Interview with Mae Coyiuto, Author of Chloe and the Kaishao Boys
Step into the lively streets of Manila and embark on a heartwarming journey with Chloe and the Kaishao Boys, a captivating YA rom-com that introduces readers to Chloe, a spirited Chinese-Filipina girl caught between tradition and her own dreams.
In today's author interview, we chat with the talented author Mae Coyiuto to unravel the inspiration and creative process that brought Chloe's world of arranged dates, cultural fusion, and unexpected romance to life. Join us as we explore how Mae Coyiuto's storytelling prowess beautifully captures the universal themes of love, family, and self-discovery in a setting that is as vibrant and diverse as the characters she's crafted.
When Dimple Met Rishi meets Loveboat, Taipei in this hilarious YA rom-com about a Chinese-Filipina girl in Manila whose father sets her up on a marathon of arranged dates in hopes of convincing her to stay close to home for college.
Chloe is officially off the waitlist at USC, and thus one step closer to realizing her dream of becoming an animator in the United States. But before she leaves home, her auntie insists on planning a traditional debut for Chloe’s eighteenth birthday (think sweet sixteen meets debutante ball). To make matters worse, her father, intent on finding Chloe the perfect escort for the party, keeps setting her up on one awkward kaishao—or arranged date—after another. But . . . why does her dad suddenly care so much about her love life? And what happens when she actually starts to fall for one of the guys, only to have to leave at the end of the summer?
1. Welcome to Subtle Asian Book Blog, Mae!! We're so excited to have you here as our first ever author interview. For our readers and book club members who are meeting you for the first time, can you tell us a little bit about yourself and your books?
Thank you so much for having me! I’m such a fan of your page and appreciate the work that you do to amplify Asian stories and authors. Hi everyone! My name is Mae and I’m a Chinese Filipino author based in Manila. I like saying that I’m a not-so-young-adult who loves young adult fiction, especially contemporary YA.
2. Chloe and the Kaishao Boys is a delightful rom-com that follows a Chinese-Filipina girl in Manila before she heads off to college. What inspired you to write this story and what can readers expect from Chloe's journey?
This story all started from an assignment I had in grad school. My professor at the time instructed us to try writing pages for a YA fantasy story. As a contemporary girl and semi-disobedient student, I started writing this prom chapter set in an all-girls school in Manila instead.
I then thought more about the same girl character and what would happen if she went on dates set up by her relatives. While lots of awkward matchmaking does ensue in the book, the story is also about that pivotal moment between high school and college. In communities like where I’m from, people usually grow up together with the same classmates from kindergarten all the way to high school. Once graduation comes, I know how that change feels like the world is shifting. For Chloe, it feels extremely monumental since she dreams of studying abroad, thousands of miles away from her family and home. For me, this book is about a seventeen-year-old girl who wants to go after her dreams, but wants to take her family along with her too.
3. Can you share with us more about the cultural influences and traditions depicted in the book, such as the traditional debut and the concept of kaishao (arranged dates)?
For YA, I think we’ve already seen a lot of stories that have matchmaking and even the big birthday party or debutante ball. What I loved about writing Chloe and the Kaishao Boys was that I got to write these YA hallmarks in the context of very Filipino and Chinese-Filipino practices and traditions.
The Philippine debut is a party thrown for Filipino girls when they turn eighteen. I guess it’s the equivalent to a quinceañera or sweet sixteen in other cultures. The traditional debut includes the eighteen “roses,” which are the closest guys in the celebrant’s life, and eighteen “candles,” the closest girls. Kaishao, on the other hand, is a Hokkien term that means “to introduce.” In Chloe’s words, it’s when friends or family, mostly nosy relatives, introduce single people to potential partners. When I put together kaishaos and a debut in one story, I got excited about the idea of an auntie basically setting up this girl to fill in the spots for her eighteen roses.
4. The book explores themes of love, family, and pursuing one's dreams. How did you balance the humor and romance with the deeper emotional moments in the story?
As much as I love writing the dates, the guys, the kilig moments, I also think the book shows you all types of love: romantic, familial, friendship, even love for your home. When I think about being seventeen and in high school, everything feels so intrinsically tied to your friends and family. In my mind, you can't write a young girl's coming-of-age love story without those elements. As for the humor, I really had so much fun exposing my corny and cheesy jokes. In the most emotional scenes in the book, I think there are always lighter moments sprinkled in there because I think that’s how life is. Like, your heart-to-heart conversation with your best friend can also happen while she’s trying to make a poop-related metaphor. Another powerful thing about humor is that it helps people hear out topics that they usually find hard to talk about. This book pushes back on some more traditional mindsets in Chinese Filipino culture and I feel like people are more willing to hear these conversations out because they're delivered through a romcom.
5. Are you working on anything new right now? What can fans of yours expect?
I’m working on another YA project right now but I’m still exploring where this manuscript is taking me. It stars different characters from the ones you meet in CHLOE, but it’s still a contemporary YA novel set in Manila.
Fun questions:
Book you’d recommend to everyone?
As a hopeless romantic and YA fan, I always recommend The Sun is also a Star by Nicola Yoon. It’s the book that gave me courage to write YA of my own, and it’s one of those stories that inspires you to have a little more hope in the world.
Favorite Asian food? Favorite food in general?
I love soondubu so much that I used to have an Instagram account just dedicated to Korean tofu. I’m also a big noodle person so pancit and ramen are my big comfort meals too.
If your life were a trope, what would it be?
I took this question very seriously so I decided to answer a “Which popular trope are you” quiz on a site called The Angry Noodle. Based on my personality, their diagnosis is that I’m the “Vibin’ Villager.” In other words, I’m “an innocent civilian who lives their best life despite all the chaos surrounding them.” The shenanigans of The Dark Lord/Lady and The Chosen One might infringe on my otherwise peaceful life, but the Vibin’ Villager still endures. My takeaway: I hope my life lives up to being a Vibin’ Villager.
About the Author
Mae Coyiuto is a Chinese-Filipino writer, born and raised in the Philippines. Mae earned her BA in Psychology from Pomona College and her Master’s Degree in Writing for Young Adults/Children from The New School. If she’s not writing, she’s usually fangirling over Beyoncé, tennis, Gilmore Girls, or all of the above. She currently lives in Manila.
