how to order ‘unseen moon’, and other updates

So I’m finally done with the posts about my trip. Moving on!

These Tweets from my friend Kate cheered me up this gloomy Friday morning.

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Intrigued? I am done with shipping all of the pre-ordered copies of Unseen Moon, and I’m back to accepting orders. There are two ways you can order:

  1. Email me – victoriaeliza [at] gmail [dot] com – if you want to order, and I will ask Books on Demand Philippines to print you a copy and ship it directly to you. Pro: You’ll get a copy of the book hot off the presses! Con: I won’t be able to sign it beforehand.
  2. Books on Demand Philippines will print you a copy and ship it to me. I’ll sign it, package it, and I’ll ship it to you. Pro: I will be able to sign it beforehand. Con: You will need to shoulder the double shipping fees, which can amount to more than PhP 100. Note: Each copy costs PhP 450.

Either way, if you’re interested, just email me and let’s see what we can do.

Each copy comes with a small gift:

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Cards shipped from London, printed by Moo UK (Note: I only have 50 of these.)

If you live outside of the Philippines, you may want to try the ebook version, or the print version via CreateSpace.

Thanks for looking!

Here’s J wearing the shirt I got him in Bangkok:

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He celebrated his birthday recently, so we got some cupcakes!

Salted caramel:
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Pistachio sans rival:

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On our way to meet with friends, we passed by a Japanese-Korean grocery store and got these:

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Strawberry, Matcha, Sakura Matcha, Blueberry Cheesecake. The cheesecake is the best!

J ended up on Rada St. for work, and we found Mondo Juice + Sip. Try their green tea drink and Caramel Cheesecake.

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My hipster sense is tingling.

Instead of a straw, they give you a tiny wooden knife to cut the plastic cover. The place is called Sip, after all.

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Butchie of Filipina Explorer has included me in her “11 Essential Blogs (And Bloggers) You Oughta Read“. Honored! Thank you very much!

And here’s a recent title consumed, which kept me company from Hanoi to Bangkok:

Into the Darkest CornerInto the Darkest Corner by Elizabeth Haynes

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The novel Into the Darkest Corner opens with a transcript of a hearing, followed by a third-person narration of a murder. “As far as days to die were concerned, the longest day of the year was as good a day as any.” I was hooked already at this point, intrigued by the technique of detailing the events through the dying/dead woman’s perspective.

The novel switched to first-person and introduced us to another woman afflicted with a severe case of OCD. “Here I have to check and re-check the flat door properly six or twelve times, and then the communal front door as well.”

The novel, Elizabeth Haynes’ debut, was well-written and tightly paced. I was intrigued, and despite the one-dimensional antagonist (his motivation is plot!) and the not-so-explosive reveal, it kept me reading until the end.

I’ve read many thrillers about escape, but this one is a good, hard look at an escape’s aftermath.

View all my reviews

neon literary magazine, issue # 34, now live

Issue 34 of Neon is here, and I have poems in it. It also features the work of Sam Frankl, Lynn Hoffman, Tracey Iceton, Michael Frazer, Kate Folk, and Heidi James. The cover photograph is by Andrew Shoemaker.

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It’s free to read online, but consider donating, or buying a physical copy. Each issue is 40 pages, A5, saddle-stitched and photo-illustrated in black and white.

Here is “Elegy for the lost minutes“, chosen as part of the preview. My thanks to editor Krishan Coupland.

‘the best of philippine speculative fiction (2005-2010)’ to be launched on feb. 28

Source: Dean Alfar
Photo Credit: Dean Alfar

Mark your calendars! The Best of Philippine Speculative Fiction, edited by Dean and Nikki Alfar and published by the University of the Philippines Press, will be launched on the 28th of February! I have a story here!

Here is a message from Dean:

Book launch is on Feb 28, 2013, 5:00PM, at the UP Bahay Kalinaw.

