Darien Hsu Gee: Crafting Ideas into Captivating Stories

By Fern Gavelek

For some people, filling a blank page with their own words can be daunting. Not for Waikoloa Village resident Darien Hsu Gee.

The wife and mother authored five novels—three under the pen name Mia King—which have been translated into 11 languages. Darien’s essays and short stories have also graced the pages of numerous literary journals, and her more recent works of nonfiction and poetry earned the 2015 Hawai‘i Book Publishers’ Ka Palapapa Po‘okela Award of Excellence and the 2019 Poetry Society of America’s Chapbook Fellowship award.

The 52-year-old author has been published by large publishing houses and small regional indie presses while being represented by multiple literary agents. In addition to writing and publishing across multiple genres, Darien also has a food blog.

All this was accomplished from Hawai‘i Island—sometimes from the couch or kitchen table. Darien and husband Darrin moved here in 2000, settling in Waimea, where she birthed their three children before moving to Waikoloa in 2015.

“I’ve had to creatively pivot and reinvent myself as an author so many times,” notes Darien. “More than once, I thought my career was over.”

Darien hit the national literary scene in 2007 with her first novel, Good Things, using her pen name Mia King. She authored four more novels in consecutive fashion. Sweet Life (2007) and Table Manners (2008) came next, and then her international bestseller Friendship Bread (2010) and The Avalon Ladies Scrapbooking Society (2012), were written as Darien Gee. All five books were published with Penguin Random House.

Her non-fiction works include the award-winning Writing the Hawai‘i Memoir: Advice and Exercise to Help You Tell Your Story (2014), the award-winning poetry chapbook Other Small Histories (2020), a collection of micro-essays called Allegiance (2020), and the essay “Lesson Plans 01–03: On Age Dropping, Botox, and Being an Asian American Woman at 50,” which appears in the anthology Fast Funny Women (2021).

Beginnings of a Writer

Darien was born in the Midwest to two Chinese immigrants. Her father was a geophysicist, requiring the family to move often. Darien earned a bachelor of arts in political science from Rice University, but didn’t take a writing class until she was 48, enrolling in the Rainier Writing Workshop at Pacific Lutheran University, where she earned a master of fine arts in creative writing.

“I’ve been writing since the fourth grade and I’ve always been a voracious reader,” shares Darien. “I’ve always loved writing but was told novelists didn’t make any money, so I went the traditional work route.”

Eager to travel, Darien’s first job was as an international tax manager for whatʻs now called PricewaterhouseCoopers, which included an assignment in Beijing. Subsequent gigs included copy chief for Sephora.com, venture capitalist associate, retreat center director, and “loads of temp jobs here and there.”

“Everybody gets inspired in different ways,” Darien says, and adds, “I’m never short of ideas and I like trying to figure out what to do next. Some ideas come easy and others require more work.”

After living in Hawai‘i for four years, Darien knew she was ready to be published. She wrote Good Things because it would be fun to read, appeal to the marketplace, and use familiar themes and topics.

Darien explains the creative process. “A lot of fiction writers start off with a ‘what if’ question,” she says. “That’s how the Mia King books came about—it was almost like I was watching a movie. I always write first and then go back to revise, and confirm details like geographic setting, timeline, and character details. But the writing always comes first.”

The World of Publishing

Darien considered Good Things to be a romance; the genre is usually written under a pen name, so she created the moniker Mia King. And while the novel was later categorized as “women’s fiction,” she kept the pen name as husband Darrin had two books coming out at the same time.

“My husband is the former owner of Darrin Gee’s Spirit of Golf Academy, which focused on the sport’s mental and inner game,” details Darien. “He authored two bestselling golf books and with our names being so similar, it just made sense to stick with Mia King at the time. I did end up using my real name, Darien Gee, with my fourth novel. When I started publishing poetry, I included my maiden name, Hsu.”

