Lecture Notes on Author Chat with Jenny Ting Hui Zhang

Speaker: Jody and Jenny Ting Hui Zhang
Date: [Adding date if known]

Introduction

Jody introduces herself as a speaker and writer focused on race, culture, and health equity.
Mentions working with One Kin, a tech company promoting small businesses and entrepreneurs, especially those of color.
Focus of the chat: discussion of Four Treasures of the Sky by Jenny Ting Hui Zhang.

Jenny Ting Hui Zhang shares her excitement about the chat.
Discussion about Four Treasures of the Sky:
- Premise: a 13-year-old Chinese girl named Daiyu is kidnapped and sold into a brothel in San Francisco. Her journey takes her across the West to Idaho while she grapples with the anti-Chinese sentiment during the 1880s, framed by the Chinese Exclusion Act.

Essential to the narrative is the history surrounding Daiyu's experiences as well as the broader Chinese-American experience.
Jenny acknowledges the novel as historical fiction, though it is a new genre for her.
The inspiration derived from her father's stories about a historical marker regarding lynching of Chinese men in Idaho.

The narrative explores the lives of the five men lynched, questioning who they were through the lens of Daiyu's journey.
Discussing the idea that 'what is done is done,' reflecting on the characters' fates as set against this historical backdrop.

Writing is a journey of connection to characters and their backgrounds.
Author’s Note and acknowledgments as key aspects of understanding the book before reading.
Lin Daiyu from the Chinese classic Dream of the Red Chamber significantly influences Daiyu’s character, showcasing the struggle against her perceived fate related to her name.
Jenny highlights the evolution of her characters and their complex inter-relationships, including the appearance of Lin Daiyu as a comforting presence during Daiyu's tribulations.

The novel addresses female agency within oppressive contexts, showcasing that not all women provide nurturing support for each other.
Notable character Madam Lee serves as a contrast to Daiyu, representing choices women make that might harm others.

Discussion about the cover art of Four Treasures of the Sky, the interpretation of what it visually represents (the duality of Daiyu's experience versus her identity).

Jenny illustrates how she developed sensory descriptions (e.g., dampness and wetness) to elicit emotional responses from readers.
Emphasizes the importance of character depth to enhance reader engagement.

Recognition of Jenny’s lyrical prose and its rhythm influencing her writing style; her choice to omit quotation marks in dialogue to enhance the narrative flow and deeper reader connection.

Jenny shares collaborative processes and early readers, including her mother and best friends.
Discusses how personal experiences inform her creative expression.

Encouragement to balance joy in writing with the practicalities of being published.
Importance of nurturing your creative life and relationship with writing, advocating a return to the source of joy in storytelling.

Key Takeaways:

The exploration of historical fiction can reveal histories often neglected.
Writing is a deeply personal journey requiring the incorporation of one's truth and experiences.
Female agency can manifest in complex ways, revealing the layered nature of women's interactions.