people know themselves better

May 17 – Dinner with the Great Doyenne of Literature

Wi-Fi was suddenly alive in the mountains. What to do, what to do? I wondered. To make good use of it, I began updating my Twitter with accounts and teasers on what had been going on in the workshop’s discussion between fellows and panelists. Ian Rosales Casocot, who officially managed the SU NWW account, read one of my updates and sent me a message: “Can you live-tweet the workshop session?” I agreed. I received the account’s user name and password, and I was, instantly and (un)officially, part of this year’s workshop working committee. Yes, people, apparently a part of the world knew a thing or two about the anatomy of that male appendage a few days later.

*

The golden anniversary never ran out of dinners. This particular Tuesday, there was the Director’s Dinner. We got off the white war bus, the frequent transport of many workshop fellows now, and entered Silliman Hall, a slim figure of architecture that was constantly courted by the boulevard sea breeze.

New alumni arrived like Ed Cagagnot and DM Reyes among others, and right below the raised platform was one of the workshop founders herself, Mom Edith Lopez Tiempo, who sat on a chair that was said to be as historic as the event we were all celebrating.

After the presentations and by-the-year batch photo sessions, which was led by photographers Gregg Morales and Urich Calumpang, the highlight of the night followed with Mom’s words.

Transcribed into text by Alfred “Krip” Yuson based from a video recording by Nerisa del Carmen Guevarra, here’s an excerpt of her speech on the anniversary of the workshop:

“What else do you want me to tell you? You can ask of any writer and they will try to come up with the goods. Would I dare to say that writers indicate to everyone what it is to be openly human, would I dare to say that? Yes I do, yes I do.

Tell me of any other entity of society outside, of course, of the cultural centers… tell me who can say as much? Ask the writer any question you want answered. The writer is not all-wise, but he welcomes being asked something he cannot answer. He will like that because he tends to even more extend himself beyond the group of writers like himself.

What else can I say to you except that I am happy, happy to be with you as I have always been happy all these 50 years with writers, and I hope that each one of you will be happy to say that, ‘Oh, I was last night with a 92-year-old woman who claims she is a writer.’”

For fellows, and us alumni, who were there to witness such graciousness, it was not that difficult for gratitude towards Mom to surface as tears welling up in the eyes.

*

There was another line from Mom’s speech that struck me hard that night, if I heard it correctly: “People know themselves better because there are writers.” Though I still cannot completely substantiate myself as being one, Mom Edith was right. I felt indebted to the writers that I looked up to, then and now. In some ways, their words both cleared and sometimes muddled up my thinking. And that’s fine with me. At least I am thinking.

(fifth of eight parts)

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 |

golden for days on end

The fiftieth edition of the Silliman National Writers workshop may have ended two weeks ago but the barrage of photos in many people’s social-networking sites, sprouting numerous threads of banter and nostalgia, proves that it doesn’t close that easily. Memory lingers.

And adding to the spring-like recollections of the mother of all Philippine creative writing workshops’ anniversary, here are articles in today’s national broadsheets putting into ink once again how beautiful this writing family is.

Gaudeamus: Golden Writers
Alfred A. Yuson
The Philippines Star, 30 May 2011

A Golden Age of Writing
Ian Rosales Casocot
Philippine Daily Inquirer, 20 May 2011

last week for the fellows

May 16 – Third Set of Sessions Begins

Alfred “Krip” Yuson and Gemino “Jimmy” Abad joined Rowena Tiempo Torrevillas and Cesar Ruiz “Sawi” Aquino in the third and final week of the workshop. Uneasiness was conspicuous in the air, not entirely due to the presence of the panelists with such pedigree, but also perhaps to the fact that it was Monday, just a few more bouts of literary criticism before the Gala Night.

*

The Alumni Homecoming for the fiftieth anniversary of the Silliman University National Writers Workshop officially started. I even felt in the way the acacia waved their branches. In the evening, there was this fellowship dinner in the CBA Gardens of the university to welcome the workshop alumni, and I finally got to put faces on the words I had read in books, in magazines, in newspapers, and even seen only on television. There was Joel Toledo, Douglas Candano, Peachy Paderna (whose real name I dare anyone to find out), Ceres Abanil, Gilbert Tan, and my batch mate Noelle Leslie dela Cruz, among others. Singaporean writer Kirpal Singh also arrived that night; he would be joining the week’s workshop panelists.

Being the second to “reappear” among the alumni for this gathering (poet Nerisa del Carmen Guevara arrived in Dumaguete a week or so earlier), I had expected a bigger number of returnees. But then again, this was only the first night of this week. I was sure the rest would come in droves in the next few days. After the mandatory group shots, I switched on my Groupee Mode, pulled the books I religiously toted around in my bag, and approached one author after the other for their signatures. Yes, this was one aspect of me being devoted to the craft.

*

And then it was twelve o’clock. It was Marius Monsanto’s birthday, a fellow of this year’s batch. He is a co-fellow of mine in another workshop, and though the numbers of his age have changed, the crazy fire is still in him, present and burning like the hot mess of his hair. He is crazy that way.


