the abyss that is pet society..

...is what has swallowed my writing time. Yup, I'm blaming Facebook for not blogging haha.

But not all of my time is spent at the trading forums looking for new furniture for my pet - I'm actually working on a couple of stories for the new collection (he says, defensively).

On the publishing front, I have a number of stories available in anthologies:

I have 3 stories in Growing Up Filipino II, edited by Cecilia Brainard (Palh). I'm delighted with the hardcover. I'm particularly happy with "Something Like That", based on a sad news report of a girl who burned to death in her bathroom.

"L'Aquilone" appears in The Apex Book of World SF, edited by Lavie Tidhar (Apex). The response of readers and reviewers is heartwarming.

I have "Brujita", in Exotic Gothic 3, edited by Danel Olson (Ash-Tree Press), just hot off the presses. It's my version of a trad ghost story, with a little politics. In a sad note, fellow contributor Milorad Pavić passed away before the antho's release.

And "Ghosts of Wan Chai" appears in Connecting Flights, edited by Ruey de Vera (Anvil). I tried a couple of different techniques here, focusing on mood and place. The book launch is this Wednesday, National Bookstore Greenbelt at 6PM.