Book Characters We Love

In a survey done by a local publishing house among children who have read their books, it was found out that characters who are honest, vulnerable and unique are the ones that top the list. Below is a poster I made to summarize the points and results of the survey. 

Now, ask yourself these questions:

Who is the book character you love? 

What makes this book character loveable? 

 

Collage: Liwanag 2

I made a photo collage today (April 2, 2020) of pictures I took before the Enhanced Community Quarantine last March 16, 2020. I miss watching the sun rise at school, taking walks at the end of the day and hugging trees. 

We live in Binan City, in the province of Laguna. It is in total lockdown now. I am counting the days until the end of the lockdown. But data and statistic reports tell us that the lockdown may extend until June. 

This is for #ourcoronadiary, a writing activity endorsed by writers, authors and publishers in the UK.

Press Release: AUTHORities at the 9th Philippine International Literary Festival

 

The Janus Project 2015 - 2016

Here is a writing project I mean to do in the coming days. Before January 1, I will be posting 10 highlights and disappointments of 2015. In the first week of January, I will be writing about the three 3s: game changers, things I focused on; and things I forgot. Whew.

This is going to be a lot of thinking. Like going on a retreat and filling up a journal. It can be stressful but, cathartic too. I call this the Janus Project as it will help me recollect my 2015 at the same time, push me on to 2016.

Thanks to Rica Bolipata Santos for this writing challenge!

Workshops with Teachers and Librarians: Philippine Lit Fest, TeacherTraining Institute & AKLATAN 2015

Trash or Treasure: Turn these trash into teaching treasures!

I had the wonderful opportunity of working with teachers and librarians over the past months and recent weeks. My workshops with them were all about storytelling, books and reading, creative thinking and the use of technology for teaching and learning. Why I am still doing this after a decade or so affirms how important literacy development is in this day and age. I learn a lot from these workshops. I do design the modules I conduct and deliver, but the interaction I get from participants fuels me to further create.

Knowledge shared is knowledge gained.

In the Philippine Literary Festival, I was amazed at how thirsty we all are for authentic and genuine human connections. Stories and storytelling can quench that thirst. Weaving tales and stories is magical. In the Weavers of Magic workshop, we reaffirmed our commitment to pursue the magical path through the process of creating children's literature for young readers today. In the training I had with public school teachers of Estancia and Carles, Iloilo, we discovered how materials in our immediate environment can be used as instructional materials. What we deem as trash can actually be a treasure trove of instructional materials. All we really need is to look at our deepest needs and desires to surface the imaginative power that has been hidden with in ourselves for so long. After all, creativity is a natural talent. How it is nurtured is another story though.

Teachers read children's books. My favorite part of the workshop.

In the AKLATAN 2015 Conference of the PLAI - CLRLC, I realized that we all need to go back to books. Back to Books. Back to Basics. To fully understand why we are librarians, we need to take a closer look at why books, as a technology, is still around in this age of the digital divide. How does a technology, like the book, can magically bridge gaps, make connections and celebrate the human spirit in the age of smartphones and social media? Why do we need to talk about reading in the era of ASEAN Integration and how do books play a part in learning how to read? These thoughts came to mind as I conduct my workshop with the librarians of Central Luzon. While they make their own books, I reflect on the work that Filipino Librarians are challenged to do.

The work is plentiful but the workers are too few. I only know of one thing -- we shouldn't stop learning. And as we learn, we need to reflect on our actions; on our insights; on the next step of the journey.

Grants! Contests! Scholarships!

Klasrum adarna book creators.pptx_rev from Zarah Gagatiga

Post MIBF Insights on Forum & Talks

We need more librarians!

My attendance and participation in last week's MIBF is the most insightful yet. Here are my insights in random as I look back at the forum, conference and workshops I took part in.

At the ASEAN 2015 Integration Forum

In classic Lourdes David fashion, a complex topic such as the ASEAN 2015 was pared down to its most substantial content. The convergence of countries in South East Asia is a move towards globalization and internationalization, where knowledge is the base of the economy. Librarians are, therefore, necessary to keep this knowledge base economy, strong, thriving and healthy. This would imply a sturdy research management system, well funded educational programs and a paradigm that welcomes collaboration from all participating countries of South East Asia.

Librarians are living in very challenging times, indeed!

As my response, I can begin by assessing the programs and services I plan, implement and evaluate in the school library where I work in. Our curriculum is internationally K-12 compliant, so that would make the library a viable support system towards the attainment of curricular goals. How is the school library supporting this international K-12 curriculum?

The invitation to continuously grow and develop is very much open in the ASEAN 2015 convergence. A graduate degree and doctoral degree are of great advantage to further one's professional agenda. Librarians need to direct their own paths of learning based on international standards. Having said this, Filipino librarians need to look at how they are learning; where they get their learning from; and how they use learned skills and concepts.

