Category: stories

  • Book Writing Hangovers

    Apparently book writing hangovers are a real thing. And apparently that’s what I’ve been experiencing since putting Savior of the Damned up for pre-order.  It was no small feat to get here. I have devoted so much of the last two years to this it’s still a bit unreal I got here at all. I…

  • Discarding Work

    I made the executive decision to throw out fifty thousand words (not in Savior of the Damned, in case you’re worried). It was not made lightly, especially not after throwing out around fifty thousand words just a few months ago. For the record, none of it was bad. Most of it is also salvageable, at…

  • Savior of the Damned is Available for Preorder!

    It’s been a trial to get here, but I’m over the moon I finally made it. Two years of writing, revisions, editing, and beta reading have all paid off. It was not my first book ever written, but it was the first one I managed to get into publishing shape. I learned so much along…

  • Happy Bi Visibility Day!

    Happy bisexual visibility day! Part of my journey as a writer has been figuring out where my sexuality fits into the grand scheme of things. I don’t mean who I date or anything like that, but how honest did I want to be? Did I want to sit on it, considering the current climate of…

  • I Have Mastered Outlines

    Guys, gals, and nonbinary pals, I have learned how to make outlines work. I sort of saw how other people used them but it took a long time to figure out how to make them work. Maybe it’s because I’m neurodiverse. Maybe I just missed it by a mile. For whatever reason, it took a…

  • When You’re Finished

    There is a lot that goes into finishing a manuscript. But what does that look like?  After the drafting process, after you’ve either secured an agent or editor, and after the edits have been made, it’ll be time for formatting, book covers, marketing, and release with more marketing. But that’s not what I’m here to…

  • Diverse Narratives

    I am Filipino. I am a part of the Filipino-American diaspora, and more importantly, I’m proud to be a part of it. Biologically I’m mixed race (Filipino/white) but I identify as Filipino because blood quantum is a tool of colonialism. Blood quantum says nothing about the people I was raised around, the culture I am…

  • Medication and Creativity

    I take medication for bipolar disorder, among other things. I take medication, as well as go to therapy, to help manage my moods and make my life easier. But there is stigma against it, especially among creators, because of the mistaken belief that medication kills creativity. And I’m here to address that.   There is a pervasive…

  • How Many Drafts is Ideal?

    I think that, by the time I send my manuscript off to the editor, it will have had at least ten drafts, give or take. It’s not that I mind; after all, it takes, however many it takes. And everyone’s drafting process is different too. Some people can get away with two or three drafts,…