"A SATIRICAL NOVEL FILLED WITH DARK, RUDE, TWISTED, AND SADISTICAL HUMOR."
Seventeen-year-olds Brandon and Bryan Savage are prodigies and twins -- and the best way to differentiate them is by the mole on their butt cheeks. Although they live togethe...
This is a bit lengthy but I would appreciate if you give me a chance and read this without skipping:
I don't like boring. So I wouldn't bore you with just a "thank you." Instead, being a storyteller, I'll tell you a story worth reading to accompany this Acknowledgement section:
I started writing The Savage Brothers back in March 2017 (I forgot the specific date, which sucks) because of one thing that has been bugging my brain at the last month of being a 10th grader.
"What if," I remember disturbing my friend Ella this question when there was no teacher yet in the classroom, "we had, like, a twin? A twin—like, literally an exact replica of us—with an opposite personality of ours and are studying at a different school?"
She shrugged and said, "That would be chaotic... and funny."
So with my big brain energy, my imagination ran wild with possibilities. I'm more of an ambivert who is a huge theatre and film kid—which also means I love being the life of the party—but also prefers reading a book/binge-watching some good TV show 24/7 without anyone disturbing me. So I asked myself what if I had a twin who is more into sports since I wasn't sporty.
A twin who is kinder since, being an Aries dude, I can lose my temper and snap someone's career in a blink of an eye. A twin who is mysterious and reserved because, if you haven't noticed yet, I tend to blabber and people kinda know everything about me because I like talking about myself when things get boring (oof-). A twin who doesn't have daddy issues since all my life I have been insecure about other boys who are so close with their fathers because they share the same interests.
And so one day in March, when we're close to end our Junior Year (in the Philippines Grades 7 -10 are considered Juniors while Grades 11 & 12 are Seniors), I just can't help myself but to plot and outline the potential of this story... until I became addicted and finally decided to dedicate my time and effort in this.
Toni Morrison made me write The Savage Brothers because of what she said: "If there is a book that you want to read, but it hasn't been written yet, then you must be the one to write it." There was no other story that ended up something I wanna read, and so after many debates with my mom and some of my friends for twin baby names, Brandon and Bryan Savage were born.
I honestly wasn't expecting to finish this but holy fuck, I did it. And this wouldn't happen without the people who keep on supporting me when I feel like I'm the biggest loser in the world:
God, first and foremost, because He gave me a reason to write. He gave me this unique talent and skill of voicing out everything through writing. And He always keeps his promises. Thank you, Lord!
Ella, if it wasn't for you this idea wouldn't blossom into something it is now. Thank you for keeping tabs on my updates and it means so much to me that you loved it as much as I love writing it. (Oh yeah, she has a huge crush on Bob so I named Bob's love interest modified to hers, so she can fangirl over it forever. It's the least I can do.) Above all, thank you for the memes that kept me breathing.
Pat—you are literally my wingman in this 3-year journey. You are my crackhead friend, my personal wing-it editor, and a fellow Aries. You literally gave my fingertips power with your advices and moral support. Scenes I thought were impossible for me to create, you were there to help me decide what to put and how to write them. Without you, this kind-of-clean draft wouldn't be possible. I owe you a whole restaurant full of free fries and burgers, dude. Thanks.
My good friends Bea, Aira, and Aidan, who didn't do much but were there to give sincere feedback, I appreciate you so freaking much! Thank you for all the support.
Mom, for the nights of endless debates and brainstorming even if you hate hearing my voice every day just to talk about my stories. Despite everything, you were patient. You respected the days when I just need my writing time even if there're chores that needed to be done, you helped me figure out things when I get stuck, and you have always been my #1 fan from the start. Thank you for everything—you're literally my everything, Ma.
Most importantly, I would like to thank you. Yes you, the person reading this right now from your phone or computer screen. You patiently reading this just made all my time, sleepless nights, tears of doubt and fear, and obsessing about the next events for this book, worth it. Because sharing my Boys' story was worth it. Because you reading this was worth it.
My special thanks to my early readers—you know who you are!
You don't know how much I wanted to give up writing because I can't seem to finish a single draft—I intentionally didn't finish Colossus Survival's remaining 4 chapters because I feel like it was unoriginal; I put Deadly Seven on-hold because I'm scared of not getting the exact things I wanna do and I'm always lost every now and then; Who Said Authors Weren't Sexy?! updates suddenly stopped because I feel like complete shit. But my boys, these Savage Brothers, had been my therapy.
And for the first time, I finished a novel—A FUCKING NOVEL! WHAT! (mindblown sounds)—all thanks to you guys!
FUN FACT: Violet was an inspiration from this really great friend who I immediately had a deep connection with, and so we clicked right away first day in class—but then at the end of the school year, when I needed her the most, she stabbed me in the back. But all is well; we're doing better now, but it wasn't like before. It's impossible to bring back a broken mirror, I guess.
The pain hurts, but instead of becoming destructive, I put it in this art. Writing heals, and I cannot believe I have also healed lots of people through this work by making you smile, even if it's just for a little while. Making my readers laugh or crack a small grin is worth more than billions of dollars for me. Thanks to you guys, you made me feel like a winner.
With that, I am beyond grateful and humbled.
(Also, if you guys want more FUN FACTS, do tell 'cause I have lots of fun facts about TSB to share!)
If you're a person who really wants to write and share their art but are just lazy/unmotivated or just waiting for a sign, well, this is the sign, bitch.You don't know how much change and happiness writing has brought my life—and you might just surprise yourself that you can change someone's life too by giving them a voice through your stories. So pull your sleeves up, crack your knuckles, clench your butt cheeks, shut your complaining mouth, and let's go start writing!
It's hard, yes, but not putting it out is more painful, trust me. Take it from Brandon Savage's quote from his Epilogue:
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I'm ending this with a quote I loved: "When you achieve a dream, you dream a bigger dream," and my dream was to finish a manuscript. And I did. But I won't stop there, and I pray and hope you will all still stick with me and are patient enough to see more stories posted on this account for ya'll to stay tuned in for!
You can find me all over social media by searching for my username: @johnerzulueta in Twitter, IG, and Goodreads! (I'm more active on Twitter so I hope to chat with you there, too!)
