The earliest I recall standing in line to get an autograph was with Nick Joaquin. All I knew was that he was some great writer who also wrote an excellent line of children's books.
Later on, I queued up to shake hands or have a photo op with Bill Clinton (I never got close, the line was too damn long) , JK Rowling (a reading session at Barnes and Noble on 5th Avenue), Peter David (signing Star Trek books; I'm not a Trekkie and my only fave is Imzadi), and Tom Clancy (when Rainbow Six came out).
Did I ever imagine being a writer myself?
Not really. What I wanted to be was a Blue Eagle. And/or -- as my high school teacher once said, "Choose your pick" -- a footballer for the New York Cosmos (that shows my age but dude to play with Johan Cruyff, Franz Beckenbauer, or Pele is a dream), a writer for Rolling Stone magazine (and reprise Cameron Crowe), or to be like CNN's Christiane Amanpour. There is a certain fulfillment to working trouble spots and hoping to make a difference more than getting a story.
Truth to tell, writing doesn't pay well. Rather it's a welcome release.
As a grade school student there were two clubs I wanted to join, Hobbycraft (wasn't it cool to assemble model airplanes, tanks and others stuff under Mr. Joe Abando) and the Photography Club. Only they were too expensive for me. I did go to art school and would take it during the summer between piano lessons and swimming. I loved it. But writing fell into place by accident since I couldn't join the clubs I wanted to. Plus it was cheap. Hahahaha.
By the time I began to pick up the paintbrush again, whatever techniques and skills I once enjoyed had atrophied. So writing it was. Particularly the advertising kind.
I love it though. From writing songs with my old classmates as we tried to write the ultimate rock anthem while cutting swim class to penning a script for a class play that never passed Pagsy's standards in trying out for Sibol but what the heck, it was fun. What I am grateful for is writing has put me in touch with a lot of people. It has also opened doors to other opportunities. And it's always nice to receive email from readers if only to hear their thoughts and their own take on things.
The past season, despite the early miscommunity (hahaha there's that old JQ bastardization of the English language) gap between Ateneo and myself, I got to do stuff with other schools. And in hindsight, it was the best thing that happened next to Ateneo winning its fourth UAAP basketball championship. One of the most gratifying effects is meeting people -- the readers, the critics, and the hard-asses. Yup. It's always nice to meet people.
In fact, because of the goodwill incurred, I've been asked to do quite a few projects here and there aside from being invited to do workshops in several schools. Two years ago I gave a creative writing seminar in Ateneo and this year, sometime this second semester, we're looking to do another one in Ateneo that will touch on sports and involve other schools like UST, Adamson, and NU for starters. Thanks to the Guidon for helping out on this. How we go about this will be clear in two weeks' time.
The last three weeks, we've been selling several shirts -- Tiuperman, iamnonoy, and the championship shirt. It's been fun meeting the readers, shaking their hands, and chatting with them. Anne, thanks by the way for the Minnesota North Stars hockey jersey. I love it. Now I have four -- Islanders, Red Devils, Blackhawks, and the North Stars. It's kinda cool to have all those photo ops too. I find myself herding them towards the players out of embarrassment, but really, that is so cool. Shoutout to Mr. Jojo Bernardo. Hope to have breakfast with you sometime soon. And to Sen. Mar Roxas. See ya soon. And if Bossing Vic (Sotto) wears the championship shirt on Eat Bulaga --how cool will that be? Thanks!!!!!!!! Tres cool, sahib.
The letters have been nice -- from a Spaniard asking for shopping tips in Bangkok to chatting with a kindred Liverpool fan from Singapore to a Serb from Bosnia having a blast reading about Ateneo to even world-famous writers like the New York Times' George Vescey saying, "keep it up." I even got a letter from a Filipino based in Namibia but who wants an iamnonoy shirt! Some write because they get all choked up reading those tearjerking stories. Some write because they're pissed off. But most write to say how they enjoy reading and sometimes, it does help them get through the day or even a tough loss.
Imagine... as a kid, I read everyone from Quinito Henson to Recah Trinidad to Al Mendoza to Ding Marcelo to Tessa Jazmines and lots of others. It's kinda cool meeting them now after having read them all the time.
