TSR:
What
does the word "story"
mean to you?
ZSR:
In my opinion, a story describes events and interactions that arecommon
to all human beings, but in the story the happening centresaround a
particular character with a specific background.
TSR:
Do you have a reader in mind when you write stories?
ZSR: Yes, I do. I write for readers who are interested in human stories,
more especially interested in women’s cross-cultural experiences in
certain historical periods.
TSR: Is
there
anything you'd like to ask someone who has read your collection, anything at all?
ZSR: I’d like to ask these questions: Do you have any empathy with any
of the characters? How would you react if you were in the character’s
shoes? Do you prefer an open ending?
TSR: How does
it feel knowing that people are buying your book?
ZSR: That’s
a good feeling, but I also ask myself: Can
this book of non-mainstream fiction sell?
Can I write better while remaining true
to myself?
TSR:
What are you working on now?
ZSR: I’m working on my second novel. It’s about a girl who escapes
from a military farm during the Cultural Revolution to seek freedom
in North America. It’s derived from the story Yearning.
One
of my readers told me that all the stories
of Butterfly Tears
were too short; she wanted them to be extended into novels. I think
at least this reader would be eager to read my future novel.
