The Inciting Incident

Of course, I knew motherhood would be hard.

But what I didn’t count on was:

  • Scheduling client meetings around nursing sessions

  • Writing as fast as possible during naps and bedtimes

  • Obsessing at 4 am over contracts and value propositions, before passing out at 6 and waking up at 8 to do it all over again.

Suddenly, freelancing didn’t seem very free anymore.

But the greatest gift my daughter gave me was permission to dream.

So while she nursed, I brainstormed ways to tell the story of how her parents: a third-generation Washingtonian boy and a Vietnamese American girl—crossed paths in a college Linguistics class; and stayed together in spite of distance, cancer, and racism.

Then I wondered—is it possible to drift apart and find your lives intertwined again with the same result?

So I challenged myself to create an alternate universe. Transformed the brain dumps scattered across my iPhone and laptop into fully fleshed out scenes. The momentum kept building, and suddenly I found myself turning away clients in favor of sharing the stories I really wanted to tell: being a Vietnamese American woman navigating the interplay between modern life and cultural preservation.

Of course, writing a book has its own set of obstacles: the constant revision process, navigating the query trenches, and, if you’re lucky, landing a book deal that’s equivalent to the salary you would make in a day job. Sprinkle in the whirlwind of life and (attempts at) self-care, and you’ll quickly learn why so many people think of creativity as a nice-to-have.

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It’s also where I share manuscript updates, as well the
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If My Newsletter Was
An About Page

Write 👩‍💻

When I’m not coaching clients on their own writing, I’m heads down on my own projects: my fiction manuscript and the occasional personal essay or short story.

Life 👨‍👩‍👧

During non-work hours, you’ll find me crafting with my daughter. Heads up: you won’t be seeing pictures of her face on any of my online platforms—just trust me when I say she’s cute.

If you stick around, you’ll also read about Matt, my husband of twelve years. He’s the Head of AI for a tech startup, and also bears a striking resemblance to actor David Harbour (meaning people stare at him a lot when we visit family in Southern California).

Balance 🧘🏻‍♀️

I still remember the day I was lying in a eucalyptus steam room and realized that if I quit my job, I wouldn’t need a spa membership to cope with the stress.

It was my "Aha!” moment to realize that self-care doesn’t always have to be a massage or a five-course meal; it’s about doing the basics. So I:

  • Eat a rainbow 🌈 of fruits of vegetables (See below for my favorite salad recipes)

  • Move my body every day through yoga or the occasional walk 🚶🏻‍♀️

  • Do my best to steer clear of processed sugar—unless it involves a freshly baked chocolate chip cookie (preferably dairy-free, and don’t you dare put walnuts in them).

Some of My Favorites

Books 📚

I love getting lost in a contemporary, literary, or romance novel; with an emphasis on Asian-American authors and strong female leads. But there’s also a good chance I’m combing through a non-fiction book on personal development. Below are some of my all-time favorites.

Streams ⏯

I’m a firm believer in listening to an album from beginning to end (So I can uncover the story arc!) and my musical tastes are best described as “sounds vintage but isn’t.” Here are some current ear worms:

Recipes 👩🏽‍🍳

If you invite me to a potluck, the odds are high I’m bringing a salad. (Once, I brought kale & quinoa to a friend’s bridal shower, and caused a minor ruckus when her titas fought for the leftovers.) Here are a few of my recent favorites.

  • Young Jackfruit Salad with Carrot Ribbons & Pickled Red Onions

    Get the Recipe

  • Vietnamese Chicken Salad with Watermelon Radish & Herbs

    Get the Recipe

  • Celebration Pomelo Salad with Spiralized Yellow Squash & Shrimp

    Get the Recipe

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