We specially waited for the moment to arrive right after the dinner in the city. And when it struck, there was no ringing of a bell from a distant tower, no long sirens, and no howling dogs, but there was a splash of cold water on his temples. We sang the birthday song. This was his baptism of fire, but since literal flames and the night’s round of alcohol seemed to be a bad idea, the resident jester Jepoy Javier doused him with a bottle of water instead. I thought it was an appropriate surprise gift. The mother of all Philippine writing workshops was born right beside the sea after all.

(fourth of eight parts)

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 |

but there's no cat in the village

May 15 - Dogge and the Golden(ed) Workshop

I woke up earlier than the usual, and it felt odd. Odder still was that the last vivid memory I could muster of the previous night’s revelry was of someone running around in the open space, hands extended to her sides, carefree of anything that might pluck her into the corners of the dark. I smiled at the thought.

The sunlight that spilled in the village seemed golden at this moment. A reflection of the workshop’s gilded age? A dreg of last night’s last drink doing tricks to my eyes? A dream within a dream? I closed my eyes, opened them, and knew Sundays in some secret spots of some southern provinces still hold paradise. I became too accustomed to the beige and mirrors of the corporate world I almost forgot the color of grass, and the way its blades brush the heels of my feet. I ran to my room, took my camera, and photographed the quietness that surrounded me.

*

An event could differ from several perspectives. Some demand fireworks to capture and reflect the grandness of the celebration. Some pine for excessive indulgence. But on this Sunday, despite the sumptuous pasta dishes and salad prepared (and promised) by Tobey, Andy, and Tin, the family that gathered in one cottage for lunch served as one unforgettable occasion that needed no blaring trumpets.

*

Rarely have I been so affectionate to dogs. I loved a few in my younger days but not as much as how I preferred cats. Their high-minded demeanor and graceful sways draw me to them. After all, winning their trust makes the relationship of man and animal all the more precious. “This cat loves me!” is one kind of accomplishment so hard to expound, one that only a fellow feline-lover would understand. But the village was teeming with dogs, and I couldn’t just disregard how they ran and barked and bounced all over the place.


One in particular was this canine the fellows called Dogge. (Yes, what a creative way to name a dog, especially for writers who pronounce it "doog-geh"). The origin of his name was particularly dim in my memory, but what was clear was that, hands down, Dogge was the kindest dog I met. Those eyes justify what people always say about puppy eyes. Like someone who momentarily lost his sense of sanity, I spoke to myself while massaging his back, “He’s like a cat!”

Whether the young dog was insulted by my remark or not, Dogge stood still for a couple of minutes, and then laid his head on my knees. I was surprised by this almost non-animal act. I reached for him again and rubbed the brows of his eyes. He accepted it nicely. I guess I found a cat in a dog’s body.

(third of eight parts)

Part 1 | Part 2 |

writers, red stones, and the thirst

May 14 - A Trip to Pulang Bato Falls and Other Trips

The second week passed yet the golden ones had only reached as far as Siquijor in their leg tour. Thus, the trip to the twin lakes in the town of Sibulan was planned the night before (among many other plans proposed by Ian Casocot). The lakes, especially Balinsasayao, were as memorable as the new sights of flora and fauna every time I visited them. But due to time constraints, Moses Atega, Negros Oriental’s Kuya and unprecedented accomplice, suggested Pulang Bato Falls in Valencia. In my four years of living in the Negros before, I loved the idea. I have never been to that place, like the rest of the writing fellows, and someone in the name of Taka, a Japanese who studied English in Silliman.

Without second thoughts, after an almost hour-long of packing our lunch in Kabayoan, we found ourselves uphill, momentarily engulfed in wispy white smoke that seeped out of a mountain wall’s crevices. “Sulfur,” Mo said, and then we covered our noses. As the easy-ride trudged forth on the bumpy road, Pulang Bato revealed itself, all true to its very name, down to the last pebble. The riverbed was red. A massacre happened here, I thought and came up with a sapling-of-a-line for a possible poem. Such sight and moment deserved to be immortalized. We immediately plunged into waters, perhaps to wash away the dread of what was to come in the next few days.

*

For a small city like Dumaguete, visitors from different provinces or countries would be surprised to discover it as a bustling focal point of activities every Saturday night. But the fellows had to read their last week’s manuscripts, so they opted to go up the mountains. I let them be, chaperoning some of them with their errands in the city before nightfall, until Tobey lured me to go up too with the promise of her own pasta dish for the following day’s dinner. I agreed and packed up my things. Yes, sometimes, I am too easy to get.

By the time we arrived in the Writers Village, I became one of the Champaca Boys for the night (and some future nights), with Lean, Miggy, and Glenn sinisterly dropping hints of a coming interrogation that would involve flashlights hovering above my head. Their idea of theatrics was cute.

*Just as I had expected, prejudice aside, the delegates from Mindanao (and interestingly two ladies from Luzon) would spearhead the workshop’s “Feed the World Program.” This is a series of rounds approaching one fellow after the other, asking for generous means to purchase rum, beer, and vodka in the nearest convenience store, with their bottles gleaming like eager orphans waiting to be nursed in the hands of the eager.

Since I was a guest in the village that was soon filled with the symphony of cicadas and other slow evening routines, I chipped in a couple of pesos. I had to do my part. By nine o’clock, both men and mammals circled in the open field, concoctions were made (there was one that particularly gave me a 24-hour long palpitation the next day), glasses were passed, chips flew in the air, laughter bounced on the invisible walls of the night, a bond was formed. We were thirsty no more.

