Author CINDY PON (Silver Phoenix, Want) on Writing Underdogs, Sensory World-Building, and Existence as Resistance

ADVICE TO YOUR YOUNGER SELF: Words of Wisdom from Stories Without Borders Season 1 Guests

What if you could mail one page of hard-won wisdom back in time? We close our first season by stitching together intimate, practical letters to younger selves from our Season 1 slate of bestselling authors and advocates. The result is a generous chorus on patience, courage, and the long game of becoming—told through personal stories that feel both specific and startlingly universal. You’ll hear how fear of judgment kept powerful ideas in the dark, and how choosing excitement over approval brought them into the light. Guests reflect on growing up feeling different, the ache of early loneliness, and the steady relief that comes from finding your people. We talk about trading perfection for progress, asking mentors for guidance, and trusting that slow work is still real work. There’s even space for humor, like the beloved pair of wildly bright running shoes that became a tiny rebellion and a lesson in owning your style. These reflections aren’t abstract pep talks; they’re field-tested reminders shaped by rejection letters, late drafts, and the quiet hours where craft is built. If you’re early in your journey—or simply need a reset—you’ll find clear takeaways: keep going when results lag behind effort, share discouragement with a friend who can cheer you forward, and return to the ideas that make you feel most alive. Growth is the goal. Belonging will meet you on the path. If this season finale moved you, tap follow, leave a quick review, and share it with someone who needs a kind nudge today. Tell us: what would your note to your younger self say? Follow, subscribe and learn more about Stories Without Borders on: Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/stories_withoutborders/]: @Stories_WithoutBorders [https://www.instagram.com/stories_withoutborders/] YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/@Stories_WithoutBorders]: @Stories_WithoutBorders [https://www.youtube.com/@Stories_WithoutBorders] Website [https://www.storieswithoutborders.org/]: StoriesWithoutBorders.org [https://www.storieswithoutborders.org/]

Author NICOLA YOON (Everything, Everything, One of Our Kind) on Love, Truth, and Joy Revolution

A life-changing writing class, a fierce love for language, and a new mom’s clarity: that’s the spark behind Nicola Yoon’s leap from engineering and finance to bestselling novelist. We sit down with the author of Everything, Everything, The Sun Is Also a Star, Instructions for Dancing, and One of Our Kind to unpack how vulnerability, precision, and curiosity power stories that become empathy machines. Nicola shares how maternal protectiveness inspired her debut (Everything, Everything), what it felt like to watch lines she wrote come alive on set, and why the movie isn’t a replacement but “more art” about characters she loves. We dig into the difference between a controlled, solitary novel and the logistical jazz of filmmaking; how real conversations with her husband informed Natasha and Daniel’s philosophical chemistry in The Sun Is Also a Star; and the craft choices—subtext, gesture, rhythm—that turn everyday dialogue into scenes that breathe. We also go deep on grief and hope. Instructions for Dancing was born in hospital waiting rooms and confronts the hardest question of all: if love always ends, is it still worth it? Nicola opens up about writing One of Our Kind, an adult novel that’s intentionally bleaker, the cultural pressures that shape identity, and the misremembered feminism of The Stepford Wives that influenced her structure and suspense. Then we shift to joy: building the Joy Revolution imprint to champion swoony YA romances starring people of color, nurturing debuts with revision-heavy care, and proving that stories of delight belong alongside stories of struggle. Plus: short stories vs novels, writer’s block cures (including first-person shooters!), setting books in Los Angeles, and a playful lightning round. If you care about storytelling, adaptation, romance, representation, or the exact order of words in a sentence, you’ll feel right at home here. Subscribe, share with a friend who loves book-to-film stories, and leave a review to help more listeners find the show. Follow, subscribe and learn more about Stories Without Borders on: Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/stories_withoutborders/]: @Stories_WithoutBorders [https://www.instagram.com/stories_withoutborders/] YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/@Stories_WithoutBorders]: @Stories_WithoutBorders [https://www.youtube.com/@Stories_WithoutBorders] Website [https://www.storieswithoutborders.org/]: StoriesWithoutBorders.org [https://www.storieswithoutborders.org/]

Author ALEXANDRA BROWN CHANG (By Invitation Only) on Paris, Friendship, And A Debut To Remember

Glamour can distract, but it can also reveal what truly matters. We sit down with Alexandra Brown Chang, the New York Times bestselling author of By Invitation Only, to explore a Parisian debutante world where status is loud, traditions are ancient, and friendship ends up being the quiet force that wins. Alexandra pulls back the curtain on the real-life experiences and customs that inspired the novel—from portrait sittings to Le Bal’s media frenzy—and explains why she built the story with Paris as a living character. We compare Piper’s first‑time wonder with Chapin’s seasoned skepticism, revealing how the city refracts identity, class, and desire in different lights. Alexandra shares how being multiracial informed Piper without defining her, and why she’s determined to write characters whose identities are rich, layered, and never reduced to a single attribute. The creative journey is as vivid as the setting. Alexandra spent five years shaping the manuscript, querying hundreds of agents, and turning a misdirected email into a breakthrough connection. Once the book sold, editing became a collaborative masterclass that sharpened structure and voice. We talk routines, flow states, and the surprising truth that you can come of age at any age—through college, early careers, and the messy, thrilling spectrum of your 20s. Along the way, Alexandra cites influences like Jenny Han, Lisi Harrison, and Cameron Crowe, and highlights two causes close to her heart: Inside Out Writers and the Peninsula Humane Society. If you love YA coming‑of‑age, female friendship, fashion, and stories where setting shapes destiny, this conversation will light you up. Listen now, share it with a friend who loves Paris, and leave a quick review so more curious readers can find the show. Follow, subscribe and learn more about Stories Without Borders on: Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/stories_withoutborders/]: @Stories_WithoutBorders [https://www.instagram.com/stories_withoutborders/] YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/@Stories_WithoutBorders]: @Stories_WithoutBorders [https://www.youtube.com/@Stories_WithoutBorders] Website [https://www.storieswithoutborders.org/]: StoriesWithoutBorders.org [https://www.storieswithoutborders.org/]