So maybe if we've touched someone out there, then who knows, we, I, just might be reading their stuff too years from now.
Thanks!
Later on, I queued up to shake hands or have a photo op with Bill Clinton (I never got close, the line was too damn long) , JK Rowling (a reading session at Barnes and Noble on 5th Avenue), Peter David (signing Star Trek books; I'm not a Trekkie and my only fave is Imzadi), and Tom Clancy (when Rainbow Six came out).
Did I ever imagine being a writer myself?
Not really. What I wanted to be was a Blue Eagle. And/or -- as my high school teacher once said, "Choose your pick" -- a footballer for the New York Cosmos (that shows my age but dude to play with Johan Cruyff, Franz Beckenbauer, or Pele is a dream), a writer for Rolling Stone magazine (and reprise Cameron Crowe), or to be like CNN's Christiane Amanpour. There is a certain fulfillment to working trouble spots and hoping to make a difference more than getting a story.
Truth to tell, writing doesn't pay well. Rather it's a welcome release.
As a grade school student there were two clubs I wanted to join, Hobbycraft (wasn't it cool to assemble model airplanes, tanks and others stuff under Mr. Joe Abando) and the Photography Club. Only they were too expensive for me. I did go to art school and would take it during the summer between piano lessons and swimming. I loved it. But writing fell into place by accident since I couldn't join the clubs I wanted to. Plus it was cheap. Hahahaha.
By the time I began to pick up the paintbrush again, whatever techniques and skills I once enjoyed had atrophied. So writing it was. Particularly the advertising kind.
I love it though. From writing songs with my old classmates as we tried to write the ultimate rock anthem while cutting swim class to penning a script for a class play that never passed Pagsy's standards in trying out for Sibol but what the heck, it was fun. What I am grateful for is writing has put me in touch with a lot of people. It has also opened doors to other opportunities. And it's always nice to receive email from readers if only to hear their thoughts and their own take on things.
The past season, despite the early miscommunity (hahaha there's that old JQ bastardization of the English language) gap between Ateneo and myself, I got to do stuff with other schools. And in hindsight, it was the best thing that happened next to Ateneo winning its fourth UAAP basketball championship. One of the most gratifying effects is meeting people -- the readers, the critics, and the hard-asses. Yup. It's always nice to meet people.
In fact, because of the goodwill incurred, I've been asked to do quite a few projects here and there aside from being invited to do workshops in several schools. Two years ago I gave a creative writing seminar in Ateneo and this year, sometime this second semester, we're looking to do another one in Ateneo that will touch on sports and involve other schools like UST, Adamson, and NU for starters. Thanks to the Guidon for helping out on this. How we go about this will be clear in two weeks' time.
The last three weeks, we've been selling several shirts -- Tiuperman, iamnonoy, and the championship shirt. It's been fun meeting the readers, shaking their hands, and chatting with them. Anne, thanks by the way for the Minnesota North Stars hockey jersey. I love it. Now I have four -- Islanders, Red Devils, Blackhawks, and the North Stars. It's kinda cool to have all those photo ops too. I find myself herding them towards the players out of embarrassment, but really, that is so cool. Shoutout to Mr. Jojo Bernardo. Hope to have breakfast with you sometime soon. And to Sen. Mar Roxas. See ya soon. And if Bossing Vic (Sotto) wears the championship shirt on Eat Bulaga --how cool will that be? Thanks!!!!!!!! Tres cool, sahib.
The letters have been nice -- from a Spaniard asking for shopping tips in Bangkok to chatting with a kindred Liverpool fan from Singapore to a Serb from Bosnia having a blast reading about Ateneo to even world-famous writers like the New York Times' George Vescey saying, "keep it up." I even got a letter from a Filipino based in Namibia but who wants an iamnonoy shirt! Some write because they get all choked up reading those tearjerking stories. Some write because they're pissed off. But most write to say how they enjoy reading and sometimes, it does help them get through the day or even a tough loss.
Imagine... as a kid, I read everyone from Quinito Henson to Recah Trinidad to Al Mendoza to Ding Marcelo to Tessa Jazmines and lots of others. It's kinda cool meeting them now after having read them all the time.
So maybe if we've touched someone out there, then who knows, we, I, just might be reading their stuff too years from now.
Thanks!
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