Things are picking up for me as I prepare for a late summer wedding and a book launch this fall. But here it is, the opening section of my debut novel, The Cine Star Salon. Launch and other related news will be announced soon, but I hope you enjoy this for the meantime. The clanging… Continue reading Excerpt from The Cine Star Salon
Restart
At the risk of jinxing a streak, I'll own up to being productive with my writing lately. I commit myself to a thousand words per session. My goal is to have a first draft of the second novel by summer's end. I have procrastinated about this for so long, thinking I need more research before… Continue reading Restart
Book Cover: The Cine Star Salon
Finally, I am sharing the book cover for my forthcoming debut novel, The Cine Star Salon. Love that it evokes that aspirational salon vibe while hinting at imperfections beneath the surface (check out that texture). A lovely work by Kate Hargreaves of coruskate.com. I promised an excerpt, but for now check out the synopsis at… Continue reading Book Cover: The Cine Star Salon
Spring Updates
Alas, it's May and we're still in the throes of this pandemic, battling variants, vaccine distribution happening. Too. Slowly. Though death toll has been high last year, I don't remember sending as many condolences as I did last April. Whether they're all Covid-19 deaths, I don't know, sometimes I'm not too close to the person… Continue reading Spring Updates
Butternut Squash Soup
Happy to report that I cooked a big pot of soup that can be considered a success. I've been enjoying it for three meals now, and I still have leftovers. Despite having lived in North America for close to 15 years, I have not made anything with butternut squash until last weekend. In my head,… Continue reading Butternut Squash Soup
My short story in On Spec Magazine
Short and sweet for today: my story, Self-Segmenter, is on the latest edition of On Spec Magazine. In this story, I blend folklore with history by tying the origin of the manananggal to a dark event in Philippine history. Speculative fiction is beyond my comfort zone, so I'm pleased that one of my rare attempts… Continue reading My short story in On Spec Magazine
Throwback
Google digs up photos you took with your phone, say, five years ago, so you can look back at your memories. Facebook does this too. They brighten my day. They bother me too. Are our devices and cloud storage becoming the more reliable curator of our past? Sunset captured during a commute. A brunch date… Continue reading Throwback
Of Resolutions and Weird Writing Spaces
My new writing space is the top of my intimates' drawer. I know, I have a completely decent desk with a view (featured here), but after several unproductive writing hours I realised I can't be creative in the same space I do my day jobs. My resolutions (not New Year's because I came up with… Continue reading Of Resolutions and Weird Writing Spaces
Story from a Mall Long Gone
Notes on my short story, Almeda Plaza (Eastlit, July 2014) Boxing Day evening news showed queues at shopping centres, despite the pandemic that kept us home for most of 2020. Old habits die hard, I guess. I stayed home on Boxing Day myself; the idea of standing in line while bundled up in winter wear… Continue reading Story from a Mall Long Gone
I’m Bad at Making Simple Soups.
Many would agree they're the easiest to make but I end up with broth that is either bland or has too much of a certain spice or seasoning (I was overzealous with black pepper in the featured soup above.) Or with a pot of waterlogged ingredients that don't look appealing once reheated. Otherwise, I consider… Continue reading I’m Bad at Making Simple Soups.
Leah Ranada 