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Describe your latest book.

My latest book, The Brightest Star, was inspired by Anna May Wong, the first Asian American movie star during the early days of Hollywood. She boldly struggled against the anti-miscegenation laws and racism of the time, watching white actresses in yellowface get all the coveted movie roles while she was relegated to playing servants, damsels in distress, and dragon ladies. Still, Anna May made close to sixty films in her forty-year career that crossed over from silent films to the talkies, and included The Toll of the Sea, The Thief of Bagdad, and Shanghai Express. Her talents went beyond films, having starred in numerous theater productions in the US and Europe where she sang and danced. She was also a great reader who wrote articles and essays, spoke several languages, and filmed and documented her own trip to China, which was later shown on the television series, Bold Journey.

The Brightest Star chronicles Anna May Wong’s survival through not only the injustices of being an Asian American woman in Hollywood, but also her constant struggle for approval from her father and her ancestral country of China, which opposed her acting career and saw it as a form of prostitution. Anna May never felt Chinese enough in China and never American enough in America, a burden she carried throughout her life.

The Brightest Star is the intimate story of not only Anna May Wong and early Hollywood, but the complexities of family and ambition and survival within a culture of racism.

The Brightest Star is the intimate story of not only Anna May Wong and early Hollywood, but the complexities of family and ambition and survival within a culture of racism.

What was your favorite book as a child?

I read constantly when I was young. My mother loved to read and was a big influence when I was growing up. I remember reading so many books that were favorites, from Madeline to Island of the Blue Dolphins to A Wrinkle in Time. I have a vivid memory of A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle leaving a huge impression on me. It was the first time I’d read any sort of science fiction or fantasy, and I was completely fascinated by the story and mesmerized by the entire world she had created.

When did you know you were a writer?

I’ve always felt becoming a writer was an ongoing evolution. So, it took me a very long time to call myself a writer because it all felt very fragile to me in the beginning. I was always aware that even if you had one book published, there was no guarantee you would have a second. I think it was after my third book was published that I felt more comfortable and confident to consider myself a working writer. Still now, each book I’ve written has been a learning experience, whether it’s about researching the subject matter, finding the right voice, or discovering the best structure in which to tell the story. It’s all about continuing to challenge myself to be a better writer with each new book.

Still now, each book I’ve written has been a learning experience, whether it’s about researching the subject matter, finding the right voice, or discovering the best structure in which to tell the story.

What does your writing workspace look like?

I have two writing workspaces in different locations: one that’s closer to water, and the other in the mountains surrounded by trees. One is more open and less cluttered than the other, but both have books and photos of family and friends all around me for comfort and company. I often take turns sitting and standing when I’m working so the books also come in handy when I need to raise my laptop to a higher level when I stand.

Share an interesting experience you've had with one of your readers.

One really unforgettable experience I had with a reader came through a letter that was sent to my publisher and forwarded to me. It came from a homeless woman who wrote to thank me. She’d gotten hold of a used copy of The Street of a Thousand Blossoms, and was reading it in her car each night before going to sleep. She told me it transported her to the world of my characters in Japan, and she didn’t think about the fact that she was without a stable home. It deeply affected me, reminding me firsthand of the power of books even in the most difficult situations. I still think about her, hoping for the best. She put her sister’s address on the envelope and I tried to reach out to her so I could send her more books but I never heard back.

Introduce one other author you think people should read, and suggest a good book with which to start.

I’ve always admired Yoko Ogawa, the well-known Japanese author who has won a slew of major awards in Japan but isn’t as widely known here. Not all of her work has been translated, but start with The Housekeeper and the Professor, a book both charming and quietly powerful.

Have you ever made a literary pilgrimage?

I’ve made several literary pilgrimages, visiting Jane Austen’s Bath, Beatrix Potter’s cottage in the Lake District of England, and William Shakespeare’s birthplace in Stratford-upon-Avon. Several years ago, I went to Katherine Mansfield’s childhood home in Wellington, New Zealand. I can’t tell you the feeling of joy I felt to see where these writers started out, and what in their surroundings might have sparked their imaginations.

I can’t tell you the feeling of joy I felt to see where these writers started out, and what in their surroundings might have sparked their imaginations.

The best revenge is doing well.

If you weren’t an author, what would you be?

I started out wanting to be a filmmaker, watching films late into the night throughout my childhood, only to quickly realize after taking some film courses in college that it wasn’t the right medium to tell the stories I wanted to. I needed descriptive narrative, which wasn’t part of the filmmaking process. I quickly moved over to the English Department, which had an emphasis in Creative Writing as part of their program. I realized it was language, the story, and the characters that were most important to me, which I was fortunate enough to find in writing. But secretly, I’ve always wanted to be a doctor, only I wasn’t good enough in the sciences to pursue it as a career. Now I like to believe that I’m practicing medicine in my books, that words can also have a great deal of healing power.

Top Five Books I Wish I’d Written

These are five contemporary books that I wish I’d written. (In no particular order.) They’re all very different, but each has a distinct voice that defines them. And each continues to remind me of how to use character, voice, setting, dialogue, and structure to create beautiful storytelling.

The Shipping News by Annie Proulx
The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver
Behind the Scenes at the Museum by Kate Atkinson
Sing, Unburied, Sing by Jesmyn Ward
A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles Gail Tsukiyama was born in San Francisco, California, to a Chinese mother from Hong Kong and a Japanese father from Hawaii. She attended San Francisco State University where she earned her Bachelor of Arts Degree and a Master of Arts Degree in English. She is the bestselling author of seven previous novels, including Women of the Silk, The Samurai's Garden, and A Hundred Flowers, and has received the Academy of American Poets Award and the PEN Oakland/Josephine Miles Literary Award. She divides her time between El Cerrito and Napa Valley, California. The Brightest Star is her newest novel.