Hey, internet! What's up? You know what's up. It's time to meet the Angry Reader of the Week, spotlighting you, the very special readers of this website. Over the years, I've been able to connect with a lot of cool folks, and this is a way of showing some appreciation and attention to the people who help make this blog what it is. This week's Angry Reader is Jamie Ford.
Who are you?
I'm the great-grandson of Nevada mining pioneer, Min Chung, who came to the US in 1861. He later changed his name to William Ford -- thus confusing countless generations. (That means my family has been here longer than Donald Trump's).
What are you?
I'm a failed artist but a decent writer.
My breakout novel, Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet sold more than a million copies and has been published in 34 languages. (I'm still holding out for Klingon. That's when you know you've made it).
Where are you?
Montana. Some days it's like living in 1977, which if you think about it, was a fantastic year: Star Wars premiered, the Atari was born, and the Clash's first album was released. It's like living in the best year of my childhood.
Where are you from?
I'm from a wonderful mixed-race home near Seattle. My dad was full Chinese and my mom was what I affectionately call Betty Crocker White. In retrospect it's weird to picture a Chinese guy with a white wife in the 60s. I can only think of two, Bruce Lee and my dad. Speaking of, I had the pleasure of meeting Linda Lee a few years ago -- and she'd read my books! I swooned.
What do you do?
I write multi-cultural historical fiction. I love forgotten history -- basically turning over rocks and looking at the squishy things we've hidden as a society.
I'm also exploring graphic novels and Asian-themed steampunk. And I hope to write comics. (I know, it's a labor of love, but I adore the medium of graphic storytelling).
And I sing a lot of show tunes.
What are you all about?
My deadline at the moment; I'm finishing a new novel about a half-Asian boy who was raffled off at the 1909 World's Fair in Seattle. See, forgotten history! His name was Ernest, by the way.
What makes you angry?
These days, Hollywood.
I've had a lot of interest in the movie rights to my first novel. But then I had all these meetings where people said, "This will never be produced because your main characters are Chinese, Japanese, and black," or "How do we mitigate the financial risk without a white, male lead?"
One of these days, Hollywood, we'll figure it out.
