Crystal Koo came home to Manila from Hong Kong, so she invited fellow writers out to lunch and coffee. We went to Sa Kanto in Podium. J and I had fun listening to the Alfars’ and the Osiases’ adventures in Hong Kong, Japan, Australia and elsewhere, Crystal’s adventures in teaching overseas, Tin’s adventures in acquiring a master’s degree in Creative Writing (ha!), and Charles various dramas (yes). There were so many stories that we couldn’t get a word in edgewise! And that’s a good thing! Of course we talked about other people’s relationships over coffee in Cafe Breton (the Alfars and the Osiases, unfortunately, had to run to get ready for the Palanca Awards) because that’s what writers do. Really.
Photo by Dean.
Only J, Crystal, and I ate a lot. It was a bit…embarrassing. Haha! Especially if you’re seated next to Tin Lao who ate such a healthy lunch of eggplants and steamed rice. We all loved the Dynamite, chili fingers stuffed with beef and cheese, and I couldn’t resist ordering Kwek Kwek. The main dishes were so-so, and Crystal wasn’t a fan of the pork adobo. Next time, we’ll just order all of the side dishes – and a glass of beer. Check out this review, with pictures.
Nagutom ako bigla. Heh.
Thanks Crystal for putting this together. Let’s do this again!
And thanks Charles for these goodies:
In other food news: I loved this unagi casserole from UCC.
Got these German chocolate bars from J. It’s filled with strawberry yogurt. Yum.
In writing news: I am trying my hand at writing poetry in Filipino. There are two posted online, but they are friends-locked.
My brain is tired. I wish I had more time to read and write.
To be honest, when I finished reading this novel, my first reaction was, “That’s it?”
But I suppose it’s an issue of wrong expectations. The back blurb reads, Stevie is a killer. When she kills people she asks them: “WHAT DO YOU SEE?” She’s about to find out.
This happens about two-thirds into the book, and by then it’s too late to stop drumming my fingers. I dove into the novel expecting a philosophical serial killer searching for answers about the afterlife, and instead got a hodgepodge of family anecdotes from an extremely unlikable protagonist who keeps digging in her father’s backyard.
I have no problems with unlikable, morally corrupt protagonists. Patricia Highsmith’s Thomas Ripley is a forger, a liar, and a murderer, but he is also suave and charming. His thoughts, no matter how dark, are fascinating enough to enjoy and follow. What will happen next? I would wonder. What will he do next?
I found Stevie fascinating, but I couldn’t enjoy her company because she is too repulsive. Everyone in her universe is repulsive, and I kept resisting the text because some details sounded too fantastic to me. I mean, it’s not enough that there’s one sexual predator? It has to be almost every single person she meets?
Kaaron Warren writes well. There are brilliant passages here. She is able to successfully present a skewed view of the world. But in terms of structure, the novel’s downfall is its linearity. Yes, Stevie rambles and digresses, but the structure is still linear. At eighteen, the novel opens. At nineteen. And so on. Why remind us about Stevie’s age, when she never really grows? The novel feels like one whole day in the life of a disturbed young woman.
Slights has a horrifying premise – what if when we die, we don’t see angels or paradise or the people we love, but the people we have slighted? The people we don’t even remember? And what if these people surrounded us in a closed room and hurt us and ate our flesh for all of eternity? The story would have been more engaging if the novel opened with Stevie committing her first murder, in the hopes of finding the truth about the room she sees when she first dies. This is not a spoiler – it’s right there on the blurb anyway.
It’s time for WIT 2! September 8, Saturday, 6th Floor, Alphaland Towers, from 8 to 5 pm. Entrance is only P100! Check this link for information and recordings about the first WIT event in September of last year.
Will update this post once I get the complete schedule with time slots, but from my end, expect a short talk about A Bottle of Storm Clouds, reading and storytelling, and the markets where aspiring writers can send their stories. Expect excerpt readings of my stories as well!
Panelists and speakers include Budjette Tan (Trese), Manix Abrera (Kikomachine Komix), Karen Francisco (Naermyth), Carlo Vergara (ZsaZsa Zaturnnah), Karl de Mesa (News of the Shaman), and many more. Save the date and stand by for updates!
Poster art and design by Manix Abrera
UPDATE!
Morning (8AM-12NN) divided into (2) two sessions (Session A & Session B)
J’s ma got us free tickets to Resorts World Manila’s Ultra Cinema, “with fully reclining seats, enclosed private cubicles for couples, unlimited popcorn and drinks—and even a butler service”, thanks to her Platinum Membership Card. The film? Expendables 2. Ha! Campy and noisy, it was the perfect film to watch with cheese popcorn, rootbeer, and a chair to help you sleep.
