Mina V. Esguerra's Blog, page 19
November 12, 2019
Aklatan (Nov 20/21) and Keep the Faith audio podcast
There are a few more things happening for me and #romanceclass before the end of the year.
#RomanceClass will be at the Aklatan All-Filipino Bookfair at Megamall on November 20 and 21! If you’re giving books for Christmas (which is the BEST idea), come over and we can give you recommendations!
Season 3 of the #RomanceClass podcast is the full, unabridged audio recording of Keep the Faith by Ana Tejano. Listen to a chapter a week — or catch up on all chapters so far right now!
Please rate/review the #RomanceClass Podcast on Apple Podcasts. Tag #romanceclass, me @minavesguerra, or the author @itstimeana on Twitter or Instagram when you listen! Let us know what you’d like us to do in season 4. 
October 9, 2019
#FeelsFest2019: Wherein we tried to relax
We really, really tried to relax. There was nothing on the program except a few announcements and messages from some authors, and the live readings. No workshops, or talks, and we didn’t look for sponsors, even. Come to the thing, wear pajamas, relax, we said.
Links to the books here: romanceclassbooks.com
Slumber Party! More photos on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/explore/tags/feelsfest2019/I posted about what was new, about FeelsFest2019:
View this post on InstagramA post shared by Mina V. Esguerra (@minavesguerra) on Oct 6, 2019 at 7:53am PDT
photos by @k0nsuella and @tarafrejasAnd here’s my post about the wonderfully consistent things about #FeelsFest2019:
View this post on InstagramA post shared by Mina V. Esguerra (@minavesguerra) on Oct 6, 2019 at 8:50am PDT
We’ve done AprilFeelsDay/FeelsFest a number of different ways, and I guess I have to accept that it’s always exhausting hahaha. Setting up was a breeze, but we still had readings from 10 books and…that is a lot. (I always want to feature more, and 10 is probably the most we’ve done in one event.) But that’s still just a 2-hour program, with 2 breaks, and everyone’s sitting! How tiring can that get?
Musta?
September 23, 2019
Thank you, MIBF 2019!
Being at the largest book fair in the country is always a reminder that reading is definitely not just a thing that I and my close friends do. So many Filipinos read! And they are best served by not asking anymore if readers exist, but in making sure they’re getting the books they deserve, that authors are treated fairly, that creations are valued, and that exploitative practices in the industry not be allowed to continue. It’s 2019! Let’s do what we can, and if you already are, thank you.
MIBF is an intense experience, whether you’re a reader or an author. This time I got to be an exhibitor too, and sell books through Visprint. Thanking Visprint for this chance and the support throughout. It was a LOT of work for us who volunteered our time to stock and sell books, but we’ve learned more about one side of this book-making thing and I’m glad for it.
But why? Was it worth the muscle pain and the exposure to a gazillion people? Yes, the books deserve it. The authors deserve it. Yes, these books and authors.
View this post on InstagramA post shared by Mina V. Esguerra (@minavesguerra) on Sep 16, 2019 at 8:58pm PDT
View this post on InstagramA post shared by Mina V. Esguerra (@minavesguerra) on Sep 17, 2019 at 5:09am PDT
We’ll find a way to do this. And more of it. Thank you, everyone!
September 3, 2019
#RomanceClass at MIBF2019
#RomanceClass will be at MIBF this year, at the Visprint booth! This tweet has a list of books that’ll be there.
The booth will have my books Better at Weddings Than You, What Kind of Day, and Kiss and Cry.
See you at SMX MOA September 11 to 15!
July 9, 2019
My brand is building worlds
Last weekend, #romanceclass had a branding workshop, offered by Maloy Luakian, and hosted by Belle de Jour Power Planner at their new office/HQ in Shaw Boulevard.
Recaps written by the participating authors have called it “personal” and it was! In the past I’ve had conversations with authors about what kind of session we can do to unlock the kind of book we feel we should write…and I didn’t realize that it would come in the form of a “branding” exercise. Instead of digging deep to isolate the “book of our hearts,” I feel that the authors dug in and…possibly found not one book but many. We have so much to say!
I didn’t plan to participate as an author this time because I have to admit, my thoughts and plans are elsewhere right now. I feel like after 24 published books, a calmer writing and release schedule, and organizing community events for other authors and books, I’m starting to see what hits my satisfaction points more and more, and it’s not just the writing or the seeing the book itself. So as Maloy facilitated the workshop, I absorbed all of it, but it was resonating with my community manager self (who is also an author, but not just). And this is what I came up with: I want to build worlds.