(second of eight parts)

Part 1 |

five lost things in dumaguete (or the thousand-fold of things found)

May 13 - Time and Time Again

Time was strangely moving fast. In the tricycle since I left the airport, I checked my Sandoz watch every two minutes or so, its crystal jeweled face somewhat mocking to my inability to pin down the speeding seconds. Philip Van Peel’s van had been waiting at Katipunan Hall together with the workshop’s second week panelists—Rowena Torrevillas, Myrna Peña-Reyes, Ricardo de Ungria—ready to start the critiquing session at the Writers Village in Valencia with this year’s writing fellows. I told Van Peel that maybe I could just hop in a public transportation, habal-habal or something, but he eventually obliged to my request of waiting for another extra five minutes.

Finally, I arrived at the gates of Silliman University along Hibbard Avenue, Van Peel waving at me from outside his van. I paid the tricycle driver a hundred and twenty pesos and checked the time on my watch. But the watch was gone. I left my luggage in the English Department office, and time slowed down as we went our way to the foothills of Mount Talinis. Later, I shared to my sister the unexpected loss of something I had inherited from my father, and all she got to say was that a pawnshop could give ten thousand bucks or more for that watch. I never expected that the first morning of my week-long Dumaguete break would be devastating.

*

We arrived at the Silliman Rose Lamb-Sobrepeña Writers Village an hour late. Part of me was to be blamed so I apologized when Ma’am Rowena introduced me to the fellows before the session started. I thought I heard Evangeline “Eva” Gubat, Marius Monsanto, Alyza Taguilaso, and Charmaine “Shane” Carreon laughed in the small crowd. These were people I met before. In the afternoon, I recognized all of them—Allen Samsuya, Elaine “Tobey” Tobias, Jeffrey “Jepoy” Javier, Rogelio “Roger” Garcia, Jr., Philline Donggay, Christine “Tine” Lao, Andrea “Andy” Macalino, Maria “Miel” Villaruel, Miguel “Miggy” Sulangi, Glenn Diaz, and Emmanual “Lean” Lava.

*


It was Friday and I thought the night in the city was a perfect sanctuary to heal scars brought from the numerous spur of critiques bombarded earlier. I invited the writing fellows to come down from the mountain but only a few managed. Only Allen, Tobey, Marius, Jepoy, Roger, Eva, and Shane braved the habal-habal ride down to the city. We had tempura at the boulevard, drinks at Blue Monkey, more drinks at Hayahay, closing drinks at Chiccos, and then the mandatory visit to Qyosko after the drinking sprees.

It was the first time I met some of these people yet I invited some fellows home, to rest overnight in the city, as if I have already met them in a classroom back in elementary, exchanging playing cards, drawing caricatures of our teachers, trying to spell eloquence correctly. Indeed, time is always tricky.

(first of eight parts)

excuses for the workshop

This month, the Silliman University National Writers Workshop reaches its golden chapter. The oldest creative writing workshop in Asia, it has a colorful oft-told history it now closely resembles myth. But, indeed, it has built many gilded pillars that now support the pantheon of Philippine literature.

In its fiftieth year, the birthing process of these pillars continues. Fifteen writing fellows are presently housed in the Silliman Rose Lamb-Sobrepeña Writers Village in Valencia until May 20, to test the waters and see if their words—wrought in fiction, poetry, and nonfiction—either float or sink. But they are in good hands, with Rowena Tiempo-Torrevillas, daughter of workshop founders Dr. Edilberto K. Tiempo and Dr. Edith L. Tiempo, as director-in-residence.

The setup is beautiful irony: writers come up near Mount Talinis, close to the skies and mystic fog, elated with the spirit of nature, to remain grounded with their respective techniques.

By the third week of May, the unavoidable arrives. The last critique would be shared. Whether insight is gained or not, it would be up to the individuals to either pursue literature, or venture on to other kinds of distractions. Like the fellows before them, they would be their own puppeteers of their destinies from then on.

For those who fall into the former pursuit, the discipline does not stop with a work finished, anthologized, or awarded. The rationale, at least for now, is divided in two.

First, the Writers Village may be closed in the following months after the workshop’s close, and then starts clocking in for the next summertime to welcome new and indifferent (in the beginning, at least) fellows who would soon become drinking buddies—but as fictionist Susan Lara says in her essay Dwelling in Possibilities, “the workshop never ends.”

Of course, the seed has just been sown in tilled earth. It still has to grow, mature, branch wide, and bear fruits. Writing is called a discipline after all, and an arduous one at that.

For someone who already willed to keep it a habit of leisurely exercise the moment Mom Edith autographed a book with the dedication: “How proud I am to have a writer who is Biblically approved,” it is all but necessary.

Writing is a perpetual act of practice.

It seems this is the reason why writing does not require a licensure exam, unlike accountancy or engineering or dentistry. Nothing is definite for what the craft demands. It is a constant struggle with letters, a coming of terms with one’s duende, a Möbius strip of starting in the beginning and ending at the beginning all over again.

