so, this is the second of three. Philbert Dy wrote The Great Philippine Space Mission, a wonderful and surprisingly compassionate satire about that most iconic of icons: ladies and gents, you know her, you've seen her on a million billboards, you (arguably) love her, put your hands together (or not) for Kris Aquino.
now read Phil's answers.
1. What's the first thing (image/idea/concept/whatever) that came into your head when you first started writing your award-winning story?
ROBOT BUNNIES. I swear I'm going to write a story about robot bunnies
someday. I spent months on the robot bunny story, detailing an intricate
history that led up to the moment that robotics and bunnies first met.
It was already February when I realized it just wasn't happening. It didn't
feel right. It struck me that Robot Bunnies wasn't a particularly Filipino
story. That's when I started thinking "what would constitute a Filipino
science fiction story?" I asked a lot of people why we didn't have a lot of
science fiction, and the general consensus was that (1) we didn't have a lot
of science, and (2) there was this general feeling that given the social
realities that the country faces, it was almost irresponsible to write about
things as distant from the typical Filipino experience as spaceships and
aliens.
So I pretty much went "fine! Not so science-y, and as close to the typical
Filipino experience as possible." The not-so-science-y part was easy, since
to tell the truth, I'm not-so-science-y, too. The second part was driving me
crazy, but like most things, a good walk in my area gave the answer. I was
walking around in my hometown of Cubao when it struck me. Kris Aquino. If
you've ever been to Gateway, you'll know why Kris Aquino struck me. She is the
Filipino experience.
That's when I began to wonder. What if Kris Aquino somehow saved the world?
It all came spilling from there.
2. What do you think would enhance a reader's experience or appreciation of your story (e.g., mind-altering substances; an enlightening, uplifting religious experience; a gun pointed between the eyes)?
A whole lot of editing. As I said, I only really started the story sometime
in February, and a combination of work, writer's block and laziness had me
rushing to finish the story. The last twenty-three pages of my story were
written on February 26 and February 27. Such haste in writing doesn't lend
itself well to proper grammar and proofreading. I have typos for crying out
loud!
Also, I think this could have been a much longer story that doesn't
sacrifice the characterizations of everyone that isn't Eric.
And it would help if you've watched at least one episode of the Buzz with
Kris Aquino on it.
3. Of all the writer's you've read, who would you most want to be compared to? at the moment, who do you think your style best approximates?
Douglas Adams. I'm an Adams hack! If anything, I want to ape the unmitigated
joy he took in imagining all kinds of crazy things. I'd like to be funny,
too, if possible.
At the moment, I don't think I've found any style. I'm still looking for it,
all the while ripping off every author I've ever read. Harhar.
4. Why, aside from having won an award or two more than i have, should i read your story?
Hm. I'm not in the habit of telling people they should read my story,
really, but you might be curious how Kris Aquino contributed to the world's
salvation.
Also, because Armageddon sucked.
5. Requisite desert island question: if you were stuck on a desert island, which would you rather have: a) an unlimited supply of ink, paper, and really good pens, or b) your favorite book? If a) what would you do with the paper, ink and pens? If b) what book would that be?
A. Come on.
Barring the obvious giant boat made out of empty pen shells and a giant
paper sail, there's just so much more you can do with pen and paper. You may
love a book enough to want to spend an entire life reading it, but in the
end, the act of reading is merely consumptive. The paper, pens and ink allow
you to be creative. It's always better to create than consume.
*
you started your story in FEBRUARY?!?
sorry. that was my poor demolished ego talking. really, i'm a nice guy.
Thanks Phil!
15 comments:
Eep! None of my Rich Text Formatting has made it through the internets intact! Harharhar.
yeah, i noticed that, too. sorry, was a bit too lazy to fix it after i'd posted it. hehe.
Hehe ironically, I had the same kind of epiphany Phil had with regard to writing a Filipino speculative fiction story. Of course I thought the irresponsible thing was a load of bull since I believe that it's the writer's job to write, not to write about social realities. Maybe to inform but not to preach.
(Of course I've never actually tried to write a story involving Kris Aquino tough I could always whip up one involving her, game shows, ninjas and zombies...)
Seriously, hopefully Phil can answer the same questions I asked Mike? That is, what constitutes Philippine speculative fiction? You mentioned something about the Filipino experience: can you elaborate what that is?
I have to say something about the irresponsible thing. I do think it's a load of bull, but I find that if there are enough people saying it (and I did ask a lot of people), it certainly warrants attention. I didn't want to ignore it completely, since my opinion certainly isn't more valid than all the people I asked. They're Filipinos, too; most of them considerably wiser and more experienced than me.
Having said that, I didn't exactly go out and write about poverty on Mars and corrupt politicians from Jupiter. That approach wouldn't be right, either.
As for what constitutes Philippine SF...well, I don't really know. I think that answer will come much later, when there's actually a lot of it around. When there's a large enough body of work, the academics will get to it and tell us the answer. Until then, I think we have to make it up as we go along. For my story at least, it was a mix of magical realism, faux-science, pop-culture, humor, and sentimentality. But that's hardly representative.
why would writing about poverty on Mars or corrupt politicians on Jupiter not be a "right approach"?
that's exactly the sort of thing i see locally that hinders the development of a truly globally valid form of speculative fic/fantasy in the Philippines. why are we so hung up on these concepts of nationality? i'm not saying you shouldn't have them in your fiction, i'm just saying they aren't an absolute necessity.
your obligation is to the human race and, just as importantly and even more so, your own personal identity. because it's through the sharing of individual experiences that people realize geopolitical borders are artificial.
it doesn't matter if it translates in your fiction into dating on Pluto or shopping in Quiapo; what matters is that it's a product of your imagination. social relevance isn't even an issue. reading is an experience. let the reader decide what to make of it.
sorry if i'm overreacting, but i'm appalled by this insistence on such restrictions. run with your imagination, kid. go where it takes you.
