5 Years of Playwriting

There is a series from PBS called “The First Twenty,” where it explores significant, altering events within the first two decades of the 21st century. One of the episodes, “20 Years of Asian American Playwriting,” interviews playwrights – from David Henry Hwang to Lauren Yee – about how Asian American playwriting has evolved.

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Thoughts About Historical Fiction

By now, I think I’ve made it clear as to the kind of fiction I’m adept to writing. My go-to genres are contemporary fiction, magical realism, fantasy, and science fiction. However, in my little corner of the Internet, I haven’t been shy about dissecting other genres that I’m not necessarily the strongest at writing in; most notably young adult fiction and romance (even though ironically, I seem to have developed a bit of a skill for writing rom-coms).

Meeting David Mitchell

It’s the dawn of a new year with very little to expect. That’s why to kick things off, I decided to have a little fun with this first post for 2022 and share something that happened to me a few weeks ago.

How Playwriting and Screenwriting is Making Me a Better Writer

Nearly five years ago now, shortly after releasing my second novel, I started making the journey towards writing for both the stage and the screen. A Christmas gift of the word-processing program, Scrivener, jump-started my expansion into other creative writing mediums. Within that time, I have since written multiple stage plays, a few spec scripts, a few pilots, a few short films, and even a feature-length screenplay. Oh, I also upgraded to Final Draft earlier this year, because I felt that it was time to up the ante.

Looking Back on “An Absolute Mind” 5 Years Later

Well… here we are. Two days from now will mark five years since the release of my second novel, An Absolute Mind. Half a decade has passed since I made this work of mine available to the world, and I continue to be astonished as to how relevant some of the themes and topics covered in the novel have and continue to become.

Thoughts About Drawing Inspiration From Real Lives

If you’re someone who’s in tune with widely read pieces on the Internet, then by now, you’re probably aware of the lengthy New York Times article that was published earlier this week called “Who Is the Bad Art Friend?” To put it short, it goes into great detail about the legal dispute between a kidney donor and a writer whose short story may or may not have been inspired by the former’s experience.

Sarah Dayan Mueller on “Home in a Hundred Places” and Writing During the Pandemic

I don’t do interviews in this neck of the Internet as often as I did during the first year of doing this blog. However, I occasionally make space to speak with a fellow writer on their own creative process. That’s what’s happening today, and what makes this interview really special is that it’s with someone who I interviewed on here before: Sarah Dayan Mueller.

What Did I Miss? – January 2021

Published Works

Review of A Test of Courage by Justina Ireland – For Goodreads, after receiving an ARC of this upcoming middle grade novel from Disney Books, I give my brief thoughts about it.

The Backstory ‘Cobra Kai’ Should Tell – For The Nerds of Color, I argue my case for why the backstory of a gone but not forgotten character from “The Karate Kid” universe should be brought to life for the hit Netflix series.

The Stars of ‘Finding ‘Ohana’ Discuss Filming in Hawaii and Hawaiian Representation – For The Nerds of Color, I talked story with the four stars of this new family adventure Netflix film.

Review of Into the Dark by Claudia Gray – For Goodreads, ahead of its February release, I give my take on the first young adult novel from “The High Republic” era of “Star Wars.”

Appearances

Amazing Asians in the Arts: Lauren Lola – I am the first featured creative for The Cr8sian Project’s Amazing Asians in the Arts series for the year. I talk about my work as a writer, challenges and moments from my journey, and goals I have set for myself.

Jan. 5, 2021 – Screenwriter Lauren Lola (An Absolute Mind) – I take part in a short interview for WILDsound Podcast about the screenplay adaptation of An Absolute Mind, my journey as a writer, as well as which “Star Wars” film I’ve seen the most times.

Rainy Day Artistic Collective Interview – Ahead of the inaugural Winter One Act Festival, as one of the playwrights who will have work featured in it, I’m interviewed about my journey in the theatre world for the collective’s Facebook page.

Interview with Screenwriter Lauren Lola (AN ABSOLUTE MIND) – Matthew Toffolo, CEO of the WILDsound Film Festival, interviews me about the screenplay adaptation of “An Absolute Mind”.

News

The Short Screenplay Challenge 2020 | 1st Round, Challenge #2 Results – My scores from the first two challenges of this screenwriting competition are added up, placing me in the Top 15 for my assigned group.

Trailers

SCREENPLAY TRAILER: An Absolute Mind Script Trailer – WILDsound’s Fantasy/Sci-Fi Film & Writing Festival produces an epic trailer for the screenplay adaptation of my second novel of the same name.

Representation Matters

This is a phrase that I’ve seen shared a lot on social media within recent years and it’s one that rings volumes of truth: Representation matters. Seeing or reading about someone who’s like you – whether they are the same race, gender, sexual orientation, a combination of them, etc. – as the hero of their own story means a lot, especially for those who haven’t really seen themselves portrayed before. It legitimizes one’s existence and that their stories are valid.

Where Spoken Words Fail, Written Words Take Over

Several years ago, I opened up about how when I was little, I was speech and language delayed. It took years of working with educators and therapists to get me on track to where I need to be, communication-wise. By the time I hit junior high, unless you checked my records, no one would have ever suspected that I once struggled to speak.