Q&A with Suzanne Park, Author of “The Christmas Clash”

Happy Holidays! In honor of the holiday season, I am so excited to revisit one of our favorite holiday rom-coms, The Christmas Clash by Suzanne Park. When Annabelle’s Book Club LA first opened in November of 2022, Suzanne’s book celebration was our very first author event, and it is one of my favorite memories to date. The Christmas Clash follows sworn enemies Chloe Kwon and Peter Li, whose families own rivaling restaurants in Riverwood Mall. Chloe and Peter have always hated each other, but when it is announced that Riverwood Mall is set to close by the new year, they must reluctantly work together to save the mall and their families’ businesses. Read more about the inspiration and writing process behind The Christmas Clash below!

Our very first event at Annabelle’s Book Club LA was a book signing for your YA holiday romance, The Christmas Clash! Since then, you’ve also celebrated the release of The Do-Over, which is so exciting. What have been some highlights of getting to share not just one, but two amazing books with readers and the book community over the last year?

I’m still so honored that you invited me to your store for an inaugural event! Happy one-year anniversary!

The biggest highlight this past year was being able to have fully in-person indoor events. The event at ABC was especially fun because I had family, friends, acquaintances, educators, bookstagrammers and readers show up for the signing. The past year was also the first time I travelled outside of Southern California for launch events— I visited Third Place Books in Seattle and Books Inc. in Palo Alto. The other special thing that happened this year was being given friendship bracelets from readers. Mine are all saved in my jewelry box! 

How did you come up with the idea for The Christmas Clash, and what was your writing process like?

 During the pandemic, I heard from a family friend that the suburban mall I practically grew up in was going to close, so I wrote this book as an homage to my old childhood stomping grounds. When I turned in my draft, I found out the mall was saved by a regional developer! I’d always wanted to write a holiday-themed romcom, and having a book set in a mall in December seemed perfect for that.

 To finish this book, I wrote almost every day. For me, it helped me be more disciplined about writing habits and carving out time, and I think that’s what was important while drafting during the height of the pandemic.

All of your books are hilarious, and I absolutely loved Chloe’s and Peter’s laugh-out-loud, banter-filled interactions in The Christmas Clash. I know you have a background in comedy—can you tell us a bit more about your experiences and how they have influenced your writing?

Awww thank you! My adult and YA fiction include both observational and absurd humor, similar to what I had in my stand-up comedy acts. Years ago, I opened for comedian Kermet Apio and he described my humor as “quirky and kind of cerebral…in a weird way”— and I remember being happy about that at the time. I’ve found that for both stand-up comedy and writing humorous novels that context, specificity and timing can be just as important as word and phrasing choices. For me, the biggest difference between writing jokes for stand up and putting comedy in books is that with stage comedy, you can use physical humor to help convey a joke, but on page, you only have your words, so that was a bit of an adjustment for me.

What is one holiday book or movie that you think is criminally underrated, and did any holiday rom-coms serve as inspiration for The Christmas Clash?

I enjoyed reading Lindsey Kelk’s The Christmas Wish (adult—hilarious!) and Tif Marcelo’s The Holiday Switch (YA—cute!) and I think both should get even more love than they get now. I watched ELF right before writing THE CHRISTMAS CLASH and I don’t think it was necessarily for inspiration, but it got me in the holiday (comedy) mood!

The Christmas Clash is such a fun and festive read while also tackling important issues teenagers face. How did you balance these two aspects of the story, and what do you hope readers, especially teenagers, take away from the book?

My agent recently told me “you hold such heavy topics like mental health and racism in your hand while also creating such lightheartedness, humor, and brevity”— I’m so glad that people appreciate the layering in my stories. It’s truly a balancing act. For THE CHRISTMAS CLASH, I wanted to show struggles that first and second generation immigrant families face, especially as they navigate the business world, all while keeping the story lighthearted and entertaining. What I hope teenagers take away is that there are some challenges that seem nearly impossible, but might have a way to solve them with teamwork and resourcefulness.    

What is your favorite holiday tradition? Personally, I’m looking forward to re-reading The Christmas Clash!

Aside from polishing off leftover Halloween candy to make room for the new seasonal treats? The last few years we’ve been hosting a gingerbread house decorating party. More candy gets eaten than used for decór, but it’s always a good time!

Since Chloe is always capturing exciting and meaningful snapshots through her photography, are there any fun moments that happened while you were writing this book that are especially memorable to you?

While I was editing my book, I flew to Nashville and stopped by the mall that inspired the story. Many of the descriptions (including the Santa photo station) were based on the real place.

The Christmas Clash is YA while The Do-Over is an adult book. What draws you to these genres, and how is your approach to them similar or different?

I love writing for both audiences and my writing process doesn’t change much between YA and adult. No matter what the book idea is, I always seem to dive headfirst into researching with everything I write, whether it’s about gaming, or zombies or farming! I do focus hard on voice and try to accurately reflect the views of teens and adults given realistic life experiences of my characters. So my teens stumble through life and figure lots of things out for themselves, and I give them room to make mistakes and let them learn from them. My adults will have more life experiences yet may have more deeply ingrained beliefs or misbeliefs that guide their decisions and actions. 

An author asked me if I thought YA used more casual language vs. adult, and I’ve been thinking about that question a lot lately as I decide what to write next. I’d say the language is different for the different age groups, mainly because the adult books I write are more mature in content and the stories focus on the main character’s careers in male-dominated fields, and as such they’re around other adults who are coworkers or business partners and this sometimes requires more formality in their interactions. 

I’m already excited for your next book! What’s next for you?

My next book is ONE LAST WORD, which I think of as an adult version of TO ALL THE BOYS I’VE LOVED BEFORE. In the novel, Sara Chae creates an app that lets people send their last words after they pass to whoever they want. But after a night of drunk drafting, the messages she writes to her parents, her ex BFF, and unrequited crush are sent out, and she has to deal with this messy aftermath while securing funding for her business venture. The book releases in April and I can’t wait!