Today we talk about Yawn Town, a book by Stjepan Mijat Zaninović published with our publishing house Europe Books.
Europe Books had the pleasure of interviewing the author Stjepan Mijat Zaninović to get to know him better, what prompted him to the writing of his book Yawn Town, as well as what parents and children will understand through his stories.
Below you can find our interview. Take a seat and enjoy your reading!!!
- What prompted you to the writing of your children book?
Yawn Town was created when my daughter Ararita was 2 or 3. That was the time when I was writing audio stories for kids, so by her bedtime I’d be very tired, but telling her a goodnight story was never a question. The issue was that she’d always ask for one more story…However, that day I was really tired, so I wanted to tell Ararita a story. One of them. At that moment an idea came to me – “If I make her yawn, she’ll become sleepy, or at least think she’s sleepy!” I told her about Yawn Town, she kept yawning each time I yawned, at the end of the story, she didn’t ask for another one. She was ready to go to sleep. Her. A creature with more energy than a star. “WOW! This really works. I need to show it to other parents.” – crossed my mind, so I sat and wrote it to help other parents put their children to sleep.
- What would you like to hear from your young readers?
I’d love to hear how much they loved the story. But even more, I’d love to hear how Yawn Town made them take better care of their health. I’d love to hear how the story affected their families. I’d love to hear that they went home and told their parents that some of their habits aren’t good. Parents listen to their kids parents want to be good for their kids as much as the kids want to be good for their parents. If a kid comes home and tells their parents that it’s not good to eat potato chips for 3 meals per day, they are more likely to change than if a doctor tells them. It’s weird, but that’s how people work. If my words can help families stay together, healthy, and happy for longer, if they can help parents build good relationships with their children, I’ll live and die as a happy and satisfied man.
- What will parents and children understand through your stories?
Through my stories, journalism, and poetry, I always try to have the same foundation – “You, whoever you are, are special in some way – you just have to discover how.” And my words are supposed to help everyone understand that the path of self-discovery is steep, curvy, and dangerous – but more rewarding than any other path because it’s better to be you for a second than someone else for an eternity. So, my stories are here to encourage kids and parents to be who they are, to chase their dreams even when the world around them tries to do everything to make them give up. I really hope my words help at least one soul in this world to not be afraid of being what they are, regardless of what other people say. Because society is the average of individuals, my mission is to ensure that the individual is not scared, so the society could become better with time.
- How was to see your book published?
This is my first book published under my name for the global market. I won’t try to make it look like it’s not a big deal. I was over the moon when Europe Books said Yawn Town is very innovative and unique. I told Ararita that the story created for her will be published for all the kids in the world to read if they want, she loved it, she was so proud. That was one of the proudest moments in my entire life. I dedicated the book to her. The thanks are how I used to put her to sleep. If 0 books sell, I will still be grateful to everyone involved in the project because you allowed me to create a monument for my daughter.
- Are you working on a new writing project that you can tell us about?
Actually, yes. I’m working on Lu & The Journal of Untold Fairytale Secrets. It’s a story about a young girl that finds an old, mysterious book. That book is actually a journal written by all the famous fairytale characters (Snow White, Cinderella, Little Mermaid, Little Red Riding Hood, etc.). They decided to write a journal because they are tired of the versions of their stories people are telling. Lu, a young girl, finds a book and starts reading it, discovering the new, real version of each famous fairy tale with each new page.
Europe Books thanks the author Stjepan Mijat Zaninović once again for taking the time and answering our questions. We are really pleased to have walked alongside him on the editorial path that led to the publication of his book Yawn Town. We wish him the best of luck for his book and for his future works.
To you, my readers, may this book be a great source of inspiration for everyone and may it bring you a great experience to enjoy. And remember that, no matter how adult you are, books for children have a lot to teach us all! Written in simple and clear concepts, illustrated children’s book have the ability to give us important life lessons or they put us back in touch with our forgotten child side which just needs to be awakened.
So, my dear readers, all I have to say is to enjoy your reading!
Your editor!