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Ignitin’ Ideas, was held on the 24th of February at the Crown Building in Mandurriao,Iloilo. It was an event hosted by the company, Xilium. The small event brought together some of the young and brightest in the local writing community. The topics ranged from how to choose the right story and what is considered creative writing.
Cymark Ferdinand Mirasol, Leonard Francis Alcona, Rhick Lars Vladimer Albay, and Russel Jude Patina took the stage as speaker’s for that day’s event. Albay and Patina are both affiliated with Rappler. Albay shares his thoughts on life and indie movies on the Rappler’s X. While Patina is a local reporter whose articles gets published through the main Rappler site. Mirasol is a self published author of several online stories in the form of text based games. Alcona, a Political Science student, is a Palanca awardee in poetry.
Xilium co founder, Don Wickelgren, joined the conversation with his point of view on the difference between American and Filipino writers. In house writer, Melody Rolluda, shared her writing journey with the group, comparing what it’s like to go from creative to business writing.
Guests talked about the importance of writing to expose the ill of society while sharing their own personal stories. Alcona and Patina touched on the topic of creative writing as a way to express yourself and write stories for everyone to read. Mirasol went personal, talking about his struggles of trying to fit in a community that seemed to measure itself on achievements rather than self-fulfillment. Albay wrapped up the session with how he uses writing as a tool to expose people to social ills and airing the voices of those usually unheard.
Miguel Davao’s violin solo of the the Game of Thrones opening soundtrack and The Hobbit theme song during the open mic at the end set the mood for more interactions.
It was a well received event that sparked conversation on creative writing. Iloilo’s literary scene is active but scattered, this event hopes to reel in the creatives in one place. After all, people are becoming more open to sharing their works by publishing them online, attending poetry slams and seeking other venues for exposure. Truly, it would be fascinating to see Iloilo write now.