Second, it is more than semantics, syntax, and sensibility. Like all art forms, it holds a greater scale of concern. When, thousands of years ago, cave paintings recorded significant accomplishments, wood carvings retained forgotten stories, and songs healed wounds and broken spirits, today’s literature also provides the same archival, informative, and curative purposes that every man needs. One just has to look for it in the right places.

To realize this, to make literary writing more visible and accessible, it is without question that the workshop is one of the many solutions to this aspiration. As a communal form of art, with more writers honed year after year, literature’s function becomes more potent. Practice, yes, but it does not have to be a lonely commitment. This particular field can have its interesting moments while working on it.

In no particular order, here are some proofs: the acceptance letter after having received none whatsoever in the previous year’s application, the breakdown upon the dissection of an autobiographical piece, the mandatory but genuine intent of a pat on the back, the exchanges of encouragement and disapproval on sundry things with Myrna Peña-Reyes and Lito Zulueta, the unforgettable remarks of Bobby Flores Villasis and the late Ernesto Superal Yee upon holding a literary folio dedicated to Mom Edith, the spontaneous delivery of direct quotations from classic poems care of César Ruìz Aquino and Miguel Ybañez, the drinking revelry with Angelo “Sarge” Lacuesta and Alfred “Krip” Yuson…

The encyclopedic pronouncements of DM Reyes and J. Neil Garcia, the recollection of Jose “Butch” Dalisay’s past workshop sessions and Mookie Katigbak-Lacuesta’s own experience, the morning when Rosario Cruz Lucero innocently read three stories from three different authors as one epic narrative and critiqued it as organic and accomplished, the afternoon when Gémino Abad hugged an acacia tree near Katipunan Hall and shared that it relieved you of bad energy, the evening of enjoying a bottle of red wine in the perplexing footbridge along Hibbard Avenue, the other long night of videoke at the once-feared Country Gents…

The last minute rescue from near-drowning due to the attempt of swimming across Lake Balinsasayao, the indecisive jump off a cliff into the waters of Siquijor, the white war-bus, the top-load ride on a speeding jeepney, the midnight trips to Steds Silliman, the seemingly haunted Davao Cottage, the bestowment of the “Yaya of the Year” award/apron for a month-long stint of steering the writing fellows from one food hub to another, the first light of dawn that blossomed on the horizon at Escaño after culmination night, the farewell walk in Rizal Boulevard…

See, these are just fragments of the bigger picture, composed of anecdotes both trivial and edifying. In and out of the workshop, there’s this kind of bond you cannot ignore.

And this is what the workshop reminds those who continue to seek the pulse in the written language. That is why this author is coming back to the City of Gentle People this summer. He feels the need to be reacquainted with those dear to him, to talk about things other than urgent deliverables and the daily rush hour, and to wonder again on what the pen is capable of.

To put it more bluntly, he is glad the Workshop still exists for these excuses.

(lifted from MetroPost, 2011 May 8)

revised alumni homecoming schedule of the silliman university national writers workshop 50th anniversary

MAY 16 (MONDAY)

Registration/Kapihan
SU Hall
8:00AM - 5:00PM

Campus and City Tour
Assembly place: Silliman Hall, Departure time: 2:30 p.m.
3:00PM - 5:00PM

Alumni Fellowship Dinner
CBA Gardens
7:00PM

MAY 17 (TUESDAY)

Alumni Meeting
Multi-Purpose Hall
9:00AM - 11:00AM

Director’s Dinner with Dr. Edith L. Tiempo
Silliman Hall
7:00PM

MAY 18 (WEDNESDAY)

Antulang Beach and Tambobo Bay Tour
Assembly place: CBA Building Lobby
Departure time: 8:30AM
8:30AM - 4:00PM

Technical Rehearsal for Participants of the Gala Night
Claire Isabel McGill Luce Auditorium
4:00PM

MAY 19 (THURSDAY)

Unveiling of Brass Plaque for the Silliman University Rose Lamb Sobrepeña Writers Village
Valencia, Negros Oriental
3:00PM
Assembly place: CBA Building Lobby
Departure time: 2:00PM

Starry, Starry Night Fellowship (Dinner/Sugbahay)
Rizal Boulevard (fronting Honeycomb)
7:00PM

MAY 20 (FRIDAY)

Gala Night/Closing Ceremonies
Claire Isabel McGill Luce Auditorium
4:00PM
(formal or semi-formal attire)

Farewell Dinner
Claire Isabel McGill Luce Lobby
7:00 p.m.


All alumni of the Silliman University National Writers Workshop are encouraged to register with the Workshop Secretariat for logistics reasons. The registration details are as follows: Registration fee per person is P1,700 if you pre-register, or P2,200 if you register upon arrival. (If you are arriving after May 16, please email the Secretariat to arrange for a readjustment of fees.) You can pre-register and deposit the amount to Silliman University at BPI Account 9215-803-225. Please fax bank receipt with heading: “Attention English Department” to (035) 225-4764. Deadline for pre-registration is on 10 May 2011. Registration is inclusive of a Homecoming Kit (with the ID, alumni schedule, and souvenir items); official dinners; Antulang Resort and Tambobo Bay trip; and transportation to official alumni activity venues. This, however, is exclusive of lodging. Registration is fixed and non-refundable. To notify the organizers that you are attending, or for comments and queries, please email us at nwworkshop_su@yahoo.com.

