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Featured Writer
Janet Liu
Janet Liu, 59, says she spent most of her life as a “rational person,” but in her middle age, she opened up to her intuitive side. A first-generation immigrant from China, Janet moved to the United States when she was 10, and grew up with one foot in each culture. She moved to Portland in the early 1990's. A participant in the summer workshop in the Neighborhood House Senior Center, Janet also volunteers with Write Around Portland.
Janet is pictured, right. Janet's writing and an interview with her about writing in community follow.
Immigrant
by Janet Liu
I come from Taiwan, a province of China. I immigrated with my family to America when I was ten. My father had come, many years before us, for graduate study and then to work. He helped my mother and the two children to settle in America—with learning English, with the cultural change. We lived in Wisconsin. It was bitterly cold there. Once I came home from school and cried because my fingers were frozen numb. But I was given gloves and I soon adapted to the cold. I even learned to ice-skate. That first year in America my father asked my brother and I what we wanted for Christmas. My brother and I had never been asked what we wanted for gifts before. We had been given new clothes for Chinese New Year and given our favorite food for our birthdays. We adjusted readily. I wanted a bicycle; my brother wanted a puppy. We both got our wishes.
Tragically, my father died two years after we arrived. My mother did her best to raise the two children, with her limited English and at clerical jobs. Her biggest challenge was the U.S. immigration bureau, which tried to deport us...
Interview with Featured Writer Janet Liu
Biography writer and interviewer: Steven Skoczen, Volunteer
How did you first get involved with Write Around Portland?
I volunteer at Neighborhood House and saw a flyer for the workshop. Since storytelling takes a hiatus in the summer, I thought I'd take the course, on a lark.
And, how was it?
It was great. The workshop exceeded my expectations. I didn't know how much creativity could come from a few small writing prompts - it was surprising how freely the words flowed!
To hear feedback on my writing was gratifying, and hearing other writers' stories and different styles is something that opens your mind. The variety of each workshop also kept us on our toes, and gave us a chance to let out that wild crazy side sometimes.
Were you writing a lot before the workshop?
I've been journaling for about 10 years. I journal every day, then each week write a summary of the week, and every two months, write a summary of those months. My creative writing, both with Write Around Portland and my storytelling group, grew out of my journaling.
What motivates you as a writer?
A lot of things! One is that I want to leave something for my daughter, to preserve some of the experiences I had, the immigrant stories, the things I've learned throughout my life. I want to leave her some answers, so that when she is older and looking for them, she'll have what I've figured out.
You're now a published author, in the summer Write Around Portland anthology, Follow Me, Move the World. How was the experience of submitting your writing, and seeing your work in print?
You know, at first, I wasn't going to submit [a piece of my writing for publication in the book]. I thought, "What's in it for me?" But, as we talked in the group, something clicked - I realized that nobody was planning to submit. I thought, "We can't just leave all these stories out of the book!" So I decided to submit, and started recruiting other writers in my group to submit [their writing] as well. Four of us did, and we're all in the anthology.
Are you happy you submitted your writing to be published?
Oh yes! It's great to see my work in a book, and have those stories shared with the world. I have friends ask me for copies all the time. I'm so glad I did it.
How has being in the workshop affected you?
I think my voice is stronger, and it was great to have affirmation of my writing. I am confident that I have something important to say, and that I can say it in a way that interests people.
Would you want to do another workshop with Write Around Portland?
Yes, in fact I'm doing a workshop this fall!
"I was doing some writing on my own. But there was no way to go through the process by myself."
--Daphna Kohn
"I like that you’re not isolated [when you're writing in community]."
--Kelly Tadlock
Featured Writer
Janet Liu