After twenty years in the corporate world, Pia Chatterjee is finally able to follow her dream of writing a novel. Pia’s writing has appeared or is forthcoming from the San Francisco Chronicle, Zyzzyva Magazine, Alta, Fortune Magazine, 7X7, San Francisco Business Times, and other outlets. Pia has an MFA from UC Riverside and also studied at Oxford University. She lives in San Francisco and is a member of the San Francisco Writers Grotto. Her work can be found at www.piachatterjee.com
Recently on Zoom I was able to meet with Vanessa Hua, whose forthcoming book Forbidden City (Ballantine Books, May 10) follows the moral and intellectual awakening of Mei, a young teenager who leaves her rural life to join Mao Zedong's Cultural Revolution. Hua, who has written two previous acclaimed novels, explores the role of young women who surrounded Mao during his rise in China during the 1960s. As someone who has spent time in China, I've long been fascinated by the Cultural Revolution, so her recent work of historical fiction served as motivation for me to sp