Pork E. Pine ("Porky") the Hedgehog

I have a new pet, a hedgehog. And he's the cutest, rowdy little monster. I cut his nails this morning so he's a bit grumpy with me. :D

Follow him on Instagram @porkyhedgehog

He hates the light

He likes boxes, especially the edges

He's grumpy if you wake him up in the middle of the day

His tummy is nice and soft *pinch*

He likes to dig with his nose

He eats insects and snuffles when he's angry at me :D

Reposting: Renaissance poetry reading at the Mind Museum

From Panitikan:

 

Catch some of today's distinguished Filipino poets as they take on the Renaissance themes of humanism, enlightenment, scientific revolution, naturalistic art, and self-awareness. This will be on Saturday, October 26, from 2 to 4 pm at the Mind Museum.

Featured Readers:
Anne Carly Abad
Alma Anonas-Carpio
Roy Cagalingan
F. Jordan Carnice
Mikael De Lara Co
Dakila Cutab
Carlomar Arcangel Daoana
Adrian De Pedro
Lourd De Veyra
Ed Geronia
Marne Kilates
Andrea Levinge
Julius Rhoan Lustro
Asha Macam
Karl Orit
Joel Pablo Salud
Czyka Tumalian
Santiago Villafania
and more!

See you there! Visit the official event invite on Facebook.

Recent Wins: The Writers of the Future Contest & The Basho Haiku Festival Tournament 2013

I have two recent achievements that I'll plug here shamelessly.

"Sage's Reckoning," my 8000-word (long) short story earned an honorable mention at
L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future, 3rd Quarter for 2013. Not exactly a win, but hey, it makes me feel like I've 'achieved'. Still waiting for my certificate. Here is the email I received from Joni Labaqui (I had to recheck my submission log since I forgot what I submitted):

Dear Entrant,

Your story has now been judged and is an Honorable Mention for the 4th quarter.
Congratulations!!!
If you would like a certificate, please respond to this e-mail with
the name of your story, Your name as you would like it to appear
on the certificate and the address that you would like me to send it
to. YOU WILL NOT GET A CERTIFICATE UNLESS YOU PROVIDE ME WITH
THE INFORMATION ABOVE.

Best regards,

Joni Labaqui

My haiku has also won in The Basho Haiku Festival Tournament 2013. From

(財)芭蕉翁顕彰会

(might be the organizers... I can't read Kanji):

Your haiku was selected as winning in Basho haiku festival tournament.
Congratulations.

Please tell me the address and zip code because we want to send the diploma of winning. May not reach them if they are incorrect.

＊・＊・＊・＊・＊・＊・＊・＊・＊・＊・＊・＊・＊・＊

　公益財団法人芭蕉翁顕彰会

　　　　事務局　芭蕉翁記念館　山中

　　〒518-8770

　　三重県伊賀市上野丸之内117-13

　　　HP     http//www.ict.ne.jp/~basho-bp

Hooray for good news. I think I'll pig out on ice cream. :)

The Uncommon Compliment

I have to admit, it's hard to gain confidence in writing in your second language. My second language is English, and I write primarily in it. I have been told quite a few times by foreign editors/publishers that some of my language use is a bit awkward, or they simply don't understand certain lines. I've pretty much gotten used to this. At first, I considered this a flaw in my writing. And then after some years reading work like those of Chinua Achebe, I realize it can't be helped. It is part of the evolution of language to have several versions of itself, which after some time, may not look anything like the original. Take Becky language, for instance. It is incorrigible to the unexposed.

And then here comes the unexpected compliment. I recently returned to the fiction scene, and managed to revise and restructure a novel I wrote some three years back. In the process of submitting the partial / full manuscript to publishers for consideration, I received some kind words from the founder of Freedom Forge Press LLC, Eric Egger. See, I submitted to this press because I was very much intrigued by their interest in exploring the concept of freedom (something much of my writing delves into). Eric requested my full manuscript and gave me the heads up about it needing a round of edits. I completely agree to this, as I've never been in love with my work too much to be so attached to the words I write. I told him this and also mentioned how I'm a second language speaker.

This is what he had to say in return:

"Please take it as a compliment that your command of English is better than many native “speakers” here in the US. :o) Some of your phrasing and word choices were both masterful and artful!"

You know what I thought? I thought, hey, maybe I'm doing something right. I just kept writing in my own way and style all these years, and maybe it's paying off, huh?

Little things like these make my day. Just to plug this in, I've also received an acceptance letter from Magma Poetry, a UK-based publisher.

 Dear Anne Carly Abad

Thank you for sending us five of your poems for consideration for Magma 58.  We have read them several times and would like to offer publication to 'Pub(l)ic Lies' if it is still available and if you would consider one small edit.

We enjoyed the word-plays throughout the poem greatly and wondered if you would like to build up to a three-way word play at the end...

Sincerely

Laurie Smith
Editor, Magma 58

In a separate post (once my poem is published), I'll talk about that teeny bit of change at the end that made a huge difference in strengthening the piece. Little tweaks do make a difference!

Thanks to these kind editors and publishers for taking the time and exerting effort in helping me become a better writer. :)