(lifted from Silliman University National Writers Workshop site)

18th iligan national writers workshop fellows

It is the season of writing workshops. Usually, after the ones in Bacolod and Dumaguete, the national workshop in Iligan follows. As a fellow for English Poetry back in 2008, I can attest that the learning I culled from it is relevant until now. After all, one of its panelists is the reason why I decided to take writing seriously when I was in high school.

By the way, congratulations to Anne, Glenn, and Vijae for making it this year.

*

Seventeen writing fellows out of 78 applicants from all over the country are attending the 18th Iligan National Writers Workshop (INWW) on May 23-27, 2011 to be held at the MSU-Iligan Institute of Technology (MSU-IIT). They are…

Luzon
Bonifacio Alfonso M. Javier III (Play, Filipino)
Vijae O. Alquisola (Poetry, Filipino)
Anne Carly S. Abad (Poetry, English)
Jacob Walse Dominguez (Poetry, English)
Michelle Abigail Tiu Tan (Fiction, English)

Visayas
Mary Grace H. Abogado (Boy Abunda Writing Fellow - Poetry, Waray)
Gil Salanio Montinola (Poetry, Hiligaynon),
Glenn T. Munez (Poetry, Cebuano)
Erik E. Tuban (Poetry, Cebuano)
Denver Ejem Torres (Poetry, Cebuano)

Mindanao
Rogelio F. Garcia (Play, Filipino)
Allen Faw B. Samsuya (Poetry, English)
Maimona W. Magayoong (Poetry, English)
Mark Anthony L. Daposala (Manuel E. Buenafe Writing Fellow - Poetry, Cebuano)
Deo Charis I. Mostrales (Fiction, English)
Jonecito R. Saguban (Fiction, Cebuano)
Kei S. Valmoria-Bughaw (Ricardo Jorge S. Caluen Writing Fellow - Fiction, Cebuano)

The Integrated Performing Arts Guild (IPAG) performs during the opening program on May 23 at the MSU-IIT Mini-theatre, while the closing program and launching of the 17th INWW proceedings titled, The Poetry of Place, edited by Christine Godinez-Ortega, will be held on May 27.

Panelists this year are: Leoncio P. Deriada, Merlie M. Alunan, Erlinda Kintanar Alburo, Ralph Semino Galan, Steven Patrick C. Fernandez, German V. Gervacio, Godinez-Ortega and this year’s Keynote Speaker, Pearlsha B. Abubakar (INWW, 2002).

The 18th INWW is hosted by the Mindanao Creative Writers Group (MCWG) and the MSU-IIT Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research & Extension. The workshop is funded by the National Commission for Culture and Arts (NCCA) and the MSU-IIT.

(lifted from the official announcement)

new addiction

It may be too early to tell (and too late to share), having just watched the third season of “The Sopranos,” but it seems this show really does deserve all the hype I’ve heard and read in the late 90’s until the mid 2000’s.

Setting aside the (sometimes) gratuitous scenes, ‘brilliant’ and ‘great’ could not simply contain my thoughts about the television series. It has become my latest crack.

Never had I been into such mobster dramas. Heck, gas up the stakes, I haven’t even seen “Goodfellas” or one film of “The Godfather” trilogy yet. But what plays on the screen just backs up Norman Mailer’s assertion that it is the successor to the “Great American Novel.”

Television as literature. That’s one big, if not questionable, accomplishment.

The show touches parenting, the economy, the dynamics of moral values, the rise and fall of clans, the divide between races, the complexities of the human psyche, the references to literary texts like Marcel Proust’s “Remembrance of Things Past,” the meaning or the absence of dreams, the ducks in the swimming pool. It is a hodgepodge of random things but nothing could be more human or real than an unorganized setup.

In a New York Times interview back in 2004, the show’s creator David Chase said, “I think there should be visuals on a show, some sense of mystery to it, connections that don’t add up. I think there should be dreams and music and dead air, and stuff that goes nowhere. There should be, God forgive me, a little bit of poetry.”

Bless the heavens for people with such proclivities! I didn’t know they still exist, more so in the restrictive medium that is the television. A little bit of poetry. I guess this is the very ingredient that got me engrossed with series like “Carnivalé,” “Six Feet Under,” “Dexter,” and maybe even, on certain points, “True Blood” and “Sex and the City.”

Now don’t get me talking about the absence of Filipino series in that enumeration. That probably deserves another post. Or none at all.

