For Abigail Hing Wen, getting one of her books adapted into a hit film now streaming on Netflix, Loveboat, Taipei was nowhere near the end. Instead, she’s now venturing into bold new territory with a new middle-grade novel, The Vale, and a short film she’s written and directed, which stars three-time Tony Award winner Lea Salonga (Mulan, Aladdin, Miss Saigon).
Fangirlish had a chance to talk to Wen about The Vale, the transition from YA to middle grade, her short film, and what’s next.
We are at a crucial point in the conversation about AI, and that’s partly what inspired Wen to jump into the discussion. “My hope is that readers of The Vale will come away with a deeper, more intuitive understanding of how AI generation fundamentally works,” she said. “I actually wrote The Vale in 2015, long before the present-day hype around AI generation. But because no one knew what that was, I had to shelve the book for a decade,” she shared.
“At the time, I was working as an attorney in venture capital in the heart of the AI revolution. I was thinking through ethical issues — around implicit bias, safety, access — and I saw this powerful technology seeping into so many aspects of our lives without people even realizing it. I wanted to increase access for people, and help increase awareness of AI’s potentials as well as pitfalls, so that more people can benefit from it and take charge of it for themselves.”
The success of Loveboat, Taipei means most people know Wen as a YA writer. But she confesses, “Middle grade books are my first love!” and explains. “They can be incredibly powerful, and I love the challenge of making complex ideas clear and accessible to young readers.”
“In addition, kids are exactly the audience I want to start with for The Vale themes — they are the ones who will shape the future of this technology, and I want more kids of all stripes to be able to do so.”
Not just that, “The Vale is accessible to young readers, but also intended for older kids and adults who are intrigued by how this technology works or just love a good fantasy-inspired tale with strong family themes.”
For Wen, the transition wasn’t as complicated as it seems, though it was actually the other way around, as she wrote The Vale first. “I love stories about young unexpected heroes who are discover they have so much more power and capability than they ever dreamed.” But she’s not someone to restrict herself to one genre. “I have stories in me in many genres, and have written (some still to come): YA, MG, a picture book, graphic novel, dystopian and an adult historical.”
Then, there’s her short film.
“I loved working with Lea Salonga in my directorial debut. She was my girlhood hero — I grew up listening to her singing Miss Saigon, Mulan, and Aladdin, and she was also an early supporter of my Loveboat, Taipei novels. I am so honored she agreed to star in The Vale — Origins and had a wonderful time working with her.”
Ironically, sometimes, things come to be in a very different order than we think they will, as Wen shared. “The short film actually came about before the novel found a home. After executive producing Love in Taipei, the film adaptation of Loveboat, Taipei now on Netflix, I was interested in growing as a writer/director. I was advised to do a short film to show my work, which I’d never considered. I found that intimidating at first — what could I possibly do as a short film, a genre I had barely watched myself? I thought through my body of work, all unpublished at the time, to figure out if I could do a bite-sized story. And I realized a prequel to The Vale novel would be exactly that.”
But Wen didn’t really imagine what the project would end up being. “I never dreamed this short would expand into a published illustrated novel and gather such an amazing cast and crew. I’ve loved the creative challenge of weaving live action with animation. Now it is doing triple duty not only as my debut as a filmmaker, but as a proof of concept for a feature-length film and support for the novel’s launch.”
And she’s not stopping here. “I’m very focused on all things Vale at the moment, as it’s expanding in so many directions! But, I’m also headed on a book tour mid-September: SF, LA, Austin, Seattle, NYC, Princeton, DC, and more — check http://www.abigailhingwen.com/events for details. I have a Roblox game launch end of August — go find it and experience the Vale for yourself! We have our very own panel at LA Comic-Con on Sunday, September 28, at 11 am — The Vale: Enter a New Fantasy World. I’m over the moon! If you’re there, come say hi!”
“I’m also writing the feature film script for The Vale at Rideback Rise, a wonderful accelerator program for POC creatives in Hollywood, founded by Dan Lin before he became chairman of Netflix films. I’m so excited for the momentum!
Finally, as a sneak peek at non-Vale forthcomings, I’m happy to share that my first graphic novel is in the works with HarperAlley! Coming early 2027.”
There’s Abigail Hing Wen for a while. And for anyone who enjoyed her work, that’s nothing but a good thing.
The Vale will be released September 16th, 2025.
