Hello Asian Fiction Authors!

This month, we have picked "A Guide on How to Love Jules Everett" by for Book of the Month. If you'd like to read this story, we encourage you to check it out here.

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Logline:

Desperate for help in wooing Jules Everett, Xavier Park seeks the help of her best friend, Aiko Lee. Equipped with nothing but a guidebook and a vast knowledge of Jules, Aiko set out to revamp Xavier into Jules's dream guy.

About the Author:

User twelvewonderingstars is a writer born and raised in Singapore. Since joining Wattpad in December 2013, she has 14 published stories on the site and more written and stored in her drafts (some in their editing stages, some collecting dust). She started out writing Teen Fiction in the early days of her writing career, eventually broadening her field of genres to include Contemporary and Fantasy Romances. In her free time, she's either gaming or penning down new ideas, ever-ready to dive into a new fictional world.

Interview:

1. What influenced your story? What inspired you to write it?

I have a very dear friend who inspired the character of Jules. When this story was created, she had an exceedingly long list of expectations for her future significant other. I used to jest with her and say how it would be difficult for her to find someone like this, and that perhaps I should create a to-do list for any poor soul that dared attempt to woo her. Thus this story was born. (I am happy to announce that this friend has found her Xavier Park! I even joked about sending him an email with all that's in the "guidebook".)

2. What were some challenges you faced while writing your story?

Time. I was still a student back when this story was in the works. The bulk of the story was written whenever I was procrastinating on school assignments (stay in school, kids). It was a great way to entertain myself but difficult to maintain consistent uploads when I was always juggling between two or more things.

3. What message do you hope to convey with your story?

Honestly, the point of this story was really to say that everyone was the main character of their own story. In [A Guide on How to Love Jules Everett], Aiko had always thought of herself as the side character in Jules and Xavier's love story. However, we as readers know that she is the star of the tale, not those two. Likewise, in real life, just because someone is currently living a more glamorous and/or interesting life doesn't mean that you're just a side character in their tale. It's perhaps just a season break for you right now.

4. Do you have any advice for other authors who are interested in writing Asian Fiction?

Honestly, don't add diversity to a story for the sake of diversity; this isn't just about the color of the character's skin. If you're planning to add Asian characters to your tale (especially if it's the main character), make sure you do your research. Depending on the setting of your story, behaviors will change. A Chinese woman born and raised in America will not behave like one born and raised in China. If you're going to butcher it, then just... perhaps don't write it until you're willing to commit.

5. If you could write another story to be featured on the profile, which of our reading lists would you write it for?

Ooh, Shattered Memories sounds fun (in a tear-jerking, sadistic-on-the-author's-part sort of way).

6. If you are an author of Asian descent, what's one cool fact about your culture you can share with us?

I'm from Singapore! So that means that I've grown up with a mix of diversities, cultures, and practices. Apparently, the slangs I've grown up with are now considered as a language by some linguists. That's pretty cool, in my opinion.

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Thank you twelvewonderingstars for giving us the opportunity to interview you and chat more about your book!

We'll see you all in the next Book of the Month!