Abraham Chang

Abraham Yu-Young Chang is an award-winning, published poet with an MFA in creative writing from New York University. He has worked in the publishing industry since 2000 and currently manages Special Sales for Simon & Schuster. He lives in Forest Hills, Queens, with his wife, Erica—and a substantial collection of Blu-rays, vinyl records, comic books, and action figures. 888 Love and the Divine Burden of Numbers is his debut novel.

My Q&A with the author

How much work does your title do to take readers into the story?

The title 888 Love and the Divine Burden of Numbers came to me in three distinct parts. It was quick and yet it was slow. I knew my book would address the big idea of belief, as a whole – and how much control we have over our destinies – especially, in luck and love.

I had the “888 Love” part figured out once I was well on my way into writing about the Eastern numerology, superstitions, and the things you pick up from your family growing up that can influence susceptible young minds – especially when there are mental health issues. I had always known that Chinese people loved the number 8, because the number (“bah”) sounds like the word “fah” for “grow, thrive” – so “88” was a common sight, especially around the Lunar New Year. The extra 8 was natural for my main character, Young, to add on as his personal extra bit of “oomph” to ensure that additional stamp of good luck in his life.

I wasn’t aware that the Triple 8, the “888” was circulating around as well. I had not noticed it until I had completed my book and happened across it while walking through a casino! But it’s a “thing” and you’ll see it on license plates, names of restaurants, all sorts of things. Chances are if there are 8s – a Chinese person is likely nearby.

Working through our mental and spiritual health is what I believe is at the core of the meaning of life. We are constantly carrying the weight of our own humanity – this “divine burden” – it can come in different forms, to different people. For Young, he wants to understand the numbers, systems, and patterns that he believes he sees all around him that are guiding him. He is holding out hope that there really is a way to see ahead, to manipulate, to know the right path to take, to make decisions – big and small. This is the burden that he is carrying – the numbers that tease, haunt, and embolden him all at the same time -- whispering the promise of just maybe, maybe - the secrets to the universe.

What's in a name?

I named my character “Young Wang” for a few reasons. “Wang” in Chinese when pronounced correctly is actually the same as “Wong – meaning “king”. We can blame romanization or Ellis Island or what have you for these inconsistencies and “mistakes” in naming. For such a noble surname – there sure are a lot of literal dick jokes for “Wang” in English.

The name “Young” has so many connotations – both in English and Chinese. In English – what better name immediately invokes youth? Especially for a coming-of-age story! In Chinese – “Young” refers to the ocean. What else is larger, full of potential, full of the divine? Also – on a “meta” level: My Chinese name is “Yu-Young”. As with most novels, the reader can’t help but wonder how much of the narrative is inspired by real events, how many of the characters are out in the world living and breathing. The book is packed with Easter eggs, metatextual and textual references, foreshadowing, and hopefully lots of pay off. I want the reader to be constantly thinking and wondering: “Was that intentional? Was that part connected to this – or to that?” My answer is usually: yes and yes.

How surprised would your teenage reader self be by your novel?

My teenage self would be surprised that I’ve learned to lighten up. There is much more humor (as in the funny “ha ha” kind and not just the funny “hmmm” kind) in 888 Love, than I had originally intended. I think teenage Abe would be proud that I kept my poetic sensibilities throughout and found a way for my Kevin- Smith-comic-book-nerd side to coexist with the angsty, brooding Abe that still prefers to wear all black and dwell on Simic and Rilke.

Do you find it harder to write beginnings or endings? Which do you change more?

I had the middle, and one of the most dramatic moments scribbled down in a notebook, 20 years ago. The ending, I had a sense of where and how I wanted it to take place. But the beginning, that was tough! I had tried many things (much is still in the book, but in different places). I credit my editor for encouraging me to keep it simple: introduce us to the two most important characters from the start and go from there. I wrote the prologue of the book in a single sitting – it just made sense to start the book with a journey, a change. For Young, it’s a moment where he realizes that things are shifting for him, he’s growing up and with that, the realization that sometimes the people you love the most, need to love themselves and do right for themselves – and this may mean hurting the ones they love. For Su Su, he finally can restart and take action again. Stalled and sputtering, he was lying in wait. As Young learns himself on his own trip later on in the book – the real healing starts when you force yourself to take that first step in a longer journey, in pushing through the ache of change, and leaning into the forward motion. The standing still is just terminal stagnancy – living means moving ahead, “putting the pedal to the metal, a restart, a new start -- and the literal start to the book.

What non-literary inspirations have influenced your writing?

888 Love is a love letter to pop culture in all its forms: mainly in music, film, TV and all the things I grew up with in the 80s, 90s —when we still had a real sense of monoculture – where a good majority of the people you knew had the potential to be exposed to, have access to, and enjoy the same sort of things. All the things! There are references to other works of art throughout the entirety of the book: 888 Love starts with Don Henley and the Eagles and ends with a bit of a remix of Paul the Apostle and the New Testament. I wanted the book to feel big and small, long and short, and fluffy and epic. First love(s) and our formative years tend to be all-encompassing in that way. Pop culture is always chasing that type of feeling – whether it’s expressed on the screen, in song, verse, prose. Storytelling -- in all its liquid, gas, and solid forms -- has inspired me down to my atoms.

Visit Abraham Chang's website.

--Marshal Zeringue