Archive for » June, 2009 «

If the Scene Fits…

Another fun MS in the making.

I think I know why I’m having so much fun with the last few manuscripts I’m working on. It’s the research. I love being able to do the research on places I’ve never been and coming up with scenes to fit the research materials I can come up with.

Right now, I’m a constant visitor of VisitSagada.com which is, so far, the most helpful site I can find about Sagada. Since I already have the scenes in my head, I just needed to find the places where the scenes could happen.

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My Brain Took Me To Sagada

Because I wanted to sleep at night so I can go to Bookware yesterday morning, I was already in bed at around 10 p.m. Saturday night, staring at the underside of my sister’s top bunk, twiddling my thumbs.

When I finally closed my eyes, instead of going to sleep, my brain went somewhere else… to Sagada with two people I didn’t plan on meeting or writing about in the very near future. My gulay, I have another three books to write for the Legaspis, tapos may sumulpot pang isa, then this one! And, I’ve never been to Sagada so I have no idea what I was thinking about. But the scenes kept on coming and the lines were there, and when I gave up on sleep, I finished conceptualizing the whole freakin’ story (plot, scenes, dialogue, characters including secondary, conflict, climax and resolution) just as the sky was lightening with day on the outside. I thought if I had started writing it, I would have written down half the book already. But since I had plans…

In the end, I didn’t get to sleep, I didn’t get to write, and by the time I would have wanted to leave to go to my publisher, my eyes were drooping so hindi na lang. Sometimes, I love/hate being a writer… especially if I get one of those attacks in the middle of the night when I’m too lazy to reach for the laptop. Right now, I’m just doing Multiply checks, checking my site, and researching Sagada, and trying to cram in my dayjob :p

Off to write.

Photo by Kat Sales

Photo by Kat Sales

Like a Comet Blazing ‘Cross the Evening Sky

“If you enter this world knowing you are loved
and you leave this world knowing the same,
then everything that happens in between can be dealth with.”
Michael Jackson
August 29, 1958 – June 26, 2009

Category: Just Saying  Tags:  9 Comments

Kumpleto na ang mga Ibarra

The last of the Ibarras have just been accepted! Yay!

I woke up at around 11 a.m. and staggered over to my phone to check for text messages. Merong tatlo, two of which were from Apple, saying that I now have a check for Raising the Stakes. I have a check. For Raising the Stakes. Talagang kinusot ko pa yung mata ko then re-read the two text messages. Wow! It hasn’t been three weeks since I submitted it and since I follow-up a month after I submit my manuscripts, it was a really big (but highly pleasant) surprise that I already have a check! Wow talaga!

I was planning on not following up on this manuscript and just wait to see if I receive an email from Apple within a month about getting a check for it. I loved writing Raising the Stakes and I love my characters but for some reason, I was more afraid for this book than I’ve ever been with my other works. I wasn’t as nervous about my first submission. Ito talagang naupod ang kuko ko dahil sa nail-biting nung sinubmit ko siya. I even personally asked Apple if the idea of the story was okay. Masyado kasi mayaman yung lalaki, and the story was set in Las Vegas, Nevada. Sabi ko nga, fantastic story… mahirap fan-iwalaan. Apple was nice enough to sooth my frayed nerves pero gumaan lang ang loob ko nung sinabi niyang nag-sulat si Hannah ng story na set sa New York hehe thanks, Hannah! I can always count on you ;) Thanks din, Apple! Saka sorry sa pangungulit.

So, there. I’m just doubly happy. And it’s just hitting me… *blink blink* Holy crap, I have a 4-book series coming out! I actually have a series coming out! :D

So, salamat po ulit, Panginoon, sa lahat ng biyaya. Amen.

Have Read, Will React

CROSS POST FROM MULTIPLY

I promised Jean Mae that I’m going to give her a review of one (or two because of DTBM) of her books, and thought hey! Magandang ideya iyan! I only very recently started reading Tagalog romance because I’ve become friends with their authors, a talented lot, I can assure you, and so far, I’ve accumulated a tall stack of TR books at my bedside table. Now I only review books (or anything non-work related) that I can give a five to, but since lahat naman ng nabasa ko so far ay maganda, I don’t think I’ll have a problem reviewing the works of other authors.

Isa pa, I don’t “review”. Wala akong K para mag-review because I am neither an editor nor an expert, so let’s just say that I’m going to give my reactions to the books just as a reader (and as a fan). Balak ko din kasing mag-review ng iba pang books ng iba pang authors, but let’s just say they’re not reviews. Reactions na lang *looks at stack* which may be impossible to write all at once because of the generosity of the other authors and our assistant editor. (Thanks, Apple!)

For example, I don’t think I can review all of Aira Felicity’s books since I have a complete set, or all of Hannah Wabe’s because alam niyo naman kung gaano kadami ang books ni Hannah. So what I’m going to do is choose one of their books at random, since all of them are good anyway and list those titles here (alam niyo naman, I <3 lists) para may guide ako ng mga isusulat ko (aside from the books and work-related writing stuff thingies).

By author (alphabetical):
Il Mio Amore – Aira Felicity
Nagkamali Ba Ang Puso? – Carla Giopaolo
Hulog Ka Ng Langit – Hannah Wabe
Written in the Stars – Louise Dane
Destined to Be Mine – Maan Beltran
Love 101 – Yumi Sagara

Of course, hindi pa talaga madami ang mga nababasa kong TR books so I don’t know technicalities and stuff so talagang expect reactions lang. Susulat ko lang ay “huh?”, “ha?” o kaya “wheee!” hehe reactions lang talaga eh ano?

Click here for reviews.

Category: My Likes  Tags: ,  2 Comments
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