Published by Vancouver’s own Page Two Books, Sun Shining on Morning Snow: A Memoir of Identity, Loss, and Living Boldly is the gnarly, bracing, and empowering new memoir by Ingrid Hu Dahl, detailing “her rebellious early days as a touring musician to her groundbreaking work at the Rock ‘n’ Roll Camp for Girls”, the grief of losing her mother, and how “[t]hrough love, loss, and an unbreakable connection to the fierce women before her…she ultimately finds reconciliation and the strength to live boldly in her identity.”

In honour of its publication earlier this summer (June 11th, 2025), Hu Dahl will be landing in Vancouver for a special in-bookstore event at Upstart & Crow on Saturday, August 16th (6:30-8pm), where she’ll be chatting it up with local author and artist, Donna Seto. The book launch is free to attend with advance registration – but if you know the space then you also know it fills up quickly…so we recommend jumping on the waitlist HERE the moment you finish reading our new interview with Hu Dahl below. And, whether you can make it to the launch or not, be sure to get your hands on a copy of Sun Shining on Morning Snow ASAP!

First of all, please introduce yourself to Scout readers.

My name is Ingrid Hu Dahl. I am a mixed-race, queer speaker, author, and leadership coach based in Sausalito, California. I was born and raised in New Jersey and spent a lot of time in my childhood growing up in Taipei, Taiwan. What keeps me busy lately is energy around my book events and speaker engagement, my coaching clients, and finding new walks with my dog Palo Santo. I believe living boldly is an act of bravery, courage is a choice, and leadership takes a lot of heart and humility.

What question are you most hoping to field at your Q&A with Donna Seto at Upstart & Co.?

Donna and I have been planning out our curated experience at Upstart & Crow; we’re both looking forward to the event. Two questions I’m excited for Donna to ask me are:

As a queer, mixed-race woman, how have you navigated spaces where you didn’t fully fit in? How has that influenced how you show up in leadership and storytelling?

How do you hope your book contributes to conversations about race, belonging, and visibility in Canada and beyond?

Do you have any questions for Donna?

The questions I plan on asking Donna include:

Your book Chinatown Vancouver is both visually stunning and deeply rooted in community history. What was your research and illustration process like for capturing such a rich and often underrepresented narrative?

What was the most meaningful story or detail you uncovered while creating this book?

How do you hope your book contributes to conversations about race, belonging, and visibility in Canada and beyond?

Besides your book launch at Upstart & Crow, what are you most looking forward to doing while you’re in Vancouver this August?

I’ve always wanted to visit Vancouver! I’m thrilled to be staying with my two gay friends, Nick and Simon; and meeting my amazing publisher team at Page Two. I plan to hit up Chinatown based on some of the beautiful book illustrations by Donna Seto, and I’ll be hitting up a few dining and cocktail bar spots – Bagheera, Dachi, and The Lunch Lady – with a few sightseeing opportunities that our friends plan to curate.

I know that Sun Shining on Morning Snow refers to your traditional Chinese name. However, I’d love for you to elaborate more on your choice to use it as the title of your memoir, as well as its origins… What significance has that name had to you over the years, up until know, and how does it contribute to the identity you’ve created for yourself?

The original working title was ‘Hapa Grandma’ as I wanted to write the story that my younger self yearned for from an elder. When my story evolved, it was clear that the significance of my Chinese name and its dual meaning as a visual connector to the opening poem and the closing scene was important to reflect as the title. I didn’t grow up being called by my Chinese name. In many ways, I’m growing into it now as an adult with and through this book.

You have a strong background in music. Which woman musician do you currently find most inspiring, that you wish you could’ve been friends/toured with back in the day?

Love this question! Hands down, Karen O of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs. She is a fellow mixed-Asian (Korean) and 100% bad ass. She is multi-dimensional, incredibly talented, and leads with vulnerability, fierceness, and heart.

What are you currently listening to on heavy rotation?

I’ve been listening to the bands Wet Leg, The Last Dinner Party, and Thee Sacred Souls on heavy rotation. Often my wife and I listen to our favourite, Beach House, and of course, Hermanos Gutiérrez – I think everyone is listening to them these days!

Which songs from your music career best capture the spirit of Sun Shining on Morning Snow?

Five songs from my music vignette that most encapsulate the spirit of Sun Shining on Morning Snow:

“Air Travel” and “Waves and Generation” (Lines of Parallel Minds), by The 303s. “Air Travel” reminds me so much of connecting with my Ma’s spirit after her passing. “Waves and Generation” is a song by The 303s reflecting the force of awareness from the cycle of sexism and socially constructed norms.

“Covers” by Rad Pony. I love this song and it reminds me of my coming out journey.

“Spotlight” by Boyskout. I talk a lot about the “spotlight” throughout my life, and love that Boyskout had a song with the same title.

“Cherry Bomb” by Lismore. It was such a fun experience writing that song with my two label and bandmates, and having a music video shot in Maine. We also made a makeshift music video from my brother and my apartment in Jersey City, which is described in my book.

Which song now makes you cringe?

Nothing quite cringy – but I’m a more matured, evolved creative whose styles have shifted.

I mentioned to my wife that I’d like to explore being a Neurologist or Astrophysicist, and she looked at me from this place of having spent two years of me becoming a certified leadership coach, several years navigating corporate roles, and two years becoming an author writing my memoir – as if saying, “Could you please pause before starting a new venture?”

