GYOPO Korean American Young Adult Fiction Panel

KSP partnered with GYOPO for their "Korean American Young Adult Fiction Today” event on Sat. April 16. The event consisted of a panel discussion moderated by Amy Kahng @queenkahng and conversations with the authors at the Japanese American Cultural and Community Center by three Korean American authors—Mary H.K. Choi @choitotheworld, Sarah Suk @_sarahsuk, David Yoon @davidoftheyoon,—and Nicola Yoon @nicolayoon.

KSP Program Associate Sarah Jho and KSP Youth Participant Lucy Hwang (@bloucatt) organized two Zoom meetings in March and April 2022 to read Frankly in Love by best-selling author David Yoon with other KSP high school students, Nadia Cho, Lila Kim and Emily Kim. Discussions about Korean identity, interracial relationships, and second/third generation experiences were openly shared.

At the event, our reading group was able to talk to David about his writing process, intentions, and so much more. It was inspiring to hear from authors of color who have created protagonists of color. We gained insight on the ever-changing meaning of “Korean-ness”, prejudice in Hollywood, and the creative writing process.

Special thanks to Gyopo, California Humanities and the Korean American Community Fund, San Francisco for sponsoring this amazing program.