Let’s go!
I’m sticking to the board games. And maybe I’ll watch people paint some toys.
Visit the Event Page here.
Updates
flipside thanksgiving book bundle sale
For PhP 325, you can get a DRM-free EPUB book bundle of all three of my books published by Flipside Publishing: Lower Myths, The Viewless Dark, and the ebook version of A Bottle of Storm Clouds. Please share far and wide. Until Dec. 1 only!
Check it! http://flipreads.com/bundles/eliza-bundle
Here’s a link to the other bundles: http://flipreads.com/bundles
komikon 2013
Yikes, late post.
Well, as far as I can remember, the last Komikon I attended was the Summer Komikon held in my alma mater, UP, at the Bahay ng Alumni. I mentioned this to comics creator Paolo Fabregas and he said: “That was years ago!”
I know, dude. I know.
Why did it take me so long to return?
I am lazy. And I hate the heat. Really. I think you’d hate it too if you happened to meet me during the summer and I left a streak of sweat on your book.
And I don’t have a lot of cash. Sad face.
But, November is relatively cooler (relatively!), and I’m curious about the Bayanihan Center, and I have some books to sell, and I like the idea of attending the Komikon not just as a reader but as an author. With a seat behind a table! (Even though I don’t have a comic book!) And a free lunch!
However, my face doesn’t scream Author. I sat behind the table and I think got more questions about Budjette’s and Manix’s books (“Magkano ‘to, ate?”) than autograph requests. I’ll stamp my name on my face next time. Haha! Kidding! (Or not?)
Then there were those who dropped my books as if they were infected when they learned that they were not comics, but prose. PROSE. GASP! How dare I bring prose to a comics convention?
Again, I joke. (Or not. I will remember your faces!)
I had fun. I really did. I talked about books with seatmates Paolo Fabregas and Carljoe Javier, and heard some inside scoop about book selling and book production from Carljoe and Ms. Nida. I sold out five copies of Unseen Moon in less than an hour. And my books were selling so well that they had to sell the browsing copy of Project 17. When I left, around 5 pm, there were only two copies left of A Bottle of Storm Clouds, including the browsing copy.
So thank you, readers, for making this author happy. And thank you to the ladies and gents of Visprint, as always.
I lined up to have stuff autographed by Rob Cham and Gerry Alanguilan, but I was too awkward to start a meaningful conversation with them. (I just left each of them a card. Uh. Hi po.)
My little loot, mostly comics from Carljoe’s Comic Book Writing class.
Next con: the Readercon! See you on Dec. 7!
Oh, and I’ll tell you a secret: I’m working on a comic book script! I have an outline, around 23 pages written, and I’ve contacted the artist. I want to finish it first. (I know some writers pass along script pages as they write – I can’t do that, I’ll break out in hives.)
I’m having fun, though I keep referring to the Internet to find the proper term to describe a scene. Memories of my Film 101 class!
Let’s see how it goes. I’m excited to see the words come to life as art.
komiks review: kapitan bayaran + filipino heroes league + mythspace: lift-off + kung paano ako naging leading lady
Kapitan Bayaran
Story by Joanne Cesario
Art by Michelle Bacabac
Albert wakes up one day and discovers he can read minds. He decides to make a business out of it.
The premise intrigued me so much that it was the first comic book I picked up at the Komikon Indie Tiangge. I loved it. Seamless storyboarding, with art that fits the story’s tone. The humor is matter-of-fact and good-natured, with an air of – dare I say it? – innocence? Like how young boys talk to each other: everything matters but nothing matters, because it will all turn out for the better. The creators found a beautiful heartwarming way to close the story, so effective that the final panels made me smile, nostalgic for UP and college and that time in your life when all you need to be happy is to be able to go back home after a grueling semester.
(Oh my God, I am getting old.)
Filipino Heroes League (Book 1: Sticks and Stones)
Story and Art by Paolo Fabregas
Under-manned and under-funded, the Filipino Heroes League does what it can to fight against injustice.
It’s tough being a super hero but it’s even tougher being a third-world super hero.
I am late to the party. At the time FHL came out, I think, I was busy following Trese’s exploits, and I (unfairly) judged and dismissed this book because the title and cover irritated me in a way empty platitudes like “The Filipino Spirit Is Waterproof” irritates me.
I can be a lazy book buyer, because if only I had flipped the book and had seen this image –
– I would have picked it up in a heartbeat.
