Journeys Into Reading: Top Ten Takeaways From the Author Visit of Ms. Cyan Abad Jugo

 

It is not everyday that young readers get to meet an author. My reading club over at The Learning Library was blessed to have a chat with Ms. Cyan Abad Jugo, teacher and author of Letters From Crispin (Anvil, 2016). Here are our top ten takeaways from her visit.

1. Stories take time to grow and develop. Letters to Crispin took three years to write and a few more before it was published.

2. Sometimes, a story has a life or a direction of its own. What was intended to be a sad, romantic story for a magazine/newspaper turned into something else - a ghost story that is connected to Philippine history.

3. Writing a story involves a process. 

4.  Writers often ask a friend or a colleague to read his/her story before submitting the manuscript to the publisher. It is good to listen to their feedback.

5. A manuscript is not always accepted for publication. This is a part of the creative process. 

6. Book making involves a lot of collaborative work. The author and illustrator are partners in creating a book.

7. Memory connects us to our past and present in some magical way.

8.  Look for the fantastic. For example, a person to live a hundred years and to witness two historical revolutions in his/her lifetime is  fantastic. This is the stuff of stories.

9. Exchange stories with your parents. Share and compare childhood stories with each other.  

10. Keep a journal.

As the teacher and facilitator of the reading club, I am still star struck from meeting Ms. Abad Jugo. She has such a comforting presence. Many thanks to Anvil Publishing for making this Author Visit possible.