First and foremost, I am a writer. I’ve written two novels, Homebase (1979) and American Knees (1995), the latter of which was adapted into the feature film, Americanese (2006), directed by Eric Byler.
I have edited or co-edited anthologies, including the landmark Aiiieeeee! An Anthology of Asian-American Writers, The Big Aiiieeeee! The History of Chinese American and Japanese American Literature, Asian American Literature: A Brief Introduction and Anthology, Asian Diasporas, Cultures, Identities, Representations,The Before Columbus Foundation Fiction Anthology and The Before Columbus Foundation Poetry Anthology.
I currently teach Asian American literature in the Department of English and beginning and advanced screenwriting in the Department of Cinema & Media Studies at the University of Washington. I have also taught at Mills College, University of California at Santa Cruz, and San Francisco State University and I have also taught abroad at the Universität Tübingen (Germany), Jean Moulin Université (France), and at the University of Washington Rome Center (Italy).
I’m deeply involved with and a founding instructor of the Red Badge Project, which teaches storytelling to veterans suffering from PTSD, depression, trauma, or anxiety disorders.
Awards include: The Pacific Northwest Booksellers Association Award, the 15th Annual Governor’s Writers Day Award of Washington, National Endowment for the Arts Creative Writing Fellowship, Rockefeller Foundation residency in Italy, Society of Professional Journalists, and the South By Southwest Film Festival.
