TABUK CITY, Kalinga (PIA) – As a little girl in the remote village of Uma in Lubuagan, Kalinga in the ‘90s, Joan Saga-oc used to read books while she watched over their rice field.
Hand-me-down textbooks from relatives in Manila were usual companions, and reading them gave her a glimpse of what kids her age in the city were learning. She thought then that if she could read, she could also write.
Fast-forward to 2024 and Joan, now 32, and employed with the Philippine Air Force, not only can afford to buy books for herself, but also wrote and published two of her own books, driven by her love for her culture and determination to preserve it.
Joan’s accomplishments do not end there as her works, “Stories from Kalinga: Memoir of a Village Girl” and “Folktales from a Kalinga Village”, were chosen by the National Book Development Board (NBDB) among the titles representing the Philippines at the 2024 Frankfurter Buchmesse (Frankfurt Book Fair).
The Frankfurt Book Fair is the oldest book fair in the world and is considered the most significant international publishing industry platform.
Aside from gaining global exposure at the Frankfurt Book Fair held in Germany in October 2024, Saga-oc’s works were also noticed by Esquire Philippines magazine that listed her memoir as one of its ‘Favorite Filipino Books of 2024’ alongside the works of Filipino literary heavyweights including Ricky Lee.
“It’s an honor na mapasama dun. ‘Yung sa list na yon, sila ‘yung mga bigating author and a villager from Uma, Kalinga was included in the list, so nakaka-proud naman na nandun ‘yung ating book,” Joan said.
Cultural responsibility
For Joan, writing stories about Kalinga was primarily motivated by a sense of ‘‘cultural responsibility’’ to record the experience of growing up in the village and to preserve the indigenous Kalinga traditions and values that are in danger of fading away amid a rapidly modernizing province.
“These stories talk about yung mga traditional ginagawa namin in our village noon, ‘yung mga magagandang kaugalian natin na hindi naman dapat natin kinakalimutan, [which] should be sustained dahil maganda naman ito,” she said.
“If no one will record all of these things, time will come na wala nang makaaalala ng mga ganito. So sabi ko, this a cultural responsibility. I have to record this, sabi ko sa aking sarili, para ‘pag may mga susunod na generation, mabasa nila, ay ganito pala ang buhay noon and then, eventually makapupulot sila ng aral,” she added.
Writing and self-publishing journey
Joan shared that it was during the COVID-19 pandemic that she found the time and inspiration to write. Starting a new journey in life is difficult, but family and friends gave her the motivation to push herself to embark on a new adventure..
Her writing was fueled partly by passion and as for writing by ‘Folktales From a Kalinga Village’, partly by a sense of urgency as the elders in her village are aging and starting to be forgetful.
“Kung wala na [ang] elders, e ‘di wala nang magsasabi dun ng mga kwento na ‘yon and then makakalimutan na ng lahat, kaya sabi ko, sige isulat natin ‘to,” she said.
Writing the stories was only the half of it. She also had to research and learn the process of self-publishing, all in her desire to get the books ready in time for submission to the NBDB.
“I sent my manuscript to some publishers but hindi ako nakapaghintay ng kanilang mga response and I also received some rejections. So, hindi ako nakapaghintay. I have to publish this because gusto ko siyang masama dun sa Frankfurt Book Fair 2024 sa Germany,” she recalled.
Joan is thankful for the help of her family, friends, and community members during the writing and self-publishing process. She is also grateful for the support of her community of Uma during the Free Prior and Informed Consent(FPIC) process for her anthology of folktales.
“Dun palang nakita ko na yung suporta ng aking community, ‘yung mga cultural leaders natin,” Joan said.
Supervised by the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples, the FPIC process is where indigenous peoples are consulted and they decide whether to give or not their consent for projects that affect their lands, resources, or territories.
Takeaway and plans
Joan expects that her books will inspire more Kalingas to write their stories, touting the benefit of writing and self-publishing not only for the community but also for personal growth.
“Ang gusto ko talagang take away nila dito is ma-inspire din silang magsulat because if a girl from the village can write, kaya din nila to write to share their stories kasi ‘yung pagsusulat and pagse-self publish is a kind of freedom,” Joan said.
Joan hopes to publish an illustrated version of ‘Folktales from a Kalinga Village’ for children in the future as was her original intention. She is on the lookout for a Kalinga illustrator to do the job.
“Nagtitingin talaga ako ng taga-Kalinga or taga-Cordillera na illustrator na maiintindihan ‘yung kwento natin so he can illustrate it properly para naman sa mga children,” she said.
She plans to use the proceeds from her books to print more copies, part of which she wants to donate to libraries and schools.
“Sa mga schools, they are requesting so I am thinking of that. Sana may mag-support sa atin for the printing of more of these books para makapag-donate ako sa mga schools and libraries,” she said.
Joan is also eyeing to join the Philippine Book Festival this March 2025.
To support the author, you may pre-order her books by contacting her personally through mobile number 09477500449 or on Facebook @BREWtifulJO. (JDP/IOS-PIA CAR, Kalinga)