In 2021, Ryka Aoki released her novel Light from Uncommon Stars to much acclaim. It follows the story of Katrina Nguyen, a runaway Transgender girl with a passion for playing anime and gaming music with her violin, Aubergine. The legendary teacher and "queen of hell" Shazuka Satomi encounters her unhoused, playing in the park, and then takes her on as a protégé.

The story also sees Lan Tran and her alien family turned spaceship crew flee to Earth from the throes of their dying galactic empire, which is experiencing "the end plague." The crew decides to go undercover in an unassuming "Starrgate Donuts" shop in LA while creating an actual stargate in secret.

Three years after its publication, Aoki's novel has won three awards, including the 2022 Barbara Gittings Literature Award. The SGN decided to check in with Aoki to discuss her inspirations and see how she has been doing since the book's debut.

Madison Jones: What were your primary inspirations for the settings of this novel? Is it true you based the idea for Starrgate Donuts on the story of Ted Ngoy the "Donut King"?

Ryka Aoki: Yes and no. The primary inspirations for this novel were the people I grew up with while in school in the San Gabriel Valley. I would look at science fiction books and television then, and not see too many people who looked like me and my friends. So I wrote this novel to give my neighborhood a chance to visit the stars too.

The idea for Starrgate Donuts came from my lived experience of going to donut shops, where a bunch of Asians would be in the back working super hard. We have some of the best donuts in the country because of this. That is home to me. Later on is when I found out about the Donut King Ted Ngoy. Fascinating how one person can have that level of impact on the community.

MJ: If you had to diagnose the current hostile political climate against immigrants and Transgender people, would you say that we are now in the middle of experiencing "the end plague"?

RA: That is a tough question. No, I do not think we are in "the end plague." We have been through this before, and we will go through this again, because that is the nature of the way humans operate. There are times when it's really tough to be Trans, to be an immigrant, to be the "other." And there are times when people want to act on their suspicions against us, when we will be mistrusted, when life will become very difficult.

Is it the end of all things? No, of course not. We as humans are better than that. We are more resilient than this. And I would not be writing if I gave up on humanity and said this was the end. I would not even be doing this interview.

Don't lose hope, but understand there may be people around you who are on the verge of losing theirs. It is important to do what we can and reach out. Reassure them it is okay to be an uncommon star, and let that person know they do not have to go at this alone.

MJ: What things in life have been bringing you joy as of late?

RA: Chatting with younger readers. I get messages and mail from young Queer and Trans writers who want to know how to write stories like mine, or tell me that my book meant something special to them and inspires them.

I tell them that we, as writers, should be helping and supporting each other by cheering one another on. Nobody can write your book, so write the book that I cannot, write the stories that see farther than I can see. If your work is making somebody else's life a little bit easier, as hard as life is, then it does not get any better than that.

MJ: Do you have encouraging words of advice for the Transgender people out there, like Katrina Nguyen, who are currently struggling to find a sense of community and their voices?

RA: My advice is to trust your instincts to survive, and do what is necessary. Make communities where you have to, leave communities where you have to. Preserve yourself and hang in there, because with more Trans folks in the world, the world becomes a better place. I believe in you!