mental illness
We do not always hit the water
Three generations of women stand at the edge. In this essay, I trace grief, inherited silence, and a last promise to live
Welcome to The Untangling
Hello, fellow wanderer. My name is Tiffany Chu. I’m a literary fantasy author and memoirist, writing about the topics we’re too scared to talk about. Here, I write essays aimed at helping you engage with your people and life in a more intentional way, often through the lens of literature.
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Blog
books
Shine for the Fat Lady
A personal essay-style review of Salinger's Franny and Zooey—exploring art, ego, love, and how this book changed my entire life path
books
The surprising thing Taiwan Travelogue taught me about myself
A review of Taiwan Travelogue and the surprising personal reckoning it sparked—on colonialism, nostalgia, and loving a homeland you've also exoticized
asian
The River has Roots
by Amal El-Mohtar
asian
A River from the Sky
by Ai Jiang
parenting
How to Love Your Mother
A daughter reckons with childhood abuse, a mother's belated apology, and what it takes to rebuild trust across thirty years of silence.
constellation
Coda: Sehnsucht
Letters between two souls holding each other alive—a devastating, luminous memoir of love, grief, and the threads that survive even death's severing.
Portfolio
mental illness
We do not always hit the water
Three generations of women stand at the edge. In this essay, I trace grief, inherited silence, and a last promise to live
books
Shine for the Fat Lady
A personal essay-style review of Salinger's Franny and Zooey—exploring art, ego, love, and how this book changed my entire life path
parenting
How to Love Your Mother
A daughter reckons with childhood abuse, a mother's belated apology, and what it takes to rebuild trust across thirty years of silence.
As seen on
Shop
A Girl Made of Time: A Novelette
Girls who wander into the forest at night never return quite the same...
A Palette of Vengeance: A Short Story
A nameless server has waited years for this moment. The renowned professor who stole her mother's art career sits paralyzed, helpless at last
The Untangling: Essays
Personal essays on losing my father to leukemia, wrestling with evangelical promises, adoption, writing through pain, and forging a path forward
Latest Work
Praise for The Constellation of Forgotten Things
THE CONSTELLATION OF FORGOTTEN THINGS is a tender collision of melancholy and hope, a heartache in words, filled with tales of forlorn travelers, wayfinding, and journeys unrealized. At its core, this anthology explores the true magic in the connections made between people, the way the stories we write hold shards of our souls laid bare so we may be seen, heard, felt, how stories may change when passed between the remembered and the rememberer, and how they are continued.
Ai Jiang, Hugo Award-nominated author of Linghun
THE CONSTELLATION OF FORGOTTEN THINGS is a candid and compelling exploration of the human condition. Through a distinctive lens, this anthology closely examines different embodiments of kinship, the diverse nuances of loss, and the enduring depths of love. A resonant letter to those seeking home.
Joanne Yi, author of All the Tomorrows After
Brimming with heart, wonder, and a gentle pulse, The Constellation of Forgotten Things is filled with tales of magic, love, and longing. A profound collection that is sure to touch the soul.
Pedro Iniguez, Bram Stoker Award winner, and author of Echoes and Embers: Speculative Stories
THE CONSTELLATION OF FORGOTTEN THINGS hooks you right from the introduction. You can tell from the beginning that it’s a truly heartfelt piece of work, unique from any other. I particularly enjoyed how there were shorter pieces as well as longer ones, and the shorter pieces create an evocative space within themselves—they’re like small snippets of poetic art that shows you just how honest and heartfelt this piece of work is. This is definitely worth the read!
Heidi Wong, Forbes 30 Under 30, author of Turning to Wallpaper