November 2023

Today’s mentorship session wasn’t about my writing. Lydia showed British Library archival materials from Between Two Worlds. Photographs, letters, interview transcripts documenting Ukrainian displacement. The materials were raw. Not polished for public consumption. Handwritten letters with grammar mistakes. Blurry photographs. Interview transcripts capturing hesitations and contradictions. Messiness of actual human experience before it gets shaped […]

The third novel is finally ready for the world. Eastern Empire publishes in December, and I’m experiencing that familiar mix of anticipation and terror that comes with releasing something you’ve poured years of your life into. This story began during my semester at Beijing Language and Culture University back in 2018. Walking through hutongs at