Before I go rant about the black hole in Philippine entertainment, I might as well finish this Sopranos saga and look for the Godfather films next. I think it is high time for guns to be included in my list of favorite things (theoretically).

list of fellows, silliman university national writers workshop (1962-2011)

1962
J. Lorenzo Rivera
Jose Ferraris
Jose Lansang Jr.
Luciano Tenedo
Petronilo Daroy
Socorro Federis-Tate
Vic Samonte
Wilfredo Nolledo

1963
Alberto Florentino
Amalia Perez
Bataan Faigao
Elena Reyes
Emmanuel Osorio
Erwin Castillo
Fernando Afable
Geronimo Sicam
Indalecio de Leon
Ireneo Gancuangco
Jesus Peralta
Ko Won
Leonidas Benesa
Linda Casper
Nicanor Tabligan
Raymond Llorca
Rogelio Sicat
Valdemar Olaguer

1964
Alfredo Cuenca
Alfredo Morales
Erwin Castillo
Jose Carreon
Nelson La Rosa
Ninotchka Rosca
Orlando Hernando
Roberto Pontinela
Rolando Carbonell
Rolando Pena
Wilfredo Sanchez

1965
Alma de Jesus Tayo
Elsie Martinez-Coscolluela
Estelita Juco
Freddie Dimaya
G. Burce Bunao
J Maidan Flores
Jose Montebon
Maximo Tuason
Rita Gaddi
Teresita Dato

1966
Alfredo Pucay
Antonio Samson
Carmelo Chionglo
Cesar Victor Reyes
Federico Licsi Espino
Marra Lanot
Norman Quimpo
Salvador Bernal

1967
Antonio Enriquez
Cesar Ruiz Aquino
Edgar Libre-Griño
Eduardo Yap
Florence Baban
Jesus Chanco
Joy Dayrit
Jun Canizares
Mar Arcega
Migen Osorio
Ricardo Patalinghug
Robert Villasis
Romeo Virtucio
Sr. Ma. Delia Coronel, ICM
Sr. Mary Imelda Domingo
Thelma Enage

1968
Alfred Yuson
Armando Ravanzo
Cesar Mella, Jr.
Dionisio Gabriel
Donel Pacis
Emmanuel Lacaba
Lamberto Ceballos/Caballes
Rene Estella Amper
Rene Bonsubre
Urias Almagro

1969
Alfrredo Navarro Salanga
Artemio Tadena
Dory Robles
Gemma Tadena
Josephine Soto
Lamberto Antonio
Linda Faigao
Melquiades Allego
Rosalinda Roxas
Virgilio Almario
Wigberto Fuentebella

1970
Alberto Casuga
Carlos Aureus
Carlota Abellana
Celedonio Aguilar
Conrado de Quiros
Fr. Miguel Fernandez
Franklin Osorio
Gwendolyn Reyes
Junio Ragragio
Macario Tiu
Ricky Lee
Wilfredo Sanchez

1971
Aida Rivera-Ford
Desmond Montemayor
Dolores Martir
Edgar Griño
Eduardo Lucero
Edward Garrett
Erwin Castillo
Gil Garcia
Leticia Farinas
Loreto Matienzo Jr.
Ma. Zenaida French
Primo Pacis
Rene Martinez
Val Fajardo

1972
Alfredo Macaraeg
Edgar Maranan
Ernesto Lariosa
Francis Macansantos
Freddie Hernandez
Josefina Cabe
Luis Cabalquinto
Pantaleon Auman
Ramon Cortes III
Rene Parohinog
Rogelio Mangahas
Virgilio Vitug

1973
Angelito Santos
Anthony Tan
Antonio Orogo Jr.
Catherine Salazar
Cecilia Nava
Felix Fojas
Jaime An Lim
Jolico Cuadra
Ma. Cristina Ferreros
Mauro Avena
Meng Magno
Oriel Muspratt
Vidal Armamento

1974
Bella Apelo
Cynthia Rodriguez
Elizabeth Orteza
Gaudioso Sustento
Generoso Taduran
Gilbert Centina III
Herminio Beltran
Hortensia Balisalisa
Jose Gilbert Licuanan
Leoncio Deriada
Luis Cabalquinto
Rodulfo Alano

1975
Cristina Velez
Estrella Alfon
George Vail Kabristante
Manuel Concepcion
Oscar Pecson
Romeo Centina
Sammy Sta. Maria

1976
Danilo Estiva
Fornarina Enemicio
Goddy Ricafort Ypon
Inez Cammayo
Jun Cruz Reyes
Kee Thuan Chye
Marie Marjorie Pernia
Mario Eric Gamalinda
Socorro Tate
Teoh Choon Ean
Wong Po Wah

1977
Angelo Bernardo
Connie Imperial
Diana Gamalinda
Domingo de Guzman
Edel Garcellano
Eduardo Orozco
Ernesto Superal Yee
Noralyn Mustapha
Victor Mandala

1978
Aida Manansala
Anthony Serrano
Denise Allas
Grace Monte de Ramos
Jorge Sabino
Juan Arcellana
Melito Baclay
Nadine Rodriguez
Rene Saguin
Simeon Dumdum

1979
Enrico Enerio
Geraldine Maayo
Henry Villalva
Jessie Bandillo
Leslie Lofranco
Letty Salanga
Priscilla Supnet
Susan Lara
Vicente Bandillo

1980
Antonio Hernandez
Aries Baluyos
Augusta de Almedda
Carlos Basa Cortes
Edgar Alosbanos
Edmundo Farolan
Elsa Mampo
Ely Centina
Maria Linda Felipe
Rene Espeleta
Timbasal Tawasil
Wilfredo Alberca

