Here’s another easy Sunday post that I got from InkBlots and IceBergs.
What type of writing do you do?
I write on this blog, I have a part-time writing job, and I also write and draw comic strips on my sketchpad.
What genres and/or topics do you write about?
On this blog? I just write about whatever comes to mind.
There used to be a time though when I actually fancied myself a writer. I used to write short stories then. I wrote stage plays too but the profs found my prose more agreeable. I was never good at writing poems, unfortunately, but I have always loved poetry. I really wish I was a better poet.
How long have you been writing?
A long, long time. I started writing when I was a kid. I remember folding sheets of letter-sized bond paper in half and stapling them together before filling them with stories and sketches. Ah, to be a child!
Are you published?
Some of my works have appeared in print, if that counts.
What was the first story you ever wrote?
One of the earliest “complete” pieces I wrote was a standalone comic book that I drew on stapled sheets of white paper. I was in Grade 5 then, and the story was about a girl who wanted to play the guitar for her school’s talent show. (Ako ‘yung bida, siyempre.)
I genuinely loved how the comics turned out so I always carried it with me in my schoolbag. I didn’t feel like showing it to anyone though; I just really liked having the things that I loved close to me at that time.
Unfortunately one of my classmates saw and read my comics without my permission. He started teasing me about it and I was so embarrassed so I tore it to pieces and threw it in the trash. Pfft.
Why do you write?
Lalim a! Haha.
I once read this book called Letters to a Young Poet by Rainer Maria Rilke. Here’s an excerpt that stuck with me:
There is only one way: go within. Search for the cause, find the impetus that bids you to write. Put it to this test: does it stretch out its roots in the deepest place of your heart? Can you avow that you would die if you were forbidden to write? Above all, in the most silent hour of your night, ask yourself this: Must I write? Dig deep into yourself for a true answer.
Must I write? Maybe not, but I don’t think I can ever fully turn my back away from writing. I don’t think I will ever stop writing.
How do you find time to write?
Whenever I’m writing these posts I’m also usually putting aside a more important, more urgent task.
(You can count on me / I’m gonna get it done get it done…)
When and where are the best times to write?
I usually write in my bedroom during lazy Sunday afternoons.
Favorite food/drinks while writing?
Wala e.
Your writing playlist?
I don’t have one, but whenever I’m writing for work — like for a raket or a technical report — I sometimes listen to Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons. It works like a timer too. The pressure gets stronger when the winter notes come in and I’m like potah 300 words pa lang??
What do family/friends/loved ones think of your writing?
My family has never read any of my works and I prefer to keep it that way. My friends, on the other hand, hmm — I think most of them think I’m competent enough naman. Or at least I hope they do.
Parts of writing you enjoy the most?
I enjoy “having written” i.e. ‘yung ‘pag tapos na.
Parts of writing you find challenging?
Writing the first draft.
What do you write with and on?
I type with my fingers on my laptop.
How do you overcome writer’s block?
Writer’s block is not a thing, or so my former professors said. There are deadlines to meet, especially if you write for a living so you just write and you write and you write some more.
So, ‘yun. I just write and I write and I write some more. 😀
How do you motivate yourself to write?
Sticking to a schedule helps, ergo I force myself to write every Sunday. I don’t write anything fancy though. Sometimes I write lazy blog posts like this, sometimes I write letters that I never plan to send.
Authors who inspire you as a writer?
Benilda Santos, Lualhati Bautista, Arundhati Roy, etc.
Books that inspire you as a writer?
The shitty ones, definitely. Sometimes “inspiration” kicks in whenever I read a terribly written award-winning piece and I’m like, hmm, parang kaya ko rin ‘to a.
Charot haha.
Best advice you’ve gotten as a writer?
Revise, revise, revise.
What are your writing goals this year?
I want to keep writing every Sunday hoping that one of those Sundays would be the Sunday on which I finally write a new short story. Or a poem, or three poems, or a play.
But let’s stick with one short story. Ambisyosa pa si gaga e.
I wrote this many, many Sundays ago and I don’t think I’m working towards the same writing goal anymore. Ah well, whatever.
Happy Monday, all! 🙂
sure. wait. what? 