Kyunghee Kim
Poet & Writer
Kyunghee Kim is a Korean American poet, writer, and a certified mindfulness teacher. Originally from Korea, she immigrated to Michigan with her family when she was 8 and is now currently based in Ypsilanti, MI.
In her writing, Kyunghee strives to expand the possibilities of poetry through integrating other mediums of art as a way of engaging with language in new ways. She's published a children's book, See Us Bloom, with poems on compassion and acceptance. Her writing has appeared in HuffPost, Shondaland, INSIDER, and Food52. Her work often focuses on grief, the complexities of love and loss, daily living, and the Asian American immigrant experience.
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A former elementary school teacher for decades, at 41, she switched careers and became a full-time writer. ​
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This interview has been edited for length & clarity. It took place on February 20, 2025.
Q: Tell me about your journey to becoming a writer.
KK: I was an elementary school teacher for nearly 20 years in Ann Arbor public schools before I jumped into full-time writing. Growing up, like many other Asian Americans, I didn’t think of going into creative fields at all.
Writing wasn’t a big part of my life until COVID, when I started journaling. I was going through a lot of hardships personally and it was very therapeutic. Writing was the place I felt like I couldn’t be judged. Out of that, I realized I wanted to write and share my stories with the world.
I began freelance writing 3 or 4 years ago. In 2023, I published my first book, See Us Bloom, a children’s book with poems on compassion and acceptance.
When I was 41, I quit my day job as a teacher and became a full-time writer. People reading this might feel: “Oh, I’ve been in the same career for years or I graduated with this degree, but I want to do something else.” I want to encourage people and say: "You can always change your mind. You can try out something different and creative, even while you have a full-time job."
Q: What was the journey like to publishing your first book, See Us Bloom?
KK: When I first set out to publish a book, I wanted to write an adult poetry book. But it wasn’t quite working out. I was working with a writing coach who had published before and was helping me along my publishing journey. She asked me: "Do you want to make a career out of writing?" I said, "Yes, I can envision myself writing many books." She said: "If this is one of many books, is there another book inside you you feel you could write that someone could say yes to? Perhaps the one you’re working on just isn’t for right now." That taught me that just because you set a project aside doesn’t mean it’s never going to happen, you might just need to have a bit of patience and strategy.
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Since I have a background teaching elementary school for 19 years, I thought positioning a book around that experience might work better. I’ve read hundreds of children’s books. Although it’s becoming popular now, at the time, I noticed that what was missing was children’s books around social and emotional health. So I wrote my book, See Us Bloom, around that theme. Once I had this idea, I still got a ton of rejections. But one publishing company, Modern Marigold Books, believed in me even though I didn’t have any publishing background. Overall, it was a 1.5 year journey. It wasn’t my first choice to publish a children’s book, but it was my best shot as a beginning author. I’m glad I wrote it.
Q: Do you have a motto that keeps you going?
KK: When I was trying to publish my first book, more than 50 or 60 agents said no. At one point, I wanted to give up. I thought: maybe I don’t have what it takes. But then I asked myself: "Is there anyone making me do this?" I realized: it’s my choice. No one is making me write this book. I’m writing it because I want to. Which also means I have the right to quit. It’s not an affirmation, but that was very empowering for me.
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So every time I wanted to quit I’d imagine myself 5 years from now and say: "Well, what would future me think?" I realized: she would have really regretted not going for it. So when I think about talking to myself 5 years from now that gives me the clarity I need. Right now is only a momentary pain and suffering.
"I asked myself: "Is there anyone making me do this?" I realized: it’s my choice. No one is making me write this book. I’m writing it because I want to. Which also means I have the right to quit. It’s not an affirmation, but that was very empowering for me."
Kyunghee Kim at Jacob's Fresh Farm in Dexter, MI
Q: What's something that surprised you about being a writer?
KK: When I met other writers around me and began to have a writing community, I was surprised that so many of them who had written 2, 3, or even 10 books have other things going on to make money. Unless your book goes viral, making money by writing is very difficult.
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So as a full-time writer, I’ve crafted my career by doing multiple things — all related to writing. A lot of my income comes from freelancing. I’m constantly pitching to various publications and magazines. I run writing workshops with local nonprofits. I’m also a therapeutic writing facilitator and executive function coach at Grove Emotional Health Collaborative in Ann Arbor.
Q: What's a typical day or week look like for you?
KK: Going from a traditional job where the schedule is set for you to being a freelance writer, I’ve had to be very disciplined. It’s so easy for your days to fly by. Every writer has a goal. For me, I want to write 10, maybe 20 books in my lifetime. So I always carve out time in my schedule to meet that goal.
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I’m always sharpest in the morning. When I taught elementary school, I’d write from 6am-7am before I’d get ready for school. Now, I dedicate 3 hours a day for myself to strictly write my books (typically in the morning). It doesn’t pay me money right now but it’s something important to me. In the afternoon is when I do my freelance article writing or coaching.
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By Friday, I have the least amount of energy so I set aside Friday afternoon for all my administrative stuff: scheduling out the next week and spending several hours pitching different publications in batch form. At the end of the week, I review the list of what I wanted to accomplish and check in on how the week went.
Q: What's one takeaway you want readers to have from your writing?
KK: I want people to be curious. A lot of the poems and essays I’ve published are personal stories from my life. It all comes from a place of curiosity. Hard things like my immigration journey or relationship with my parents. All of that comes from a place of curiosity. If it came from a place of judgment, I wouldn’t have anything to write about.
