This week was the official launch of Kipuka: Finding Refuge in Times of Change, a special collection I helped to edit with Brenda Kwon, Meredith Enos, and Misty Sanico. We started on the issue in 2019, and it rose out of a need to reflect on and consider life in contemporary Hawaiʻi and the various challenges facing the communities here, and this question, “If nothing is static and everything changes, in what can we anchor?”
It features an amazing collection of authors and artists. You can learn more and order the book here. Safari users, you may want to try Firefox or mobile.
To help promote the issue, Misty and I went on HPR. You can listen to the interview here.
Also check out the recording of the official launch at the Hawaiʻi Book and Music Festival:
Honestly, I’m pretty terrible at blogging (as evidenced by this blog). I don’t like to write about myself and the self-promotion aspect of being a writer in the age of social media always makes me feel weary in a variety of ways, especially as it encourages some kind of imagined competition.
So yeah, I try not to indulge in that. It makes me self-conscious, more than I already am.
Still, as I made this website to be a hub of sorts, I wanted to provide some updates.
In terms of new publications, I have largely stepped back from submitting to compile a collection of short stories which I recently completed. It’s 14 stories now (around 35,000 words), about half of them new, the rest were written over the last ten years. Some were written while I was working on my novel while others were imagined during that time frame and/or written after. Because of this, the collection covers similar themes of addiction, family, and grief but these stories also cover gentrification, family history, identity, climate change, PTSD, houselessness, and militarization. Overall, I hope it captures a sense of what it’s like to live in Hawaiʻi today. So far, I’ve queried some agents and publishers and it’s being considered. Here’s to hoping.
Other than that, I did have a reprint published. It’s one of my favorites and was inspired by a Civil Beat article on sea-level rise. In this story, Waikīkī and much of the island is underwater, and the main character finds himself navigating the canals searching for his daughter. I love this story so much, I decided to use the premise to begin a larger work-in-progress, what may end up being another novel. I’ve got three chapters so far. We’ll see.
In addition, I co-edited a special issue of Bamboo Ridge. It’s an exciting issue and will be out in the fall (check out that author list). I don’t want to spoil it, but you can check out the cover below. You can pre-order it at Bamboo Ridge.
That’s all for now.
If you want more updates, random thoughts, and other nonsense, follow me @D_CarreiraChing.
Now more than ever, we are reminded of the importance of connection and community. In the interest of fostering connection during this stressful time, Bamboo Ridge has launched a new “Bamboo Ridge @ Home” playlist, featuring writers reading their work and sharing positive messages. Check out the full playlist here (with more to come). You can also check out my reading here:
Excited and honored to share this piece that was recently published in the latest issue of Vice-Versa Journal. It’s a story of family, the houseless crisis, and Waikīkī underwater. It’s also my first attempt at climate fiction. I hope you enjoy it.
Going through a box of old paperwork, tax forms, and other “important” papers, I discovered my first set of publications. My first publication was in Cirque: A Literary Journal for Alaska and the Pacific Northwest. It was one of maybe two stories I’ve written that’s not about Hawai‘i and was inspired by a song. It also came at a time when I had given up the novel I was writing (all 300 pages of it). Inspired by discussions in a Literatures of Hawai‘i course as well as by events/issues within my community (and discussions with my wife/editor), I decided to try to write something “local.” It was a mess, but with Danielle’s careful eye and one of my professor’s/mentor’s guidance, “Between Sky and Sea” eventually found its way into Hawai‘i Review (after being recently rejected by another pub). I had probably sent fifteen drafts to Eric and Darrell at Bamboo Ridge Press (my impatience and lack of experience publishing really showing at that time). When I wrote to withdraw it, I was surprised that they responded, letting me know that they wanted to publish it anyway. I was stunned, especially because it had always been a dream of mine to be in BR. Ten years later, I feel grateful and fortunate to still be writing, publishing, and helping others do the same.
I’m slowly starting to write new stuff again and send it out. I’ve received a number of rejections, which is unfortunate. But thankfully, they’ve all been rather positive, with many editors providing feedback and encouraging me to let them know when I decide to submit again. And thus, I continue to submit, submit, submit (which is probably the most important part of the process other than the writing and revising, of course).
Some good news: I’ve got an excerpt from the manuscript I’m working on published in the new issue of Bamboo Ridge, which you can pick up here.
Also, Hawaii Pacific Review just published a flash fiction piece I wrote, which you can check out here.
As with much of my writing, both look at social issues in Hawaii. The first, the societal pressures facing teenagers and adolescents; and the second, the homeless sweeps, high cost of living in Hawaiʻi, and abandoned cars.
Just a quick post today. This morning I woke up to a wonderful surprise—a review for Between Sky and Sea in The International Examiner. If you want to check it out, you can do so here.
I’ve uploaded my reading from this year’s award ceremony for the Elliot Cades award for Literature. Thank you to the Hawaiʻi Literary Arts Council for this honor. As a local writer, it means everything. Thank you to Danielle Lanakila Carreira Ching, my family, friends, fellow writers, colleagues, and teachers who helped to inspire and guide me with your love, support, and knowledge, and to Eric Chock, Darrell Lum, and Bamboo Ridge for giving my manuscript the chance.
Special shoutout to the amazingly talented Tyler Mcmahon for winning for established author, and Patrice Wilson and Michael Little for receiving the Loretta D. Petrie Award for outstanding service to Hawaiʻi’s Literary community.
First of all, thank you to those that have visited my site and supported my work since I launched it last year and since I started writing a little over six years ago, especially everyone who picked up my novel over the last eight months.
I have been waiting with baited breath for reviews to come in, and it’s been so wonderful to personally hear from people who have experienced the story of the Teixeiras and their struggle in the wake of tragedy, addiction, and the complications of growing up local. As previously posted, last month I was excited and grateful to find out that BETWEEN SKY AND SEA had made Honolulu Magazine’s list of “must have” summer reads, and just this past Sunday I found out that my novel was reviewed in Sunday’s Honolulu Star-Advertiser. If you don’t have access to the paper, I have attached a photo of the review below.
For me, more than the review itself, it’s the knowledge that the story is out there and breathing. When it came to BETWEEN, this was an important part of why I wrote it, giving these characters and this story life.
If you have a reaction to share, please don’t hesitate to leave it below or message me directly at d.constructediting@gmail.com.
On September 27th, Bamboo Ridge Press will be throwing their annual Wine & Words fundraiser at Mānoa Valley Theater. It promises to be an amazing night with good food, plenty of wine, and great local reads. In addition, the event will include a raffle featuring art from BR writers and artists, plus a rare first edition of BAMBOO RIDGE.
It’s also a very special event for me as it marks the first time that I will be reading from my debut novel in Hawaiʻi.
Other readers include the always brilliant and inspiring Christy Passion, who will be reading from her visceral debut, STILL OUT OF PLACE, and BAMBOO RIDGE #108 Editor’s Choice winners, Carol Catanzariti and Kapena M. Landgraf.
Between Waters Unseen 