When I write books, I build the world my characters live in. And I think my next step is to build worlds around those books now. Find their readers, their people, improve access and distribution, make them into the forms their people need them to be in (audio, video, a weekly series, a popcorn/slumber party/weekend movie). I’ve done partnerships and collaborations over the past ten years and I’ve learned from them, even when they don’t work out. I accept that some future collabs might turn out the same way, because so many things that I try to do are new, and new tends to be someone’s case study, before they decide to go back to their comfort zone. I’ll make an effort to find the people who understand why the worlds around these books matter. All this can and will apply to #romanceclass too, because that’s just how it is. It’s easy to do this for books and authors I adore.
What’s interesting by the way is that this isn’t something new I decided on just because I happened to be in a workshop — Maloy’s session clarified the theme behind little decisions I was making the past few months. For one, I became more critical of my “writer friendships” ie people who benefit from #romanceclass (or my) support but don’t use their platforms to support indie authors, romance genre, or their contemporaries who are women and queer. Friendship is fine, but my time and resources are limited, and re-allocating them to support someone else is easy.
There really is so much joy in seeing a book find its readers. My books, #romanceclass books. I definitely would like to help expand the world around all of them. Our books and authors deserve it. I’ll have that in mind, for now and going forward. (I’ve been having conversations with people about this, but if you want to help out too, just let me know!)
#romanceclass authors with Maloy Luakian at BDJ HQ, Shaw Plaza
May 13, 2019
So that was April Feels Day 2019
It’s an honor and a pleasure to get to do this, again, for people. Every time, I learn more and am reminded that our stories matter. April Feels Day 2019 was held at LOFT in Ortigas, and it was a full day of books, art, performances, and feelings!
View this post on InstagramA post shared by Mina V. Esguerra (@minavesguerra) on Apr 27, 2019 at 9:42pm PDT
#RomanceClass will be back soon with a steamy reading event (maybe June), a viewing party for our short films (date TBA), and #FeelsFest2019(October). Write your books, authors. Tell us what you need, readers 
April 15, 2019
Flicker in Young Star and more
A fun thing happened –the #romanceclassYA project that became Flicker was featured in Young Star! Author Angeli E. Dumatol and I were interviewed by Fiel Estrella, and the feature went online earlier this month.
#romanceclass project Flicker featured in Young StarI asked Fiel if I could post the rest of her interview on my blog after the article came out, because I enjoyed answering all her questions. So here they are. I tried not to include the ones already referenced in the article, but there may be some overlaps. Thank you, Fiel!
Fiel: What process do the books usually go through? How are they and/or the authors selected, and what qualities must each Flicker book possess?
Mina: The first batch of books were written during a 3-month online class. Ines Bautista-Yao and Agay Llanera wrote lessons, I sent them via email, and authors submitted assignments and then a completed first draft at the end of the class. Ines and Agay gave editorial notes on all submissions, which is a feat. Sometimes a revision note requires a lot of time to do; sometimes the draft is so close to ready. When it’s the latter, then the author gets an offer to work with the Flicker team…which means another round of edits, then a cover photo shoot, then a release day. After the first three selected books are released, we may just post submission guidelines, and not do a full class anymore. Hopefully reading the books published under Flicker is enough to give readers an idea what a future Flicker book could be and if they’re the ones to write it.
As for the qualities: There are guidelines, like we’re very particular about consent and agency, and telling a story where our teen characters are safe and their boundaries are respected. Beyond that, it has a lot to do with the author’s skill and heart and understanding of why YA is so compelling, even for readers who are no longer teens. So that, and the required “Filipino thing.”
Fiel: Let’s talk about Heartstruck. What made it the perfect title to start off and introduce readers to the series?
Mina: Angeli Dumatol’s Heartstruck managed to capture what we were imagining Flicker to be about…and Angeli was first to send back her revised draft. It still took a year of revising, I’m told, and we’re very aware that all the authors we work with have other jobs and responsibilities. We all do! This is a hobby for everyone, and in this game of squeezing in time, Heartstruck was first. And it does have everything we were looking for.
Fiel: That said — how would you describe Flicker’s brand identity and the typical Flicker reader?
Mina: Through the books #romanceclass authors already published, we have some idea who our readers are. We see them at events, or interact with them online. The youngest are students, and they read a lot of international YA. We’d like to offer them a chance to see their own city, situation, friendships, interests reflected in YA too. Even just characters with familiar nicknames and last names.
Fiel: I noticed that the cover of Heartstruck bears a resemblance to classic ‘80s and ‘90s teen romance novel anthologies like Wildfire. Was this an intentional effort to pay homage to them?
Mina: Haha yes, for both Flair and Flicker we had an “imprint identity” designed. Flair (designed by Miles Tan) was inspired by category romance lines like Harlequin, Flicker (designed by Clarissa Ines) pays homage to Sweet Dreams and Love Stories. Again it’s about setting expectations, and we want readers to see another Flicker book and know they’ll get the same kind of feels.
Fiel: Ultimately, what do you hope to accomplish through the series?