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The more we are curious, the more questions arise. Which means there are other possible answers than the one answer we might be holding onto. The more we are curious, the more possibilities we have to love, forgive, and have compassion on ourselves.
See Us Bloom by Kyunghee Kim at Literati Bookstore in Ann Arbor, MI
Q: What was your childhood like?
KK: I immigrated from South Korea to Utica, Michigan when I was 8 and my sister was 6. It was really hard. Utica is a small, predominantly white town. Back then in elementary school, my sister and I were not only the only Koreans, but the only Asians in our elementary school. I was able to get by because of my ESL teacher. If not for her, I don’t know how quickly I would have adapted to school. But school life was very difficult. All of my teachers were white. No one really asked me about my Korean heritage. I played alone a lot at recess. It was very lonely.
Where I found my community was in church. My family went to Korean United Methodist Church in Troy. That church became our Korean community: where people looked like me and spoke Korean. My parents worked long hours in labor-intensive factory jobs, but one day a week, at least on Sundays, we had church.
Q: How do you see your faith and work intersect?
KK: As a Christian, the reason why I started to write about grief came from a place of faith. I want people to feel loved and worthy. A lot of my poems are tied to grief and asking questions and lots of unknowns. It’s reflective of my faith. I used to see a lot of things as black and white. In my twenties, when I’d see bad things happen, I used to just say: “That’s God’s will.”
But that’s not how I view things anymore. I think a lot of it is gray. I think there’s a lot that happens that is really unfair and undeserving that we have no answers to. And maybe I’m not supposed to know why. But how can I still move through it? How do I live in the unknown without getting bitter? That’s where curiosity and creativity comes in.
Q: What creative routines do you have that nourish you?
KK: Something that’s really simple is I make sure to get outside everyday. I have a dog so I walk about 1.5 hours everyday outside. Moving my body is important to me. I also love starting the morning slowly. I’ll have a cup of coffee or tea by myself. I might journal.
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I try to check in with myself. I’m someone that can have very tunnel vision focus if I have a deadline coming up. So it’s helpful for me to step away, even for an hour or two to get a meal with a friend or get out.
What’s been most helpful for me is not waiting until I get burned out but putting it into my weekly routine. So I’ll look at my calendar and ask: when was the last time I had some friend time? When was the last time I went to an art gallery just for fun? Inspiration for us artists is so important. So whatever is inspiring to you, whether it’s watching a movie, going to an art gallery, or reading a book, just making sure it’s in the schedule. It’s feeding yourself as an artist. You’re not doing it for work but for enjoyment. A lot of these ideas comes from The Arist’s Way by Julia Cameron.
"I think there’s a lot that happens that is really unfair and undeserving that we have no answers to. And maybe I’m not supposed to know why. But how can I still move through it? How do I live in the unknown without getting bitter? That’s where curiosity and creativity comes in."
Q: How do you manage imposter syndrome?
KK: It took me a long time to call myself a writer. Instead, I’d say: “I write.” But that has such a different meaning and power. I think many artists have a hard time owning the “artist” title. But when you're Asian American and have to wrestle with all the stereotypes, model minority myth, and pressure from parents, it’s that much harder.
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I used to stand in front of the mirror and practice introducing myself as a writer. When people would ask me: “What do you do?” the first thing out of my mouth was “I’m a teacher” so it took practice to say “I’m a writer." I gave myself a challenge where if I was going to the grocery store or wherever I’m given an opportunity to introduce myself, I’d introduce myself as a writer. For me, telling close friends and family was harder, so I started with strangers.
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Even now, when I meet other writers who have won awards for their books, they still struggle with imposter syndrome. I realized: I might feel imposter syndrome forever, even if I write 10 books or a New York Times bestseller. Who’s to say that once you have all these books and money you’ll feel like you’ve made it? So I might as well practice saying I’m a writer now.
Q: How did your parents react to you becoming a writer?
KK: Everyone has to do what feels comfortable to them. When I committed to being an artist, I knew my heart was so fragile that I couldn’t take criticism from my parents because my parents are my weakness, so I might quit very quickly. So when I was writing my first book, I didn’t tell my parents. That might sound disrespectful, but you have to protect your peace. I didnt tell my parents until the book came out and I had the book in my hand. They were so shocked and happy for me.
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But to be honest, I think my parents are still waiting for this phase to be over. They’re kind of like: “Oh, you wrote a book and got that off your chest. Now you can go back to your real job (teaching).” So I still keep a lot of my writing life separate from them. I don’t need the discouragement and I understand that they’re coming from a place of love. They want me to be secure. They don’t want me to have a difficult life in this creative field.
"I used to stand in front of the mirror and practice introducing myself as a writer. When people would ask me: “What do you do?” the first thing out of my mouth was “I’m a teacher” so it took practice to say “I’m a writer." I gave myself a challenge where if I was going to the grocery store or wherever I’m given an opportunity to introduce myself, I’d introduce myself as a writer."
Q: What's your advice for aspiring creatives?
KK: My biggest advice is to just do it. There’s no perfect timing for anything. You could wait until you have your parents’ approval or a million dollars. But just go for it. Fiind friends who will support you. Get a mentor. It doesn’t have to be a formal mentor, just someone a step or two ahead of you. Finding that person and connecting with them is very important.