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I spoke with poet and professor Paolo Manalo about how he makes words happen. It turns out writing fiction is a kinda different from writing poetry, who knew? If you love words, you’ll enjoy this episode.
Paolo Manalo’s first collection Jolography (2003) received recognition from the Don Carlos Palanca Memorial Awards for Literature and the UP Diliman Gawad Chancellor. It will be re-issued in a Retconned edition by UP Press this 2019. Manalo has received fellowships from the UP National Writers Workshop, the Taboan Writers Festival, and the MacDowell Colony. He teaches English, literature, and creative writing at UP-Diliman.
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Show Notes
- 00:00:15 – Welcome/Intro
- 00:01:02 – Why this episode is late
- 00:05:20 – Introducing our guest Paolo Manalo
- 00:06:00 – Productivity in poetry writing— is that even a thing?
- 00:07:21 – Our venue: Agico Cafe (#8 Missouri Street, Northeast Greenhills, San Juan City)
- 00:09:23 – Coffee is life (tea is okay too)
- 00:10:10 – Start of interview
- 00:10:54 – What we’re drinking
- 00:12:15 – That Ann Wigmore quote
- 00:13:35 – Paolo’s new
bookpamphlet E is for Epal - 00:14:00 – Paolo’s first poetry collection Jolography was published 15 years ago
- 00:14:39 – What even is an EP
- 00:14:52 – Paolo’s soon-to-be-released poetry collection
- 00:16:14 – An ultimatum by your friends — best productivity hack maybe?
- 00:16:35 – E is for Epal as an “interval collection”
- 00:16:55 – Epal: definition and origin
- 00:18:55 – Why was the collection called E is for Epal ?
- Puns
- 00:19:57 – Epal cover design, and getting blurbed by Bob Ong
- 00:20:51 – About Epal cover designer Michael Balili, author of poetry collection Velocirupture
- 00:21:24 – Plotter vs Pantser — does this apply to poetry?
- How does Paolo plan his poetry collections (or does he?)
- 00:21:56 – Visionary vs Gatherer
- 00:24:33 – Paolo as a professor of Creative Writing
- On teaching poetry to both CW majors and non-CW majors
- 00:26:39 – On the importance of writing poetry “out loud”
- 00:28:21 – Do contemporary poems still follow rules of meter and structure?
- 00:29:39 – Is it difficult having a writer career and a teaching career?
- 00:32:24 – The importance of taking enough time to write a poetry collection and having “space” between collections
- 00:33:35 – Paolo’s productivity tools
- Notebooks
- Planners (“Plan-nerd”)
- Not a lot of digital apps
- Fountain pens forever!
- 00:36:10 – Bullet journaling and the pomodoro technique
- 00:36:30 – Hobonichi weeks planner
- 00:37:00 – Most productive hours of the day/Most productive places to write
- 00:38:57 – On writing about the world when you’re outside
- 00:40:38 – What is “jologs”?
- 00:40:54 – Do you feel you need to explain the references in your poetry?
- Notes to poems add pages to a book
- Notes as “baggage”
- 00:46:49 – Jolography redux
- resequenced
- retconned
- realigned with Epal and the upcoming collection
- 00:50:00 – Any plans to be a full-time poet?
- 00:50:47 – On having students succeeding as poets
- 00:52:30 – Who are the future of poetry?
- 00:54:00 – Paolo’s current favorites
- 00:58:55 – Favorite Pinoy poets
- 01:01:15 – How long does a poetry student take to find their voice?
- 01:03:36 – On living up to reader expectations: poetry and fiction
- 01:06:01 – Poetry events
- Spoken-word sessions at Sev’s Cafe (now closed)
- Conspiracy Garden Cafe – Words Anonymous’s “Dirty Laundry”
- Filipinas Heritage Library
- 01:08:30 – Have you thought of producing audiobooks of your work?
- Local authors are creating audiobooks of their fiction
- Live readings
- Can actors properly do a reading of someone else’s poetry?
- 01:10:24 – “Instagram poets”
- 01:12:29 – On writing for a specific medium
- 01:14:29 – Poetry stickers?
- 01:15:52 – Discovering different media for poetry
- 01:16:47 – Where to find Paolo online
- 01:17:28 – On students asking authors to do their homework
- 01:18:24 – Where to find E is for Epal :
- Solidaridad in Ermita, Manila
- Bookay-Ukay in Quezon City
- Gacha Press on Shopee
- Amazon Kindle*
- 01:19:33 – Where to find Jolography
- Local bookstores
- U.P. Press
- Upper Shelf at UP Town Center
- 01:21:25 – Thank you, Paolo!
- 01:21:40 – Wrap up
- 01:22:40 – Please subscribe to the podcast!
- 01:24:04 – Please rate this podcast and/or leave a rating on Apple Podcasts
- 01:25:54 – Who’s the next guest on Adulting for Authors?
- 01:26:33 – Thank you for listening
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