As I was trying to figure out how to rip the 1st chapter of Asian American Apostate from a PDF file, I remembered that the Lake Drive Books site already has it up. So, if you want a peek at the book, click HERE! There’s a “Download Excerpt” button on the right side of the page. Spread the word! And check out the other authors on the Lake Drive Books site.
There’s also a short interview publisher David Morris did with me to talk about the book which you can see here.
The book is currently up for pre-sale on Amazon, Bookshop.org, and Barnes and Nobel, but it’s taking longer than expected for the graphics to show up, so we’re holding off on starting the big onslaught of promotion. Once Amazon gets it up, it’s on. If you have any ideas for promoting the book, let me know. There aren’t many things I wouldn’t do to get people to buy the book. Seriously. I sacrificed my sanity, humanity, and my soul to work at APU (EVU in the book) for 15 years. I’ll promote this book with similar dedication. I’ll do just about anything short of attending a chapel or a revival.
I’ve been posting graphics with the lovely endorsements I’ve gotten from my friends in many communities, and through a network of friends in Minnesota (Thanks, May, Mooks, and Naomi) I reached out to a writing hero of mine, David Mura, whose memoir, Turning Japanese, was a huge inspiration in my development as a writer. I actually met him when he visited my creative writing class at UC San Diego and met him again a few years ago. But I was nervous to think of him reading my book. What if he hated it? But my friends talked to him and he agreed to read it. He had his own book released in January, The Stories Whiteness Tells Itself: Racial Myths and Our American Narratives, and was deep in promotion and touring at the time, so I would have totally understood if he wasn’t able or willing to read my book and endorse it. And then, he sent this:
Yes. I did cry happy tears. One of my literary heroes and inspirations read my book and really liked it.
I’m a little less nervous about all of you reading the book now. I’m still nervous. Just a little less so. Deep breaths.
More to come.