When you're reading from a different language that's different from your own, it's not the same as being fluent.

I have a great advantage: I write from the perspective of my own voice. I'm not copying anyone's voice. It's my voice. I have the advantage of being a writer of English as a second language.

When I hear Khmer poets, when they recite their poems, I know what they're talking about, I get it right away.

It's really hard when you read literature in a language that's not your own. There are all these cultural references you have to be born into that particular language to get.

I write and I write and a lot of times I go back to the American lens, though sometimes it's a struggle to come from that perspective.

Often when people tell their story, they talk about their strengths and resiliency. It's really about their determination and their aspiration to survive and live.

Everything around you can use. It's like your tools and your material. Whether it's in performing arts like dance, or visual arts, or poetry, a lot of those elements can come and help you, can trigger your creativity. But you have to be open, be aware, and you have to be ready to look.