After his longtime boyfriend kicks him out, a promising young illustrator moves to Arizona where he reflects on everything he’s had to do for money. As he tries to capture these memories in his paintings, he begins to understand all that he’s lost as well as what might be possible.

A Vietnamese-Australian writer at the Iowa Writer’s Workshop receives a visit from his estranged father. With his final story due in a few days, he looks to his father’s life for inspiration.