My sister called her pillow a pilgo. My brother called his pacifier his nimma. But I don't think I was much of a word generator myself.

Do you forget that I am your sister?”
“No; I’ve never been granted the opportunity to forget it.

Part of being a fiction writer is being able to imagine how someone else is thinking and feeling. I think I've always been good at that.

My brother and sister were much older. They were planned. I was not planned for. I was called the mistake, amongst other things.

I think the reason I'm a writer is because first, I was a reader. I loved to read. I read a lot of adventure stories and mystery books, and I have wonderful memories of my mom reading picture books aloud to me. I learned that words are powerful.

We opened Panda Inn on June 8, 1973. The whole family - my parents, a brother and sister - all worked at the restaurant for free. We lived in a two-bedroom apartment in San Gabriel and didn't have any money.