Start 'em young on copyright!

Copyright and Repro Conference

Oh dear.

I left the conference with more questions than answers.

I do recognize that copyright and intellectual property rights are important, especially in a knowledge base economy. But these two carry on socio-cultural issues as well that would take time to resolve and conquer. How can copyright enforcement be made consistently possible when our research management system is utterly weak? And then there is that question on reading. Do Filipinos read. Filipinos do read. We read romance books. A lot. So, what kind of knowledge producers are we?

I find myself lamenting once again on the lack of support for library development in the country.

As a school librarian, I will support the school's Academic Honesty policy and strengthen ties with teachers in the instruction and teaching of Information Literacy Skills. But when students actually apply themselves in the bigger world, what structures are in place to continue this on?

Writing Workshop: Lampara Books Children's Writing Workshop

I enjoyed this workshop, because, I learned a lot from my co-speakers.

Prof. Rolly Dela Cruz's lecture on the historical and cultural profile of children's literature in the country was enlightening. His presentation on literary theory of Aristotle, Horace and Longinus are thoughts to slowly nibble on. Stuff to reflect on in little chunks. Prof. Eugene Evasco came next. He talked about Filipino picture books and how the structure of story is illuminated in the marriage of text and pictures. Then, I was next. I offered tips and strategies on how one can start writing; where to get stories from; and use a set of "values" in one's enjoyment and judgment of children's literature.

One participant was inspired to sketch "us".

A week after the MIBF, all I can say is this: perhaps the age of seeking magic in Philippine Children's Literature will always be pursued, but it is about time when we, book creators, teachers, librarians, parents seek truth through and create truth seeking through literature.

Author Visit: Jubilee Christian Academy

Being my break from work last week, I did some author visits in Manila and nearby Calamba. I also had the coolest time judging a storytelling contest by the Philippine Library Association.  Sharing with you some pictures and insights.

At the Jubillee Christian Academy, I combined a talk on authorship and bibliotherapy. I shared with members of the READ Club of the high school unit the process I went through writing my books; how collaborating with Dianne de Las Casas, Jomike Tejido and Bernadette Solina-Wolf has been an amazing learning journey; and that reading, writing and thinking are activities that lead to self knowledge and discovery.

After my talk, one grade 9 student came up to me and confessed that he was not a reader. Through my talk, he realized he could try going back to books since it may prove to be a helpful means to learn not just for subjects in school but to learn about life, in general.

I was floored.

Thank you Ms. Alma Singian and Mrs. Victoria Silva Manuel for the opportunity to touch base with my reading audience!

The KUTING Lecture Series: Writing and Illustrating Picture Books

Integrating the Big 6 (Info Lit Model) with Writing

Here's the presentation I did for PAREF Woodrose's grades 5 and 6 students when I did a session on Information Literacy and the writing process last July 12, 2013.

Woodrose big6 writing(1) from Zarah Gagatiga

Author of the Month: Michael Pinto

Author of the month is Mr. Michael Pinto, Filipino "male" librarian whose book, Layb Life: Mga Kwento at Karansan ng Isang Librarian hit the bookstores last year. In this interview he answers questions about writing, the profession in general and his publishing dreams for the future. Mr. Pinto hails from Cagayan, Tuguegarao.

a. What prompted or inspired you to write? Any back story on the book and your writing journey?
 

 At the age of 25, I became the Director of Libraries of our university and I know that this experience is one of a kind since only few can be in that position at an early stage of my career. Since my experience is one of a kind, I thought of writing my experiences being the head of the library, from the day-to-day experiences up to the things I observed during seminars and conferences. All of these prompted me to write the book. At first, writing articles was just a past time for me especially when I feel stressed in my work. Eventually, I did not noticed that I already have a handful of articles so I decided to publish it so that others can be inspired (I hope so). 

b. Other than being the youngest administrator of USL, what would you consider as the most remarkable thing that happened to you as a librarian?

I believe the most remarkable thing that happened to me is when I meet new people in the profession and in my work. In fact, I learned a lot from the people I meet. Other than that, I think other remarkable things that happened to me are: First, after 3 years of being the Director of Libraries, we were able to get the Outstanding Academic and research Library Award in 2010 by PAARL. Second, I became active member of PLAI and organized a library association in Cagayan, Kalinga and Apayao. Lastly, I was able to help a lot of people through the position I handle.



c. What are the challenges faced by a librarian writing about his/her profession?

First, that others might misinterpret what I am writing. Not everyone can appreciate what you are doing. Second, there are still traditional mind who don’t want to acknowledge new things.  Lastly, my bashers who always look for my mistakes. But I thank them because through them, I was able to write the book.

 
d. Do you have another book project? What is your dream book?

