Dragonfruit Round-up 2: Edna Zhou, Nicola Chilton, Philippa Ramsden, Saffron Marchant, India Harris and Jocelyn Eikenburg

We are continuing to feature one Dragonfruit Anthology Contributor of the Day on the Facebook page. Here are the next six contributors!

Edna Zhou, author of Token (China)

Edna Zhou is an American sports journalist and serial expat who first moved abroad at 18, then just kept moving. She has lived and worked in China, Singapore, Paris, and Italy, and is always thinking about the next place to call home. For now, she lives in Shanghai.

Edna writes about her adventures at Expat Edna

You can follow her here, too: Expat Edna on Facebook

Nicola Chilton, author of Five Weeks On (Japan)

Originally from Yorkshire, Nicola Chilton studied Spanish and Latin American studies at University, and spent a year wandering the mountains and jungles of southern Mexico pretending to write a dissertation. After returning to England, and as the English autumn weather set in, distant shores called again and she set off to work in Japan for a year. That one year became eight, followed by another four in Hong Kong, and another four in Thailand where she is currently based. Born with itchy feet, if not travelling, Nicola is always thinking of travelling. A keen writer and photographer, she has notebooks filled with scribbles from Iceland to Pyongyang by way of Moscow and Mumbai, and has a collection of photographs on display at Samsara Cafe & Meal, a 100-year-old wooden house on the banks of the Chao Phraya River in Bangkok.

You can follow her travels on Instagram at @nicolachilton.

Philippa Ramsden, author of Moving to the Tropic of Cancer (Burma/Myanmar)

Philippa Ramsden is a Scottish humanitarian and development professional. She had been to Asia only once when she stepped off a plane in Kathmandu in 2000 to take up a new job, with no idea what to expect--and has been in Asia ever since. She has lived and worked in Nepal, Mongolia, India, Sri Lanka, and Burma/Myanmar. Currently, Philippa is working on a memoir of her life as an expat with cancer in a tropical country. She is also working on a collection of short stories, poetry, and other snippets about life in this part of the world.

Philippa blogs at Feisty Blue Gecko and tweets @feistybluegecko

You can read more about Philippa's writing journey in this blog post and find her on Facebook.


Saffron Marchant, author of Cross (Hong Kong). 

Saffron Marchant read English Literature and Language at Oxford in the early 1990s. In 2007 she began to study Creative Writing at Hong Kong University, and eventually graduated with distinction from its inaugural Master of Fine Arts. In the intervening years, she studied and practiced law in London, Paris, and New York, but now terms herself a "recovering solicitor." She lives in Hong Kong with her husband, son, and daughter.

India Harris, author of The Rainiest Season (Philippines) 

After seven years and two adventurous crossings of the Pacific Ocean on a ten-meter yacht, Canadian India Harris sailed into the Philippines in 2001, fell in love with the country, and became a landlubber. When not at her seaside home which she shares with a menagerie of pets, India can usually be found in some other exotic part of the world with her camera. She has also lived in Tokyo, Paris, and Hawaii.

Lately, India has been busy with photography. She'll be on safari in Botswana in September, a polar bear trip in Churchill, Manitoba in November, and in 2015 will be doing a Hawaiian volcano/nature trip plus mountain gorillas in Uganda and Rwanda.

You can follow India's photography and travels at indiaharrisdotcom and visit her Facebook page.

Jocelyn Eikenburg, author of Huangshan Honeymoon (China)

Jocelyn Eikenburg is the writer behind Speaking of China, a unique blog focused on love, family, and relationships in China which was inspired by her own marriage to a Chinese national. Her essay "Red Couplets" was published in the anthology Unsavory Elements and other true stories of foreigners on the loose in China. A Cleveland, Ohio native, Jocelyn discovered her passion for the written word while living and working in China, and has resided in the cities of Zhengzhou, Hangzhou, and Shanghai.

Jocelyn put together a photo essay to go with Huangshan Honeymoon.

And follow Jocelyn on Facebook and Twitter @jossailin.

You can find How Does One Dress to Buy Dragonfruit? True Stories of Expat Women in Asia at the following links:

Amazon (paper and e-book)
Barnes & Noble (paper and e-book)
Smashwords (e-book)
Apple (e-book)

Dragonfruit Round-up: Kathryn Hummel, Coco Richter, Ember Swift, Leza Lowitz and Susan Blumberg-Kason

This week on the Facebook page for How Does One Dress to Buy Dragonfruit? we are featuring one anthology contributor per day. In case you missed any, here are the first five!

