Our Word Weavers
Heather Ann Pulido
Heather is a Kankanaey-Ibaloi writer and teacher whose work on class, womanhood, Indigenous identity, and the many meanings of “homeˮ have graced local and international journals and zines. She also pens childrenʼs fiction in English, Filipino, Ilokano, and Kankanaey — one of which earned her a place in the 70th Carlos Palanca Awards. In 2024, she co-founded ili press, an indie publisher that heralds culturally responsive and inclusive Cordilleran literature.
Jade Mark Capiñanes
Jade is the author of the fiction collection How to Grieve. Born and raised in southern Philippines, he is a two-time Palanca Awardee for essay.
April Pagaling
Poet and essayist April Pagaling spans years of movement between freelance copy, articles, and social media work for brands, while running her food blog, relaxlangmom.com. She is the author of Marinduque Is in the Heart, a narrative memoir of her island home, the damage of mining, and the slow work of living with it.
Ron Medina Cruz
A self-professed “relic of the travel blogging eraˮ, Ronʼs long-standing affair with travel includes co-founding PHL360, the Philippinesʼ first travel web series. He is currently a Vice President at a global bank in Singapore, an entrepreneur, and a proud microwave chef. Ronʼs narratives are driven by his favorite writing tool: the backspace key—proof that regret fuels creativity far better than inspiration ever could.
Kara Santos
Kara is a Manila-based freelance writer and adventurer whose work has been published in Lonely Planetʼs website and travel guidebooks. Apart from chronicling her quest toward visiting all 82 Philippine provinces in 2019 and ‘round-the-world journeys in her renowned blog, Travel Up, she writes for print and online publications, covering travel, lifestyle, food, and motoring.
Timothy Jay Ibay
TJ has 15 years of professional writing experience. After working as a writer and editor for print travel and lifestyle publications, he gradually transitioned to digital content, covering a range of subjects from tech and consumer products to digital marketing and wellness. When not grinding for his litany of hobbies, youʼll likely find him riding his bikes around the Philippines or playing with his cat.
Gelyka Dumaraos
A Rizal-based former journalist, Gelyka now finds healing and happiness in writing prose about childhood, nostalgia, travel, and the quiet journey back to oneself. She contributes to local newspapers, Keeping coffee close, the road closer, and her stories somewhere in between.
Karlo Lagman Sevilla III
Karlo is the author of seven poetry books, including his most recent chapbook Recumbent. A three-time nominee for the Best of the Net, his poems appear in Philippines Graphic, Philippines Free Press, Protean, Matter, Radius, and elsewhere. He is a 2024 International Fellow of the International Human Rights Art Movement (IHRAM) for poetry.
Carissa Bongalosa
At 24, Carissa boarded her first flight to Dubai for work, where a trip to Petra sparked her hunger for exploration. Later choosing to stay in the Philippines, she transformed her blogging hobby into a career in copywriting and SEO, co-founding a travel website while writing for local magazines like Northbound and Zee Magazine. Now based in Cebu, Carissa chronicles her solo and family travels with humor and reflection as she discovers home anew.
Benj GABUN Sumabat
Benj is a trilingual, non-binary, and PWD cultural worker from Ifugao and Cagayan, completing a BA in Creative Writing at UP-Diliman. They are an essayist and poet advocating for regional languages and the politicization of the queer-disabled experience. A member of CAP, Ubbog, and GUMIL, Benj has participated in major writing workshops. Their works, found in local and international journals, explore colonial trauma, belonging, translingualism, queer identity, disability justice, and migration. (Photo by Mark Andy Pedere)
Nine Andres
Balancing the grind of the daily clock with a hunger for altitude, Nine navigates the Philippine backcountry with mermaid hair and mud-stained boots. Her writing bypasses the polished brochure to find the pulse of the community. A veteran contributor to platforms like Out of Town Blog, Nine captures the archipelago not just as a destination but as a living ancestor.
marky Ramone Go
Marky is a travel junkie, writer, and photographer based in Bulacan. Aside from contributing articles to several print publications and websites, he narrates his experiences wandering the Philippines, Southeast Asia, Sri Lanka, and India on his travel blog, Nomadic Experiences. He is keen on exploring South America next and tracing Jack Kerouacʼs On the Road trail in the United States to Mexico.
BERNARD SUPETRAN
Bernard is a 50-ish lifestyle writer whose passions include media consulting, travel planning, bike touring, scuba diving, and recreating Filipino heroes through historical reenactment gigs. He is also a freelance college lecturer on journalism, environment, and tourism. He writes the motoring column Day Tripper at the Philippine Daily Inquirer.
CHRISTINE FERNANDEZ
Known for her relentless passion for hiking and open water swimming, Christine initially wrote about her trips on her travel blog, Jovial Wanderer, as a pay-it-forward act after receiving kindness from fellow bloggers. Her strongest suits are listening and engaging strangers in a conversation, both of which shape a deeper understanding of the world.
Christian Sangoyo
Christian once roamed Asia relentlessly with nothing but a backpack and camera gear. Now older and with a family, he has since slowed down to traveling just a few times a year, preferring kid-friendly destinations and a rolling luggage. When not on the road, he spends his time caring for his feisty kid, writing, and organizing his music library.