Bulletin board

Part of the satisfaction in running a regular column, other than having a potential bully pulpit, is the opportunity to render humanitarian service, as when it welcomes the posting of announcements, congratulations, credits for a change in hairstyle, or, well, rendering assistance to couples seeking a comeback after years of estrangement. Eh? Oops, got carried away there. Valentine’s Day draws near.

But really, sometimes we can all do with a little bloodletting. So let’s be various and sundry with our matters this week. Consider the following.

Many of our readers have expressed interest in acquiring copies of Leoncio Deriada’s Little Lessons, Little Lectures, reviewed here a fortnight ago. We had to give away Leo’s phone numbers in Iloilo, where the book was printed: (033) 338-02-68 at home and (033) 337-05-50 at his office at the UP Visayas. I understand that Anvil Publishing is arranging for the book’s distribution in National Bookstore branches in Manila soon.

What was surprising was the manifestation of interest in improving the quality of English usage. A few mothers rang up so they could pass on Deriada’s book to their teen-aged kids who were having problems in composition.

We recall that the last time we were in Singapore, midyear last, there was a full-blown Speak Good English campaign aided by media. A similar campaign had been launched almost simultaneously in Malaysia. Ironically, here in our shores where English as a Second Language first got a foothold in the region, no such campaign has ever been mounted by government. And yet we know that literacy in English, no matter how it continues to deteriorate, remains the Filipino’s strongest suit when applying for work abroad.

It may not do anything to im-prove English proficiency among editorial desks in both print and broadcast media in the Philippines, but lovers of the language will be glad to know that we’re poised to take our rightful place as a foreign chapter of the English Speaking Union (ESU). It’s long overdue, too. Inexplicably, 43 other countries have already been incorporated, well ahead of us.

The ESU is based in London, but natch! Last November, accompanied by the Philippine Ambassador to the Court of St. James, Hon. Cesar Bautista, we had the opportunity to meet with ESU’s Director General, Mrs. Valerie Mitchell OBE.

We were urged to set up an organizing committee in Manila. If we manage to send delegates for a calendar of activities run by the English Speaking Union, then the Philippines may be processed and eventually accepted as a country chapter.

Well, the initial committee has been formed, and currently it’s composed of Dr. Isabel Martin, Chair of the English Department at the Ateneo; Ma. Luz C. Vilches, Executive Director, Ateneo Center for English Language Teaching or ACELT; Dr. Gémino H. Abad, UP University Professor; Dr. Lourdes Montinola, Chair, Far Eastern University; Dr. Ophelia A. Dimalanta, Director, UST Center for Creative Writing & Studies; Dr. Lourdes Bautista of the English Language Department of De La Salle-Taft; and this layman of the comparatively gracious bedside manner.

Our first task is to organize an inter-intra university competition to select one or two Philippine representatives, aged 16 to 19, to the International Public Speaking Competition for the year 2002, to be held in London in May. We need to ask the new Director of The British Council, Ms. Gill Westaway, to join us for our second meeting. By February we should be conducting that local competition. Who knows? Perhaps another Lea Salonga of beautiful speech will be discovered, perchance to win laurels for us in London.

Sunday, Jan. 6 saw a gathering of children’s books aficionados at the AIM Conference Center in Makati. Hosting the activity, billed as "Meet the Author: Jo Kittinger," was PBBY (Philippine Board on Books for Young People) Chair Beaulah Pedregosa Taguiwalo, who’s also a member of the SCBWI or Society of Children’s Book Writers & Illustrators, and its Regional Advisor for the Philippines and Asia-Pacific.

Per the Society’s newsletter for the region, "The SCBWI is an international professional organization dedicated to serving the people who write, illustrate, or share a vital interest in children’s literature. It is headquartered in Los Angeles, California, and has more than 16,000 members worldwide."

Ms. Kittinger, a renowned children’s author, was visiting from the U.S.., where she serves as the SCWBI Assistant Regional Advisor for the Southern Breeze region (Alabama, Mississippi, and Georgia). A naturalist, potter and photographer, Jo began writing for children in 1991.

To hear her tell it, her start was no less than a fluke. She had sent a proposal for a book on hot air balloons. The publisher himself rang up to say that they already had the subject covered, what else could she work on? Flushed and flustered that she had a chance to tie up a publisher over the phone, Jo looked around and saw nothing but rocks strewn all over the house, courtesy of her husband who had a passion for collecting the stuff. "Well, I can do rocks," she blurted out. And almost by pure accident, Kittinger wound up writing her best-selling title thus far, A Look at Rocks: From Coal to Kimberlite, which was eventually listed among the Best Science Books for Children in 1998 by the American Association for the Advancement of Science.

