Interview With Author Yaeko Koizumi Knaus

 

 

1.      What inspired you to write this book?          

It was the series of many things. As the results, it eventually emerged as a picture book.  The original poem was written having the students in mind when I traveled on the east coast of the United States by a sailboat.  I had retired on that year and I kept thinking about my students while I enjoyed my trip on the water. I emailed my poem to my former principal who read my poem to the students in an entire school during the morning announcement. I received very nice feedback which encouraged me to hold on to my poem thinking I would like to publish it someday. But, how was my question. Should I publish a collection of my poems? A few years ago, something made me to draw the scenery from my poem. Surprisingly several people gave me the positive comments on it.  Thus, these two events gave me an idea to publish a children’s picture book.    

 

2. What exactly is it about — and who is it written for?                

My book tells the readers my amazing journey along the east coast of the United States,  how fun to travel by a sailboat,  how beautiful our world is, what animals one will see along the coast as well as how sad to see the pollutions along the way. It reminds the readers how important it is to take our individual responsibilities seriously as a gatekeeper of our environment free of pollutions.

 

3. What do you hope readers will get out of reading your book?

I hope the young readers will be inspired to learn how to sail, and want to travel on the boat. I also hope my book will remind them that we need to be vigilant to keep the environment clean and pollution free. I like to see my book will generate the discussion among the young readers how they will keep away the trashes and pollutions from their environment.

 

4. How did you decide on your book’s title and cover design?

Paros was the actual name of my husband’s beloved boat. It was named after the Greek island of Paros. It gave me much pleasure and joy over the years when I traveled on it. So, it was a tribute to it to name the book after it.

 

5. What advice or words of wisdom do you have for fellow writers – other than run! 

Talk with other authors?

 

6. What trends in the book world do you see -- and where do you think the book publishing industry is heading? 

I understand the area of e-book and audible are growing. I am sure the book industry is responding to this trend and the reader’s needs.

 

7. Were there experiences in your personal life or career that came in handy when writing this book? 

This book is totally based on my real experience.

 

8. How would you describe your writing style? Which writers or books is your writing similar to?

I really do not have the model. I love reading some of the poems of Shel Silverstein or Maurice Sendak. I also love reading Roald Dahl ‘s books. I love the humors in their writing.

I would like to write like Hemingway someday.

 

9. What challenges did you overcome in the writing of this book?

Because English is not my mother tongue, writing anything in English is always challenging for me. It often needs to double and triple-check various parts of writing such as the expressions as well as the grammar in order to make sure they are correct. The use of “a” and “the” are most challenging for me in addition to the plural forms. On the other hand, despite the fact that I had no formal training in the area of art, surprisingly the illustration for my book was also done by myself. So, it took some courage to publish it. However, I found the drawing and coloring are completely   creative and I enjoyed it most.

 

10. If people can buy or read one book this week or month, why should it be yours?

My book gives the readers not only the joy of reading a story but also the pleasure from the visual art. The poem I wrote will share the experiences on a sailboat with the readers while each page helps them to appreciate the art work. The feedback I often receive for my illustration is how colorful each page is and no two pages are alike.

 

About The Author: Born and raised in Japan, I studied the English language in a college in Kyoto, Japan. A few years after that, I had an opportunity to come to US and to continue my education.   While in school, I was able to obtain several teaching certificates which included teaching ESL/Japanese Bilingual, Elementary school, Reading Specialist, as well as Japanese Language. These certificates made it possible for me to teach at a public school in New Jersey. I have retired in 2015 after teaching young students for 25 years.

 

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About Brian Feinblum

This award-winning blog has generated over four million pageviews. With 5,000+ posts over the past dozen years, it was named one of the best book marketing blogs by BookBaby  http://blog.bookbaby.com/2013/09/the-best-book-marketing-blogs  and recognized by Feedspot in 2021 and 2018 as one of the top book marketing blogs. It was also named by www.WinningWriters.com as a "best resource.”  Copyright 2025.

 

For the past three decades, Brian Feinblum has helped thousands of authors. He formed his own book publicity firm in 2020. Prior to that, for 21 years as the head of marketing for the nation’s largest book publicity firm, and as the director of publicity at two independent presses, Brian has worked with many first-time, self-published, authors of all genres, right along with best-selling authors and celebrities such as: Dr. Ruth, Mark Victor Hansen, Joseph Finder, Katherine Spurway, Neil Rackham, Harvey Mackay, Ken Blanchard, Stephen Covey, Warren Adler, Cindy Adams, Todd Duncan, Susan RoAne, John C. Maxwell, Jeff Foxworthy, Seth Godin, and Henry Winkler.

 

His writings are often featured in The Writer and IBPA’s The Independent (https://pubspot.ibpa-online.org/article/whats-needed-to-promote-a-book-successfully).

 

He hosted a panel on book publicity for Book Expo America several years ago, and has spoken at ASJA, BookCAMP, Independent Book Publishers Association Sarah Lawrence College, Nonfiction Writers Association, Cape Cod Writers Association, Willamette (Portland) Writers Association, APEX, Morgan James Publishing, and Connecticut Authors and Publishers Association. He served as a judge for the 2024 IBPA Book Awards.

 

His letters-to-the-editor have been published in The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, New York Post, NY Daily News, Newsday, The Journal News (Westchester) and The Washington Post. His first published book was The Florida Homeowner, Condo, & Co-Op Association Handbook.  It was featured in The Sun Sentinel and Miami Herald.

 

Born and raised in Brooklyn, he now resides in Westchester with his wife, two kids, and Ferris, a black lab rescue dog, and El Chapo, a pug rescue dog.

 

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