Tara Frejas's Blog, page 7
September 16, 2022
#MIBF2022, let’s go!
As restrictions ease around the world, many in-person events have also returned, and one of these is the annual Manila International Book Fair or MIBF! Woohoo!
Although I’m a little put off by crowds by default (and even more so now because of the COVID-19 pandemic), I’ve been an avid MIBF goer since I started self-publishing in 2015. Sometimes I buy a bunch of books and stationery, and sometimes I come just home carrying the fun conversations I’ve had with fellow authors. Either way, I enjoy ju...
September 8, 2022
[ FRCA 2022 ] My babies are nominated!
Well, what do you know ~ three of my books have been nominated for Filipino Reader’s Choice Awards 2022! This is the first FRCA in seven years, so you can imagine how very tough the competition might be. To be named as a nominee alongside friends and fellow #romanceclass authors feels so good, though!
Here are my nominated books!
Scandalized (Backstage Pass #1), originally published in 2016 and re-released in 2018. Nominated for Romance in English, Batch 1 (2015-2018). [ More about Scandalized....
September 5, 2022
Free on Wattpad: Almost There
Newly reinstated EG Project roadie Filipina Legaspi flies with her band back to the Philippines for Summer Crush, unaware of the emotional waves that engulf her when she sets foot in the beaches of San Juan, La Union.
This story first appeared in a three-part anthology called Summer Crush, which I co-wrote with Six de los Reyes and Jay E. Tria. In the Backstage Pass Series reading order, this comes third (Scandalized and Gabriel’s Checklist are #1 and #2, respectively). The happenings in this sh...
August 31, 2022
Tara’s Thoughts On: Cafe Minamdang
The drama’s premise was promising. I admit it got me hooked the first time I read it, and I was expecting a lot of Squad 38-esque hijinks, led once again by the brilliant Seo Inguk. But alas, everything turned out to be a hot mess from the third episode on. I came in for Inguk and stayed for Inguk, but honestly if I weren’t watch partying this with anyone, I would have dropped this very early on. (Thanks for keeping me company, Jay.)
The overarching plot for our main leads was very thin, and th...
August 30, 2022
Tara’s Thoughts On: Extraordinary Attorney Woo
Thoroughly enjoyed this drama through its light and tender moments to the ones that made me hold my breath because oh-my-god-I-cannot-believe-this-is-happening-right-now. I don’t have the authority to speak on the autism representation in this drama, but I will say I appreciate that there were more people in Woo Youngwoo’s circle who were supportive and understanding of her situation. This is in comparison to the KDrama Good Doctor (2013), which featured the trials and triumphs of an autistic pe...
August 26, 2022
Free on Wattpad: Gabriel’s Checklist
Gabriel’s Checklist (or, How to Survive Your First Christmas in Manila) is a short and sweet story featuring Fi and Gabe of the Backstage Pass Series. This story first appeared as part of the #romanceclass Christmas anthology Make My Wish Come True and was eventually added to the Scandalized re-release in 2018.
In this story, Gabriel returns to the Philippines to spend Christmas with Fi…and hopefully get her to agree to become his girlfriend. Will Christmas be merry and bright for Gabriel, or wi...
August 25, 2022
Free on Wattpad: Scandalized
When she finds herself in the middle of a scandal and a hostile fangirl witch hunt, Fi seeks the comfort of home, and to her surprise, not the person she had been pining for for years. All too suddenly it’s no longer her career on the line, but also her heart. Will she walk away from everything that matters to her or fight to keep her dream alive?
...August 20, 2022
Laban lang, kapit lang.
It’s been another long while since I last updated this blog/website. Honestly, I really thought I’d be able to keep updating regularly this year, but after the 9th of May, everything just seemed so bleak for me and I barely had the energy to do anything. (And I know I’m not the only one, nor am I being dramatic.)
It’s the 21st of August now as I write this. Any Filipino who has lived as long as I have will know that on this day in 1983, former Senator Benigno “Ninoy” Aquino was assassinated as s...
April 26, 2022
#KiligCafe Chats: Book & Coffee Talk with Brij, Chi, and Jay
Last Saturday, Brij, Chi, Jay, and I did a livestream together on the #romanceclass channel. If you’ve been following our activities since the pandemic started, you’d know that we started doing livestreams like this to be able to still get together as a community despite being in community quarantine. We did that for two years, and it was just a refreshing, chaotic experience to be in the room with three other people during this stream!
Our theme for the night was brewing coffee is pretty much l...
April 19, 2022
#RomanceClass Sundays ♡ April Feels Day + Book cover shoot
The first two Sundays of April have been fun work days for me and gave me a bit of a boost after what seemed like a very long first quarter of the year. On April 3rd, Mina and I met up with Gio Gahol and Rachel Coates somewhere in Bonifacio Global City to record a couple of readings for the upcoming #RomanceClass April Feels Day.
It’s been a while since we last saw Gio and Rachel in person, and it was so nice to just be able to sit and catch up with them over some coffee (we spent almost three...