Yes I have. I am currently on the verge of writing another book. I hope to publish it before November of this year. As to my dream book, I want to write a book based on the outline of subjects in the BLIS Program. Maybe a textbook for BLIS subjects.

e. What are your favorite books? Who is your favorite writer?

I don’t have favorite book. I read if it interest me.
Favorite author: Og Mandino, Bob Ong       

f. If you were a book, what kind are you?

Satirical book 
g. Describe your writing process/creative process.
As I have said, I write when I’m stressed. I write during my leisure time and I only write if there is something that triggers me.


h. Any message to young aspiring librarians and librarians who wish to be published in the future?

Do not be afraid of writing, just write. Don’t mind your grammar, that’s the work of an editor. Write what you think can open the minds of your reader. Write what you love and love what you wite. That’s the secret.

My First Author Visit @ Miriam College Grade School

 My first author visit at Miriam College Grade School was sponsored by Anvil Publishing House. I have an essay that landed in Elbert Or's After the Storm published by Anvil last year (2010). I included the book in the show-tell part of the talk. I told a story also, from Tales From the 7,000 Isles: Filipino Folk stories and shared about the writing process to the grade four students. I had three batches of 140 grade four gilrs!

The banner that Miriam College GS Dept. prepared for my welcome!

I gave writing activities too for the girls. Got great feedback from Ms. Monette Basco, Reading Coordinator. Best of all, from the girls because many lined up after for my autograph. I could not believe I was signing their journals and notebooks!

Of course I was nervous at the start! Who wouldn't be? But it turned out really great because the girls were able to write drafts of a possible short story that they can work on later.

This is what I love best -- telling stories! Writing is not easy work, really but I look forward to my next author visit. It is such a joy to be with kids who are interested to listen, dream, write and share stories.

Update on After the Storm: Stories on Ondoy

I got this update from Elbert Or, Creative Content Specialist and the gifted artist who made this blog's logo/cartoon --

...After the Storm: Stories on Ondoy by now should be out and available in bookstores.

You can also pick up your complimentary copy of the book at the Anvil Publishing booth during the Manila International Book Fair, which is happening from September 15 to 19 at the SMX Convention Center, Mall of Asia.

Yehey! I'm so excited to get my complimentary copy!

Salanga 2011 Prize Goes Rizaliana

Because it's Rizal's 150th next year, PBBY remembers his relevance in Philippine Children's Literature.

The Philippine Board on Books for Young People (PBBY) is now accepting entries for the 2011 PBBY-Salanga Prize. The contest is co-sponsored by the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP) and The National Library.

2011 marks the 150th birth anniversary of Jose Rizal. To commemorate this event, all 2011 PBBY-Salanga entries should be inspired in part or in whole by the life or works of Jose Rizal. Prizes will be awarded in an appropriate ceremony to be held during the celebration of National Children’s Book Day in July 2011.
CONTEST RULES

1. The contest is open to all Filipino citizens except those who are related to any PBBY member up to the third degree of consanguinity.

2. Stories should be intended for children aged 6 to 12 years old. The plot and the sequence must be capable of sustaining an illustrated book of 28 to 32 pages.

3. Entries may be in Filipino or English.

4. Entries must be in hard copy, double-spaced, on short bond paper. Maximum length is five (5) pages.

5. Each entry should be accompanied by a brief note explaining how the story was inspired by Rizal, as well as the source of the said information (i.e. title of book/article on Jose Rizal).

6. A contestant may send in more than one (1) entry.

7. Each entry must be signed by a pen name only. Five (5) copies of each entry should be placed in an envelope, on the face of which only the pen name of the contestant should appear.

8. Together with each entry, contestants must submit a second envelope, on the face of which the pen name shall appear. This must contain the contestant’s full name, address, contact numbers, a short literary background, and a notarized certification from the author, vouching for the originality of the entry and for the freedom of the organizers from any liability arising from the infringement of copyright in case of publication, and affirming that the entry or any variant thereof has (a) never been published nor (b) won any other contest i.e. that it has never won 1st, 2nd, 3rd, honorable mention in any other contest or otherwise been awarded a medal, a citation, or included in a publicized list of meritorious entries to a literary contest.

9.All entries must be sent through snail mail to the PBBY Secretariat, c/o Adarna House, Inc., Scout Torillo cor. Scout Fernandez Sts., Barangay Sacred Heart, Quezon City.

10. All entries must be received by the PBBY Secretariat no later than 5:00 p.m., November 15, 2010.

11. Winners will be announced no later than December 17, 2010. Non-winning entries may be claimed at the PBBY Secretariat until January 10, 2011.