Author NYDIA ARMENDIA-SÁNCHEZ (Not Far From Here, Frida Kahlo's Flower Crown) on Language, Heritage, and Family Stories

Joy doesn’t always arrive on schedule. For Nydia Armendia-Sánchez, it showed up when she started writing the stories her kids couldn’t find on the shelf—tales that honor migration, bilingual families, and the quiet power of a mother’s voice. We sit down with Nydia to trace her path from early art student to award-winning children’s author, and the moment she chose to turn family history into Not Far From Here, a tender picture book about belonging, hope, and the journeys that shape us. Language lives at the heart of Nydia’s work. She explains why Spanglish belongs on the page, how bilingual choices can feel intuitive and musical, and why leaving “here” undefined invites every reader to see their own roots. We then wander into Frida Kahlo’s Flower Crown, where Nydia offers a fresh lens on a cultural icon through the motifs of plants, animals, and growth. With research fueled by Casa Azul webinars and virtual tours, and luminous art by Loris Lora, the book pairs lyrical biography with an interactive plant hunt that quietly teaches kids about native species and conservation. Nydia also shares a preview of two Guatemala-set books: The Women Before Us: Weaving Stories in My Huipil, a celebration of Mayan backstrap weaving and the symbols women carry, and Vroom Vroom Vámonos, a playful journey narrated by a retired school bus reborn as a chicken bus. Along the way, we talk about the craft and constraints of picture books, the collaborative magic between writers and illustrators, and why representation in children’s literature is not a trend but a necessity. If you care about bilingual books, Latine stories, Frida Kahlo, or simply want to feel inspired by creative courage, this conversation will stay with you. If you enjoyed the show, follow and subscribe, share this episode with a friend, and leave a quick review to help more readers and families discover these stories. Follow, subscribe and learn more about Stories Without Borders on: Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/stories_withoutborders/]: @Stories_WithoutBorders [https://www.instagram.com/stories_withoutborders/] YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/@Stories_WithoutBorders]: @Stories_WithoutBorders [https://www.youtube.com/@Stories_WithoutBorders] Website [https://www.storieswithoutborders.org/]: StoriesWithoutBorders.org [https://www.storieswithoutborders.org/]

Author CINDY PON (Silver Phoenix, Want) on Writing Underdogs, Sensory World-Building, and Existence as Resistance

A six-year-old lands in a new country without knowing the alphabet and discovers, by third grade, that reading feels like magic. That spark became Cindy Pon’s compass as she wrote underdogs who straddle worlds, crafting YA stories that welcome readers who’ve never seen themselves on a cover. We sit down with Cindy to trace that path—from Silver Phoenix, a Chinese-inspired fantasy that arrived when the market offered few comps by Asian American authors, to Want, a near-future thriller where Taipei is as vivid as any hero. Cindy walks us through her creative engine: why she favors duologies, how she breaks rules in service of story, and what it took to write a teen boy’s voice that didn’t sound like her own. We explore the mechanics behind Want’s cyberpunk edge—slang that mirrors power, squads built for heists, and the way tech headlines caught up to her pages. More than set dressing, near-future Taipei becomes a sensory world: traditional temples next to neon-filled, night markets. The conversation moves through gatekeeping and marketing realities, the burden of being first, and the quiet forms of resistance available to any storyteller who insists on centering their community. Along the way, Cindy shares practical tactics for writer’s block, why food belongs at the heart of worldbuilding, and a first look at her new YA fantasy that travels from London to Mexico City with a Chinese contortionist at a magical circus. The throughline is hope. Even inside dystopia, she believes in found family, small acts that tip the scales, and stories that leave you braver than they found you. If you care about YA fantasy, representation, sensory worldbuilding, or just need the reminder that your voice matters, this conversation will bring you joy. Enjoyed the episode? Subscribe, share it with a friend, and leave a quick review to help more listeners find the show. Follow, subscribe and learn more about Stories Without Borders on: Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/stories_withoutborders/]: @Stories_WithoutBorders [https://www.instagram.com/stories_withoutborders/] YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/@Stories_WithoutBorders]: @Stories_WithoutBorders [https://www.youtube.com/@Stories_WithoutBorders] Website [https://www.storieswithoutborders.org/]: StoriesWithoutBorders.org [https://www.storieswithoutborders.org/]