random musings of a romance author
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.
Sometime in the middle of the community quarantine here in the Philippines, a bunch of romance authors decided to work on a web series. Yep. *snaps fingers* Just like that. I think it’s safe to say spite and pettiness and rage were very strong motivators, because man…did the scripts come out so fast!
(This might have been how we looked like within 48 hours of saying “Let’s do this!”)
Anyway, long story short: Things were shitty. We wanted to make things a little better. Therefore, Hello, Ever After was conceived.
Last Saturday (the 4th of April), we had our very first #romanceclass watch party, featuring four of our favorite live readings from past events. This was actually us testing some tech for our upcoming April Feels Day event on the 25th, but we figured, hey—why don’t we make this fun? ^_^ And we did have a lot of fun at the chat room!
If you missed the watch party, here’s an edited version of what we viewed that day. And if you’d like to join us on April Feels Day, simply sign up here. No registration fee required. All you need to do is show up (online!) on the day of the event!
Watch #RomanceClass Watch Party! from RomanceClass on www.twitch.tv
Dear Tara,
Do you remember when, as a high school senior/college freshman, you would spend afternoons with Ceejay and Macri doing research for the play you were writing at the CCP Library? Do you remember getting library cards (so you could borrow some material, I guess) after coming back so many times?
(Let’s also not forget hanging out at the CCP Cafeteria just so you could catch a glimpse of the Miss Saigon cast during their break. Because hard work deserved some reward, yes?)
Yeah, I figured you would.
Take it from me: You don’t. Or rather, you can’t.
It’s been more than a week since #romanceclass Feels Fest 2017, and I think it’s safe to say those who were able to attend the event are still reeling from everything that’s happened that rainy afternoon at Commune. I know I was/still am. My body couldn’t handle all the feels it felt like it needed to shut down for the entire week that followed so that I could recover. (I seriously slept A LOT.)
Anyway… my Feels Fest 2017 experience didn’t begin on the day of the event, but rather, weeks prior to it. As part of the organizing committee, I helped put together some fun stuff you’ve probably seen on #romanceclass’ Instagram and Facebook accounts. Yeap, if you felt like we flooded your feed with everything #romanceclass, that’s because we wanted to. We had a 30 Days of #romanceclass social media campaign where authors and readers shared their favorite things about the books, the characters, and the community as a whole. I’m a bit embarrassed to say I wasn’t able to complete all 30 days (and I don’t wanna make excuses but the week prior to the event was a doozy), but I know there were those who did and it was always heartwarming to see the responses. Nakakakilig po, thank you.
To be released this coming October 14 are new print editions of Fall Like Rain and Keep the Faith by Ana Tejano. So what’s so special about these new editions?
Well…
Fall Like RainRain De Castro has been in love with her best friend, Mark Velasco, for almost the entire time she has known him, but she’s clearly in the friend zone because he’s happily in a relationship. Or so she thought, until the news of his break-up reaches her. Now that Mark’s single again, she decides that it’s time to get out of the zone. But when her cousin Lissa comes into the picture and sets her eyes on Mark, Rain feels troubled when he gets a little too friendly with her. Rain is determined to fight for what she feels this time, but is it worth the effort if it’s a losing battle from the start? Will she back off to give way for her best friend’s happiness, even if it means losing him to someone else again?
Buy it on Amazon
Add it on Goodreads
Keep the FaithAs a community development worker, Faith was quite familiar with heartbreak and recovery after all the time she spent on disaster relief missions. So when her five-year relationship ends right before she left for a mission trip to a typhoon-stricken town in Iloilo, she tries not to make a big deal out of it. How can she be broken up about a breakup when she’s with people who literally lost everything?
But now that she’s back, all Faith wants is for her life to go back to normal and have people stop looking at her with pity. Never mind that she still has a lot of questions about the breakup, or that she feels a tiny ache every time her ex comes up in conversations. She’s okay now, and happily distracted by Nico Tamayo, the attractive new guy at work.
With new possibilities in the horizon, Faith thinks she is well on her way to moving on. But when her past comes calling back to her, will all the good things in her present be enough to keep her on the path? Or will she finally learn that there was more to heartbreak and recovery than what she knows?
Buy it on Amazon
Add it on Goodreads
Get in touch with Ana on Twitter if you want to pre-order the books for #romanceclass #FeelsFest2017! These shiny new covers were designed by none other than Miles Tan. Photography by Chi Yu Rodriguez. Models: Gio Gahol, Rachel Coates, and Gab Pangilinan.
If:
Then don’t miss #FeelsFest2017 this coming October 14 (yes, it’s only a month away–EEEEEK!) at the Commune Cafe+Bar in Makati. We opened registration on Monday, and as of this writing, there are only 26 slots left! Imagine that. Don’t miss the fun–REGISTER HERE NOW. The fee is P500, inclusive of snacks, a freebie, and a deluge of feelings!
And just in case it’s your first time–and even if it’s not–here’s a guide you might find helpful. <3 See you on Sunday!
First things first: Please DO NOT expect much coherence from this post. I know, I know. I’m a writer… I should at least manage to string together some decent words, yes? But Too Many Feelings and Too Few Hours of Sleep can do things to the brain, so… anyway.
February 11 was another day of firsts for #romanceclass. Let me enumerate them:
Did I miss anything?
I probably did.
So yeah, anyway… we did a lot of other stuff before the live reading. That included book and merch selling, eating FREE cookies (thanks, Abbie! :D), browsing new books at the Book Cafe (thanks Caryn! :D), finding book blind dates, and playing games. To be honest, I only had two hours of sleep prior to the event, but the energy in the room (where it happened) kept me going.
We have less than a week to go before #romanceclass’ event at the Ayala Museum, and this is me inviting you all again to come join the fun! Here’s a list of what to expect: