Noong high school kasi ako, nagka-crush ako. Hahahaha. Tapos hindi ako makaamin kasi I have no courage to do so. So, I started scribbling on my big activity notebook and wrote a story about us. Hoping na kahit sa story, makaamin ako sa kanya. Hahaha. This is earlier month of year 2011.

Two years later after that, I started writing in an online writing and reading platform called Wattpad. ❤

Noong second year din ako (2010), hiniram ng classmate ko 'yung phone ko. Magbabasa daw siya. Tapos s-in-earch niya 'yung m.wattpad.com tapos may mga pinipindot siyang mga parang title, gano'n.

Tapos noong binalik niya sa akin, ch-in-eck ko rin 'yung site. That's when I realized na it's full of Tagalog stories kaya nagbasa ako nang nagbasa, hanggang sa maadik na me. Hahaha!

I am most proud of Saving Serene, not because it won the Watty Awards 2020, but because it helped a lot of readers to open their hearts.

Ang dami kasing comments sa story ko na parang nag-o-open up sila ng mga hinanakit nila sa mundo, sa family, sa school and they never tell anyone about that. Pero dahil sa Saving Serene, natuto silang mag-open up.

Also, many of them said that reading that story comforts them. Dahil daw do'n, feeling nila hindi sila nag-iisa. Na, may karamay naman talaga sila, gano'n. They feel comforted and binigyan daw sila ng hope.

I'm proud of this story because it served its purpose to me and for my readers, and that is to comfort them—to know that they are not alone in every battle they will face in life.

Hmmm, I can never forget the day na nanalo ako sa Watty Awards 2020. Hahaha. I was really clueless na ina-announce na pala ang winners no'n. Tapos tulog na tulog pa ako!

Nagising na lang ako na ang daming chat, text, calls, may mga tags pa. Kino-congratulate nila ako for something I have no idea with. Then ayun nga, nanalo daw ako! Hahahaha.

I was so happy that I couldn't believe it at first. Ang dami-dami sumali do'n, bakit ako mananalo??? Then I checked it myself and saw the story I wrote! It won, really! 'Yung least expected ko pa!

And because of that winning moment, it opened a lot of opportunities for me and I met new friends and readers. Thank you, Wattpad! ❤

Hmmm, i want them to know that in every story that I wrote and currently writing, there is always a slice of life. Kahit na anong genre pa siya, there is always a part of it na totoo.

I don't create perfect characters, perfect love stories, etc. I like them flawed—too flawed na maiirita ka na. Hahha! Kasi ganoon naman talaga sa totoong buhay.

And also, lahat ng stories na isinulat at isusulat ko pa lang, there is always a part of me that I left—scattered along the story. If you knew me personally, you will easily pinpoint the parts of me that I left in every story.

Well, first, you don't have to think about other people's opinion. You just have to keep writing.

If they don't like the story, maybe they are not your target audience, right? So don't listen to them. Just keep on writing and expressing yourself. You don't have to be afraid if you know that you're not doing anything wrong. You just have to write what you want and write it in a good way.

And cheer up if you think you're not doing good enough. Everyone is a work in progress. We always have room for improvement. Do not be disheartened if you think you're not doing good enough. Someday, you'll be proud of how far you've come.

Uncensored by pilosopotasya

I gained friends by being a part of Stars progeam. I like it most whenever we welcome new Stars on Discord. I love answering the question of the week and I especially love reading the News Letters that arrived every month.

Palagi ko 'yong nilu-look forward because it makes me see the future plans for the Stars and the tips in writing, etc. Pati 'yung interview sa ibang Stars. It's like knowing a part of them too and their thoughts.

I won the Watty Awards 2020

Checkout marisswrites's stories here on Wattpad for your next favorite read!