Mina: Options for everyone. Options for readers, options for authors, and opportunities for the editors, artists, printers, photographers, cover models, stylists, makeup artists who become part of the process.
Fiel: Growing up, when I tried to write original stories, they still had a kind of Western voice to them because I was used to reading American young adult novels. For you, how do we write authentic Filipino YA that we can really claim as ours?
Mina: I don’t know if we have this figured out yet. What we’ve done is take a form that we recognize as Western and made very specific alterations to it, so it feels more comfortable. This isn’t just a Flicker thing, but I’ve seen reactions to romanceclass books, and sometimes an author can get an experience from a Pinoy high school, or community, or family so exactly right that the reader’s own experience feels like…yes, that happens to other people too. Maybe we start with that.
Fiel: What’s the secret to a good YA romance?
Mina: Sincerity, I think. I’m reading the Flicker submissions and by design the romance isn’t very physical, but it’s a lot of mind and heart and intentions. Sincerity and trust matter so much.
Fiel: What can we expect from the Flicker series next year? [note: this interview was done in 2018]
Mina: Flipping the Script by Danice Sison, about Pinoy showbiz family rivalries and filmmaking. Also, Raya and Grayson’s Guide to Saving the World by Catherine Dellosa, about comic books and fandom.
Fiel: Since its inception, #romanceclass has really brought a lot more options for readers who want to experience and support quality Filipino romance writing in English — not to mention helping writers find their voice and put out their work independently. Was this always your intention? How important is it to you to continue bringing variety and more choices to local readers?
Mina: That wasn’t always the intention; I started #romanceclass because I thought it would be fun. (What’s more fun than talking about romance for MONTHS?) I was also used to workshops where the point was that you took it, and it’s okay if you produced a publishable work or not. But then after the first class we suddenly had a dozen published books, and the authors continued writing and publishing, and more classes led to more books and new authors…so now, yes, we do all the things to help each other out. That includes reading the books, providing feedback, setting guidelines so we can diversify the stories but maintain readers’ expectations, organizing events so we can introduce the books to new readers.
Fiel: Why do you think it has succeeded and continues to thrive?
Mina: We continue to be readers of the books we make, and because of that, are able to recommend titles to other readers. It works when you see that readers can pick up a book by one author, based on how they like a book by another author. It works when you see authors reading and recommending romanceclass books too. Reviews, recommendations, discussions also clue us in on what needs work, where the gaps are, and how to make upcoming books better. We’re in that stage now, identifying what’s missing and actively encouraging authors who are ready to write that story.
Thank you for the opportunity to talk about romanceclass and Flicker! Get Heartstruck at bit.ly/Heartstruck and Flipping the Script at bit.ly/loloikong.
April 6, 2019
#romanceclass at your own pace
I get questions sometimes about how to join #romanceclass. The easiest way is to join an online class when I open one, and I announce on this site when I do. But an author can still join the community and write a #romanceclass book even if there isn’t an ongoing class; you’ll just need to recreate the steps that class participants take. You can do that at your own pace, from wherever in the world, definitely. But first:
Decide that you are indeed writing a #romanceclass book. #romanceclass is a community of Filipino authors of romance, the readers of the books, and the artists/actors who help in the publishing and promotion process. If you decide to write a #romanceclass book then that means you’re writing that book WITH the community and FOR the community. This is a tricky thing that I’ve needed to explain to authors but it’s necessary, because we are not your publisher. If anyone has helped you complete and publish your book, it’s because they want to, have volunteered their time (or agreed to charge you an indie-friendly rate for expert services), and the result is a book by a Filipino author that we can enjoy.
You can write a book WITH the community but not FOR the community. There are awesome editors and cover designers within the group, and they have experience working on books in romance and other genres. (But if it’s not meant for us, then it’s not a romanceclass book.)
You can write a book FOR the community but not WITH the community. We are romance readers; we can and will read any book that interests us. But that doesn’t make your book a romanceclass book, if we were mainly seen as your buyers and not your writing community.
Examples of romanceclass books written with and for the community are listed here: romanceclassbooks.com.
The romanceclassbooks.com website as of April 2019I hope I’ve explained that adequately! If you’ve decided you want to write a romanceclass book, here are the steps to doing so at your own pace:
Read more romance by #romanceclass authors and authors of color (AOC). I highly recommend that before you start your own manuscript, or while you write it, you read as many books as you can. Be a regular reader of the books belonging to the community that your book will be joining. Read a minimum of 1 of my books, 5 books by other #romanceclass authors, and 3 books by international AOC. Read books similar to your intended age category, or tropes, or subgenres. All romanceclass books are contemporary (not paranormal, not fantasy). If you already read this way, great! If not, I’ll insist on this step before doing anything else.
