2023 Debuts! Interview With Lauren Kung Jessen!

Hi, everyone! Today I'm happy to present an interview with Lauren Kung Jessen, the author of Lunar Love, which is out now!

Would you please describe your book, Lunar Love, in seven words?

 

Delicious, competitive, sweet, romantic, rivals-to-lovers, comforting, humorous

What was the inspiration for the book?

I grew up learning about the Chinese zodiac when my family celebrated Chinese New Year, a holiday that marks the beginning of a new year on the lunisolar calendar. I have always been interested in the ways Chinese astrology can be used as a language for better understanding ourselves and others. I found it fun to compare which traits of my zodiac sign I related to (as a Year of the Horse, I relate to a lot of them!). Your specific animal sign depends on the year in which you were born, but there are many factors beyond just the animal signs to consider, including the ascendant (determined by the time of day you were born) and five elements (Water, Wood, Fire, Earth, and Metal) that align with the year you were born in.

Placing Chinese zodiac matchmaking in contrast with dating apps felt like a fun setting for a romantic comedy. The dating app portion came into play because I met my husband through online dating. I found the concept of highly personal compatibility matching within the Chinese zodiac interesting, especially when juxtaposed with Big Tech’s algorithms and data that are also intended to find you successful matches. I’m also a big fan of the enemies-to-lovers and opposites-attract tropes which felt natural in this traditional-versus-modern setting.

Random Question! What is your favorite meal to make?

 

This is such a hard question because I love to cook a variety of meals, usually based on my mood! I’m on a journey to make various foods from my cultures, as food is one of my favorite ways of learning about my family, culture, and heritage, and many of these meals have become recent favorites. Generally, I love anything with rice or pasta. I especially love making my own noodles and pasta—there are so many different shapes, sizes, lengths, and thicknesses you can choose from. It's a soothing and creative process.

 

And on the topic of dough, I really love making dumplings. You can easily switch up the filling flavor combinations, vegetables, and meats, and I find the dumpling folding process incredibly meditative. I want to try different flavored dumpling doughs and get more experimental with the fillings.

What’s one piece of advice you would give aspiring authors?

Don’t let perfection get in the way of writing progress. I personally find this to be an easy trap to fall into. I’ll search for the “right” answer, when really there isn’t one. Test ideas out knowing you can always change them in the editing process (even if the editing process means you’re editing your synopsis or outline). The truth of the story will reveal itself to you over time as you work on it. But at first it won’t always be so clear. That’s okay. Just keep going and don’t wait for perfect.

What are some books you’re looking forward to reading in 2023? And if you’ve already read some ‘23 books, would you like to mention them?

There are so many great books coming out in 2023! A “few” that I’m excited about include EXES AND O’S by Amy Lea, A LOVE BY DESIGN by Elizabeth Everett, THE YEAR OF CECILY by Lisa Lin, A THOUSAND MILES TO GRACELAND by Kristen Mei Chase, JUST MY TYPE by Falon Ballard, THE SWEET SPOT by Amy Poeppel, VERA WONG’S UNSOLICITED ADVICE FOR MURDERERS by Jesse Sutanto, BLACK CANDLE WOMEN by Diane Marie Brown, I’LL STOP THE WORLD by Lauren Thoman, YOURS TRULY by Abby Jimenez, GO BACK AND GET IT: A MEMOIR OF RACE, INHERITANCE, AND INTERGENERATIONAL HEALING by Dionne Ford, JANA GOES WILD by Farah Heron, THE DEEP SKY by Yume Kitasei, YELLOWFACE by R.F. Kuang, WILL THEY OR WON’T THEY by Ava Wilder, CHANGE OF PLANS by Dylan Newton, and UNEQUAL TEMPERAMENT by Cheryl Walsh.

 

I’m basically just writing out my To Read List so I’ll stop but there are so, so many more on my list. I haven’t even scratched the surface here.

Author Bio: Lauren Kung Jessen is a mixed-race Chinese-American writer with a fondness for witty, flirtatious dialogue and making meals with too many steps but lots of flavor. She is fascinated by myths and superstitions and how ideas, beliefs, traditions, and stories evolve over time.

From attending culinary school to working in the world of Big Tech to writing love stories, Lauren cares about creating experiences that make people feel something. When she’s not writing novels, she works as a content strategist and user experience writer.

She also has a food and film blog, A Dash of Cinema, where she makes food inspired by movies and TV shows. She lives in Nashville with her husband (who she met thanks to fate—read: the algorithms of online dating), two cats, and dog.

Here Are A Few Links:

Her Website

Her Twitter

Her Instagram