Kathryn Hummel, author of Charting Koenji (Japan).

Kathryn Hummel writes non-fiction, fiction and poetry, often combined with her photography for digital performance. Her diverse work has been published throughout Australia, New Zealand, the US, Hong Kong, the Philippines, Qatar, Nepal, Bangladesh, and India. As well as holding a PhD for studies in narrative ethnography (more info here), Kathryn was a writer in residence in 2011 for the Cafe Poet Program (Australian Poetry) and for the Forever Now project (Aphids and Vitalstatistix), featured during Adhocracy 2013. In the same year, Kathryn won the Dorothy Porter Award for Emerging Poets in the Melbourne Lord Mayor’s Creative Writing Awards, was nominated as one of Fair Clout Poetry’s ‘Top 3 Most Compelling Writers’, and for the Pushcart Prize XXXVII. A collection of her poetry will be published by the Walleah Press in 2014.

Kathryn's latest update is that she'll be touring Bangladesh and India from November 2014-January 2015 to read and perform poetry in collaboration with local artists, courtesy of a Writers' Travel Fund grant from the Australia Council for the Arts.

Read more about Kathryn and her work at ArtSlant. You can find Kathryn's blog here.

Coco Richter, author of Waiting for Inspiration (Hong Kong). 

Coco Richter is from the US, where she practiced law for 18 years. She moved to Hong Kong in 2008 with her family and now writes fiction. She received an MFA in Creative Writing from the University of Hong Kong in 2011. Her writing has previously appeared in multiple editions of Imprint, the annual anthology of the Hong Kong Women in Publishing Society.

Coco is also a talented editor with a knack for encouraging fellow writers and helping them improve their craft.






Ember Swift, author of Chinese Stonewalls (China).

Ember Swift is a Canadian musician, songwriter, performer, and writer. She has released eleven independent album recordings since 1996, one live DVD project, and continues to perform regularly in both North America and China. Now based in Beijing with her Chinese husband and two children, she maintains three popular blogs through her website and is a contributing writer for Women in China Magazine, Herizon's Magazine, Mami Magazine, Beijing Kids Magazine, China.org, and InCulture Parent, an online portal for cross-cultural parenting.

Ember recently made two appearances on Chinese prime time television show "Mama Mia".

Leza Lowitz, author of Here Comes the Sun (Japan).

Leza Lowitz is a writer and yoga teacher in Tokyo. Her debut young adult novel, Jet Black and the Ninja Wind (Tuttle, 2013), received the Asian/Pacific American Award for Literature in the Young Adult category. Leza's Yoga Poems: Lines to Unfold By was a #1 Amazon bestseller. Portions of her memoir in progress appeared in the New York Times online, The Huffington Post, Shambhala Sun, Best Buddhist Writing 2011, and Yoga Journal.

Leza's latest news is that she has sold World English and Japanese-language rights to her memoir, Here Comes the Sun, to Peter Goodman of Stone Bridge Press.

More about Here Comes the Sun:
Leza, who founded the popular Sun and Moon Yoga Studio in Tokyo, relocated to Japan from the USA over ten years ago, met the man of her dreams and yearned for a child. But when attempts to become pregnant fail repeatedly, Leza begins to question whether motherhood is in the cards for her, and if she can finally heal the wounds that have kept motherhood at bay. After much soul-searching, Leza comes to a deeper understanding of what motherhood truly means, and at the age of 44 she and her husband, the award-winning writer Shogo Oketani, begin the process of adopting a child in Japan, where bloodlines are paramount and family ties almost feudal in cultural importance. The memoir will be published in spring 2015.

You can found out more about Leza and her work at her website. She is represented by Kelly Falconer of the Asia Literary Agency

Susan Blumberg-Kason, author of Ninety Minutes in Tsim Sha Tsui (Hong Kong).

Susan Blumberg-Kason is the author of Good Chinese Wife (Sourcebooks, 2014), a memoir of her five-year marriage to a musician from central China and how she tried to adapt to Chinese family life as a wife, daughter-in-law, and mother. She is also the books editor of Asian Jewish Life magazine and can be found online at Susan Blumberg-Kason Remarried, Susan lives in suburban Chicago with her husband, three children, and a clingy cat.

