When eighteen-year-old Keiko Yamada’s father dies unexpectedly, he leaves behind a one way ticket to Japan, an unintelligible death poem about powerful Japanese spirits and their gigantic, beast-like Guardians, and the cryptic words: “Go to Japan in my place. Find the Gate. My camera will show you the way.”
Alone and afraid, Keiko travels to Tokyo, determined to fulfill her father’s dying wish. There, beneath glittering neon signs, her father’s death poem comes to life. Ancient spirits spring from the shadows. Chaos envelops the city, and as Keiko flees its burning streets, her guide, the beautiful Yui Akiko, makes a stunning confession--that she, Yui, is one of a handful of spirits left behind to defend the world against the most powerful among them: a once noble spirit now insane. Keiko must decide if she will honor her father’s heritage and take her rightful place among the gods.
Keith Yatsuhashi was born in 1965 in Boston, MA. He graduated from Northeastern University in 1989 and is currently the Director of the U.S. Department of Commerce Export Assistance Center in Providence, Rhode Island. Keith was a competitive figure skater for ten years, winning the U.S. National Junior Dance Championships in 1984, a bronze medal in the 1983 World Junior Figure Skating Championships, and a silver medal in 1984. In addition to his love of writing, Keith enjoys many hobbies such as golf, reading, and playing football and hockey with his sons. Keith currently lives in Norfolk, MA with his wife, Kathleen and three children.
Early on, Kojiki suffered from an abundance of backstory. The problem persisted right up until the final drafts. My editor and I wend over and over the many chapters I'd written about the past and critical events that happened well before Kojiki's story starts. In the end, I kept the most crucial and summarized the rest. It provided a great foundation for the book, but I still wanted to do more with it.
The solution came after I attended a marketing panel at BEA last May. Panelists from Kobo and InScribe said one of the best ways for an author to increase his/her visibility with e-store algorithms is to write a free short story.
Viola! Kojiki's backstory will be available soon as a three part short story. For free!
Book Excerpt
Kojiki
Chapter Twenty
Innocence
A woman hungers Spring turns into winter snow Winter brings the fire
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