Between these covers are the best short stories of fantasy, horror, science fiction and genres in-between, selected from the first five years of the Philippine Speculative Fiction annuals. Step through the portal and explore worlds old and new and experience the power of the literature of the imagination as crafted by Filipino authors. Featuring stories by:

Rebecca Arcega
FH Batacan
Rica Bolipata-Santos
Jose Elvin Bueno
Ian Rosales Casocot
Paolo Chikiamco
Ronald Cruz
Marguerite Alcazaren de Leon
Timothy James M. Dimacali
Andrew Drilon
Russell Stanley Geronimo
Pocholo Goitia
Carljoe Javier
Angelo R. Lacuesta
Anne Lagamayo
Apol Lejano-Massebieau
Joseph F. Nacino
Alexander Osias
Kate Osias
Vincent Michael Simbulan
Joshua L. Lim So
Charles Tan
Yvette Tan
Mia Tijam
Noel Tio
Eliza Victoria
Isabel Yap
Kenneth Yu

editing the closet, news of poetry

I planned to go on a jog, but my room was bothering me, so I hunkered down and cleaned my floor and bundled up the shoes and clothes that I no longer use (or, in the case of clothes, those that sadly no longer fit). I filled two large garbage bags, and my closet was finally able to breathe. The shoes that remained I removed from the shoe boxes to save space. I hate how every space I inhabit feels so small and temporary – maybe because they are. I still can’t bring myself to buy items purely for decoration. I have to be practical. I have to be able to fit all of my essentials in one traveling bag. I just know that one day I will be packing up again to a new place.

I would love to live someplace spacious and permanent. Where I can hang a picture on the wall, buy a vase to put flowers in. Sit down with J, have dinner we actually cooked. Settling down, now there’s a phrase. Not marriage, just a place to stay. The opposite of wanderlust. I guess it bites you once you get over your first quarter century.

Guyito to watch over me.
Early morning. View outside the window.

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In other news, Room Magazine‘s Labours issue (35.4) is coming out soon with my poem, “Hospital Work”. Can’t wait to get my two compli copies! Lorrie Miller sent a teaser in the mail:

As the final issue of our anniversary volume, we are launching issue 35.4, Labours at the Roundhouse Community Centre on Sunday, December 9 at 2:30pm, she writes.

If you’re in Canada, do come and enjoy the poems. The issue will be on newsstands in two to three weeks.

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How about a children’s book for Christmas? You can order my book “Jeremy’s Magic Well” online.

Winner, 2009 Gig Book Storywriting Contest

Nominee, 2012 National Children’s Book Awards 

In Jeremy’s Magic Well, Jeremy’s father is mostly away, working as a cook on a foreign ship. Thanks to a magic well, Jeremy is able to see and talk to him. Following his father’s advice, he overcomes his fear of David, a schoolmate bully, and discovers that the two of them have something in common.

Also available are books by Kate Osias, Andrea Dela Cruz, and other fine writers.

‘what literary character scares you the most?’ on manila bulletin

Ronald S. Lim from the Manila Bulletin asks several authors what literary character scares them the most.

Here’s my answer:

“This is not a character in the strictest sense, but the entire town in Shirley Jackson’s widely anthologized story ‘The Lottery’ scared me. The story hooks you in with an innocent opening paragraph about this idyllic town in summer – The morning of June 27th was clear and sunny, with the fresh warmth of a full-summer day; the flowers were blossoming profusely and the grass was richly green — which quickly devolves into something dark and horrific. Jackson’s a master in subtlety, and as a reader you will not be able to discern the horror (at best you will feel the low hum of unease) until the very very end. And it’s scary because the idea is not far-fetched or unthinkable – it can actually happen.” — Eliza Victoria, author of “Lower Myths”, “The Viewless Dark”, and “A Bottle of Storm Clouds”

Read more here. Answers from Cecilia Brainard, Samantha Sotto, Scott Chua, Yvette Tan, Mina Esguerra, Queena Lee Chua, Kate Evangelista, AS Santos, Kate Osias, and Nikki Alfar.

hey weekend

No work on Friday! We have planned to go to Tagaytay or Baguio, but logistics problems prevailed, so that will have to wait till we enter my birth month. :)

Speaking of my birth month, J got me some early gifts, including this pair of earrings. Whee.

J’s ma got home from a long vacation in the US. We got bagels. This is turkey ham, sun-dried tomato cream cheese, carrot and pineapple cupcake. Boom. Calories.

Have you tried Sebastian’s crazy awesome crazy-awesome flavors? Try Green Mango with Bagoong (fish paste; this is actual bagoong on the green mango ice cream) and Balsamic Strawberry (strawberry ice cream with balsamic vinegar syrup).

Lovely sky from Sunday afternoon. Look.

Don Jaucian talked to some horror writers and asked them what local stories they find scary. Answers from Yvette Tan, Ian Rosales Casocot, Karl De Mesa, David Hontiveros, Douglas Candano, and moi. Read the article on the Philippine Star.

The Book Depository is giving 5 percent off on one book order, so I finally got Leningrad by Anna Reid.