The winning story will be the basis for the 2011 PBBY-Alcala Prize. For more details, interested parties may contact the Philippine Board on Books for Young People, at Telefax 372-3548 or email pbby[at]adarna.com.ph.

Interview by Rocket Kapre Part 3

Here is the last part of Rocket Kapre's interview where I talk about PBBY, Young Adult and children's literature.

Interview by Rocket Kapre Part 2

Rocket Capre unravels my mind scape and process in storytelling, writing and blogging. In the part 2 of the interview, Tales From the 7,000 Isles: Filipino Folk Stories is mentioned. Dianne de Las Casas, my co-author, friend and a great influence in my storytelling and writing career is featured as well.

Call for Manuscripts: Adarna House Line-Up for 2010

From the Adarna House email network --

We are looking for manuscripts to complete our line-up for 2011. We welcome stories of any topic, but are currently particularly interested in storybook manuscripts that deal with math, reading, health, environmental awareness, legends, heroes, historical events, special topics (death, peace, adoption, autism, children's rights), and Filipino values (love of country, pagmamano, po at opo, colonial mentality, and value of freedom, language, culture, and history).

Submit three (3) copies of your original manuscript typewritten on short bond paper accompanied by a one-page literary bio-data. On the first page of the manuscript, indicate its genre (short story, nonfiction, poetry, etc.) and the literary contest/s it has won, if any.

Address your submissions to Ani Almario, Product Development Manager, ADARNA HOUSE, 2/F FSS Bldg., 20 Scout Tuason cor. Scout Castor Sts., Brgy. Laging Handa, Quezon City 1103. Submissions have to be accompanied by a self-addressed, self-stamped envelope to facilitate return after being screened. Manuscripts may be dropped off at our showroom, or sent through post. No manuscript submissions may be sent over e-mail.

Reading the World

Because I want to READ the WORLD, I am joining PaperTigers' Reading the World 2010 Challenge. Since I no longer work in a regular school setting, I need to find a group to discuss my reading choices. There's the monthly SCBWI-Manila meeting and the KUTING general assembly but scheduling is something I have to work on. It seems pretty easy to do though.

Here are the rules --

Choose one book from/about/by or illustrated by someone from each of the seven continents – that’s:

Africa
Antarctica
Asia
Australasia
Europe
North America
South America

Have the books read aloud to you or read them yourself; share them as part of a book-group or in class. Combine your choices with other reading challenges. The books can be picture-books, poetry, fiction, non-fiction… the choice is yours.

Read! Read! Read! It has so many benefits! It's one of the many ways to being a better writer, besides.

Read to Write

I received an interesting email from one of my blog readers. Apparently, the blog reader has finished writing a piece of fiction. The work is deemed to be worthy of publication so the blog reader is asking for some advice. This is what I sent her --

Test your story on people who can read and give an honest critique. Chose people who can give good feedback, thereby, helping you improve the story.

Remember that writing is a process. What you started is a DRAFT. It is not a final copy yet. To submit the manuscript to a publishing house this early may be too soon. it takes time to polish fiction. When your friends have given feedback, REVISION is next. After that, you can now decide if what you revised is the final copy. Then you can send the manuscript to a publishing house.

a word of caution, writing is also HARD WORK. the writers we admire, those who've published tons of books go through a lot of thinking, revising and, yes, sleepless nights to refine a story. inspiration is free and at times, our writing muse keeps us awake in the middle of the night to squeeze the creative juices out of us. but, remember that writing is likewise a CRAFT that must be mastered, in time.

As you seek friends who can give comments and suggestions to your story, keep writing. And read a lot! Read and write and write and read. Read all kinds of literature and write all kinds of literature. If it's not your forte, try. Just keep those muscles and brain cells churning!

Good luck. And btw, the great poet Virgilio Almario received hundreds of rejection slips. Rene Villanueva, the famed chidlren's book writer had his own share of rejection letters from publishers. If writing is indeed your passion, no rejection slip can deter you.

Since I mentioned the relationship between reading and writing to the blog reader, I could not help but look at my own reading and writing patterns. So far, my reading habits has been regular but I could not say the same is true when writing fiction. It's an area I need to improve on. It seems that I need to spend longer days for my fiction to truly grow and flourish.

On a brighter note, the irrepressible Elbert Or has sent word on the Ondoy Book Project he started to collect from contributors last year. Anvil will be publishing this collection of essays. My essay is included in the anthology. I'm pretty excited.

Literary Best

Some thoughts to ponder on reading, writing, literary merit and literary awards --

I think good novels are written by writers who want with all their heart to write this novel, which is like no other. And which is therefore, as things stand, rather unlikely to win a prize. -- Ursula K. Le Guin

The full paper can be read in Book View Cafe.