In last week’s edition of the Forum, we presented a link to “Ten Rules for Writing Fiction,” a two-part article in the
The Guardian of UK that puts together the advice of 29 successful fiction writers on both sides of the Atlantic. This week, in a serendipitous continuation of the prescriptions-for-serious-writers series, we are delighted to present a link to a two-part column detailing the writing success prescriptions of Jose Y. Dalisay Jr., PhD, our very own highly successful multi-awarded Filipino writer in both fiction and nonfiction in the Philippines.
Dalisay, professor of English at the University of the Philippines and Hall of Famer of the Carlos Palanca Awards for Literature, came up with the two-part column, “So you want to be a pro,” in his weekly column in the Arts and Culture section of the
Philippine Star (February 22 and March 1, 2010) in response to questions from readers anxious to know what it takes to be a successful writer.
“In all probability,” Dalisay prefaced his prescriptions, “your fortune’s not going to come from that book of poems or short stories or even the novel that took you 10 years to put together, no matter if they won you a raft of literary prizes and trophies. There are some genres that might make you some decent money—screenwriting,
komiks writing, and what we might call coffee-table-book writing come to mind—but it isn’t easy to get these jobs, which require some special knowledge and, almost just as importantly, the right contacts.”
He then proceeded to discuss 20 musts for writers aiming for commercial or financial success—people, he explained, who depend on their writing to support themselves and their families. “It’s the creative writer and the academic who may need a bit of a reorientation, since I’ve found that it’s this person who often doesn’t have the foggiest idea what the market needs,” he explained.
Read Part I of Butch Dalisay’s “So you want to be pro” in the Philippine Star now!Read Part II of Butch Dalisay’s “So you want to be pro” in the Philippine Star now!ABOUT THE AUTHOR:Dr. Jose Y. Dalisay Jr. has published over 15 books of his stories, plays, and essays, with five of those books receiving the National Book Award from the Manila Critics’ Circle. In 1998, he was named to the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP) Centennial Honors List for his work as a playwright and fictionist.
He graduated from the University of the Philippines in 1984 (AB English,
cum laude), the University of Michigan (MFA, 1988) and the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee (PhD English, 1991). He teaches English and Creative Writing as a full professor at the University of the Philippines. After serving as chairman of the English Department, he became Vice President for Public Affairs of the UP System from May 2003 to February 2005. He is currently director of the UP Institute of Creative Writing.
Among his distinctions, he has won 16 Palanca Awards in five genres (entering the Palanca Hall of Fame in 2000), five Cultural Center of the Philippines awards for playwriting, and Famas, Urian, Star and Catholic Film awards and citations for his screenplays. He was named one of The Outstanding Young Men (TOYM) of 1993 for his creative writing. He has been a Fulbright, Hawthornden, David TK Wong, Rockefeller, and British Council fellow.
