Episode #221: Being Asian Americans in Publishing with Debbi Michiko Florence
Grace and Alvina welcome special guest, author Debbi Michiko Florence and they discuss their experiences working in children's book publishing as Asian American women.
Chinese Menu is here!
Chinese Menu explores the whimsical myths and stories behind your favorite American Chinese food.
If you would like personalized and signed copies you can order from Grace’s local indie book store called High Five Books or from The Eric Carle Museum!
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A small blank notebook with an illustrated cover (by Grace) inspired by Alvina's Mom quote "If it is to be, it is up to me." (While supplies last!)
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How have you been?
Grace and Debbie have been enjoying their Very Asian Book Trip! You can find all the tour details here and where to order signed copies of their books!
Debbie is having a blast on the book tour with Grace! She is also working on the last book, #8, in her Jasmine Toguchi series! Alvina reflects back on the recent passing of Ed Young.
Our experiences as Asian American women in publishing
Debbie, Alvina, and Grace talk about how they identify as Asian Americans and how they got started in book publishing.
The book friends share their experiences with racism while working in publishing.
“Is there a type of book that you wish could be published but hasn’t yet?” How about an Asian American Nancy Drew?
“How do you both think that publishing has changed for Asian Americans?” Grace talks about We Need Diverse Books and how much farther we need to go. Books written by Asian authors are getting bigger marketing plans. There are many Asian American chapter books now but of course there should be more! BIPOC books, book banning, and the middle-grade market. Alvina, Grace, and Debbie talk about the changes they’d like to see in publishing. They would like to see more diversity and representation within the Asian American culture.
Fortune Cookie Segment: What is your favorite bubble tea flavor?
Debbie and Grace have been trying different bubble tea’s along their book tour. Debbie’s favorite flavor is the black tea with brown sugar or the passion fruit flavor. Grace’s three favorites are the taro, jasmine milk tea, or rose milk tea. Alvina doesn’t care for bubble tea that much, she likes agar better!
Gratefuls:
Grace is so thankful that Debbie is driving on their book tour and that it has been so successful. Debbie is grateful for the book tour as well and for Grace handling all the social media. Alvina is thankful that the The Wild Robot is on the NY Times best seller list. Alvina’s sister-in-law had a successful cancer-free surgery.
Other books and media mentioned in this episode:
THANK YOU!
Thank you to Hachette Audio, Little Brown Books for Young Readers, and Alex at Pacyworks Studio for producing and editing this podcast. Be sure to rate and review us on Apple Podcasts and tell a friend about us. (Use the hashtag #bookfriendsforever.)
You can find Alvina @Planetalvina on Twitter and TikTok and @Alvinaling on Instagram and Threads, and BlueSky
You can find Grace @Pacylin on Instagram and Threads, @authorgracelin on Facebook, @gracelinauthor on TikTok, and @authorgracelin on BlueSky Social!
You can find Debbie on Instagram @debbie_michiko_florence, @jasminetoguchi on Instagram and @debbiemichiko on Blue Sky, and her website is debbiemichikoflorence.com where you can sign up for her newsletter!
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