Like Budjette Tan, as he mentioned in his introduction, Paolo Fabregas had me at PEDICAB.
It was tough getting past the opening pages because it showed the World Trade Center and the Islamic Defenders (as villain) and I had so much conflicting emotions that I had to put it down.
When I picked it up again and read how the local news anchor put more weight on the exploits of Bomb Boy, a Filipino superhero who “made it big” by being the sidekick (not even a hero – just the sidekick that gets thrown like a discus) of an American superhero, I appreciated what the comics creator is trying to do with FHL’s silly, heightened reality. It’s funny because it’s sad. It’s sad because it’s true. The fascination with showbiz, supers going abroad to earn more money, earning money so your relatives can spend it on frivolous things (I feel you Kidlat Kit, haha), living DIY-style (not even the cutesy DIY, it’s the we-have-no-money-so-we-have-no-choice DIY), graft and corruption – it’s the Pinoy reality, and it is presented here in an entertaining, effective way.
Looking forward to Book 2.
(Check out these preview pages for Book 1 if you want a sampler.)
Kung Paano Ako Naging Leading Lady
Story by Carlo Vergara
Art by Elmer Cantada
I don’t want to talk too much about the story, because the joy of reading Vergara’s newest offering is in seeing how the story unfolds, how reality is juxtaposed with the fantastic. Even the back blurb is intentionally vague. Like in ZsaZsa Zaturnnah, the story is effective because it touches on something true: at some point in our lives, we have considered our siblings our own bitter competition. Who earns more money? Who has a “better” life? Who does Mother treasure more?
My only regret is failing to see this as a one-act play onstage.
Here have a sample page. Great, clean art by Cantada.
Mythspace: Lift-Off
Story by Paolo Chikiamco
Art by Koi Carreon
Kapre. Nuno. Manananggal.
They are monsters of the past, remnants of primitive fantasies.
UFOs. Aliens. Extraterrestrials.
They are hallucinations, creations of modern science fiction.
Or are they?
Evidence unearth is debunked…or disappears. Witnesses who speak are ridiculed…or silenced.
We are alone, say our leaders.
There are no Manananggal that consume our children. There are no Kapres who watch in the night.
There are no aliens that abduct our neighbors. There are no UFOs with dazzling lights.
We were never alone.
These are not your Lola’s monsters.
These are not your children’s aliens.
They are one and the same. They are here.
What else can you say about the monsters of Philippine folklore? How else to make their tales fresh, push the envelope, how else to make them exciting? Paolo Chikiamco asked this questions (maybe?) and came up with the perfect answer: bring the aswang to space. The premise opens up so many possibilities, injecting a truly Filipino spirit to the Western tropes of the space opera.
This is cliche, but: Mythspace is a triumph of the imagination. (Translation: I am envious, Pao! Why didn’t I think of this???)
Great art by Koi Carreon.
Waking the Dead by Yvette Tan
Twisted 9 by Jessica Zafra
All’s Fair in Blog and War by Chrissie Peria
Cover (Story) Girl by Chris Mariano
Mythspace by Paolo Chikiamco and Koi Carreon
fled their faces turned by Christian Tablazon
Now, Then, and Elsewhen by Nikki Alfar
Fairy Tale Fail by Mina V. Esguerra
Interim Goddess of Love by Mina V. Esguerra
Naermyth by Karen Francisco
Philippine Speculative Fiction Vol. 8 by various authors
The Best of PSF (2005-2010) by various authors
Philippine Speculative Fiction Vol. 1 by various authors
Philippine Speculative Fiction Vol. 3 by various authors
How to Traverse Terra Incognita by Dean Francis Alfar
Si Amapola sa 65 na Kabanata by Ricky Lee
Save the Cake by Stella Torres
The Real Score by Kesh Tanglao
Vintage Love by Agay Lllanera
Drone by Allan Popa
The Filipino Heroes League by Paolo Fabregas
‘unseen moon’ for sale at the 2013 komikon
I will be selling limited (VERY LIMITED) paperback copies of my collection, Unseen Moon, at the Komikon 2013.
Each copy will come with a FREE copy of the 1st issue of Metro Serye, published by UST Publishing. This first issue was illustrated by Manix Abrera, edited by Mookie Katigbak Lacuesta, and includes some of my poems, as well as poems by Mark Anthony Cayanan, Joseph de Luna Saguid, Lawrence Bernabé, and Marie La Viña.
