Category Archives: News

A Penny for My Thoughts

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1. If Tony Soprano is alive, and for better or worse we know his mortality will always be in question (I vote for “better” myself), he might have opened up Friday’s edition of the Ledger and read a story about a South Korean author.

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2. That’s me with my Troy Polamalu impression.  The photo was taken in Long Branch, by the piers, for a story with a rather long title:

South Korean man draws on his experience of immigrating to Jersey as basis for award-winning book and his coming to terms with his cultural differences

It’s strange to read about yourself on paper.  Mostly, what I feel is a sense of dissociation, that the person the reporter is talking about is not me.  Yet there I am, sharing the name and the visage with this character, and possessing a personal history not unlike my own.  Yes, this is my story, but in order to create the most compelling drama, stresses have been placed on certain facets of my life while other parts were minimized or not mentioned.

In addition, as a writer, what I feel is powerlessness.  I’m used to being the one in control of the written word, but in this case, I’m standing on the other side of the glass, looking in.

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3. It finally happened, as I knew it would at some point — you can now buy a copy of my book in hardcover for a penny from Amazon!  Of course shipping cost is about 400 times that amount, but hey, it’s nonetheless a genuine bargain.

Favorite Songs of 2010

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Dean Pelton as Lady Gaga

Here’s a list of my top nineteen songs for this year, in alphabetical order by artist.  These are not necessarily from 2010; I just happened to have heard them in the last twelve months.

“The Unknown,” by Athlete on Black Swan
“Gonna Get Over You,” by Sara Bareilles on Kaleidoscope Heart
“All in All,” by Broken Social Scene on Forgiveness Rock Records
“Haven’t Met You Yet,” by Michael Bublé on Crazy Love
“Belong,” by Cary Brothers on Under Control
“Radar Detector,” by Darwin Deez on Darwin Deez
“Walking in My Sleep,” by Fair on Disappearing World
“Living in Colour,” by Frightened Rabbit on The Winter of Mixed Drinks
“Bad Romance,” by Lady Gaga on The Fame Monster
“Baby I’m a Fool,” by Melody Gardot on My One and Only Thrill
“Change of Time,” by Josh Ritter on So Runs the World Away
“London,” by The Rumble Strips on Welcome to the Walk Alone
“Castaways, by Shearwater on The Golden Archipelago
“Cinderella,” by Langhorne Slim on Be Set Free
“Breakfast in Bed,” by Train on Save Me, San Francisco
“Lost,” by KT Tunstall on Tiger Suit
“Will Power,” by Turin Brakes on Outbursts
“Pretty Melody,” by Butch Walker on I Liked It Better When You Had No Heart
“Falling,” by Wiretree on Luck

What was my very favorite?  That honor would go to Lady Gaga’s “Bad Romance.”  The way the song progresses might bear a striking resemblance to her previous megahit “Poker Face,” but it doesn’t change the fact that it’s as perfect as a pop song can be.

High Point Regional High School and the End of the 2010 Tour

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Photo by Terry-Ann Zander; Woo was given Korean cookbooks created by High Point Regional students. Each cookbook contained recipes prepared by students in honor of his visit. From left, Megan Van Glahn, Sung J. Woo, Brittany Anello and Derek Vanalthuis.

Photo by Terry-Ann Zander; Woo was given Korean cookbooks created by High Point Regional students. Each cookbook contained recipes prepared by students in honor of his visit. From left, Megan Van Glahn, Sung J. Woo, Brittany Anello and Derek Vanalthuis.

On December 9, I visited High Point Regional High School at Sussex, NJ. There were about a hundred students in the auditorium, and after I gave a reading and answered questions from the audience, we headed over to the cafeteria. And you know what was there? Korean food!

In addition to reading my book, their teacher (Ms. Reedy — thank you, Laraine!) suggested that they delve a bit deeper into Korean culture, so they found recipes on the Internet and cooked up a storm.  Check out the gallery below to see some photos I took with my phone of their impressive spread, plus closeups of the cookbooks they made for me.  I especially appreciated these, as I’m an excellent eater of Korean food but unfortunately a nonexistent cook.

Also, the local newspaper ran a story about my visit.  And with this event, I’m done for 2010.  The totals: 17 locations, 1868 miles driven.

Photos from the Page Turner Festival

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On November 7, I participated in the Page Turner Festival in DUMBO, reading with the poet Luis Francia and the stand-up comic Hari Kondabolu (middle initial K.).  It was a wonderful event in every way except for one — Richard Price never showed up.  A shame, as I had a number of books and DVDs for him to sign!  In any case, check out the photos below.

