Note: This post is a combination of English and Tagalog. So, um, sorry for the non-Tagalog readers. I'm a 'published' author writing under the handle 'Monica Bautista' for My Special Valentine / Bookware Publishing Corp. in my home country, the Philippines. Decided to post these excerpts for shameless self-promotion's sake.

( Preview/Excerpt for My Lady Athena )

Finished the draft for 'Prisoner of Love'. Sa wakas, mga dukha! I've just e-mailed the manuscript to Bookware Publishing.

Out na rin pala ang Second Chances, my second novel under My Special Valentine. Please buy n'yo po. Drama nga lang ang arrive niya. Available in National Bookstore outlets here in the Philippines. Meron din kaming online shop sa www.bookwarepublising.com.

And, as always, happy, happy birthday to Elana-chan-sensei. ^o^ In-advance ko na, matatagalan na naman me mag-online.

I must apologize to Ma'am Apple. Waaaaaah, gomen, gomen, ごめん なさい kasi sobrang late na ni Manuscript #5. Too many distractions. Kainis kasi si Rufus, sobrang pogi. Kahit alam ko na kailangan ko munang ma-reincarnate para makasama siya ulet... huhuhu.

It's been a while since I've gone online. May lalabas na na bagong MSV? 16 this time? WaheK? Dunno kung kasama 'yung sa 'kin, na HINDI naman pala 'I Guess You're the Only One' yung title. Sa ibang nobela 'yun. I must remind myself na bilhin 'yun when it comes out.

Unlocked the prologue for Deshy. Please read n'yo po. In Tagalog/Taglish 'yon, though, so gudlak.

Brick me if I don't e-mail #5 by the end of this month, ne?

Alright, finished cropping the manuscript. Down to 100 from 116 pages. I had to cut out the prologue and shorten the epilogue part. Strangely enough, I did not have to crop the love scene. Whee...

I've friends-locked the prologue for Dèshabille (Nancy's story). If you're in lj and you friend me, it would be viewable.

The following is the lj cut for the prologue of manuscript number 2. It got cut to keep to the 100-page limit. It's Nancy Suarez's story... you know, the girl that Jairus Espiritu (the handsome main char from My So-Called Boyfriend) supposedly got pregnant. She goes after her real true love, Lawrence, at the end. This is the prologue to what happens...

( Prologue: Deshabille )

It's truly fortunate that I decided to finally go online after weeks of virtual hermitage. Thanks to Ar Tonelico 2, I've procrastinated the nth revision of Prisoner of Love, current in-the-running for Manuscript #5. Then I checked my e-mail and found Ma'am Apple's letter. Need to revise Deshy (Manuscript #2), re-titled "I Guess You're the Only One" (from memory, haven't re-checked). It turns out that it needs to get cropped to at least a 100 pages. Well, at least it'll give me something more productive to do than play around with the 'time paradox'/'wither effect' theory in Azuriel (copyright by me! My own beloved RPG world!).

As for Prisoner of Love, I wish naman na magawa kong 'believable' kung paano magkaka-in-love-an sina Marco and Isabel. Huhu. T-T

Hehe the latest releases of MSV books are now available for order online! Please do visit http://www.pinoypocketbooks.com/

Ang aking abang libro (first ever tagalog romance pocketbook), "My So-Called Boyfriend" ay kasama sa puwede ninyong order-in. So if you're a fan of tagalog romance pocketbooks (or even if you're not) who happen to reside outside the Philippines, you can go ahead and buy it. Please!



I made a banner from my latest 'art' work. Don't click the 'click me'. It isn't licked to anything yet.

( View the so-called work of art. )

And I also solved a ( sudoku puzzle ).

Writer's block must die. (11 Eggs is giving me a hard time.)
Rosalinda is nice. All My Life is good. And I've become a total couch potato.

Hello po! And welcome na rin!

( Obligatory welcome message. )

Malugod ko kayong binabati rito sa aking abang sulok ng cyberspace.

Ako po si Monica Bautista, isang newbie author sa MSV, part-timer sa kung anu-anong pwedeng i-raket, and full-time dreamer. Matagal ko nang pangarap ang maging published (read: paid) writer. Kalalabas lamang ng una kong nobela under My Special Valentine, so siyempre mega-excited ako! So kung inyong mamarapatin, sana'y basahin n'yo siya. At kung nabasa n'yo na siya ay sana'y nagustuhan n'yo ang mga tauhan at ang kuwento.

'Yon lang po. :D

For now.

Besides this, of course ('kala n'yo nakalimutan ko na? Hehe):

My So-Called Boyfriend is lovingly dedicated to my dearest Mimay and the originalever-adorable Elaine-chan.

Maraming, maraming salamat.~♥

( ...and extra stuff. )

Update! For a pretty well-written account of how much the story sucked/rocked, please refer to this blog post by Siege Malvar. Nakakalurkey!

It's published! Woohoo! Went to Quezon City to pick up my check for #3, and Ma'am Apple surprised me with the news. I only got one sample copy (no contributor's copies, since I pretty much popped in unannounced), which as of typing is pretty much dog-eared, since neighbors and relatives have been practically all over it like white on rice.

So, yeah, my first novel My So-Called Boyfriend is now available in National Bookstore outlets here in the Philippines. Please browse through it, and if you happen to like the premise, do buy and read it!

Found this today! Along with the good news that I could pick up my third check for the lawyer novel:

Monica Bautista's My Special Valentine slumbook

Yes, 'Monica Bautista' is my pen name with Bookware. Ssh, Jedi. XD

Manuscript #4 is eight pages (roughly 2 chapters) away from completion. It's begging to have a book two, but I am so going for 11 Eggs.

Carpe diem!