We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Grace Chan. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Grace below.
Grace, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. We’d love to hear about a project that you’ve worked on that’s meant a lot to you.
First, I gotta talk about my DIY zine project called I Heart Rudy, dedicated to one my favorite movies of all time, The Monster Squad (1987) . I first saw this movie on VHS as a kid and immediately felt such a kinship with the misfit characters. Seeing these outsiders band together with their shared dorky interests to slay monsters and save the world shifted something in me. It gave me agency and permission to be my own weirdo nerdy self, bullies at school be damned! And it gave me hope that one day I would find my own tribe and Squad, and have the fearlessness to slay my own metaphorical demons in life. All these years later, I created a fanzine about my love and appreciation for this movie. Through this rad project, I have gotten to meet so many other amazing Squad fans, got to participate in the The Monster Squad documentary (now available streaming and on blu-ray),had my zine shouted out by iconic horror magazine Fangoria and Fred Dekker the director, and have the absolute honor of calling some of the cast members my friends. A few copies of Issue 1 and 2 of my zine are still available, via the link on my website!
And now I am working on a new project, near and dear to my heart. I’m in the process of writing my first Young Adult horror/thriller novel, taking place in 1987! I grew up in the 80’s and 90’s reading spooky YA books by Christopher Pike and RL Stine, but also relishing the girly drama of books like Sweet Valley High…so I’m combining all my interests from this time and distilling them into this book! I don’t want to give too much away because it’s a nostalgic premise that I haven’t seen done before in a Young Adult novel…and I want to be the first, lol. But the main protagonist is an Asian-American girl named after my childhood friend, Diane Lin. She was the coolest, most bad-ass girl, and I often wonder what’s become of her. Well in this book, she’s got a few mysteries to solve, amidst the horrors that are happening around her; and it’s all set in the awesome 80’s, which is like a character in the book itself. I’m going to immerse you in there, so you can smell the Jovan Musk perfume, see the Guess ice-washed denim, and hear those Go-Go’s songs!
Grace, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
Of course! My name is Grace Chan, and I’m basically an 80’s kid who never grew up. I’m a nostalgia collector who’s keeping the 80’s alive! I have a huge collection of 80’s clothes, toys, books, and VHS because those are things that “spark joy” for me…minimalism has never been my thing! I’m currently writing my first YA horror/thriller novel set in the 80’s which I’m super stoked about. I’m a huge fan of 80’s horror films and books, having grown up taping movies like Nightmare on Elm Street off of tv and reading Christopher Pike and Stephen King as a tween, so it’s been a lot of fun thus far in my writing journey for this book in progress! I’m also a zine creator, which I’ve touched upon earlier. And I guess I’m kind of an 80’s influencer as well, although I don’t like to say that, lol. I’ve had a lot of fun collaborating with retro brands and companies such as Trapper Keeper, Member’s Only, the Stranger Things experience, and even Elvira’s clothing line with Mystic Museum, to name a few.
I’m very much an 80’s style enthusiast….I gravitate towards bright and pastel colors, patterns, unique designs, and a good acid wash…anything that makes me happy to look at. In my sullen goth girl days in high school (lol) I disappeared in my all-black ensembles. Now that I’m older, I want to own who I am and take up space in this world, and a bold vintage Memphis Milano design knit sweater definitely helps…because you can’t be a shrinking wallflower when you wear that! You have to OWN it :) Sadly, I don’t get to wear my 80’s outfits to work…I’m an Associate Manager of Operations at a creative design studio…but any chance I get, you’ll find me in acid wash and even some of my old sweaters and shirts from the late 80’s that I still fit into!
Also to answer the question of what I am most proud of…it might have to be training to be in top shape and traveling over 7,000 miles to Sydney, Australia, to compete in FROGGER, the NBC obstacle course game show based on the 80’s video game! That was such a blast. Basically the casting directors reached out to me via Instagram during the pandemic and I thought it was a joke! After doing some research and finding out it was indeed going to be a show on the NBC Peacock channel, I got serious about it. I had to go through multiple interviews, physicals,, do rigorous exercise tests, get my passport in order, etc etc! I lived in Sydney for almost 2 months during filming and while I didn’t win the grand prize (that honor went to an actual Cirque du Soleil acrobat, of course) I did make life-long friends and memories, got to hug kangaroos and koalas, and be on a show based on one of my favorite 80’s arcade games! OH and I didn’t break any bones. So there’s that too.
Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?
You know what. I’ve ALWAYS wanted to write a book…I have little booklets I would make as a kid, telling short stories. I have reams of pages and notebooks and diaries from my younger years, writing whatever was in my heart at the time. I’ve had some essays published online and in print from LA Times and Thought Journal, but I was always too chicken to put in the work and time and bravery to actually write a book. And it just dawned on me. You know, I’m Generation X and I’m not getting any younger. It’s TIME!! What’s the point of living a life where you don’t have the courage to really go after a dream, a passion. So I’m going for it! The mission is this: It’s never too late to do it. Laura Ingalls Wilder began writing Little House on the Prairie at age 65. Toni Morrison wrote The Bluest Eye at age 40. My favorite is Colonel Sanders, lol. The chicken man! He established his Kentucky Fried Chicken restaurant chain at age 65! So I’m writing my book, dammit! Am I allowed to curse? I’m writing my book and I’m pouring all the excitement and nostalgia and love I have for the 80’s, the decade that raised me, into this YA horror/thriller book. It’s going to be thrilling. It’s going to be gory, at times. It’s going to be glorious. I hope you’ll read it!
We’d love to hear the story of how you built up your social media audience?
I don’t have a massive social media following like some of my fellow 80’s lovers, but the followers I do have are so rad and so loyal. You know, I’ve had some people tell me, “Why don’t you have your Instagram be ONE thing. You’ll grow faster!” But you know. do you only love ONE thing in life? Lol. My overall passion is 80’s, and that encompasses many things. I am passionate about 80’s films, 80’s horror, 80’s fashion & aesthetic, 80’s and 90’s Young Adult books, 80’s toys and shows, 80’s music. So I’m going to showcase it all!! So I think my advice would be just to be creative and post about the things and the moments that you truly love, and be consistent about it. People who dig the same things you do, AKA your tribe, will find you! I’m lucky that a lot of the close friendships I have today have been because of social media, and I am super grateful for that.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://gracemarianchan.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gracemarian
- Other: https://iheartrudy.bigcartel.com – Where you can purchase my Monster Squad zines! https://bust.com/big-big-hair-and-bright-bold-patterns-of-the-80s-are-back-and-thriving-on-instagram/ – I was in featured in the Fall 2023 issue of BUST Magazine! https://jezebel.com/why-are-some-zoomers-so-wistful-for-the-80s-1848179583 – I was featured on Jezebel!
Image Credits
Portrait with radio by Tom’s One Hour Photo