10/25: Spartan Scholar Ceremony

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On October 25, I went back to my old high school, which of course meant I traveled back in time.  I hadn’t set foot in the building in almost twenty years, and I’d forgotten that the auditorium was right by the entrance.   What did feel familiar were the lockers, rows and rows of lockers, banks of them painted in red and blue and orange.

Every year, Ocean Township High School recognizes academic achievement at the Spartan Scholar ceremony, and this year, they were kind enough to invite me as a guest speaker.  Appearing below are some pictures and the speech I delivered.  The latter portion of the speech includes my “Backstory” piece.

Continue reading →

11/7: Page Turner Festival @ Brooklyn

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I’ll be partaking in the second annual Page Turner Festival, the Asian American Literary Festival presented by the Asian American Writers’ Workshop.   Check out my event below and be there!

OPEN CITY: The Diaspora Next Door
November 7, 4pm – powerHouse Ground Floor

So say you head out to Flushing for the food and New Jersey to see your fam, but who’s telling the stories of the immigrant communities, whose stories are often obscured by language barriers and economic segregation? Luis Francia, Hari Kondabolu, and Sung Woo will act as your tour guide through the diasporic landscape of Mom-and-pop shops, strip malls, and cart food in the outer boroughs and Jersey, the honorary borough. Asian American Literary Award winner Luis Francia’s new chapbook is populated by manongs, teen rappers, and a comfort woman relocated to Queens. Stand up comic Hari Kondabolu–star of Comedy Central and “a national comedic treasure” (The Stranger)–talks about coming of age in Queens. And Sung J. Woo’s Everything Asian features a Korean American family running a shop in a depressed New Jersey town. Reading headlined by Organizing Fellows of the Workshop’s OPEN CITY: Blogging Urban Change, an innovative anti-gentrification blog featuring writers gathering testimony from immigrants in Chinatown, Sunset Park and Flushing.

Upcoming KoreamAmericanStory.org Event

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Book reading and wine reception — that’s a pretty good combination.  If you happen to be in the NYC area tomorrow night, please come by Korean Cultural Services at 460 Park Ave.(57th Street), 6th Floor.  In addition to yours truly, Alex Chee and Taehun Kim will also be there to read from their works.  It all starts at 7pm.

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[event brochure in PDF]

Two Days of Brooklyn Bookfest 2010

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The Brooklyn Bookfest has come and gone, and what a fun-filled couple of days it was.  I took part in the Bookend event on Friday night at powerHouse Arena, then returned on Sunday to take in the literary scenery.  Some of the folks I got to hear: Brooke Berman, Daphne Beal, Matt Stewart, Aryn Kyle, Dennis Lehane, Steven Millhauser, Peter Straub, Stewart O’Nan, Sigrid Nunez, Benjamin Percy.  That might be about 1% of the authors who were at the event, so I’ll have to do better next time.  In any case, here are some pictures in case you weren’t able to make it.

What’s It Like to Choose Cover Art?

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The good folks at Debut Lit, who will be putting on an event at the Brooklyn Bookfest Bookend series this Friday night, asked me if I had something to say about the vastly different designs between the hardcover and paperback editions of my novel.  Here’s a bit of what I wrote:

Everybody knows the saying — you can’t judge a book by its cover.  Which is true.  But at the same time, it is the first thing that people see, and you want it to be original, relevant, and eye-catching.  I didn’t think my hardcover jacket was any of those things, but I didn’t have much choice in the matter.  Unless your last name happens to end in Grisham or Patterson or King, I don’t think you have much input when it comes to your cover.

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In the short essay, I mentioned the rejected “shoe cover.”  Curious about what it looked like?  Here it is.

Not a bad cover.  I especially liked the way the designer integrated “A Novel” into the insole of the slipper.  Alas, it was not meant to be.

In any case, come on by this Friday to Brooklyn to celebrate all things books!  It’ll be a rollicking good time.

DEBUT LIT Presents “Opening Act,” a flash reading of original work by literary rock stars. Readings will be written on a theme provided by DEBUT LIT—it’s fun and it’s fast. Readers include Aryn Kyle (The God of Animals), John Murillo (Up Jump the Boogie), Sung J. Woo (Everything Asian), Brooke Berman (No Place Like Home), Matt Stewart (French Revolution), Fiona Maazel (Last Last Chance), and Daphne Beal (In the Land of No Right Angles).
Location: powerHouse Arena, 37 Main St.
Date: 7 p.m.
Price: FREE