J’s too shy to call the butler (actually just some young dude who probably hates his job) himself.We should have brought a blanket.
The Youth & Beauty Brigade wants to publish your book!
We are looking towards publishing books by young, unpublished authors with brave, new, and vibrant works we are both befuddled by and believe in.
The guidelines:
The book should be about an investigation: implicit, explicit, inner or outer, about any and all – a family member’s suicide, flood control protocols, a detective novel, history of the evolution of the logo of a multinational company, etc etc – as long as something is being detected, uncovered, found, as long as the investigation is refracted through art’s lens;
The book should fit 48 pages, all in, from 9”x9” to 6”x6” to 4”x4”, counting the front and back matters, i.e., title page, copyright page, dedication, acknowledgements, endnotes, etc etc;
The book need not be pure prose or pure poetry: any multimedia and extraliterary form is welcome, as long as it can be fitted and printed within the 48 pages.
Ang libro ni Bb. Bebang Siy, na sa di maipaliwanag na dahilan ay may kasamang libreng Cream Silk.
Hindi pa ako tapos, pero ang dami ko nang tawa. Parang baliw matalik na kaibigan lang si Miss Bebang na nagki-kwento sa iyo ng mga kakaibang karanasan niya: noong naunang magka-regla sa kanya ang kanyang nakababatang kapatid (“It’s a Mens World”), noong “kinidnap” siya ng sariling ama (“Ang Lugaw, Bow”), noong akalain ng kanyang mga kamag-anak na nasugatan niya ang pekpek niya (“Hiwa”). Oo, pekpek. Diretsong magkwento si Bebang (o di ba parang close na kami). Walang hiya-hiya. Marami akong naalala habang binabasa ang mga sanaysay niya. Tulad niya, hindi rin kami mayaman. Pero hindi siya nagsusulat ng poverty porn (siguro medyo porn lang hehe). May kaunting muni-muni, kaunting hindsight, pero sa huli, gusto lang niya sabihin sa iyo ang naramdaman nya noong nangyari ang mga pangyayari. Ganun naman yun e; kapag bata ka, hindi mo naman maiisip na kawawa ka. Maiintindihan mo na mahirap kayo, oo, pero masaya ka pa rin. Na para bang lahat e laru-laro lang.
The Long Weekend by Adam David
I read this twice in one sitting. The quiet panels make the heartache and nostalgia hit harder. It’s available on Amazon; I recommend you read it.
Gotham Central
Ed Brubaker. I love him. He’s an amazing crime writer. Here, he features the detectives of Gotham City’s Major Crimes Unit, who absolutely hate the Batman because he keeps interfering with their investigations goddamn it!
The story arcs and characters are so well-written that they could have killed Batman and I wouldn’t even care.
Saw:
The Bourne Legacy
If you’re avoiding this film because you haven’t seen the three earlier Bourne films, believe me: it’s fine. I watched it for Jeremy Renner and the epic chase sequence across the streets of Manila (and Pasay and Binondo and Marikina…but let’s just say it all happens in Manila), and I was absolutely happy with the flick.
Here’s all you need to know: Jason Bourne and the CIA program that created him has been uncovered by a British journalist. There are now also video evidence in circulation on YouTube. So now the CIA has to shut down the program. Super-spies start dropping like flies. Aaron Cross (Renner), however, is still alive, snowed in and stuck in Alaska. But the enemy is closing in. And yes, from Alaska he ends up in Manila “you can’t drive there” Philippines.
I pre-registered J and I to the Filipino Readercon but when the day came we almost didn’t go. We woke up late and J has this big exam on Monday (UP decided to go ahead with their exam because it’s UP) so he needs to study a lot and there might not be enough parking and traffic might be bad etc etc. In the end, we decided to go, even just to catch the afternoon panels.
I am so glad we went. The Filipinas Heritage Library was filled yesterday with people who genuinely loved to read (and write) so much that they would punch each other to get a free copy of a sponsor’s book. Haha! It was a glorious thing to witness, and I would most definitely go again next year. And the years after that.
On to some photos and stories.
I would have gone to the 1st Readercon, except that I didn’t even know it actually happened. Oops. This year though, the organizers, headed by Flipside VP Honey de Peralta, upped the ante with regards to marketing the event, and it paid off. I don’t have the exact number of attendees, but I bet it easily numbers past 200 participants.
