My Book’s Journey to Cultural Authenticity

Welcome to the next installment of my author series that was originally published in the newsletter of SCBWI Long Island (Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators).

I’ve shown you how blogging can help authors reach an audience, things to consider when starting a blog, how to create a must-read blog, why social media is essential for your blog, social media best practices for your blog, and Critique Group Best Practices. Now I’m pivoting to looking behind the scenes to ensure the cultural authenticity of my debut book released earlier this year.

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In traditional publishing, it’s standard practice for picture book publishers to hire the illustrator and provide the art direction. Given this, authors and illustrators rarely interact. However, there are times when involving authors in the illustrative process makes sense.

With multicultural books, editors may bypass customary practices to ensure cultural authenticity in a story.  One example is my debut picture book, It’s Chinese New Year, Curious George (2023) via Clarion Books/HarperCollins.

The Writing Process of It’s Chinese New Year, Curious George

The publisher wanted to include Chinese New Year as part of its Curious George tabbed board book holiday series. They contacted agents, asking for authors with first-hand knowledge of the holiday’s traditions.

I had previously submitted a manuscript about Chinese New Year to my agent. As such, my agent knew I’d be a fit and inquired if I was interested. Of course, I said yes! I submitted samples of what I’d write for this book to the publisher. Fortunately, the publisher liked my work.

My next step was to outline the story. I highlighted the main traditions of the holiday while drawing on my own experience growing up in a Chinese-American household. Once the Editor approved my outline, I wrote the story in the requested format of four stanzas with rhymed meter per tabbed page using an ABCB rhyme scheme. My editor used an in-house rhyming expert to review the meter and rhyme of the stanzas.

The Illustration Process

Ritual and symbolism in Chinese New Year hold much weight. Therefore, it was crucial to faithfully portray traditions. I recommended the publisher use a Chinese illustrator for better accuracy. For example, a Chinese illustrator would be more likely to know which phrases to include on holiday banners than someone who didn’t read Chinese. Also, holiday banners display words using Chinese calligraphy, so an illustrator familiar with the stroke order of Chinese characters could write them more authentically.

But I couldn’t assume the publisher would implement my recommendation. Hence, I included more art notes than usual in my manuscript. I linked to photos, such as the door sign for the Chinese character 福 [Fú], which means fortune, for reference. Someone unfamiliar may not realize that the sign must be hung upside down. In Chinese, the words for “upside down” are pronounced the same as the word for “come.” Therefore, hanging the character upside down welcomes good fortune.

Fortunately, the publisher hired a Chinese illustrator. Using both an author and illustrator with Chinese backgrounds provided cultural authenticity. But it didn’t guarantee everyone would agree on how some traditions were practiced.

Even within the Same Culture, Variations Exist

In the final stages of the book, the publisher brought in a Chinese American authenticity reader—with experience living in China and the United States—for an additional perspective. I thought this was an excellent idea and was grateful the reader praised the book’s accuracy.

The reader did inquire about one scene where elders gave red envelopes with lucky money to Curious George and his friend who then bowed to show thanks and respect. The reader stated her relatives and friends never bowed during this tradition; however, she didn’t think the depiction was inauthentic since every family was different.

Bowing is formal. Modern families may not do it, though to elders, some may. This was the case with my own family as well as others I inquired of.

The Final Book

Ultimately, the editor kept the bowing scene in. Months later, the publisher revealed the book’s cover. I was thrilled that it was in red with gold, which are Chinese New Year colors that represent good luck and fortune. The story and illustrations brought this Chinese holiday to life thanks to the publisher who made efforts to ensure cultural authenticity.

This post was written by Maria Wen Adcock and originally posted in the SCBWI Kid LIt News 2023 Newsletter: Winter Edition ©All rights reserved. All content is copyrighted ©2023 The SCBWI Long Island, NY. SCBWI.org Kid LIt News is an educational newsletter of the Long Island, New York region of the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI), the international organization for professionals in children’s publishing.