Carljoe Javier's Blog, page 6

An Atheist's Christmas

I was asked to write something about Christmas, to be read on air, for our radio show, Quaddro Kantos. Here's my essay on how this atheist views Christmas:

For many years I believed in a jolly fat white man who came from the sky and showered gifts upon me. Even when reality was strained, even though I lived in California and there were no chimneys through which he could pass with his giant bag of gifts, even when I had already caught my mother typing a "letter from Santa," I held on doggedly t...

Pintakasi! Showing from Dec 17-21 at Robinson's Galleria

I started working on a film a few years ago. The idea was for it to be hip-hop themed, for it to be animated, and for it to be kind of different and edgy and have a lot of new elements. After having made my contributions to the project, I left it behind (really, as a story consultant and as part of the writing team, there's only so much you can do) and waited for the movie. A lot of really smart and creative people have made their contributions to the movie since then. And now it's here. I...

About the Madrigal-Gonzalez Awards

On my birthday in 2009 I went to a book launch. I went to the author, copy of his book in my hand, and I congratulated him on his first book. I handed him the book for signing and as he signed I leaned over and talked in a hushed voice so that only we two could hear what I was saying, and told him, "I hate you Larry. I hate you so much right now." He just looked up at me from his signing table and smiled as if asking why. I continued, "I hate you because you released your first book the same ...

Kindle fire and the issue of apps in the Philippines

I am writing this post with my kindle fire using the wordpress app that took quite some work to install. I will be writing a full review soon, in the meantime some notes.

I tried getting apps via the amazon app store. Worst thing for us out here in the third world, the app store does not work in our region. This is precisely the problem with us trying to access content in the supposedly borderless.world. while we say that digital bridges so many divides, content issues still exist. We are...

And now I have a Kindle Fire!

Ok, so my great excuse for acquiring these ebook readers is that I want to be at the cutting edge of the field of digital publishing, as an author and as a person working for a publishing house, so I have to know the hardware. Which, when you think about it is a pretty good excuse. But really, honestly, I just love playing around with new gadgets, seeing what I can do with them, and seeing how these technologies are developing. It's pretty mind-blowing that the cost of the Kindle has dropped ...

The Adventures of Tintin (Review)

Every year brings about new developments in moviemaking technology, and so it's almost a given that we will be astounded with some kind of visual effects extravaganza. Last year gave us Avatar, which was really Pocahontas with blue aliens. It was brilliant in action and its use of 3-D, but rather lackluster when it came to story.

Lackluster story is not something you would ever accuse The Adventures of Tintin books having. Nor this year's film adaptation, which is surely this holiday season's ...

The Mighty Literary Scene

Here's a talk I gave this Saturday at an event organized by the DLSU Writer's Guild. They asked me to talk about what's going on in publishing right now and where the young writer fits in. I thought it'd be best to try and be a little inspirational (so forgive some of the corniness) and I also worked in a line from Serenity, just because it's cool and something to live by.

What kinds of titles are being published today and which kind is most lucrative?

What are the factors that drive...

Updating The Kobayashi Maru of Love

It's been a shade over a year since I released the first edition of The Kobayashi Maru of Love, and with the help of online buzz, a limited print run, and a lot of shameless self-promotion, the book has generated something of a following. The following has been lucky enough to then generate some interest which inspires the upcoming fourth edition. And since it's all a game, and one of the most influential things of my college life was Magic: The Gathering, and I came up playing its Fourth...

Metroserye: Now Available (Updated)

While I was working at the UST Publishing House I got to be a part of a lot of books that really got me excited. The whole time I was there I was learning a lot and I was handling a lot of aspects of it. One of those things that I got to do was to try and initiate projects or find projects and try to get them published with USTPH. One of these projects is the really quirky, fun Metroserye.

Edited by Mookie Katigbak-Lacuesta, Art by Manix Abrera, and design by Sam Macaisa, the series sets out t...

Metroserye: Now Available

While I was working at the UST Publishing House I got to be a part of a lot of books that really got me excited. The whole time I was there I was learning a lot and I was handling a lot of aspects of it. One of those things that I got to do was to try and initiate projects or find projects and try to get them published with USTPH. One of these projects is the really quirky, fun Metroserye.

Edited by Mookie Katigbak-Lacuesta, Art by Manix Abrera, and design by Sam Macaisa, the series sets out t...