J and I signed up a few minutes before 1 pm to catch “Authors as Readers”. It has two panels happening simultaneously, and we decided to sign up for the panel with Dean Francis Alfar, Budjette Tan, and Bebang Siy, moderated by Carljoe Javier.
Quick note on registration: PhP150 reg fee inclusive of AM and PM snacks, a cute magnetic bookmark from OMF, and a raffle entry.
The panel under Carljoe met up in the basement Library, a cozy venue.
Helloooo from the Readercon.
Dean (Philippine Speculative Fiction), Budjette (Trese), and Bebang (It’s a Mens World), talked about their favorite books, and how reading them led them to writing their own creations.
While Budjette was setting up his presentation, Dean took out his copy of Storm Clouds and took this photo. Woohoo!
Next: book discussion panels. We signed up for Pacific Rims, but had to step out to eat lunch.
Death by milkshake! Ahhhhhh –
When we came back, it was time for the second book discussion we signed up for: Antoine Saint-Exupery’s The Little Prince, moderated by the Filipino Goodreads group.
I got me a cute button for sharing my thoughts. But oh dear, I read this book probably over a decade ago haha!
Then it’s time for the much-awaited 1st Filipino Readers’ Choice Awards. A big congrats to Alternative Alamat!
The winners of the 1st Filipino Readers’ Choice Awards are:
Children’s picture book category: But That Won’t Wake Me Up! by Annie and Anelka Lumbao and Liza Flores (Adarna House) – The organizers had three judges per category, but for Children’s book, they had children as judges. It was a nice touch.
Chick lit category: Fairy Tale Fail by Mina V. Esguerra
Novel in English category: Ilustrado by Miguel Syjuco (Anvil)
Novel in Filipino category: Ang Huling Dalagang Bukid at ang Authobiography na Mali by Jun Cruz-Reyes (Anvil)
Comics/graphic novel category: KikoMachine Komiks Blg6 by Manix Abrera (Visprint)
Short story anthology category: Alternative Alamat edited by Paolo Chikiamco (Rocket Kapre and Flipside)
Essay anthology category: It’s A Mens World by Bebang Siy (Anvil) – “Alam niyo ho ba, muntik na akong umuwi,” said Bebang as she received her award, and went ahead and danced onstage in a fit of joy. Haha! She’s hilarious!
Poetry anthology category: Off the Beaten Track: Tulaan sa Tren 2 (Vibal)
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Before the raffle, we were served kani mango sandwiches, chicken lollipops, pesto pasta, and brownies for dessert. I loved everything.
The organizers had so many books to raffle off that I think everyone who stayed got a free book. :) I got a book from Visprint! Resty Cena’s Mga Angst Ng Isang Di-Mahapayang-Gatang, while J got the YA scifi horror novel 172 Hours by Norwegian author Johan Harstad.
A copy of my book was also raffled off, and was won by a participant named Orly. Hope you enjoy it!
Congratulations to the organizers! It was a great Con and I will see you next year!
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Off we went to Starbucks 6750 to meet up with the Bookswap girls.
And Ice, who won in my giveaway contest, finally got her signed copy. :)
I have confirmed today that my haunted house story, “The Ghosts of Sinagtala”, will be appearing in a future issue of Philippine Genre Stories. Many thanks to editor Kenneth Yu.
And in another Kyu-related update (hehe), here is an interview with Kenneth Yu about Philippine Horror Stories for Young Adults, a horror YA antho he edited with Dean Francis Alfar and to be published by UP Press. It includes my story, “Dan’s Dreams”. Thanks to EK for the link!
Some friends have been posting photos of my book/themselves with my book. How cute is that?
Here’s my copy of Eliza Victoria‘s lovely book. I don’t usually approach the Customer Service counter when looking for titles, but this time I did…with a smile.
She’s that good with stories. Go buy a copy! :D
Ever since I read her short story “Sugar Pi” back during our college days, I already became a BIG fan! I’m so proud of you Eliza! Congratulations!
Friends, I can vouch that this book is a good buy! Woot woot! Supportahan natin ang talentong Pilipino!
I know trading six months of your life for the non-stop rains so you can write good stories was worth it. (FB The Fort said I was the first to buy your book at their branch! Congrats Eliza! :)
And Adam David poses with it:
Thank you very much! The book’s out now in the Metro Manila branches of Fully Booked, Bibliarch, and Pandayan; coming soon to National Book Store, Powerbooks, and provincial outlets.
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I will be at the Readercon tomorrow, and in Visprint’s WIT event on Sept. 8! Details on WIT to follow. Please come over and say hi. :)
Eliza Victoria 