I will also throw in a card in there, so you’ll have a bookmark.
Extra copies of Metro Serye will sell at a discounted price of PhP 50 each. (Not sure yet how many copies I still have, but will update.)
Unseen Moon will sell at a discounted price of PhP 420.
Okay? Okay! See you tomorrow! I will be at the Visprint Inc. booth! (Many thanks to Ms. Nida Ramirez, na pumayag i-table ako, haha!)
komikon 2013 – come visit!
I will be at the 2013 Komikon this Saturday! And I will be giving away these cards to readers who will pick up/bring a copy of my books. :)
See you at the Visprint table!
Visit the Komikon page as well for Yolanda fundraising efforts.
November 16, 2013
10 am to 7pm
Bayanihan Center, Pasig CityEntrance Fee: Php 100 (Kids under 12 enter for free until 12 noon!)
We will be having several fund raising activities on Saturday. Check out http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/story/335098/scitech/gaming/komiks-and-comics-artists-rally-support-for-yolanda-victims
RSVP to the Official Facebook Event page –http://www.facebook.com/events/538191652905125/
For more info, visit: http://www.komikon.org/
How to get to the venue: http://www.komikon.org/map-to-bayanihan-center/
yolanda – ways to help
Typhoon ‘Yolanda,’ one of the strongest typhoons on record struck the Philippines, forcing hundreds of thousands from their homes and knocking out power and communications in several provinces.
Read more: http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/523635/yolanda-one-of-worlds-strongest-typhoons-blasts-philippines#ixzz2kK4sZ6Qz
Follow us: @inquirerdotnet on Twitter | inquirerdotnet on Facebook
TACLOBAN CITY, Philippines—Tormented survivors of a typhoon that is feared to have killed more than 10,000 in the Philippines rummaged for food Sunday through debris scattered with corpses, while frenzied mobs looted aid convoys.
Two days after one of the most powerful storms ever recorded flattened entire towns across part of the Southeast Asian archipelago, desperate survival tactics created fresh horrors.
On the outskirts of Tacloban, a coastal eastern city of 220,000 where tsunami-like waves destroyed many buildings, Edward Gualberto accidentally stepped on bodies as he raided the wreckage of a home.
Wearing nothing but a pair of red basketball trousers, the father of four and village councilor apologized for his shabby appearance and for stealing from the dead.
“I am a decent person. But if you have not eaten in three days, you do shameful things to survive,” Gualberto told AFP as he dug canned goods from the debris and flies swarmed over the bodies.
“We have no food, we need water and other things to survive.”
Read more: http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/524755/tormented-survivors-of-supertyphoon-yolanda-raid-the-dead#ixzz2kK721hg2
Follow us: @inquirerdotnet on Twitter | inquirerdotnet on Facebook
For those who do not have PayPal and/or credit cards and wish to donate cash, this is the most convenient donation portal I’ve seen so far: Simply log in to http://www.bpiexpressonline.com and choose Payments & Reloading > e-Donations > ABS-CBN FOUNDN SAGIP KAPAMILYA.
(This portal of course requires prior enrollment for BPI Express Online and an active BPI bank account.)
Ayala Foundation and Bantay Bata are also listed under e-Donations.
Simpler still: anyone with a cell phone can donate to the Red Cross.
SMS
Text RED<space>AMOUNT to 2899 (Globe) or 4143 (Smart)G-Cash
Text DONATE<space>AMOUNT<space>4-digit M-PIN<space>REDCROSS to 2882You can donate the following denominations:
Globe: 5, 25, 100, 300, 500 or 1000
Smart: 10, 25, 50, 100, 300, 500 or 1000
Rappler collates a list here of groups that receive donations, including the Philippine Daily Inquirer, LBC, DSWD, various schools and universities, and local government units. Here is another list by Rappler about Yolanda’s effects per province.
I personally believe cash donations are the way to go. The groups mentioned (especially the Philippine Red Cross) have years of experience in helping and reaching disaster victims. They would know best what items to buy and deliver and in what amount and where. The cash donations would also help defray costs of actually reaching the affected areas, some of which can only be reached via plane or helicopter.
We are safe here in Luzon, most of us stuck at work, but we can still help. Thanks for reading.
Eliza Victoria 