I think it's a matter of semantics. If one insists on writing a story without any Filipino element, then it should just be called "SF" not "Philippine SF." In the US, they don't call it "American SF" just SF. It really depends on what the writer's intention is.
Categories are supposed to clarify, not confuse. If it causes more confusion than clarity, then it might be better to just abandon the label.
Poverty on Mars and corrupt politicians on Jupiter would just be transplanting. And you're right. That's appalling. If all I did was take the social realities and put them in an SF setting, that would be entirely the wrong approach. It had to be more imaginative than that.
But you misunderstand me. Or maybe I misunderstand you. You said that you really enjoyed my story. Does knowing that I worked under such restrictions limit your enjoyment of it? Does it make it any less imaginative in your eyes?
Because you're definitely right. My obligation is to my personal identity, and that's why the Robot Bunnies story never worked. It didn't mesh with my personal identity. A good part of my personal identity is to be hung up on concepts of nationality. It's a valid thing to be hung up on, I feel, because I freaking love this country.
Am I saying every story should be bound by these rules? No. But if an author personally goes by these restrictions, does that necessarily make worse stories? No. If anything, it helped me. It gave me a good starting point from which my imagination could just go wild.
Besides, the opposite isn't perfect either. It can lead to self-indulgent works, which aren't usually good reading.
well, that's why i'd rather not push for the label "Philippine SF"... if you're going to write SF, write it. if it happens to have Filipino elements, then that's great. if it doesn't, that's great, too. i see no reason why you have to insist on one way or another. also, the label marginalizes writers unnecessarily.
hey phil. yes, you misunderstood. transplanting is fine. it's all fine, as long as you do it right. and that's my point.
if your point was it would have been the wrong approach for the story you were writing, then you're absolutely right.
but to say it's a "wrong approach" period? that's what i'd be appalled at. it might not have worked for this story, but it might work for the next.
we actually agree on that last bit, because my point has always been that you work the way that works for you, and insisting on standards such as "you have to write about your country" is bullshit.
also, i think local writers tend to be VERY self-indulgent, and all this national identity business has a lot to do with it, imho.
to use one of my commonest examples: Jeff VanderMeer didn't write about S. Florida; he wrote Ambergris. and in that way her wrote a very relevant commentary on human nature, art, fiction v. reality, etc.
I should just be clearer, then. My point is that it would be the entirely wrong approach to just write a social realist story, transplant it in space, and call it "speculative fiction." It would be dishonest.
Hey Phil, it's interesting to note that you don't think there's Philippine SF yet because of the lack of a body of work. But for yourself, do you have an opinion on what constitutes Philippine SF within your own writings?
Interesting enough that the idea of limitations on imagination keeps cropping up. However, in my own experience, I work better with a little limitation as opposed to none at all. It actually helps focus my creative powers because without it, there would only be chaos (or at least a story without focus). I'm reminded of Phil's robot bunnies: the concept was one he wanted to write about but a concept isn't a story and it was only by using the idea of a Filipino national identity that he was able to write the story. Or so I think anyway.
Of course I don't mean that the limiting social realism aspect of the story should overthrow the story but rather help the story. The story is what truly matters, not the alleged social responsibility we want to insert into it (or whatever factor we want to use).
As for corrupt politicians in Jupiter, why not corrupt politicians in Jupiter AND Quiapo? Hah!
On the matter of categorizing Philippine SF... hmmm, I think this needs further thought...
Banzai: I really do believe that a body of work defines a genre. Genre theory teaches us as much.
As for my opinion, well, I just thought while writing the story that it would have to be SF that carried the sensibilities of a Filipino. Just as Russian Drama is drama that reflects the unique temperament of the Russians, and Japanese horror is horror that preys more on the Japanese acknowledgement and fear of the invisible, Philippine SF would be SF that carries a Filipino's worldview. In short, ask yourself what makes you a Filipino, and that's probably the same thing that'll make your SF story a Philippine SF story.
This may all become moot in the age of global homogeneity, of course, but in classical terms, that's one theory that probably holds water.
Er but am talking about Philippine speculative fiction as an idea and not as a genre (thus, no need for a considerable body of work). But nevermind, you've answered my question quite nicely. :-)
I can't help but ask what do you mean about Filipino sensibilities? Is a Filipino who's writing an epic fantasy in the vein of the medieval period still writing Philippine speculative fiction or just because he's a Filipino, it's already regarded as one?
Btw, did you take up lit classes?
I feel it's really just the worldview being presented, whether in form or style. It isn't necessarily the subject matter itself, but how our sensibilities become visible in how we treat it. It could be something as obvious as our particular sense of humor. Or it could be something as obscure as our values system being reflected in the way the story is paced. Or it could be our attitudes towards different things reflected in the plotting. A lot of times, these are the things we don't even think about, but happen anyway. It's a collective unconscious thing.
I think it would take a very conscious effort for a Filipino author to make a non-Filipino work, but I think it's possible.
I only took one lit class outside of the required curriculum, but I read a lot.
Very best site. Keep working. Will return in the near future.
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