SIS (Social Issue Series) #4: Bullying They say that beauty is a luxury. That good looks is the only privilege that matters. That the world is only in favor of those who were born pretty. Sa panahon nga raw ngayon, parang kasalanan na ang pagiging less attractive. You're unappealing? Emotionally weak? Naive? How pathetic. Now you gotta deal with the consequences, loser. Sounds like bullshit? Yup. The truth may be harsh but it is what it is. Once you failed to reach the very high standards set by the society, you're doomed. Yara Isabelle got the deadliest combination of being unattractive, soft-hearted and innocent. But she used to get by and survive the bullying just fine. Because she got her knight-in-shining armor. Her childhood sweetheart. Not until he stopped saving her. Not until he stopped caring. Not until he got fed up of everything. Sky Edison used to be full of compassion. But that was before something terrible happened within their family. His perception had changed. He now finds it ridiculous that people let themselves get treated badly. However, the downside is that for some significant circumstances, these two have to share a condo as they enter senior high school. What could possibly happen given their situation? How would it feel like living under the same roof not with your bully but your former superhero who's now just a witness of your despair? How would it feel like going home to a place with a person who gets to see you getting bullied everyday at school? Wattys 2020 Winner under Young Adult Category

(FHS#1) Braylee wants to make her friends happy, Denver wants to get some sleep. She's hell-bent on making the world a better place while he's desperate for some rest. When their paths crossed on a midnight bus ride, he finally found the remedy in her. But, it just so happens that he's the captain of their rival basketball team, and the enemy of her friends! Highest Rank: #1 in Humor (This is the unedited version. A cesspool of errors ahead lol)

There is a thin line between love and hate, and Constantine Illaraza believes her feet have always been firm and steady on the other side of the ground. She hates him. Sincerely. But what can she do when she has to make everyone believe otherwise? Coco knew what she signed up for. Everything they had done was just for show. The hugs, kisses, and sweet nothings, all of which were hardly theirs. But somewhere between love and hate lies a thin line, a blurring of everything fair and reasonable. A line she tripped and a line he crossed. A great undoing of all things they pretended that were never theirs. Hardly Theirs - a novel Completed (2024). Book Cover art by: haiz & izzazazaie (on X/Twitter)

THE WATTY AWARDS 2021 WINNER: ROMANCE Due to an unexpected pregnancy, ex-lovers Ryo and Frankie are forced to live under the same roof. They can't stand each other but when the moments from their past are slowly catching up, their lingering feelings seem to be much stronger than they thought it would be. *** When Frankie Castañares broke up with Ryo Canencia, she is determined to move on and never meet him again. They are living well on their own with her working hard to be a magazine editor and him reaching his dream of becoming a professional basketball player. But with the news of Frankie being pregnant with Ryo's child, they've got no choice but to act civil and live under the same roof. They bicker over the simplest things and their situation couldn't get any easier than they ought to be. With them still hung up on their past, can they be brave enough to settle their differences and start all over again? Disclaimer: This story is written in Taglish. Cover Illustration by 17aila_

Lennox Castillano - "Stained" (Boy Next Door #3) Ridge James Castillano - "First Heartbreak" A Castillano Legacy continues . . . Iris Lewis Faustino is a hard-working woman. Life thought her to stand on her own and grab what was in available no matter what happens. Being an only child in a broken marriage made her stronger to face her future and bound to secure their life together with her mother. Her bestfriend, Ridge Castillano helps her to work in one of the well-known Construction Company in the Philippines. Achilles Castillano runs his father's construction company and pursues to court Iris, his cousin's bestfriend, after so many years of having a secret crush on her. Kahit alam niyang hindi interisado si Iris sa kanya. When he thought he got everything under his hands, his world collapsed. Under the circumstances of the buried secrets within his family, how he will get back the woman he wronged? He must protect his wife and children. And he must find the truth behind the wall.

Wounds heal, but scars remain. So even with the possibility that one can accept and move forward, it's impossible to forget. Because there will always be an irremovable mark that will remind you of every bit of pain. Growing up without a mother was Zarih's first heartache. It scarred her more than anything else. She sees how her dad grieves for her mom all the time-even after years-and it breaks her. When Zarih learned about the possibility that she might have inherited her mother's heart disease, she knew she couldn't afford to love because she wouldn't want anyone to suffer at her death. She wouldn't want to love someone just to wound him at the end. It was easy not to fall in love, only if Ace Timotheo Salvador, her summer enemy, didn't dare touch her scars... as if they were the most beautiful parts of her existence. Zarih feels like losing it... She wants to love and be loved. Maybe he can heal her scars. Maybe their story is different from her dad's. Maybe they can have a happy ending. Or maybe... She should've not risked it at all. Maybe she could've not scarred her heart more. Finished: July 21, 2022