She has since authored various other titles: Going to the Beach, Birds of North America (East and West) (as part of the DK Smithsonian Kids’ Field Guides), The Joy of Cats (for which she had to come up with over a thousand aphorisms or quotes on felines), Stories in Stone: The World of Animal Fossils; Dead Log Alive!; and A Look at Minerals: From Galena to Gold.

"Non-fiction titles are easier to sell," Jo acknowledged before the round-table forum that included childrens’ authors Neni Sta. Romana Cruz, Lyn Acacio Flores, Annette Flores Garcia, Carla Pacis, Fran Ng and May Tobias, Adarna House publisher Ani Rosa Almario, and some of our best illustrators – Ouie Badillo, Abi Goy, Isa Nazareno, Liza Flores and Marcus Nada.

But Jo confessed to keeping works-in-progress that are purely creative and fictional. She sees herself as writing primarily for the 3rd to 6th graders, or kids aged 8 to 12.

Again per the newsletter, "She has also published many children’s magazine articles, photographs, and illustrations, and she has sold a hidden picture to Highlights for Children magazine, the children’s magazine with the highest circulation in the U.S."

Having visited a son based in Puerto Princesa, Jo had the opportunity to be mesmerized, together with her husband and a daughter, by the biodiversity glut in our islands and countryside. At one point she asked if we had a book on birds for Filipino children. We recalled a simple one on Philippine birds, and of course the Audubon Society-type of scientific manuals and glossies. But come to think of it, we have yet to produce, say, something that would enlighten our kids on the birds that visit our famed wetlands on Olango Island, with a similarly charming application of colorful detail and a wealth of clear, concise information that have become the mark of Jo Kittinger’s authorship.

Would that we develop someone like her who can draw our kids into an abiding love and interest for science, or at least all that wondrous evidence all around our often-magical environment other than garbage and politicians.

For those who may be interested in applying for membership in the SCBWI, Ms. Taguiwalo offers the following information: You may request a membership application by sending your name and postal address via e-mail to membership@scbwi.org or contacting the SCBWI membership office at 8271 Beverly Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA, or calling (323) 782-1010, or faxing (323) 782-1892. You may also log on to http://www.scbwi.org.

Congratulations to Carlomagno Arcangel Daoana for being named first-prize winner in a poetry contest launched in the U.S. and judged by no less than Fil-Am poet Nick Carbo. We quote from the official announcement issued by Jade Afable, Associate Editor, Meritage Press:

"Meritage Press is pleased to announce the winners of its 2001 Holiday Poetry Contest. We have decided to accommodate judge Nick Carbo’s decision to choose more than one winner, given the numerous wonderful poems submitted to the contest. We thank all poets for their participation; all poems were read with love and appreciation. Note that Nick read all submissions without knowing the identities of the poems’ authors. Thus, all poems were chosen by Nick based simply on the poems themselves.

"Congratulations to: First Place: ‘Wonder’ by Carlomar Arcangel Daoana; Second Place: ‘Ode to the Sandwich Makers’ by Tony Robles; Third Place: ‘3 Weeks in Aspen’ by Bert Florentino.

"Honorable Mention (in no particular order): ‘Aiza’ by Patrick Rosal; ‘Alaska/Filipino Bunkhouse/Lights Out’ by Oscar Peñaranda; ‘Ritual From The Book of Mistakes No. 1’ by Patrick Rosal; ‘The Metaphor of Sunlight Can Be Carried In A Bucket’ by Jon Pineda; and ‘Thirteenth Way of Looking at a Blackbird’ by Jessica Nepomuceno.

"All of the poems will be featured in the February edition of Babaylan Speaks at www.MeritagePress.com. For now, here is an excerpt from Carlomar Arcangel Daoana’s winning entry:

"How many of us would seek/ beauty in such a small space,/ in your case, the body of an insect,/ and welcome it as though/ it were God’s own flickering breath?// In some days,/ words called rains fall/ and we keep ourselves/ unreachable under blankets.// You had to let the firefly go."

The wonder of it is that Daoana seems to have been the only local poet to have made it among the distinguished roster. That it’s dominated by Fil-Am poets is understandable, as the contest was launched by a San Francisco-based press and announced via the Internet. And the marvel of it is that Daoana, who’s only 22, managed to pull it off over senior poets, some of whom, like Peñaranda, Robles, Pineda and Rosal, are bright stars in Fil-Am poetry. And yes, of course, Florentino is the Alberto Florentino, our distinguished playwright who’s now based in New York City, happily dabbling in poetry and memoir writing.

