Xiran Jay Zhao, author of the YA novel Iron Widow that debuted as a New York Times No. 1 bestseller, stops by The Nerd Daily again to chat with us about their upcoming middle grade debut Zachary Ying and the Dragon Emperor, pitched as Percy Jackson meets Yu-Gi-Oh! We got to ask Xiran about their favorite middle grade stories, facing challenges in writing and much more!
Hi Xiran, thanks for joining us once more! How are you doing?
Hi again! I’ve been pretty busy handling two series at once, so much that the launch of Zachary Ying has really snuck up on me. Here’s hoping people will enjoy it!
In our last interview, you talked about feeling nervous facing your first novel’s, Iron Widow, publication. Months after its release, how does it feel being a published author? What’s been the biggest surprise?
I’ve been FLOORED by the response to Iron Widow. The reception has been wilder than I ever dared fantasize about. I am so honored and grateful that people like my story this much. I’m really proud of past me for not giving up through my long, difficult journey to getting published, even though I wanted to do so at many times. I guess the biggest surprise is this happening at all, and how this became my new normal. Sometimes I remember those days where I was an aspiring writer desperate for any kind of feedback and I kind of zone out and think “WOW, I’ve come so far. I can’t believe this is my life now.”
Tell us about Zachary Ying and the Dragon Emperor! What can readers expect?
It’s a middle grade adventure I pitch as Chinese Percy Jackson meets Yugioh! It features a 12-year-old Chinese American boy who’s not really connected to his Chinese heritage, but is compelled to go on a journey across China to fight historical and mythical figures and heist real artifacts after the First Emperor of China possesses his AR gaming headset.
Zachary Ying and the Dragon Emperor features fascinating historical content paired with cutting edge gaming technology – how did the did the idea of combining these two come about? Talk us through it!
I was inspired to write this story when my friend Rebecca Schaeffer, author of the Not Even Bones series, encouraged me to try my hand at writing MG, since I’d been hyperfixating on Chinese history and myth, and myth stories make for very good MG novels. Immediately I thought of doing a Chinese take on Yugioh, the most formative anime of my childhood, in which I would combine modern gaming tech with ancient myths and magic. Magic and technology are so often kept separate in the cozy niches of fantasy and sci-fi that I really love media that play with how they can mix together. Yugioh does this in a really cool way, like when Seto Kaiba came up with the idea of hologram monsters after seeing Yami Yugi use magic to bring the monsters in their card game to life. Qin Shi Huang possessing Zack’s AR gaming headset is my take on the weirdness that can come with magic colliding with science!
This is your middle grade debut. In terms of writing a story geared toward a younger audience, did you face any challenges or opportunities you didn’t encounter with Iron Widow?
I definitely wrote in a different style for Zachary Ying than Iron Widow, and I really enjoyed it! Being wacky and fun comes a lot more naturally to me than the grim brutality in Iron Widow. This was my very first attempt at tackling MG, so I’m surprised it worked out so well. Probably the only thing I miss is not being able to swear.
Zachary Ying’s story is filled with many immersive action scenes but there are also scenes filled with strong family bonds and community – what are your favorite scenes to write?
Whether it’s in Zachary Ying or Iron Widow, I always love writing the action scenes the most! I love choreographing the fights and thinking of what the characters could use to get an upper hand. The emotional character interaction scenes take a lot more effort for me.
Speaking of middle grade, what books do you think Zachary Ying would recommend to his new-found friends in the story (e.g. Simon or Melissa)?
There’s Not Even Bones, which was mentioned in the book. Because of his mom’s interest in sci-fi classics, I think Zack would also be the type to enjoy stuff like Dune despite his young age. That and manga like Fullmetal Alchemist.
And because I loved your answer from our last interview, if you had to describe Zachary Ying with one meme, which one would you choose?
Very sorry to Zack, but it has to be the thumbs up crying cat (his reaction as the emperors do their questionable deeds).
With Zachary Ying and the Dragon Emperor releasing soon, are you already working on other projects? If so, care to share a sneak peek with us?
I’m mainly focused on getting the Iron Widow sequel Heavenly Tyrant done! Let’s just say it is essentially Consequences: The Book.
Last but not least, do you have any book recommendations for our readers?
I’m going to recommend a bunch of fellow 2022 MG debuts, because MG is truly LIT this year!
- Theo Tan and the Fox Spirit by Jesse Q. Sutanto (May 31)
- Onyeka and the Academy of the Sun by Tola Okogwu (June 9)
- Hana Hsu and the Ghost Crab Nation by Sylvia Liu (June 21)
- Nura and the Immortal Palace by MT Khan (July 5)
- Shad Hadid and the Alchemists of Alexandria (Oct 4)