Susan maintains an active presence in the Hong Kong/China book world. Many of you have probably read her reviews and noticed her encouraging and enthusiastic voice. She truly loves the region and the authors who write about it. We are all looking forward to the launch of Susan's own memoir on July 29th!

You can find How Does One Dress to Buy Dragonfruit? True Stories of Expat Women in Asia at the following retailers in paperback and e-book formats.

Amazon (paper and e-book)
Barnes & Noble (paper and e-book)
Smashwords (e-book)
Apple (e-book)

Launch Day for How Does One Dress to Buy Dragonfruit? True Stories of Expat Women in Asia

Today is the official launch of the expat women anthology! It has been such an honor to work on this project, and I'm excited for you guys to finally read it! Thank you for all of your support and enthusiasm since I first put the call for submissions on this blog. The book is available at the major online retailers in both e-book and paperback form. Here are the relevant links:

Amazon (paper and e-book)
Barnes & Noble (paper and e-book)
Smashwords (e-book)
Apple (e-book)

You will also be able to find the anthology in select Hong Kong bookstores soon. We will hold a launch party this fall. More details to come!

For the next 26 days, we will feature one contributor per day on the Dragonfruit Facebook page. Tune in to learn more about their interesting and varied work!

How Does One Dress to Buy Dragonfruit?
True Stories of Expat Women in Asia
Edited by Shannon Young

In this collection, twenty-six women reveal the truth about expatriate life in modern East Asia through original works of memoir and creative non-fiction. Their experiences are varied and unique, demonstrating that expat women's lives go far beyond the stereotypical. The writers hail from a dozen different countries and walks of life. Some are well-known; others are fresh voices adding nuance to the expat conversation. Through deeply personal accounts, they explore what they have learned about themselves and the world through their lives abroad. Together, they create a portrait of the modern expatriate experience that will both resonate and inspire.

Bookspotting and some responses to PAY OFF

Yesterday I spotted a man at a cupcake shop reading a Kindle. I was on my way out of a bookstore after purchasing a paperback edition of The Mysterious Benedict Society (a gift; I rarely buy paper books for myself anymore). This morning, a man was carrying Be Excellent at Anything in Central station. Another man was reading Hotel Kerobokan on the train. Finals season is in full swing, so I've also spotted mathematics textbooks and huge stacks of notes all over the place.

My Kindle Single is hanging out in the top 5 of several best seller lists on Amazon and has received a handful of 5-star reviews. It was #1 in Kindle Singles: Essays & Ideas for approximately two hours this weekend!

There have been some nice mentions on Twitter:

Just finished "Pay Off" by @ShannonYoungHK it's a must-read for any college-bound student! #graduationgifts #studentloans
— Moriah Rees (@MoriahRees) June 3, 2014

Reader Ann wrote this response from a parent's perspective.

And this tweet from a student made me smile:

Just read "Pay Off" by @ShannonYoungHK and can't decide if I'm hopeful for the future or scared shitless
— Melissa Orlandini (@mlovball8) June 4, 2014

In other news, there's still time to enter the Goodreads giveaway for How Does One Dress to Buy Dragonfruit? True Stories of Expat Women in Asia. The book launches a week from today!

What are you all up to? What are people reading in your town this week?

Kindle Single - Pay Off: How One Millennial Eliminated Nearly $80,000 in Student Debt in Less Than Five Years

I'm excited to announce that my Kindle Single on student debt was released on Friday. Naturally, this means I've been refreshing my Amazon ranking on an hourly basis. Over the weekend, the book reached the Top 10 on several best seller lists, including Kindle Singles: Essays & Ideas and Kindle Singles: Memoir.

I'm also a little nervous about this book. It's a sensitive topic. While I hope people will find my analysis fair, I know it has the potential to attract negative comments as well. It will be interesting to see what happens as the reviews come in (so far so good)!

The other reason I'm nervous is that I write exactly how much money I made over the last five years, what my rent has been, and my SAT scores (among other things). It's scary to reveal so much personal information, but I felt it was necessary if this book is to be a candid portrait of a student debtor and a useful resource.

It has been great to work with the folks at Kindle Singles, including my editor--who recognized the appeal of a student debt success story and helped me with the tone--and the cover designer--who does amazing work. I hope that the story will be both encouraging and informative for graduates and their parents. I'd appreciate it if you could share this with any of your friends who are struggling with student debt, especially in the US.

