meet my boys

Like I said in my previous post, here's a "patikim" of my new series
My apologies for the crappy images, these are just screencaps from my word file














Of course, the layouts you see here are just something I did and its not how the books are gonna turn out later. They'll be using the guys here as reference for their illustration though. Yipee!

I'm glad Ms. Tere let my request slide. You see they've stopped accepting pics for cover reference. For the time being at least because they have a slew of illustrations in stock that they have yet to use. But since my guys needed to be shirtless to go along with my proposed layout, she took my case as an exception

Just so you'd know, I changed CJ's pic. I'll be submitting something different from the one you see here. That's coz I realized Victor Basa's face is a tad recognizable if you know what I mean.

tweak day

How d'ya like the new look? I've been meaning to change the layout for my site for months now but kept side-stepping on the project since it's not really a priority. So what changed? Last week, I finally submitted the sixth installment for my latest series. Six is my halfway marker since I comitted to writing 12 all in all. Long story short, you could say this layout change is my way to treat myself for the feat.

Hah! Who am i kidding?

It's the same old story. I'm stumped again. So what else is new? I'm trying not dwell on that aspect much as I write this post since I feel all I do here is complain about my writer's block. But I guess it has to be said. You see, I've been working on the seventh story for three days now and I can't seem to get past chapter one. My body is more than willing but my brain doesn't want to cooperate. And so, to appease my hankering fingers, I gave it something mindless to do. After uploading the remaining pics I have stored in my drive--I'm talking about asstd 500+ pics here including my collection of cover ideas --I then began working on the gfx for this site and my multiply site as well. Personally I like my layout there better primarily because it's not too pa-tweetums. I had to go with pink here because I used the typewriter pic above as anchor.

Sidenote: Notice the bar thingy to the right? It doesn't go with the pink and green color scheme because I didn't bother with the html/css codes anymore. I just changed the gfx. Like I said, mindless. Working on the codes calls for some flexing of my cerebral muscle and I can't have that.

Sidenote again: If my HS English teacher Mrs. Pereyra could read this she'd probably have a fit... talk about a run-on sentence! And talk about flight of ideas!! I swear, I really do have the attention span of a six year old. I guess that's why I find it soooo difficult to focus.

So where were we? Heck, even I don't know anymore! LoL There you have it, that's my brand of "lost in thought" for you! Har-har-har.

Hey, I wanna give you a patikim of my new series in case you're interested. It's called "Dream Team" and the commonality is, all my heroes are basketball players. I'll up the unedited teasers in a bit or tommorow maybe.

back to back

congrats sis!



too bad you weren't able to make into a series like you originally planned... sayang

and it's a good thing too that our plan of me continuing where you left off didnt push thru.. a back to back is a tough act to follow. just think, after having back to back RCs and then in comes my toka and then it turns out to be a dud. yikes! nakaka-dyahe

again congrats, so proud of you!!

your feedback please

I wanted to try my hand at writing something scary. Why? I wanted to see if I could do it. And because I found myself stumped with my TR thing again last night, I decided to work on my scary short story instead. This is how it turned out... IMHO, I don't think it's scary, more like gory. Eww.

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Had to delete it `cause it got okayedWell, technically I have yet to revise itBut that's where it's headed

Q&A

A few days back, a certain student e-mailed me some questions for her paper. Being the accommodating person that I am, I of course obliged. Here's how the e-mail interview went:

What made you start writing romance novels? And why do you write romance novels?
Reading romance novels has always been my passion since I was ten. To this day, I have yet to outgrow my fondness for the genre. Writing seemed like a natural progression for me. Save for when bouts of writer's block plague, I generally derive pleasure from writing romance novels. That's the primary reason why I write them. It's fun to create characters and make-up stories. The payoff comes from knowing that someone somewhere at one time or another found pleasure (even if it's in the slightest degree) in reading my work.

Who are or what are your inspirations?
I can't really give you a definite answer for this since I get my inspiration from any number of sources. As I've said, I love reading romance books. I also love watching films and I have this habit of observing people in public places, how they behave, how they react etc. all the while, I'm making up stories in my head as to why they're that way.

Describe your ideal man. Describe your ideal woman.
Human, that is he/she is not perfect (this makes them interesting, imo) but despite imperfections they strive to be better people. In essence, he/she must be good, kind and fair.

What are the primary insights and ideas you wish to convey when you write romance novels?
There was a time when I felt I had an obligation to make a conscious effort to incorporate socially relevant messages in my stories. That was before I realized that doing so would defeat the main purpose of the genre, which is to entertain the readers.

Readers read romance novels because they want to "escape" reality NOT be reminded of it. I figured, helping them forget their worries even for a while is service enough.

Do you aspire to be in similar situations depicted in your novels?
Of course. The key ingredient of a romance novel is a happily-ever-after (HEA) ending. Who wouldn't want that?

A common theme in romance novels is the damsel-in-distress rescued by the knight-in-shining-armor. This has been disputed by feminist theorists (such as Angela Carter and Jane Yolen) as anti-feminist. Following this, the romance novel genre, while almost exclusively consumed by women, is actually against women because it gives them the wrong perception of dependence on man. Can you please share your insights concerning this?

IMO, critics dwell on the damsel-in-distress character because this is another excuse for them to make potshots at the genre. They choose not to acknowledge the fact that this character type is only one of several heroine archetypes (the boss, the nurturer, the free spirit etc).

Further, the damsel in distress theme is passe already. Sure there's still some around but I believe they are few and far between. That is, as far as CONTEMPORARY romance novels are concerned. Why? The key to enjoying a romance novel is being able to empathize and relate with the main character (usually but not always the heroine). As such, there should be parity between the traits of the modern day reader and the heroine. The more recent contemporary romance novels depict a more independent breed of heroines because that's generally how modern day women are--independent, won’t take crap if their lives depended on it, and they know what they want (it just so happens that what they want is their man)

I'm not a fan of historical romances so I can't really say if the damsel in distress plot is prevalent in this sub-genre. What I know is, the more popular(?) historical romances depict heroines that are freethinkers and can stand their ground. Much like Jane Austen's Lizzie Bennet from Pride and Prejudice.

sardonic

i was out with bubba earlier doing our nightly stroll when i chanced upon this sign



my initial reaction when i read it was amusement and then it hit me
PAGTULUNGAN BUGBUGIN BAGO PAKULONG
wtf(?!)
how sad
it is sad, don't you agree?