The (CanL)It Crowd: Wayne Ng

I can’t remember how I met Wayne Ng, exactly. I do know it was sometime after my first book was published and through social media. His award-winning book, Letters to Johnny, was published by the same press as mine—Guernica Editions. I’m fairly certain that was the connection that brought us together, but what kept me fascinated by this person was not only his incredible writing but his warmth and generosity. I read his book because I kept hearing about it and the premise sounded amazing (and it was), but I was floored to find out he’d not only read mine but was recommending it to just about anyone who’d listen.

My oldest kid loved Letters to Johnny too.

Here we have what I think is a crucial part of good literary citizenship: integrity. I am supportive of anyone who decides to undertake the largely undervalued task of writing, but this doesn’t mean I connect with their writing. If I decide to publicly celebrate another author—by reviewing their book or recommending it—I need to…well, like their work. Needing to like someone’s work may seem obvious but I feel like it’s easy to fall into the trap of supporting someone’s work not because you connect with it, but because it is advantageous to do so. Maybe the writer is a bigger name than you and you want to attract their attention and/or the attention of their readers. Maybe you want to be seen as a kind or altruistic person. I suppose it could be a good way to get a foothold in this oversaturated and underexposed industry. I suppose operating this way could get you somewhere.

Wayne and me at my reading at Perfect Books in Ottawa.

But I also think integrity is vital. You can like someone and not like their writing. You can not like someone’s writing and support them as a writer, in general. But can you not like someone’s writing but pretend that you do so other people will like you?

Sure, but can you live with yourself if you do?

I leave that to you and your conscience. I have enough weighing on mine and I’ve prattled long enough. My point is that I love Wayne’s writing (Letters to Johnny, but also, The Family Code, which is one of the best novels I’ve ever read with an unlikable, but highly compelling main character—you can read my review of it in CAROUSEL here), and Wayne was one of the first people who modeled for me what good literary citizenship can look like when someone is sincere, but not trying to be a saint.

I’m happy to have him join me for this installment of The (CanL)It Crowd to share his thoughts on literary citizenship and community.

Welcome, Wayne!

The (CanL)It Crowd with Wayne Ng

I’ve met many writers who’ve always dreamt of achieving literary stardom and seeing their names on store bookshelves. I also understand that the industry feeds itself by reinforcing those mostly illusory external goals.

Sure, every writer, including me, fantasizes about commercial and critical success. Yet, in such a subjective and fickle industry, it's lamentable that so many define success by dollars and bright lights. However, there is a secret sauce we should be reaching for more often.

I have been writing for decades, but I only truly embraced it and began to self-identify as a writer once exposed to good literary citizenship. That is, the kindness, support, acceptance, collegiality, and generosity given by other creatives. They nurtured and sustained me through the pandemic and gave me a sense of fellowship I’d never experienced before. 

During my day job as a social worker, we’d gather to bitch, moan and complain (rightly so, I might add) because we were all burnt out and had limited agency over our craft within the system, but we’d rarely come out invigorated. In contrast, when my writing mates and I gather, we may lament not making that list or award, but there is also curiosity, excitement, advice, and offers of help.  

Participating in the writing community feels like being at a never-ending summer camp. In such a short, intense period, I’ve made more friends and constructed a more comprehensive network of colleagues than ever before. It's fantastic!

Writing is mostly a solitary activity. As such, I have often cold-called writers out of the blue. Even with multiple degrees of separation, they have been amenable to meet me for coffee and a conversation. Our intent might be amorphous, but it is not. We talk craft. We gossip. We talk books. We share successes, challenges and our impostor syndromes. We fight the same good fight. We’re frail, and we, too, can be petty. Yet we take risks, and we persevere. We are superfeelers. We know how hard, random, arbitrary and subjective the industry and the public is. We realize how much blood, sweat and toil go into our work. We all have shelves of books from fellow writers that we support however we can. We survive because of each other. 

I love talking shop, sharing dreams, and knowing other writers understand me and what I’m going through. I jump with joy at their success even as I wonder, why not me?? But mostly, I’m happy to be part of something so contagiously creative and nurturing. 

Whenever I am asked for writing advice, I encourage authors to get involved in the writing community and explain what good literary citizenship means. I tell them it’s necessary for survival and to thrive. And it’s a lot of fun. I ask them to go out there and buy or borrow books. Follow other writers. Engage. Share. Applaud. Console. Support. Build. Repeat. 

More about Wayne Ng:

Wayne Ng was born in downtown Toronto to Chinese immigrants who fed him a steady diet of bitter melons and kung fu movies. Ng is a social worker who lives to write, travel, eat and play, preferably all at the same time. He is an award-winning author and traveler who continues to push his boundaries from the Arctic to the Antarctic. He lives in Ottawa with his wife and goldfish.

Ng is the author of THE FAMILY CODE, shortlisted for the Guernica Prize; LETTERS FROM JOHNNY, winner of the Crime Writers of Canada Award for Best Crime Novella and a finalist for the Ottawa Book Award; JOHNNY DELIVERS (2024) and FINDING THE WAY: A NOVEL OF LAO TZU. Connect with Wayne at WayneNgWrites.com