To celebrate crossing the midpoint in my science-fantasy novella, I'm sharing the Filipino & Finnish mythology & folklore I've incorporated in my work so far. This includes The Quiet is Loud, Seeker of the Lost Song, and Seeker's sequel as well as the novella. Folklore/mythology from the Philippines: ✦ Nuno…
Today is Peter Gabriel’s 74th birthday, and it's good timing. Lately I’ve been thinking about the way his Genesis years influenced my writing. It might not be obvious mainly because he’s a musician and I’m a writer. Of course, though, in Genesis he did write most of the lyrics he…
Seeker of the Lost Song is a historically-inspired fantasy novel merging medieval Finnish & pre-colonial Filipino elements, and I wanted to share two elements of Filipino history I included. Dulang, a low table One of my favourite tidbits from my research is that pre-colonial Filipinos ate at a low table,…
Now that the submission-ready draft of my new fantasy novel Seeker of the Lost Song is out of my hands, I wanted to share updated reference photos I used for the main cast, and an updated moodboard that shows the tone and feel of the book. Moodboard for Seeker of…
The world of my new fantasy novel Seeker of the Lost Song is inspired by pre-colonial Filipino culture, as well as the medieval Swedish rule of Finland. Its sequel is additionally inspired by the later Russian control of Finland. Finnish history is a major inspiration for both novels, even though…
Since 2008, I’ve taken myself on three DIY writing retreats. I'm sharing the things I’ve learned about DIY writing retreats, and what I’d do differently next time. Or, will there be a next time? Writing retreat #1: 2008 The idea for my first DIY writing retreat came to me out…
I'm grateful to ECW Press, Diaspora Dialogues, and the Ontario Arts Council for awarding me Recommender Grants for Writers to write Seeker of the Lost Song, my fantasy novel-in-progress blending elements of Filipino and Finnish culture and history. It's truly an honour to have this support. Arts funding is critically…
The best part of my August: I finished the first draft of my new fantasy novel! I'm still coming back down to earth, very reluctantly, after spending the summer halfway in an altered state of intense creativity and inspiration I had never felt before, the kind where you could tell…
I'm looking forward to sharing a short reading from my novel-in-progress at the Draft Reading Series this month, along with many other talented writers. It's a new sort of reading for me, and it's a really neat way to inspire my creativity. This will be a virtual event happening on…
One February morning last year, I shuffled along a snowy Toronto sidewalk, internally freaking out. I was on my way to the very first meeting of my new writing group. My friend Teri had set it up, and while I trusted her, I didn't know what to expect. Would we all…