1981
Achilles B. Mina
Emilia Salanga
Jose Y. Dalisay Jr.
Loretta Medina
Manolo Fernando
Mercedita Flores
Tita Taule

1982
Fanny HB. Llego
Merlie Alunan
Patricia Rivera
Rhodora Espinosa
Seth Florentino
Victoria Kapauan

1983
Baboo Mondonedo
Danton Remoto
Emmanuel Espinola Jr.
Isabela Banzon
Louie Stuart
May Datuin
Ricardo de Ungria

1984
Alexander Lee
Clovis Nazareno
Connie Maraan
Ed delos Santos Cabagnot
Fidelito Cortes
Ramon Bautista
R. Torres Pandan
Victor Peñaranda

1985
Ernesto Bitonio Jr.
Gina Apostol
Merlinda Bobis
R. Romea Luminarias
Rodolfo Silvestre
Victorio Sugbu

1986
Agustin Rodriguez
Charlson Ong
Fatima Lim
John Kenneth Go
Meynardo Macaraig
Ruby Tan Enario
Rufino Vigilar

1987
Anthony Buyawe
Nino Soria de Veyra
Cecilia Roxas
Grace Odal
Marne Kilates
Vicente Ignacio de Veyra

1988
Cesar Bacani Jr.
Cyrus Borja
Dinah Roma
Jose Celmar
Mozart Pastrano
Timothy Montes
Victorino Manalo

1989
Christine Godinez-Ortega
Cynthia Lopez Dee
Danilo Francisco Reyes
Felino Garcia Jr.
Gilbert Tan
Jose Wendell Capili
Lakambini Sitoy
Luna Sicat
Maria Jovita Zarate
Miriam Coronel Ferrer
Nenita Lachica
Ramon Boloron
Rex JMA Fernandez
Romeo Baquiran Jr
Timothy Wells
VE Carmelo Nadera Jr

1990
Albert Claude Evangelio
Anne Panning
Arile Valerio
Elmar Ingles
Franklin Cimatu
Generoso Opulencia
Jessie Garcia
J. Neil C. Garcia
Ma. Cristina Martinez
Nerissa Balce
Noel Ramiscal
Philip James Laquindanum
Pio Ricky Torre
Rofel Brion
Violeta Ledesma

1991
Adrian Antique
Ana Carla Villarmente
Ben Javier
Bonnie Jane Flores
Camilo Villanueva Jr.
Cesar Aljama
Clarita Kwan
Ma. Theresa Quintana
Ma. Criselda Bonganciso
Maningning Miclat
Minerva Chanco
Noberto Bana III
Peter Lay
Rhoda Montes
Shalom Galve
Victor John Padilla

1992
Angelo Rodriguez Lacuesta
Allan Bodoy
Antonio Mapa Jr.
Bonnie Jane Flores
Dean Francis Alfar
Homer Novicio
Jess Alfonso Macasaet
Maria Elena Paterno
Nicolas Pichay
Orlynne Genato
Ramil Gulle
Renerio Concepcion
Timothy Montes

1993
Alexander Edmund Capiz
Andre Lagunzad
Lu-Ann Fuentes
Diwata Hope Bose
Gerardo Antoy
Gerardo Torres
Eugene Gloria
Leigh Reyes
Liezl Sitosta
Lilia Maria Sevillano
Ma. Romina Gonzales
Melanie San Juan
Michael Maniquiz
Natasha Vizcarra
Padmapani Perez
Reinerio Alba
Rolito Beratio Mojica
Ruel de Vera
Vicente Groyon III

1994
Alessandra GL Gonzales
Alma Anonas-Carpio
Anthony Kintanar
Aurelio Pena
Calbi Asain
Doreen Jose
Edelisa Cruz
Espereanza Nuqui
Josefina Tejada
Lilibeth Rose Mercado
Ma. Rhodora Ancheta
Melchor Cichon
Michael Obenieta
Nerisa del Carmen Guevara
Rene Ledesma Jr.
Ruben Canlas Jr.
Sylvia de Guzman

1995
Mads Bajarias
Anne-Marie Jennifer Eligio
Beatriz Lorete
Conchitina Cruz
Francis Martinez
Januar Yap
Larissa Saguisag
Lorenzo Paran III
Lourd Ernest De Veyra
Ma. Bigonia David
Carla Pacis
Ma. Leovina Nicolas
Ma. Liza Fetalino
Maria Chona Jomilla
Melecio Turao
Melissa Salva
Michael Anthony Dizon
Ralph Semino Galan
Randolf Bustamante
Robert JA Basilio Jr.
Seann Tan
Ursula Priscilla Calasanz

1996
Abigail Aquino
Andrea Pasion
Caroline Howard
Cesar Naniong
Cherrie Sing
Christina Peralta
David Brooks
Gabriel Baban Keith
Homer Novicio
Ina Alleco Silverio
Jhoanna Lynn Cruz
John Labella
Kris Lanot Lacaba
F.H. Batacan
Mae Emmily Magtalas
Michael de Guzman
Nid Anima
Rosanna Cabusao
Tara FT Sering

1997
Alex Gregorio
Alexander Tan Jr.
Diane Coleen Jorolan
Eduardo Geronia Jr.
Frances Ng
Gad Lim
Israfel Fagela
J. Ana Flores
Jennifer Patricia Cariño
Jeremiah Bondoc
Joel Toledo
Jose Edmundo Reyes
Lor Arejola
Maribel Bagabaldo
Mary Ann Tobias
May Jennifer Amolat
Nicole Roldan
Riza Faith Ybañez
Ronald Baytan
Ronald Villavelez
Sandra Nicole Roldan
Sem Precioso Villareal
Sergio Pontillas

