Though it’s easy to find stories centered around the topics of romance and heartache, most of them come from well-established creatives with years of experience. Rarely, if ever, are young neophyte writers given the chance to have their work formally published.
A new anthology from Bookshelf PH, a publishing house in the Philippines focused on books and ebooks, aims to change this. The anthology is titled, “Torpe: Missed Connections in the Heart of Manila” and aims to collect the best non-fiction writing from Filipino twenty-somethings.
The anthology will share stories of “what could have been” and “TOTGA” (the one that got away) from young Filipino writers.
According to editor-in-chief Mio Borromeo, the choice to seek submissions from the youth was quite deliberate.
“Young, passionate romance and heartbreak are well-known tropes in creative writing,” said Borromeo. “We wanted to give young Filipino writers a chance to give their own spin on the age-old topic.”
Within this broad mandate, each submission should be written by a single author, fall between 2000 to 3500 words, and be written in English or Taglish. The anthology welcomes submissions from youth writers in the Philippines as well as those living in other countries.
Generation Rising dovetails with Bookshelf PH’s expertise in non-fiction. The publishing house has published many non-fiction books, including Opening the Archipelago: The Story of Blockchain in the Philippines; Healthy Buhay, Happy Mama: Risa Hontiveros Journey through Motherhood, and Fearless Filipinas, which included a foreword from Vice President Leni Robredo.
A list of Bookshelf PH authors and subject matter experts can be found here. In addition to book publishing, Bookshelf PH also offers a variety of editorial services, such as assistance with self-publishing and printing, to digital marketing services, such as media relations, social media marketing, and content marketing.
Writers may send their submission to [email protected] by the Wednesday, May 11 deadline. Please use the subject line “Torpe: Missed Connections in the Heart of Manila + Your Name.”
ABOUT BOOKSHELF PH
Bookshelf PH is an online bookstore and book publisher in the Philippines. The organization’s goal is to promote a richer Filipino literature that will contribute to individual empowerment, and in the aggregate, nation-building. At the core of these aspirations is the belief that the surest and simplest path to personal and professional growth is through reading, whether through physical books, ebooks, or audiobooks. Bookshelf PH thus welcomes collaboration with all book lovers in the country, including everyone from freelance writers and interns to local booksellers, self-published authors, and brands that aim to publish a book.