Daoana majored in Literature at the University of Santo Tomas, and is another of Ophie Dimalanta’s long line of protégés. He has won in the Ustetika Annual Awards for Literature and served as Associate Editor of the Varsitarian. He is working on his first book of poetry, Marginal Bliss.

We’ve had the pleasure of associating with Daoana, who’s a gentle, perspicacious, and unassuming person who’s obviously dedicated to his craft. And we’ve long predicted a sterling future for him. We’re glad that good ol’ Nick Carbo (author of the highly engaging poetry book, Secret Asian Man), has corroborated our early assessment.

Meritage Press is run by poet-dominatrix Eileen Tabios, who will join other San Francisco-based Fil-Am poets in what’s billed as a LoveFest at the Bindlestiff Theater where the landmark anthology Eros Pinoy will have its premier American launch.

From Tabios’ and Michelle Macaraeg Bautista’s communication: "Plans are well underway for ‘Clit-Chat’ – 3 nights of one-night stands as inspired by the latest book, Eros Pinoy, an anthology of Filipino works of erotica, on Feb. 14, 15 and 16."

Joey Ayala it was, back in Manila from San Fran, who helped develop the idea of screening images from the book as contributor-poets (including Barbara Pulmano Reyes and Joel Tan Barraquiel) read their stuff and did their thong thing on-stage. Joey thought he could take back the zip disc of Eros Pinoy poems and images himself, but it seems he has to defer plans to reassume his directorship of Pusod Foundation in SF.

He’s done the next best thing, however, which is to send copies of the book piecemeal through his many friends who shuttle from Manila and the West Coast. But for the Bindlestiff affair, Eileen and Michelle have urged for the delivery on no less than 60 copies. Helen Toribio, another of Joey’s friends, has come to the rescue. She left yesterday with the cache provided by Anvil Publishing, Inc., that is, if the copies fit into one Alisbayan box. At the SF airport she’ll be met by representatives of Tatak Pilipino, an L.A.-based one-stop shop for Pinoys, and which is marketing Eros Pinoy as another essential need.

Tatak Pilipino will handle the launch sale at Bindlestiff, which is located at 185-6th Street (at Howard), San Francisco, CA 94103. Tel: (415) 974-11-67. The event will start at 8 p.m. each night. For directions and more details on address and venue, please check Bindlestiff Studio’s site which features an illustrated press release at http://www.bindlestiffstudio.org/calendar.shtml.

Another imminent international twin launching involves Love Gathers All: the Philippines-Singapore Anthology of Love Poetry, edited by Aaron Lee, Alvin Pang, Ramon C. Sunico and this writer, and co-published by Ethos Books of Singapore and Anvil Publishing, Inc. of Manila. It is a historic, bilateral collection of poems on the theme of love – romantic, erotic, platonic, familial and spiritual – that brings together the works of a total of 93 Singaporean and Filipino poets. Quite a handsome volume it is too, as designed and produced by Pagesetters Services Pte. Ltd. of Singapore.

Twin Forewords are written by Singaporean Ambassador to Manila Hon. Jacky Foo and our counterpart Ambassador Hon. Jesus Yabes. A distinctive bookmark features a graphic design depicting the orchid named after President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo. Most of the illustrations were done by our expat artists Dengcoy Miel, Ludwig Ilio, Paul Eric Roca, Christian Inton and Noel Rosales.

Love Gathers All sees its first launch in the city-state on Feb. 1. A week later, a delegation of Singaporean poets, together with Ethos Books manager Winnie Wong, arrive in Manila for the second launch, which is being hosted by His Excellency Jacky Foo on or nearing Valentine’s Day. The visiting poets will also tour campuses for readings and autographing sessions.

Lastly, a number of young people have been asking for details regarding submission of applications for fellowship at the 41st National Writers Workshop in Dumaguete City this May.

National Artist for Literature Dr. Edith L. Tiempo, the workshop director, says she’s setting March 15 as the deadline. Please address all communication to her c/o CAP Bldg., Rizal Boulevard, 6200 Dumaguete City. Submissions should include a letter of application, a brief bio, a photo of the applicant, eight to ten poems and/or two to three short stories in English, and possibly, a reference letter from one or two reputable writers or literature professors.