May Palacpac, Storyteller

So, I’ve been tagged by Jhanis of The Vanilla Housewife to do this tour and share my writing process weeks ago.

I’m a bit late on this for many reasons. There was Blogapalooza 2014, my kids getting sick, one hospitalised, home school and work tasks to catch up on. Plus, I had a bit of a problem finding a third blogger to feature as I wanted to be a bit picky on this one.

Anyway, I’m supposed to give you a peek of my home so here you go. This is how the house looks when I’ve put the kids to bed.

And this is how it looks when they’re awake:
This is my work station at the moment:
I just occupy the other end of the table, facing the living room so I usually see my kids from the corner of my eye. That way, there’s a bigger chance for me to get to them if they’re about to do something that would get themselves in trouble. You know how boys get!

But I do have plans to plant myself in one of the corners of the house. I’m getting bored of the dining table and it’s not helping me any with my diet to be so near food all the time!

My writing process

For this part, I’m going to answer questions already provided. I hope you pick up something useful somewhere somehow.

Why do I write what I do?

I write what I write because blogging is my way of integrating fun into my life.

Work-at-home moms need a bit of excitement from time to time, and joining events, trying out new stuff, checking out places and home schooling discoveries…these are the things that get my blood pumping nowadays.

It’s like having a bucket list without the list….you’ll never know what you’re gonna get!

At the same time, I feel comfortable adding in snippets of my life and my family between the texts. If you read my blogs, you’ll realise that there’s me in everything I write  – my thoughts, my views, my joys, my disappointments, our faith and our convictions. And in my own way, I get to connect to people who have bothered to look more closely. That’s the special part in all these.

How is my writing different from others in my genre?

I don’t know what would set me apart from other blogs in my genre, but I approach all of my blogs with honesty.  I guess, what makes my posts different from others is me.

What am I working on in writing?

I’m working on my blog focus. I’ve been trying to streamline my topics, and holding myself back from signing up for events that stray from my blog focus.

How does my writing process work?

There has to be a process? Okay, for my blog, all I need is a peaceful hour or two to myself, an idea, and a cup of coffee. I blog to my heart’s content. Then, I publish, and then edit, haha! I know…I know….it’s hard for me to edit without having seen the output first.

I tend to be more forgiving of myself when I blog on my personal site because I already have a lot of those technicalities going on with my blogs for work. My personal blog is my relaxing space.

And now, featuring 3 of my favorite bloggers!

My favorite part of this exercise is choosing three bloggers to feature. The first two slots on my list were easy to fill, I had to take time to choose my third and I’m pretty happy about my choice.

I asked them to provide me with three FUN FACTS about themselves for you to get to know them better.

Marge Aberasturi, The Happy WAHM

First on my list is Marge of The Happy WAHM who, I think, is such a great writer on all aspects.  Her blog reeks of substance and she has impeccable grammar, to top it off.

The Happy FACTS:

1. I’ve “written” 90% of my goals in my head while doing the laundry.

I’m still the old-fashioned, handwashing mom, so when I have to think, I go and do the laundry. That’s when I’m most productive in creating plans, envisioning my future, ironing out my goals.

2. I solve problems in my sleep.

Whenever there is something bothering me, or there’s something I need to put some semblance of order to, I dream about it. Like for instance, when I was still in corporate, and I could not balance the accounts receivable with the receipts, I found the error in my sleep. I saw the particular receipt with the missing three cents in my sleep! So the next day, I knew where to look. Same thing, when I think I’ve lost something and I can’t recall where I’ve put it, it usually shows up in my dream.

3. I’m a sweet-and-salty eater.

I love eating chocolates, but I cannot eat it at its lonesome. It has to at least have nuts in it. I don’t like the plain one, but if only the plain is available, then I need to have almond nuts handy, too. I have to have something salty to alternate my chews with. Like corn chips. Chocolate cake with pancit, chocolate ice cream with peanuts, or brownies with tortillos.

You can find Marge on Facebook as, who else, The Happy WAHM. Go ahead, follow her updates!

Jennyfer Ang-Tan, The Techie Mom

The next blogger on my list is actually partners with Marge. They hold fantastic WordPress workshops together and are a tandem in helping out bloggers set up their sites. Her name is Jennyfer, otherwise known as The Techie Mom.

If you check my bookmarks, you’ll find a lot of her links there. Her posts are short and sweet, with lots of infographics that make techie stuff easier for people like me to absorb.

She’s simply my favorite techie!

The Techie Fun Facts:

1. I’m a tv series addict, I’m following at least 16 series currently.

2. I build my own computer from scratch, I’ll choose all hardware parts and assemble it on my own

3. Cross stitching calms me down while eating is my way of dealing with stress.

See? What did I tell you? Short and sweet!

You can follow The Techie Mom on Facebook here.

Maan Laxa of Little Pieces of Happy

The third blogger on my list hails from Davao. I first noticed her blog in the Mommy Bloggers news feed. Her writing is so relatable. I find her style refreshing, even when she’s talking about products and services.

And you know what I like most about the way she writes? She’s transparent which makes her very effective.

Little Pieces of Fun Facts:

1. I’m an old soul.

I am in my mid-twenties but I speak (and think) as if I’m a decade older. Or even a lot older. Before, I would never be mistaken for being older than my age, but now, it happens haha. Oh well!

But going back, I swear, I had been an old soul for as long as I could remember. I am always a year younger than my classmates but I had always acted more maturely. I also felt more comfortable in the presence of older people; at 6 or 7 years old, it was not unusual for me to hold conversations with my mother’s friends. I wonder what will happen when I become a lola?

2. When I get passionate about something, I get (ITALIC) really passionate.

It’s not in my character to be mildly interested in something. It’s either I’m not interested at all or am deeply passionate about it. As in I literally spend days and nights learning about it. Will take lessons, too, if they are free. My interest vary greatly, too: from ideals like Christian apologetics, homeschooling, organic lifestyle, and personal finance to pop culture like Titanic and the Eraserheads.

PS: I have a copy of every single printed material about or connected to the Eraserheads.

PPS: I wanted to name my son Ely or Jack. Pero joke lang. Na half-meant.

3. In college, I acted in a play, and my role was a nun. A pregnant nun.

I had always been into theater. In high school, I was part of a theater group, and we produced the biggest play ever in our school. But in college, my acting prowess (let’s assume that there is hahaha) was tested when I got the role of a pregnant nun.

As if that wasn’t bad enough, the nun was pregnant with, guess who, the altar boy’s baby! Worse, I had to moan loudly on stage! Uh-uh, I experienced a lot during college, but this is the one experience that no descendant of mine should discover. Ever.

You can get updates from Little Pieces of Happy on Twitter!

In conclusion…

That was fun and a very good writing exercise, too. I don’t always get into these things but I feel that these little exercises give me a good excuse to make a back check on what it is I do, why I blog and if I’m going towards the direction I’ve been meaning to take.

Honestly, up until a few months ago, I’ve been clueless on what my blog is really about. Now, I, at least, have an idea, more or less, on where I want to run with it.

It helped that I connected with other bloggers and like-minded people.

I join comment exchanges, read other bloggers’ works, make effort in getting to know them in person and learn from them, as well as share my own insights.

I sign up for workshops, like this photography workshop for bloggers on November put together by one of the bloggers in one of my favorite communities. It’s been a lot of fun and a lot of learning, so far!

Are you a blogger, too? Or are you thinking of becoming one? Tell me, what’s stopping you?