A Bold New Voice In Literature
Where does it all begin?
There are many dots leading to this unshaven path, strewed with roses and violets. It is hard for us to peruse the past and find where the beginning is, and it is harder still to predict the end.
Perhaps it is safe to say that every road – no matter which we choose – it is destined for Writerly Books to be here, proudly exists amongst its peers.
Founders
Thanh Dinh – our main author and co-founder – is a professional marketer by trade (and distinction degree, don’t forget the distinction, she said). Since she was a girl of ten, she had dreamed of being on a big platform, telling the stories of her land, and maybe if she were lucky enough, a prize. She still had that short essay for her Literature class in Fifth Grade. Alas, writing is but a part of the journey now, she realizes much too late. On the sticks and stones road between not-marketable-enough and the refusal to stay with the crowd, she lays down the first stone for Writerly Books.
Phuong Dinh – the second co-founder of our press – started with a financial degree and the dream of being famous (and filthy rich, don’t forget the filthy rich part, she said). She moves from selling furniture pieces to houses, striving against all odds (and evens, too) to get to a life where she no longer has to check her bank account before stepping into a steakhouse. Writerly Books is all she has left (in her words), and when life gives her lemons, her motto is: let’s build a lemonade soda tycoon!
Mission
Rise up. You were not born to be a slave! – Nam Cao, a Vietnamese author.
And indeed we are not.
Our co-founders are often frivolous and will joke at the most inappropriate time, but with Writerly, they mean business. From the curation process to the quality of each print batch, we make sure that the best and only the best literary fiction – visually and content-wise – is in your hands. We favor the strong, the bold, the queer, and the most rebellious works that you can think of – give us blood, give us protest, give us the war for freedom with justification, and we will devour it in bliss.
Because at Writerly Books, we rise up. Always.