Check out the #romanceclass textbook. It’s a compilation of all the lessons sent to the online class, updated over the years as we learned more and achieved more. In a nutshell: It requires you, author writing a romanceclass book, to prioritize giving your female and queer characters agency and freedom to make their own life choices, and write romance that will make us love being in love. I also recommend there a writing schedule of 500 words per day, 5 days a week, and a complete novella in 3 months. The textbook is given free during an ongoing class, but can be purchased when there isn’t one.
Invite #romanceclass readers to comment on your concept or your work-in-progress. During a class, the community gets to give feedback on a concept even before the manuscript is written, but since you’re doing this at your own pace, you can decide when you want other readers to see and comment on your work. When you’re ready, you can contact me, and I can post a call for feedback or give it myself. Concept feedback sessions are fun and you can get a sense of who’s excited for your book before you write it. Asking someone to read your full manuscript involves more work and trust; some readers charge for beta and critique of finished manuscripts (as they should, especially if you know they do good work). You can also hire experienced editors who are part of the community, and they definitely do charge for editing work.
When the book is done, stay in touch! Manuscripts finished with the help of romanceclass have been released both in partnership with trad pubs, and self-published. Regardless of how it’s released, you can know from the support you got early on who will be the main readers and target audience of the book. We organize events, actively promote romanceclass books on social media, and sell books as a group — and your book can be part of this too.
FeelsFest2018If this all seems overwhelming, it’s okay to breathe and take it all in! It definitely is a lot of work. Writing and publishing and finding readers for romance by Filipino authors is several actual full-time jobs. What we’ve tried to do is help each other out, so our books have a chance to get written, and read. And doing this together means we can get things done even though we’re all busy with other life things. If you’re just starting, this is the first step: Read the books. Support the community. Thank you for wanting to do this with us. (It’s worth it!)
March 28, 2019
“Mina” is ten years old
A ten-year-old name, that is.
The entire year that I was going back and forth with my editor and publisher on what would be my first book, I was communicating using a different name. (They still call me by that name, because it’s the one that everyone else pre-publishing calls me.) On the day that we got final confirmation that my book My Imaginary Ex would be released, I chose Mina V. Esguerra as my pen name, so now here we are.
Friends: This is my 10th year as a published author, and I'd like to do a giveaway. There are so many things associated with having your first book published and they happen over a period of time, but it was in March 2009 when I decided on my author name. Giveaway in thread: pic.twitter.com/pIPHvLau9U
— Mina V. Esguerra (@minavesguerra) March 27, 2019
This blog has all my posts and everything I’ve ever learned from 10 years of being a published author already, but some highlights that come to mind:
My time is valuable. I wrote through a lot of life changes, and that affected my productivity, but time spent on writing is not wasted as long as I’m clear about what I’m spending it on. As much as possible I tried to negotiate terms so writing wouldn’t feel like a chore, and valuing my time was a good marker for it.
It’s okay to take breaks. Writing has always been easier for me when I write regularly, but I also learned to not be afraid of breaks. Sometimes writing after a break is better. Sometimes the break is necessary.
It’s okay to question the way things are in publishing, especially if it’s always somehow about lowering author expectations. How many blog entries on here have been about opening windows after doors closed? And seriously, how much fun would I have missed out on if I gave up after the first closed door? I know I can’t always demand ideal work situations, but I love encountering people who always offer what they feel is right, instead of what is common. “I know everyone else does just this, but we should be doing that and more.” These people exist! And sometimes being that for someone first brings it out in them.
Insist on rights reversion. Publishing will only care about a book for a certain period of time, but I’ve seen readers enjoy a ten-year-old book like it was a new release. There are new readers every year, every day even.
Growing and changing and going back to fix things is okay. For a time I was worried about my “brand” and things people associated with my books, like it was a thing that should be a rule that would never change. Still, I made the decision to experiment: I wrote “chick lit” then YA, then contemporary romance (US characters), heist romance, that political drama AU romance, then somewhat explicit contemporary romance with Filipino characters. Yes, all that has the effect of gaining and losing readers, but did stick around for all the experiments, and eventually I did find the zone I want to stay in for a while. I also went back and changed things that bothered me now in some previously-published books, so I can continue to be proud of them, and that’s been a good decision. The book is what it is to people who loved it then; it can be something better to those readers and new ones. (And I own rights anyway.)
Recent lesson: It’s worth it to expand to other media. I made worlds and characters. They don’t need to be in one format only.
Thank you, readers/friends, for being wonderful to me throughout all of this. Okay, on to the next things!
March 13, 2019
See you at #AprilFeelsDay2019!
This is what we’re doing on April 27! April Feels Day is when we get to hang out as readers and authors, launch new #romanceclass books, recommend our faves, buy books/merch/art, and watch live readings from the books. Register here so you can get reminders in your email: bit.ly/aprilfeelsday2019.
Expect these books featured during the live reading program:
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See you there!