From musician to speaker – you must be a natural extrovert and performer. Was the process of delving into your interior self, by writing this memoir, an adjustment for you?

I do love being on stage, connecting with an audience/people, and performing. I balance that with introspection and reflection and I find that writing my memoir was both healing and not a solo act. I had a lot of amazing people along the journey with me – my wife, writing coach, editor(s), publisher, project manager, publicist, cover illustrator, etc. Having other women and my family and friend community support me along the way as I lay bare and release what was too often silent, painful, and lonely – that was beautiful.

What was the most difficult part and what came naturally?

The most difficult part was finding my writing voice, which didn’t appear until halfway through writing the manuscript! What came naturally was being coached to go back and sit with the scenes that were hurtful. Having had therapy and coaches, and being a coach, helped me be very open to expanding and exploring these scenes from the past.

You play bass, guitar, synth and sometimes even the drums; you’re written, directed and shot short films…just to name a couple of your myriad talents. What skill don’t you possess that you’d like to take a stab at in the future?

Most of my skills I share throughout the book – equestrian riding, waitressing, playing multiple instruments – had their prime moments. It would require a lot of effort to dust off and pick up now! I can imagine doing just that in the future.

I’m laughing about the question on what skill I don’t possess that I might explore in the future because recently, I mentioned to my wife that I’d like to explore being a Neurologist or Astrophysicist, and she looked at me from this place of having spent two years of me becoming a certified leadership coach, several years navigating corporate roles, and two years becoming an author writing my memoir – as if saying, “Could you please pause before starting a new venture?” Honestly, there are endless possibilities, and I am grateful that I can explore new skills and dimensions in the future. That’s very freeing!

Which instrument do you most feel an infinity with, and/or gravitate to? What role does music, and music-playing, play in your life these days?

My favourite instrument to play and perform on stage is the bass guitar, followed by the synth. I don’t play music at present but here and there I’ll send lyrics to Sarah Pony (from Rad Pony) or lay down vocals on tracks that Parixit or Vasil share from The 303s. It feels like returning to music-making and expression might be part of my future, but having that special bandmate to co-create in person is everything – and my amazing bandmates are on the east coast, which makes it challenging.

How did being a musician, etc. help prepare you for writing a book?

There’s an element of laying bare and being in a spotlight as a performer that you experience in writing. Different from being on stage, when you share your story in writing, you get to set the record of who you are. Not who people assume you are as a performer.

Being a musician helped me become a confident public speaker. The stage feels enjoyable, and like a home. I love stages of all sizes. And I’ve learned a lot about how to mitigate stage fright and stay centered, calming the amygdala. I’ve coached and taught other people how to mitigate stage fright, too. It’s absolutely a skill one can learn and experience, get increasingly more confident and better at – removing those filler words, using the energy in your body to move in ways that aren’t repetitive or distracting. As a public speaker, a lot of what you communicate is in your body language. People remember under 10% of what you actually say. You want to deliver the message as best as possible, with few distractions, so that the message can successfully land and impact the audience.

What was the last memoir you read? How about the one that had the most impact on you, to date?

I absolutely loved Crying in H Mart by Michelle Zauner. That had a big impact on me, as did Hunger Makes Me a Modern Girl by Carrie Brownstein, and Elliot Page’s memoir, Page Boy. I also loved Darling Days by iO Tillet Wright, who I know from my musician/Brooklyn days.

What kind of food did you eat growing up? What dish, or flavour, in particular makes you feel nostalgic?

I grew up eating steamed, whole red snapper and beef stew prepared by my Ma, which I loved and continue to create – especially when I’m missing her or want to feel a sense of comfort, an internal hug, or a tang of homesickness.

What, if any, connection is there between your Scandinavian heritage and food in your life?

My Scandinavian heritage reflects my love of meat and potatoes, salmon of all varieties, and sometimes, a baked cream spinach and cod dish my Ba made when I was a kid.

You began writing your memoir four months after the death of your mother. What role did writing play in your processing and grieving? What was the most challenging detail, story, or time of life to reflect back upon and share?

Writing my story and capturing aspects of my family’s journey, especially my Ma’s, was healing and helped me process the loss and grief of her passing. The most challenging details were in the climax of the story – her rejection and blame of my sexuality – and re-living quarantine and the final two months before her death.

What was the most pleasant, consoling memory that you revisited?

The most pleasant was laughing about our summer together when Ma was our “housemate” for her summer Social Work graduate internship. In reflection, that summer was such a gift. When I read the very last page of Chapter 10, I smile thinking about how she’s still vibrant in her spiritual dimension, as the Phoenix. Seeing signs of her presence, a reminder of her love and memory, continues to uplift and inspire me.

From an early scene describing how your impressive appetite earned you the childhood nickname “fan tong” (or “rice bucket” in English), to descriptions of eating abroad in Paris, Taipei and Maastricht (Netherlands), and eventually a devastating anecdote about your dying mother’s inability to satiate her craving for lasagne, your memoir is full of memorable food-related vignettes and memories. With that in mind, building a menu can also be a kind of “storytelling”. Please describe to me your life in four dishes (or more, up to one for each decade of your life, from childhood to adolescence, early adulthood, and current day. 

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