By Andrew Hamlin
NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY
Chinese Canadian author Kim Fu moved here from British Columbia. But she judges her Seattle neighborhoods by interconnectedness—and more specifically, walking distances.
“I lived in Belltown, and now I live in Interbay, both of which I like for being central to transit,” explained the author, who discusses her new book, “Lesser Known Monsters of the 21st Century,” on July 30 at the Seattle Public Library. “In Belltown, it felt easy to walk downtown or up to Capitol Hill or SLU or down to the waterfront. From Interbay, all of Ballard, Fremont, Magnolia, and Queen Anne feel close by.”
“I appreciate the accessibility of Asian and Asian American arts and culture in Seattle, particularly in the realms of theater, food, dance, and film. There is so much I’d never be able to see on the big screen if I lived in even most other cities in North America. And we have mam’s books [in Chinatown]!”
Asked about her compatriots on the Asian writing and artistic scenes in town, Fu says she’s fortunate on that front as well.
“I feel lucky to be close friends with a number of Asian American writers here (I owe much to Lucy Tan, Susie Yang, Sonora Jha, and Putsata Reang), and an acquaintance-admirer of many more. I think community is especially helpful when navigating the worlds of publishing, promotion, teaching—the parts of an artistic career that aren’t the actual art-making, where the experience of marginalization can feel the loneliest or most confusing.”
The “Lesser Known Monsters” book marks Fu’s first collection of short stories.
“Even though I have only one story collection so far, and I’ve published a book of poetry and two novels (with another novel, ‘The Valley of Vengeful Ghosts,’ coming out in March of 2026), I’m starting to think I am constitutionally a short story writer. I am in love with their concision and immediacy, the brief and tenuous grasp you have on a reader’s attention, how much must be implied and left off the page, and I think I bring that into everything I write.”
As for her favorite story in the collection, she replied, “I am proud of the interesting life that the first story, ‘Pre-Simulation Consultation XF007867,’ has had without me, in translation and performance and serial publication, and the thoughtful conversations that I have had with readers about it.
“But that’s like asking which of my children is my favorite. Or dogs. I don’t have children, but I’ve loved my dogs equally.”
And as easiest-to-hardest regarding poetry, short stories, and novels?
“I don’t know how to answer that. All three seem extremely hard while I’m writing them, and also like they could not be anything else, in a way that feels outside of my control. All three seem extremely hard while I’m writing them, and also like they could not be anything else, in a way that feels outside of my control—a poem insists on being a poem. I would perhaps prefer to only write short stories, but occasionally a story wants to be 300 pages long.
“I would say my process has taken a U-shaped journey, where in recent years, I have been trying to return to the way I wrote when I was very young, focused—especially in early drafts—on dreamy, deeply personal experimentation and play, rather than the external pressures of being a professional writer.”
The U.S. government, and U.S. culture generally, have grown increasingly hostile towards anyone who isn’t straight, white, and cis-male. But she’s not going anywhere else anytime soon.
“I respect and understand anyone who makes the decision to leave. But from my position of relative privilege and safety, I would prefer to stay and fight for the place I have made my home.”
As for the future, she hopes people will put the new book, “The Valley of Vengeful Ghosts,” on their radar.
“Come to events and say hi! I am also working on the next book after [‘Ghosts’], which I think will be another collection of stories, but we’ll see. I don’t know what form it will take, but so far it has fairies stealing babies, haunted paintings, and birds with translucent bodies.”
Kim Fu discusses her book “Lesser Known Monsters of the 21st Century” with Katie Campbell on July 30 at the Central Library, 1000 4th Avenue in downtown Seattle. For more information, visit https://www.thirdplacebooks.com/event/seattle-public-library-kim-fu.