:50 Going Blind and Wheelchair-bound: A Forced Reinvention

08:16 Harry Potter Fanfiction Smut

12:09 Is Social Media Destroying Your Voice?

15:18 Creative Advice on Bravery from Ronny Chieng

18:06 Summits, Unsubscribes, and Your Author Voice

Subscribe to this podcast for Part 2: pitching your book, selling yourself, and my 100% request rate querying agents; why "follow your bliss" is a privileged lie; and how radical acceptance of your darkest feelings makes you a better writer.

For AAPI Month, do yourself a favor and ask: are you actually ready for traditional publishing or are your Asian parents right and you should have been an accountant? Find out with my FREE flowchart — plus get access to Ask Sophia Q&A where you can submit a question for me to answer on the podcast. https://www.sophiachang.com/freebie

Sophia Chang is a Reese's Book Club LitUp fellow, disabled dancer, and extroverted writer. She hosts The Sophia Chang Show podcast where her honest traditional publishing stories will make you scream in your sleep. Subscribe to find out why deadlifts will save your writing life.

TOPICS: reinvention, author voice, disability and writing, digital minimalism, Harry Potter fan fiction, social media detox, Asian American author, traditional publishing, writing community, podcast for writers, MOG antibody disease, extroverted writers

For AAPI Month, do yourself a favor and ask:

Are your Asian parents right and you should have been an accountant, not a writer? FREE Decision Tree: https://www.sophiachang.com/freebie

Happy Asian American Month!

We’re 12 days in because THIS Asian was taken out by an immunosuppressed spoonie’s worst nightmare: the common cold.

Stop coughing with your mouth open, people.

But I’m here! Wearing lucky red, and I have three pieces of Asian media that hit me so hard I had to drag myself to the mic. One preaches hatred as the answer (trust me, you’ll laugh). One is 49 episodes of your Japan bucket list. And one made me want to write plays again after months of creative burnout.

Also: boba of the week. Obviously. And! A surprise BIG RED guest.

Best Quotes:

"Autoimmune diseases hate Asians and the Asian it hates the most is me. Happy Asian American month, everybody."

"Comedians are the hardest audience. Once you do some standup, nothing else will phase you."

"I wrote plays because there weren't any parts for Asians. You had to create your own. Things aren’t different now."

IN THIS EPISODE:

• Hasan Hates Ronny, Ronny Hates Hasan: who’s most Asian?! The rivalry show that proves Asians will save America

• Why female comedians can only say certain things privately (both sides would come for me)

• 49 episodes of Terrace House and why I need to visit a hockey player's dad's soba shop in Japan

• Love is Blind France is high-key a Vietnamese show and beating America in diversity

• Kim's Convenience the PLAY (before Simu Liu, there was a stage)

• The 24-hour play-a-thon that became a peak life moment and made me mic-drop out of LA

• Boba of the week: the older I get, the more Asian my stomach gets

Timestamps:

00:00 12 Days Late for AAPI Month Because Autoimmune Disease Hates Asians

00:50 Comedy Show #1 Hasan Hates Ronny, Ronny Hates Hasan: Hatred is the Answer

03:33 TV Show #2 49 Episodes of Terrace House

07:10 Stage #3 Before Simu, Kim's Convenience Was a Play

09:19 Surprise Guest Appearance (Red Pandas Anyone?)

09:43 Boba of the Week: My Perfume Drink Obsession

10:28 Subscribe So We Can Be AZN Friends!

For AAPI Month, do yourself a favor and ask: are you actually ready for traditional publishing or are your Asian parents right and you should have been an accountant? Find out with my FREE flowchart — plus get access to Ask Sophia Q&A where you can submit a question for me to answer on the podcast. https://www.sophiachang.com/freebie

Sophia Chang is a Reese's Book Club LitUp fellow, disabled dancer, and extroverted writer. She hosts The Sophia Chang Show podcast where her honest traditional publishing stories will make you scream in your sleep. Subscribe to find out why deadlifts will save your writing life. http://sophiachang.com/

TOPICS: AAPI Heritage Month, Asian American media, Asian American author, Hasan Minhaj, Ronny Chieng, Terrace House, Kim's Convenience, Turning Red, Asian representation, comedy, Asian American culture, traditional publishing, writing community, boba tea, podcast for writers

FREE 3 Hollywood Secrets to Author Voice workbook: https://www.sophiachang.com/hollywood

Part 2 where I answer your questions from my 3 Hollywood Secrets to Unforgettable Author Voice presentation including:

• "Is my voice boring?" — the two questions to ask yourself before you panic
• What if you sound like AI? (Plot twist: your "proper" voice might be your superpower)
• How to turn your worst writing tics into your most memorable character voice
• Which to use for query letters: author voice, narrator voice, or character voice?
• Writing under a pseudonym: does your voice change or just put on a different outfit?
• Can you say no to your editor? (Even when the editor is you!)
• The time I over-edited my seventh novel and had to resurrect a previous draft
• Why people unsubscribing feels like guests leaving your party mid-canape
• My surprising take on short story collections as a marketing power move
• Does anyone want to hear about my ridiculous life? (The survey results are in and I'm wounded)

TIMESTAMPS:

00:00 Question 1: Is My Writing Voice Boring?

00:47 What If I Sound Like AI?

02:08 Question 2: What If I Naturally Use Minimizing Words?

03:35 Question 3: Which Voice to Use in a Query Letter?

06:45 Question 4: Same Voice, Different Pseudonym?

07:53 Question 5: Can I Say No to My Editor?

09:57 Unsubscribes and Rejection: You Can't Control People Leaving Your Party

12:28 Question 6: Short Story Collections—Art or Marketing?

14:24 Question 7-ish: Do You Really Want Behind the Scenes?

Sign up for my newsletter Books. Biceps. No BS. to get the FREE Are You Ready for Traditional Publishing Flowchart and access to Ask Sophia Q&A, plus more writing craft tips and publishing advice! https://thesophiachang.substack.com/

No social media! Newsletter is the ONLY way to stay connected.

Sophia Chang is a Reese's Book Club LitUp fellow, disabled dancer, and extroverted writer. She hosts The Sophia Chang Show podcast, teaches Character First writing with Daniel David Wallace, and believes deadlifts can change your life. She will make out with your dog. Learn more at: www.sophiachang.com

TOPICS: author voice, writing voice, query letter tips, writing Q&A, author branding, pseudonym writing, self-editing tips, writing craft, Asian American author, traditional publishing, writing community, podcast for writers, finding your voice, digital minimalism