Cover design by Hannah Perrine Mode

Pay Off: How One Millennial Eliminated Nearly $80,000 in Student Debt in Less Than Five Years
By Shannon Young

In 2009, amid the global financial crisis, 21-year-old Shannon Young graduated from college with a degree in English and more than $80,000 in student debt. Less than five years later, she was completely debt-free. This is her story – a cautionary tale with a surprisingly hopeful outcome. Filled with practical advice and personal experience, Pay Off is an invaluable resource for anyone coming into or out of student debt.

$1.99 on Amazon

Bookspotting (and a giveaway!)

It has been a while since my last bookspotting post, but I'm still keeping my eyes open. I saw a schoolboy carrying a Kindle with the same plain black cover I have down an escalator in Central. Twice this week, I've spotted the same man reading The World is Curved by David M. Smick on my morning commute. Another man had a copy of Everything to Lose in my favorite coffee shop. Recently, I've finished reading Sand by Hugh Howey (awesome) and Beautiful Ruins by Jess Walter (beautiful). Now I'm a little more than halfway through The Color Purple by Alice Walker.

In other news, I saw the cover for my upcoming Kindle Single on student debt this morning! I'm so excited to reveal it soon. If you'd like to be emailed when the book launches, please join my mailing list.

Finally, we are holding a Goodreads giveaway for the Dragonfruit anthology. You can enter to win one of five paperback copies before Launch Day on June 10th!

What are you up to lately? What are people reading in your town?

BABY AND A BACKPACK by my friend Jane Cornelius

I first met Jane Cornelius at the Hong Kong International Literary Festival in the spring of 2011. She was sitting in the front row at a talk for aspiring writers, wearing a huge pair of zebra patterned glasses and taking feverish notes with an oversize pen. I was a volunteer--my strategy for attending as many events as possible without having to pay for tickets--and I'd recently admitted that I was also an aspiring writer.

I don't remember everything the speaker said, but I remember Jane. She was eager to soak in as much advice as she could, asking smart questions and making it clear that she was writing actively, not just dreaming about it. At the end of the talk, the speaker suggested that members of the audience connect with each other, perhaps to form writers' groups. I ended up collecting the email addresses. When I sent out a tentative query to this bunch of strangers about possibly meeting up to talk about writing, Jane was the first to respond.

Jane, another writer named Betsy, and I met at a coffee shop at the bottom of Lan Kwai Fong that has since been replaced with another clothing store, and talked shop. Jane was nearly finished with her second manuscript, a memoir of the year she was abandoned by the father of her child and decided to travel the world with a newborn baby. As she talked about her adventures in Bali, Australia, Hawaii, California, and my home state of Arizona--all with a baby in tow and almost no money--I could hardly believe it. Hers was a life of true adventure. She had a real, high-stakes story--a story that was worth writing.

Soon, I'd get to experience the vibrant, whimsical writing style that is all her own. I'd get to see the determination with which she approached her writing career. And I'd even get to participate as we became critique partners. She asked for help with grammar mechanics and polish; I asked for help with plot and with cutting the boring stuff from my writing. It is thanks to her that my own travel memoir (forthcoming from Blacksmith Books later this year) eventually became interesting and honest enough to send to publishers. Even when Jane moved on to Shanghai, we sent chapters and encouragement back and forth.

Over time, I learned that Jane's life of adventure also had a more difficult, tragic backstory. I got to read her first manuscript, a childhood memoir of when she grew up in the English countryside with a legally insane mother, a pro-wrestler father, and a stepmother who was the Bunny Mother of the Playboy Club. When an editor suggested that Jane combine the two manuscripts, I got to read them again as she weaved her stories into one.

Now, Jane's memoir Baby and a Backpack has been published by The Five Mile Press in Australia. She's on a whirlwind tour of bookstores and media, and I couldn't be more excited for her. Baby and a Backpack is also available worldwide for Kindle, so I recently got to read the story again in its finished form. It packs the same emotional punch even after multiple reads, and I recommend it unequivocally. This is a wonderful book about motherhood, travel, and finding a home in a wild, crazy world. And through this story, you get to know the quirky, inspiring, and brave Jane Cornelius, a woman I am proud to call my friend.