JBinHD
1. What do you look for in a story?
- The Spark. The Thpark. Spark in a sense that the story has something in it that is worth developing (either for the reader, and for the writer). [AUDIO: Panem National Anthem] Hindi naman kailangan maganda dapat, na parang pang Don Carlos Palanca na yung idea ng story. Kung ako, mas gusto ko magbasa ng formal: witty man o yung seryoso. Okay na okay ang pang-high standard na narrative, pero mas okay pa rin yung kahit simple pero makikita mo talaga na "pwede". Yang, parang yung reader mo ang magpapatuloy ng story. Yang, kahit simple pero nakakapagpabago ng tao. Yang sapul sa, "when you finish a book, you will never be the same again".
2. How are you going to judge the entries?
- Formality at pagiging effective catalyst to change. lol. Wala akong paki-alam kung gaano ka daring yung story. Ang akin lang, basta maayos yung transition ng events at psycho-emotional stimuli. Siyempre, compassion. Mother Teresa (may she be praised) kumbaga. Mahirap magkaroon ng compassion sa story kung hindi formal. Basta formal lang at single yung idea. One shot stories differ from zipped-like novelettes.
3. Any advice for the contestants?
- I don't give unsolicited advice. Pero para maiba: una, title. Last round, sa title ako nagja-judge. Sa tingin ko, mas effective gawing title yung significant words na naisulat sa narrative. Sample: Alice Sebold's The Almost Moon. Yang ang title eh, nabanggit talaga sa story. The Lovely Bones, nabanggit din sa story. Flipped, nabanggit din. Sapay Coma (Don Carlos Palanca awardee), nabanggit din. Pero choice naman ng author.
Pangalawa, first sentence. Pinakamahirap 'to. Kaya dapat, stable yung emotion. Hindi empty (compared with the last sentence). Dapat nasa first sentence yung kalahati ng whole idea ng story. Pwede naman sa first paragraph, pero mas maganda nasa first sentence. Yeah lol.
At panghuli, yung last sentence. Sa tingin ko, mas okay talaga yang empty o medyo empty yung last sentence. Yang, bigyan niyo gud ng assignment yung readers niyo. Mas okay rin kung in-line sa first sentence yung idea ng last sentence ng story mo (I highly recommend this). Basta, bigyan niyo ng chance maging writer yung reader mo pag sa last sentence na. Yang parang kami na bahala kung papatayin ba namain yung protagonist at antagonist.
Pero uy, ang author na bahala. Confession: gusto ko yang mga writer na medyo nasa DSM-IV yung behavior kasi maganda yung narrative style nila.
P.S. Importante ang character build-up. Sa characters kami, mga readers, nagho-hold on. lol. Basta, dapat may justice yung events. Maawa kayo sa characters niyo. Bigyan niyo ng sense yung mga nangyari sa kanila.
P.P.S. Maintain singularity of emotion.
P.P.P.S. Sana wag kayong maniwala sa advice ko. Hindi rin ako marunong magsulat lol. Pero sa tingin ko kaya kong mag-judge ng one shot 😊
P.P.P.P.S. Kadalasang standard ko eh yung pang Best Original Screenplay sa Oscars o pang Don Carlos Palanca Memorial Awards for Literature. Pero sige lang gud oy. Basta enough lang yung emotion ng story, lmffao!
Regards!
