writing

A cup of coffee on a wooden desk with a laptop, camera, and notebook.

My Book Reality interview… and a reading of Black and Blue

Back in August, I sat down for a Zoom interview with Ian Hooper, executive director of Leschenault Press and The Book Reality Experience.

That interview is now up on YouTube:

Book Realities vodcast interview with Lee-Ann Khoh

I’m a little awkward but hey, it’s my first recorded interview. Awkwardness is on brand for me anyway. 😄

You can also get a sneak peek – or should I say, sneak listen – of Chapter One of Black and Blue:

A reading from Black and Blue by Lee-Ann Khoh

If you’re wondering why I intro’d and outro’d this while standing at the door, it’s because hearing my own voice usually causes me to make a quick getaway. Just kidding… but seriously.

Be sure to check out the other author interviews on the Book Realities podcast… ’cause there are plenty of interesting writers who aren’t me! In fact, most of the interesting writers on the planet are not me. 😛

Text reads: 50 cups of coffee can't be wrong?! Background contains a mug and an open book on a table.

50 cups of coffee can’t be wrong?!

Y’know, I never used to like coffee.

Yeah, yeah, sacrilege, whatever.

I think the first time I tasted it was when I took a sip of whatever my dad was drinking at my grandmother’s house in Malaysia. It was probably Kopi-O or something like that. Regardless, it was too bitter for this little Aussie girl’s palate.

Aside from coffee cake and various coffee flavoured things that were more sugar than coffee, I don’t think I had coffee again for over 10 years.

I started drinking it a bit when I was pulling all-nighters to finish assignments. Which I don’t encourage, of course, but it’d be hypocritical of me to tell you not to do it.

When I started working at my current job, I was mostly opting for a hot chocolate and the occasional mocha. Post-lockdown, the balance tipped towards the mocha and now the barista no longer needs to ask me what I want.

I mean, it’s basically the best of both worlds (espresso and chocolate). Can’t overdo it though – too much caffeine is bad for my anxiety and gives me heart palpitations. 😛

But I feel vaguely incomplete if I don’t have one in the morning. Kinda like when I want to read on the train and realise at the station that I’ve left my book or eReader at home.

(I did just google “caffeine addiction” and I don’t get the listed withdrawal symptoms that came up if I don’t have a morning coffee, so I think we’re good for now.)

I’ve seen some writers define themselves as creatures who turn coffee into words. Some replace “coffee” with “tea”, but it’s rare to find a writer/author who drinks neither. I’m partial to both at different times of the day.

Honoré de Balzac allegedly drank 50 cups of coffee a day and was crazy prolific in his lifetime. That lifetime was only 51 years but the average life expectancy in 19th century France (or 19th century anywhere) wasn’t terribly high. But the rumoured Balzac method sounds like an excellent way to break your toilet and die of a caffeine overdose. Do not recommend.

Besides, I can honestly say I haven’t noticed any difference to my writing output or quality from caffeine. It might help me feel more equipped to deal with certain social or professional situations, but I don’t think it’s made me a better (or worse) writer. Your mileage may vary. 😉

Anyway, if you’re looking for some reading material over your next coffee/tea break, there’s a teeny mention of me in Books+Publishing’s recent Hybrid publishing in Australia article — and a fair bit about Book Reality and Leschenault Press, i.e. the publisher of Black and Blue. Definitely worth a read if you’re a writer who’s interested in going indie. And I’m happy to chat to anyone about my own experiences. 🙂

Close-up of someone holding up a DSLR camera.

My interview with AllAuthor

If you’ve seen my sweet book mockups on social media, like this…

Mockup of Black and Blue by Lee-Ann Khoh displayed on the side of a bus shelter. A person sits on a bench looking out towards the street.