1998
Carlomar Arcangel Daoana
Ceres Abanil
Isagani D’Bayan Jr.
Jojo Alamillo
Jude Espina Ganzon
Lawrence Ypil
Lilledeshan Bose
Miguel Syjuco
Raymund Magno Garlitos
Rebecca April Khan
Rizaldy Dandan
Tanya Sevilla

1999
Allan Popa
Barbara Ricafrente
Bernice Roldan
Christine Flores
Indira Endaya
Jessica del Mundo
John Go
Jose Perez Beduya
Mayo Uno Aurelio Martin
Libay Linsangan Cantor

2000
Alex de los Santos
Elmer Pizo
Gerald Ramos
Isolde Amante
Jean Claire Dy
Noel Villaflor
Roberto Salva
Ted Limpoco
Ulysses Navarro
Vincenz Serrano
Wayne Mark Lopez
Ian Rosales Casocot

2001
Christine Alindada
Anna Bernaldo
Alvin Dacanay
Paul De Guzman
Jeneen Garcia
Barry Gutierrez
BJ Patiño
Janet Villa
Yeyet Villa
Marby Villaceran

2002
Kristine Alave
Daryll Jane Delgado
Ana Maria Katigbak
Peter Mayshle
Maryanne Moll
Michael Morco
Allan Pastrana
Baryon Tensor Posadas
Angelo Suarez
Naya Valdellon

2003
Mark Anthony Cayanan
Vincent Coscolluela
Jonathan Davila
Louella Fortez
Ken Ishikawa
Carljoe Javier
Maria Francezca Theresa Kwe
Nikki Paredes Jasmine
Rolando Salvaña
Anna Felicia Sanchez
Joseph Rosmon Tuazon
Niccolo Vitug

2004
Selina Alano
Ia Aparentado
John Bengan
Mitzie Correa
Hedwig De Leon
Faye Ilogon
Marie La Viña
Gabriela Lee
Glenn Maboloc
Monica Macansantos
Ginny Mata
James Iain Neish
Romel Oribe
Myrza Sison

2005
Anna Cristina Abola
Angela Balcita
Jose Perseus Canivel
Mikael Co
Elizabeth Rae Cowan
Matthew Davis
Jun Dela Rosa
Maria Cynthia Diangson
Bernadette Esposito
Whitney Fleming
Brian Goedde
Jynelle Gracia
Charisse-Fuschia Paderna
Maria Lourdes Parawan
Benedict Parfan
Gerardo Peralta
Bonnie Rough
Rica Santos
Alex Sheshunoff
Virginia Villanueva

2006
Douglas Candano
Dominique Cimafranca
Erica Jean Cabanawan
Darwin Chiong
Patricia Evangelista
Antonio Adrian Habana
Anna Escalante Neri
Noel Pingoy
Michelle Sarile
Larissa Mae Suarez
Andrea Teran

2007
Kristian Abe Dalao
Krisette Sia-Valderia
Jennelyn Tabora
Sharleen Banzon
Cecille La Verne de la Cruz
Pancho Villanueva
Catherine Alpay
Sasha Martinez
Janina Marie Rivera
Michelle Eve de Guzman
Robert Jed Rio Malayang
Mia Tijam
Martin Villanueva
Jan Paulo Bastareche
Primy Joy Cane
Justine Megan Yu

2008
Lawrence Bernabe
Noelle Leslie dela Cruz
Ma. Celeste Fusilero
Rodrigo dela Peña
Arlene Jaguit Yandug
Bron Joseph Teves
Marguerite Alcazaren de Leon
Dustin Edward Celestino
Joshua Lim So
Liza Bacay
Fred Jordan Mikhail Carnice
Ma. Elena Paulma
Anna Carmela Tolentino
Lamberto Varias, Jr.

2009
Mariane Amor Romina Abuan
Jonathan Gonzales
Arkaye Keirulf
Patricia Angela Magno
Niño Manaog
Keith Bryan Cortez
Ana Margarita Stuart del Rosario
Monique Francisco
Russell Stanley Geronimo
Aleck Maramag
Gabriel Millado
Gabrielle Nakpil
Joy Rodriguez
Phillip Kimpo, Jr.
Marck Ronald Rimorin

2010
Gian Paolo Simeon Lao
Dominique Allison Santos
Jacob Dominguez
Oscar Serquina Jr.
Aaron James Jalalon
Jenette Ethel Vizcocho
Gilda Ysobel Galang
Anne Carly Abad
Gino Francis Dizon
Jose Carlo Flordeliza
Ida Anita Del Mundo
Samantha Echavez
Kelly Marie Tulio Conlon
Miro Frances Capili
Christina Mae del Rosario

2011
Charmaine Carreon
Evangeline Gubat
Jeffrey Javier
Allen Samsuya
Alyza Taguilaso
Glenn Diaz
Christine Lao
Emmanuel Lava
Andrea Macalino
Marius Monsanto
Philline Donggay
Rogelio Garcia Jr.
Miguel Sulangi
Elaine Tobias
Maria Villaruel