Hello, 2016!

Last year, we put up a plans and salutations post, where we listed down what we wanted did done in 2015. We find it usually helps to write down what we want for the year, both to give them shape and form in our mind, as well as to let the universe know in case it wants to help out. Specifically, this was what we said in our Hello, 2015 post:

This 2015, now that we’ve been able to regroup somewhat, we can start thinking about what to do for this year. We hope to be able to muster enough resources to be able to continue with the scholarships: a living legacy of teachers teaching is probably a good way to remember Astrid, who loved school and had been good at her academics. A few years ago, she told us she was thinking of going to law school after finishing her MA in Creative Writing because it would provide career opportunities with lots of travel. I laughed and told her, Perhaps, but perhaps not exactly in the way you’re expecting.

Anyway, activities! We’re thinking of having a reading activity day in May 2015 and her scholars have already said yes to helping out. Will post more when the plan has unfurled.

Our ultimate goal is actually achieving something like the 826NYC model, as well as the Shared Worlds Writing Camp by Wofford College. Putting this down now to pin it down and make it so. Here’s to putting the soon in so.

We’re happy to report that 2015 has been achieved: Last 21 December 2015, we were at UP Philippine General Hospital (UP PGH) to give modestly to the UP PGH Foundation and the Child Foundation. For 2016 and in the coming years, we hope to be able to help out more because the need is always greater than resources and always always urgent.

We were also able to continue funding our four BS Education scholars for another year. Three are currently in their third year of studies, and the fourth is scheduled to graduate this March 2016 and will be taking the Licensure Examination for Teachers (LET) soon. Also, when we sent their tuition, we gave a little extra and told them to use it to watch the film Heneral Luna, but apparently, they didn’t need to wait for cultural subsidy to prod them into seeing the movie; they already found a way to see it on their own.

We also had the planned reading activity day in May 2015. Three of them wrote about their experiences here (Rizal), here (Quezon City), and here (Eastern Samar).

This 2016, we’re having the Shared Worlds experience through the Bayong ng Kuting writing workshop, organized by author and mentor, Mina V. Esguerra. The idea is to encourage the creation of new works based on Astrid’s book, Bayong ng Kuting, as well as introduce her stories to new readers. But since we’re talking about plans and salutations, lettuce pin ours down: a collection of stories in print and digital versions, with illustrations. Eventually, we want interactive apps, podcasts, and videos. As a start. That will then help support more of the causes already being supported, like a happy circle of hands (and not like a snake eating its own tail).

The first part of this wishlist is probably doable: The model for online writing workshop has been successfully piloted previously for different themes: romance (#romanceclass), fantasy (#strangelit), and mystery (#heistclub). Stories written for these workshops are now available as ebook anthologies on ebook app buqo. Get the buqo bundles here! Some of authors were later contacted directly by major publishers for the issuance of some of the novellas in print, or went on to publish their works independently. See #romanceclass books here. Some of the works written for the Bayong ng Kuting workshop will hopefully share the same space as these works, either independently, or with the help of publishers and book distributors.

The second part, well, we have all of 2016 and beyond to figure it out.

Terms of the writing workshop here.

Photo credit: via photopin (license)