FAQ
Linda Sue Park
(photo by Sonya Sones)
Hello! Below are some questions I am often asked by readers.
If you cannot find the answer to your question here, there is a lot of information elsewhere on this site about me and my books. Please take some time to browse through the other pages, especially the Biography page, the sections on Reading and Writing, and the pages devoted to each book title.
Happy browsing!
Where can I write to you? How can I get your autograph? Will you sign a copy of my book?
You can write to me at the following address:
Linda Sue Park
c/o HarperCollins Children’s Books
195 Broadway
New York, NY 10007
If you would like my autograph, a signed bookplate, or a reply to your letter, write to me with your request and enclose an SASE, a SELF-ADDRESSED STAMPED ENVELOPE!!! That’s an envelope that you address to yourself, put a stamp on, and put into the envelope that you mail to me. This is important! If you don’t enclose a self-addressed stamped envelope, you will NOT receive a reply!
Please note: I cannot reply to e-mails, tweets, texts, or any other electronic correspondence from students, but I DO reply to letters sent through the mail. It may take as long as several months for me to receive and reply to snail mail. I appreciate your patience.
Where do you get your ideas?
From the idea store, of course!
Just kidding. I get ideas from reading books and articles, listening to people talk, watching TV and movies; from things I see and hear; from sitting around daydreaming. Ideas are everywhere: The important thing is to find the ones that interest you.
Will there be a sequel to A Single Shard? or Seesaw Girl? or The Kite Fighters?
Or When My Name Was Keoko?
As of now, I am not planning to write a sequel to any of my books. But you never know—that could change someday. I do like when people ask me this question, though, because I think it means they have gotten really interested in the characters and want to know what happens to them next. I hope readers will continue the stories in their own minds. Thinking about the story after you finish the book—that’s an important part of reading.
Were you born in Korea? Do you speak Korean? Have you ever been to Korea?
I was born in the U.S. and grew up speaking only English. Now I speak a little tiny bit of Korean. I can read the alphabet, and write my name in Korean. Someday I would like to learn to speak it better.
I have been to Korea twice—once when I was 12 years old, and again in November of 2002. Both were fascinating trips for me, and I hope to visit again—many times!
Do you have any tips for young people who want to become writers?
READ! If you want to be a writer, you have to read A LOT. Reading is training for writers the same way that working out is training for athletes!
That’s the most important tip, READ, READ, READ, READ, READ, READ!
And here are some ideas for writing:
- Keep a "list journal." Lists are great! Get a notebook and make lists of your favorite songs, foods, baseball players, books (of course). The ten things that bug you the most. Fifty things you want to do in the future. Five things you've done once but never want to do again. The thinking process that goes along with keeping a list can sometimes lead to more writing—you might end up writing a poem or a story about how you happened to eat a caterpillar and why you'll never do it again …
- Publish a family newspaper. Write stories about your family's activities—extended family too. (If you have access to e-mail, this is an easy way to get in touch with relatives who don't live nearby.) You can have sections for news and sports, a recipe exchange, a birthday corner. You can interview a different family member for each issue. Photocopy your newspaper and mail it to everyone in your family. Or send it by e-mail. I know families who make this a regular activity once or twice a year—the kids started the idea, and the adults enjoyed it so much that they ended up pitching in!
- Experiment with different kinds of writing. Do you like writing stories? Try a poem once in a while. Are you a poet? Write a sports article about your last soccer game!
- Start a swap journal. For this you need a partner—preferably a good school friend. Get a regular spiral notebook. Write something in it—a poem, a letter, a list. Give the notebook to your friend. He or she can add to your list, respond to your letter, write something of their own. But—here's the secret—you have to 'swap' the journal back within a set amount of time, like two or three days. It can help to have a friend's encouragement to get you writing! I got this idea from my daughter—she and her friend kept their swap journal going for nearly a whole school year.
Happy reading and writing to all!