…then you can thank AllAuthor for those. 🙂

Anyway, my recent interview with Mady Joshi at AllAuthor has now been published and you can check it out below:

Lee-Ann Khoh latest interview by AllAuthor Author of Black and Blue, Lee-Ann Khoh grew up in Perth, Western Australia. She used to spend entire weekends just reading books when she was growing up. She studied journalism before deciding to write her own stories. She has also written a story titled “Aiden’s Flowers” in the collection, Flash Fiction Magazine – Issue 1. She is a sucker for beautiful bookish things. Read full interview…

Edited to add: Apparently the first thing I said in this interview is wrong. It’s one of those things you get taught when you grow up in Perth, much like “Black swans are only found in WA” which I’ve since discovered is untrue. 😄

Good thing I write fiction and not geography books!

Text reads: A book baby is born. Image contains close-up of colourful balloons.

A book baby is born

My book has been out for a week now and gosh, that feels weird to say! I kind of just let it drop without doing a book launch event because… well, frankly, I wanted to enjoy my book release. And spending the lead-up to it organising an event all about me would definitely not have been my idea of a good time. Your mileage may vary, of course. Someone recently described me as “very unassuming”, which might be a euphemism for “wussy” but that’s okay. 😛

Anyway, what I did do was post a rather silly mock birth notice for Black and Blue on social media because I’m a massive dork. Obviously publishing a book is nothing like giving birth to an actual human baby. But I have no real babies planned in the foreseeable future and thought I’d have some fun with this. 🙂

Cute clones of my book baby are available online as an eBook or paperback. An audiobook is in progress but I don’t have a release date yet.

Lee-Ann holds a copy of her book, Black and Blue, as if it is a baby. The book is wrapped in a blue towel.
Lee-Ann cradling her new book baby.

So what now?

Well, if you do read Black and Blue, I’d love an honest rating and review at the place of purchase and/or Goodreads. As an unknown indie author, word of mouth is my best friend at the moment so feel free to tell people about the book if you think they might be interested.

And if you want to give my book cover some love, I’m still in the running for AllAuthor’s Cover of the Month so drop me a vote!

I hope to make some signed books and bookplates available in time for Christmas — well, in Australia because it’s already very close to the cut-off date for international deliveries to arrive in time. But we might get lucky.

In the longer term… there will be a second novel. At this stage, it’s a standalone in a contemporary setting with multiple viewpoints (unlike Black and Blue, where we just see Jade’s perspective), though everything could change. But I will write it and finish it — I’m putting that out there now so I’ll look foolish if nothing eventuates. 😀

Text reads: Closure & exposure. Background contains a person hiding their face with a book.

Closure and exposure

My debut novel is coming out… really bloody soon and I’m getting pretty nervous. Not in a bad way, but nervous nonetheless.

As the release date draws nearer, a question that’s come up a few times is whether or not Black and Blue is autobiographical.

And the answer to that is: yes and no. I took the “write what you know” adage and twisted it into something I hope people will connect with.

As a Chinese Australian kid, I felt a lot of confusion about my cultural identity growing up. I think that’s a pretty common thing for migrant kids — the feeling of being stuck between two cultures and not quite fitting in anywhere — and I revisited those feelings in Black and Blue.

Like my main character, Jade, I’ve struggled with anxiety and depression, which I try to be honest about — though she and I deal with it in different ways. Writing this book was actually one of the ways I tried to deal with it, so there’s a certain finality to seeing it released.

I also didn’t know if I was ever going to write another book — and to be fair, I still don’t, but I intend to — so I kind of wanted an excuse to pay tribute to some of the things that spark joy in my life. Which is why Jade is into Star Trek and Bon Jovi. But she hates coffee whereas I’m quite fond of a good mocha and will still drink a bad one. 😉

Another character in the book, Alex, has my aversion to germs and is something of a hand sanitiser enthusiast. Which has been me since long before COVID… I think I’ve been gunning for a hand sanitiser sponsorship for at least 10 years (no luck yet!).

In summary, I guess you could say Black and Blue is semi-autobiographical, but it is a work of fiction, not my premature memoir. Still, I do feel quite exposed thinking about people reading my book and… peering into my soul? So much so that I was considering never letting this book see the light of day. I mean, you can’t really fail if you never try and no one knows you write. But I also realised I’d never be satisfied with myself if I didn’t at least try.

So here I am — trying, potentially failing, but being okay. More or less. 🙂