Darien’s fourth novel, Friendship Bread, sold at auction and has multiple foreign publishers. “But you never know what’s going to take off and what’s going to flop,” she notes. “Expectations were very high and when the sales didn’t match up, it was disappointing for everyone. The reasons for that vary, but it’s all part of the reality of publication.”

Friendship Bread grew beyond the novel. Darien launched a Facebook page called Friendship Bread Kitchen, sharing recipes and connecting readers, and later a baking blog (friendshipbreadkitchen.com), all centered around using the Amish Friendship Bread starter that appeared in the book. With the flurry of home baking during COVID-19, traffic to the website quadrupled. Darien credits the website with helping support her family while Darrin was furloughed during the pandemic.

“Friendship Bread Kitchen is really about community and sharing what we have with others, which was a big element in the novel,” notes Darien.

The Pivot to Writing Non-Fiction

After her novels, Darien focused on producing a writing craft book, Writing a Hawai‘i Memoir. Educating others in how to write wasn’t new for the author as she’s been coaching prospective writers for 25 years.

“It explains the basic principles of writing a memoir and guides you from start to finish,” she details. “What makes it unique is the focus on cultural protocols and issues unique to Hawai‘i.” Darien gleaned advice from 21 Hawai‘i writers, storytellers, and lifestyle experts for the book, and it includes multiple writing exercises and tips.

Her next books, Other Small Histories and Allegiance are more personal in nature. Histories is a chapbook of prose poetry. Chapbooks are hand-bound and usually printed on a small letterpress; they range from 24 to 48 pages in length.

Allegiance is a collection of short micro-essays, some less than a page in length, divided into Darien’s childhood, work life and family life/COVID pandemic. She wrote it in three months.

“I kept listening to what I thought the book wanted to be and did my best to honor that,” she shares. “Some of the pieces were previously published or written but in need of polishing. The rest came together pretty quickly.”

Hali‘a Aloha Series

Allegiance is the teaching text for the Hali‘a Aloha Series, a micro-memoir writing and hybrid publishing program Darien developed this year with Legacy Isle Publishing (Watermark Publishing). Based in Honolulu, Legacy Isle is dedicated to “Telling Hawai‘i’s Stories” through memoirs, corporate biographies, and family histories.

Hali‘a Aloha uses short forms, like flash essays (750–1,000 words) or micro-narratives (250–300 words) to help writers tell their stories. The program publishes a mix of forms for a total count of 120 pages.

“We’re looking for the emotional truth of a memory and want to help people get that on the page,” says Darien. “Getting started is always the hardest part. We provide feedback, guidance, and a clear path to getting your words into the world.”

The Hali‘a Aloha program is self-guided and takes less than a year to write and publish. Prospective enrollees can find details at haliaaloha.net.

Looking Ahead

Crediting her recent work with micro-narratives and amplifying women’s voices, Darien is in contract to edit the spring 2022 release of the anthology Nonwhite and Women: 153 Micro Essays on Being in the World. She also has a new novel in the works. In the meantime, find her books at online and brick-and-mortar booksellers, while Other Small Histories is available from the Poetry Society of America. ❖

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Darien’s Tips for Writing

• I believe the job of every writer is to pay attention—to their own life and to the world around them.
• I think the best writing shares universal experiences others can relate to. When writing a memoir, you bring a lens of understanding to your story when you reflect on it—that perspective is what readers might relate to.
• Just because you have a story to tell doesn’t mean you have to tell it. It’s your call what you choose to write and share.
• Just start writing. Nobody is seeing it except you. Don’t talk yourself out of writing something because you’re worried or fearful. Write first and see what you have, then decide what to do.
• Be open to creative pivots. They don’t have to be permanent, but a way to listen and honor your creative voice, especially if you’re feeling stuck or not sure what to do next.
• Regarding my literary career, I have been persistent and open to learning, even after I had multiple books published. Being successful involves doing the work to become a better writer and having passion about what you’re writing about.

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For more information: dariengee.com