It all began with a bag of chips, a box of Kleenex, an album of woeful music and much wailing. What began as a support session for the broken-hearted – me, in this case -- turned into a full-blown discussion of how come most romance book heroines almost always managed to jump into the sack with the next guy to get over their currently failed love lives. Maybe it had something to do with them being fair-skinned, blonde or brunette or red-haired. One thing’s for sure -- none of them could speak pidgin Ilocana like me.
And so we started Cozy Reads Publishing. Our ever-dependable and accomplished editor, Cel Coscolluela (a four-time Palanca awardee, no less!) helped us as and we searched the archipelago for stories that will echo the Filipino experience of dealing with the comedy and tragedy of a broken heart in contemporary times. We gave as much credence to new voices as to established prizewinners. In the end, we chose ten writers originating from Cebu, Zamboanga, Cagayan de Oro, Pampanga and Metro Manila whose works were fresh and multi-faceted.
The end-result of this project is Heartbreak, a book that is sized specifically to fit in a girl’s bag to help her in killing time (or the pains of a broken heart). Some of the stories like Leave-taking from Zamboanga’s Jonathan Jimena Siason, Resurfacing from Cebu’s Ryan Ben Gabby Taborada, and In Bits and Pieces from Cagayan de Oro’s Faye Ilogon are so subtle that your don’t realize just how much your heart wells up with emotion. Then there are the stories that are cathartic in their ability to amuse you like Carljoe Javier’s Sometimes the Ears Don’t Fit, Chinggay Labrador’s Waxing Poetic, Sally Magdiwang’s Highly Confidential: The Electronic Journal of Ana Banana, and I.P. Goze’s Adios Con Leche!. And then we have Ana Maria Villanueva’s Buried Treasure on Casiana Street, E.C. De Los Reyes’ Letters to Joaquin, and Sharleen Banzon’s No Girlfriend Since Birth -- more stories that will leave you feeling poignant as you analyze the affairs of the heart.
Just recently (from May 25-June 3), we proudly exhibited the talents of our ten writers at the Singapore World Book Fair at the Suntec International Convention Center under the booth of the ASEAN Book Publisher’s Association (ABPA). Although we were first time publishers, we had no doubts that our company’s Filipino writers are world-class but it was wonderful to get our colleagues’ recognition when they chose Heartbreak along with Rex Publishing’s Speak Up to represent the Philippines in a book launch that featured the other Asian countries’ two entries.
After the launch, we met other publishers, distributors and booksellers from the Asia Pacific region (including Australia and New Zealand). We were bursting with Pinoy pride as we told them about our authors’ talents. We were more than happy to deconstruct some of their notions. For example, some of them did not realize that Filipinos wrote in English; or that we have professional OFWs who are doctors, engineers, nurses and teachers who are avid book readers. We also glowed in the praise we received for our book’s special paper and emboss-laminated, vibrant, purple cover that makes it a wonderful gift.
We often share our goal – especially with our writers -- of seeing Filipino books receive equal shelf-space and recognition abroad that their foreign counterparts enjoy in our local bookstores. As we negotiated the possibility of exporting our books, we feel overjoyed that our dreams and hard work are finally paying off. Who knew Heartbreak could be this successful?
But watch out. Next time, we’ll be talking about First Love.
Visit http://www.cozyreads.com/ and http://www.cozyreads.multiply.com/. Heartbreak is available at Booktopia, Fully Booked, National Bookstore, http://www.nationalbookstore.com.ph/ and Powerbooks.
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This article was published in The Freeman (Cebu) under the Entertainment Section on June 11, 2007.
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