"Wattys 2021 Winner in Historical Fiction Category" Sa loob ng labinlimang taon, ang makasal sa kababata niyang si Enrique Alfonso ang tanging pinapangarap ni Estella Concepcion. Ngunit nagbago ang lahat nang makilala niya si Lucas, ang pinsan at karibal ni Enrique sa politika. *** Makatwiran at hindi nagpapatalo, lumaki si Estella Concepcion na patuloy na umaasang magkakatuluyan pa rin sila ni Enrique Alfonso, ang batang nagpagaan ng kanyang loob labinlimang taon na ang nakararaan. Ni minsan ay hindi nawala ang kanyang paghanga at pagtingin sa binata na siyang magiging susunod na gobernadorcillo ng bayan ng San Alfonso. Ngunit tila gumuho ang kaniyang mundo nang mapag-alaman niyang ipinagkasundo na ito sa ibang dalaga. Desididong mapangasawa pa rin ang binata, hihingin ni Estella ang tulong ni Lucas, ang pinsan ni Enrique. Sa paglipas ng panahon at sa mga sikretong kaniyang matutuklasan, handa pa nga rin bang gawin ni Estella ang lahat upang maikasal sa binatang matagal na niyang inaasam? O tulad ba ng ihip ng hangin ay magbabago rin ang isinisigaw ng kaniyang puso? Cover Design by Precious Pages Corp./LIB Books Book Type: Hardbound (With Book Jacket Cover)

Madali lang matagpuan ng mga mata ang abot-tanaw. Sa paningin ng karamihan, isa lang itong guhit-tagpuan. It's the line where the sky and the sea meets. It is the thread that divides what's above and what's beneath. But for Prim, it only seems a one look away line, but there's a lot of things hidden beyond it. Known for being a school sweetheart, she can easily be described. Mabait, maganda, kalmado, at... masaya. Palagi kasi siyang nakangiti at maintindihin sa iba. Idris, the school heartthrob is no different because he is as easy to be defined. Magaling kumanta, matinik, bibo... at masaya. Palagi rin kasi siyang nakangiti at nagpapatawa. They're both horizons that can easily be seen, but under their sleeves hide the scars that are yet to heal. In each other arms, they found their hearts' desire. Will they be able to cross the horizon together or are they meant to sail alone? Finished: November 2021

PUBLISHED UNDER LIB Lahat daw ng tao ay ipinanganak para sa isang misyon. Bago pa man tayo isilang ay may naghihintay ng hinaharap sa atin. Some people says it depends on us, that our purpose lies on our hands, chiseled by our own decisions. It was a lie for Angeleigh Jariyah Alvarez, an only child, living her remaining years to the fullest. Like her, not all people are eligible to create their own meaning, when fate chose her ending since birth. Tiyanak, bruha, mapanlait, makasarili at anghel na sugo ng lupa. Ganoon siya ilarawan ng mga tao sa paligid. She didn't care. It is not her responsibility to please everyone around her because it wouldn't change a single thing. The world would not treat you any better if you're kind. She has no heart for the unfortunate and no one call her out, until Zachary Ismael Javier, a poor orphan striving to live for his dreams comes her way. Magkaiba ang buhay na kinasanayan, ang mundong pinagmulan at ang pananaw sa buhay. She's childish and arrogant, he's responsible and kind. When two different worlds met, what will happen? Will he succeed to tame the demon inside of her? or will she continue living in the meaning, she created herself? Two Years in their senior high, two people, two different perception and two different worlds. What could be lying beneath it? Finished: August 2021

After getting pregnant due to a drunken mistake, Zuri decides to hide her daughter away from the devil in a business suit himself, Helios Gallagher. But when their paths cross again and he demands to be with their daughter, Zuri finds herself falling for the same guy who wrecked her before. *** Hardworking and dedicated, Zuri Fitzgerald is known to be the only secretary who lasted with the ruthless CEO of Gallagher Empire, Helios Gallagher. Called the devil in a business suit, Helios is a perfectionist and a control freak. And so when his fiancée leaves him after catching him and Zuri naked on his bed--all because of a drunken mistake--hell starts to break loose. He's intent to get even and make Zuri suffer for the rest of her life, but when he becomes silent for years, everyone believes he's finally moved on and forgot about that night. But when he finds out that Zuri hid their daughter from him for years, the anger that he once felt for her resurfaces. As they live together for the sake of their child, can Helios and Zuri finally move on from the past and let love prevail this time around? Disclaimer: This story is written in Taglish. Cover Design by Louise De Ramos