Warm Bodies

"But Mama, I'm in love with a cannibal...And this type of love isn't rational, it's physical..."

Iyan ang kinakanta ko pagkatapos kong mapanood ang Warm Bodies. Noong una, medyo nag-alangan ako na ituloy itong panoorin kasi naman 'yung heroine, kamukha siya ni Kirsten Stewart and yes, I don't like that actress. (Don't ask me why) Mabuti na lang at natuwa ako kay R (the zombie hero) at sa best friend niyang si M sa simula pa lang. I really enjoyed R's point of view--the voice over thingie when he's explaining something in his mind, since he can not communicate well. His name is R, at wala siyang maalala sa past life niya, he don't know how he died and what his real name is. He hates eating brains but he has no choice or else they'll...die. Permanently. Gusto ko dito ay kung paano niya protektahan si Julie, kung paano siyang nag-eeffort na makipagcommunicate dito, kung paano niyang ia-assure na harmless siya. He was so adorable, napapanganga na lang ako sa tuwing magsasalita siya kahit pa nahihirapan siya.

This is not your typical zombie movie because one: zombies here fell in love; two: zombies here can turn into human again. (I wonder how Rick of The Walking Dead will react on this); and three: you're going to see a zombie's point of view here through our adorable R. Basta, it's a must-watch movie. It's entertaining, funny and sweet and, has interesting characters that you will surely love. I will definitely add this to my list of great movies.

APPROVED! :)

Ayun at lumabas na rin ang hatol para sa Hot Intruder ko, bwahahah! Napa-paranoid na ako, actually. I have this crazy feeling na ma-re-reject siya, ganito talaga ako kapag matagal na dumating ang feedback ng manuscript, bumababa ang self confidence ko. So, it was approved, and I have a long list of people na gusto kong pasalamatan. And my sister was jumping up and down because I promised her that I'm going to buy her a cellphone as my graduation gift once my manuscript was approved. She said that she prayed for my manuscript. Aww... :)

This Is All About Me.

Okay, kunwari ay interesado kayong malaman ang ilang detalye tungkol kay Mellicent Martinez, kung paano nga ba ako nagsimula bilang isang manunulat at kung sisipagin pa akong magtipa ay magbibigay ako ng ilang tips on writing which I don't usually do.

When I was in elementary, horror comics ang madalas kong binabasa. Nauso din noon ang horror pocketbooks and since batang-bata pa ako nang mga panahong iyon, hindi ako interesadong magbasa ng romance. Highschool ako nang simulan kong magsulat ng sarili kong stories and surprise! It's a horror story. Adik na adik sa PHR pocketbooks ang classmates ko no'n, madalas na topic nila ang kuwento na kakatapos lang nilang basahin habang ako...hayun, naka-ngiting-aso dahil hindi maka-relate sa pinag-uusapan nila. They lent me some of their pocketbooks but I don't really find them fascinating back then until I reached my fourth year in high school and met a group of girls who are really, really addicted to pocketbooks. Gaano sila ka-adik? Hindi sila nakikinig tuwing Algebra class, nakaipit sa mga textbooks nila ang pocketbooks at nagkukunwaring interesado sa lectures. Fine, isa ako sa kanila. *smiles* Naalala ko dati, hindi ako bumibili ng PHR pocketbooks dahil namamahalan ako. Hello? Sampung piso lang ang baon ko noon minsan naman ay limang piso, nasa twenty (pesos) plus yata ang price ng PHR pocketbook dati, kaya nakikihiram na lang ako sa mga classmates ko o kaya ay iyong mas murang pocketbook ang binibili ko. Dala-dala ko ang ka-adik-an ko sa pocketbooks hanggang mag-college ako and that was when I started writing my own romantic stories. Noon din nabuo ang pangarap ko na makita ang sarili kong pangalan sa cover ng pocketbooks, buong akala ko ay hindi na mangyayari iyon, na habambuhay na lang na nakatago sa ilalim ng kama ko ang mga kuwentong iyon. Isa sa mga 'yon ay ang Unexpected Romance na noon ay walang matinong title at ang The Proposal (The Moment I Saw You Cry ang original title, inspired by the song Cry by Mandy Moore).

2011 nang magsimula akong magshare ng stories on line. Aksidente na napadpad ako sa Facebook page na Ghost Stories Mo, Post Mo Dito. Doon ko nadiskubre na ang ilang stories doon ay ang mga page admins mismo ang gumawa. Nabuhayan ako ng dugo, sabi ko, puwede kong i-submit dito ang mga horror stories na ginawa ko dati pero sa sobrang kaka-explore ko sa iba pang pages ay napunta ako sa page ng Kuwentong Pag-ibig, Tagalog Romance Etc. at Bittersweet Endings. Malaki ang utang na loob ko sa tatlong page na ito dahil diyan ko nakilala ang iba't ibang writers na nag-guide sa akin sa kung saan ako naroroon ngayon. Tinuruan nila ako kung saan magsu-submit ng manuscript, they rejoiced with me when my first manuscript was approved and supported me when my first book was out. Nakilala ko diyan sina Yara King, Xandria, Kaye Ysabelle na pawang mga PHR writers na rin and of course si Miss Zaira King na sobrang hinahangaan ko talaga. They are those people na sobrang thankful ako at nakilala ko.

December 2011 when I submitted my first manuscript on PHR, entitled My Aunt's Boyfriend. After exactly one month I received an email from them saying that I made it, approved ang manuscript ko. The Editor suggested  to change the title, medyo hindi raw maganda ang dating. I submitted three options and they picked the title Unexpected Romance, humingi rin siya ng tatlong pen names na pagpipilian. I decided to include my real name and that's what they chose. One of my big dream came true on May 16, 2012, ang makita ang pangalan ko sa cover ng libro na ako ang sumulat. My book Unexpected Romance isn't just my first baby, it also reminded me that dreams do come true for those who believe, no matter how impossible and no matter how long it will take. If it's meant to happen, it will happen. All of my hard work paid off. When I handed the copy of my book to my mother, I'm grinning from ear to ear. Pakiramdam ko ay diploma ko ang iniabot ko sa kaniya, she said she was tearful when she saw her name on my author's note.

Matagal bago nasundan ang first book ko, ilang buwan din kasi akong nagpahinga sa pagsusulat dahil kapos ako sa budget noong mga panahong iyon, wala akong extrang pera para mag-rent ng computer. My second manuscript was What Love Is, dalawang buwan ang ginugol ko para matapos ito at ang hatol? Minor revision. Masyado raw kasing ma-English at saka sobra-sobra ang word count. Ipinasya ko noon na huwag na muna itong ipasa, gumawa ako ng bagong kuwento, ang second sequel ng Unexpected Romance: Sofie's Sweetest Mistake. Dito ko na-realized kung anong genre ang gusto kong mas pagtuunan ng pansin. I wanted to focus on Romantic-Comedy. I find it easy to think of different scenes, the ideas flow smoothly and it gave me a light kind of feeling. After nito ay sunod-sunod na ang approved kong manuscripts, last year ay nine manuscripts ang na-approved sa akin including my mini-series called Sisterets Club.