#028: Let's (try to) calm down
Refreshing, restarting, recircling, and more tiny yet precious life moments
Hey, there! OK to BE is a Sunday newsletter about my adventures in reading, writing stories, creating art, collaborating, and being human. Thank you for reading! :)
After that unusually chaotic six months I’ve had which was quite the opportunity for more character building, it would be fair to assume that I’ve had yet another growth spurt as a person, and now I’m ready for some mellow, and joy, joy, joy. May God, the universe, nature, and everything else be listening!
But it sure is nice and comforting that anytime, any day, any moment can be a restart. When I was younger, I often wanted to wait for the perfect time to act on anything.
Oh, to be a child.
Later on in life (and thank goodness), I learned that there was something better, even if a little bit whimsical: the right time. And the right time is whenever I am willing. Which is, once again, now.
This art is from the book Paper Boat, Paper Bird by David Almond, illustrated by Kirsti Beautyman (what a lovely name). Easily one of my favorite reads of the year
Nope, do not cue fireworks. Beginning again doesn’t always have to be a huge announcement or a holiday party…although I would love a slice of heavily iced cake right now. A refresh can just be something like, you know, spritzing one’s face and that’s it, I’m fab again.
*spritz spritz*
Or writing this newsletter update! So there we go. Today is Day 1. Again. Welcome to the OK to BE newsletter!
It’s not a whole revamp, but more like a sprucing up and a beefing up. All in the name of making the information and chika ultimately more worth your subscription! Because we all do want an ROI, don’t we?
Speaking of subscription, this newsletter was originally an extension of my Patreon, where all my creative work and processes are housed. So we’re going to return to that and make the connection more seamless.
That said, as this newsletter’s About says, OK to BE will be filled with more of my adventures in reading, writing stories, creating art, collaborating, and being human.
Any change can be scary, but having you here, cheering for me (I hope), is the biggest motivator. Thank you for being here! I hope you enjoy our new right time.
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📚 Reading
→ I’ve been doing the yearly Goodreads challenge since 2011, and this year, I plan to finish 88 books. So far, these are what I’ve read:
You can also find this list on this twt thread (I’m on priv; send a follow request if you want), and some of the reviews I post on Bookbed. Like this one for Even Ducks Get Liver Cancer.
I am open to review requests; just write to me here (also for beta reading and editing requests), or via the Contact page of Bookbed.
If you’d like to add me on Goodreads, here’s my profile. I have a Storygraph, too. And I post about the books I read on my @kbsteps Instagram.
A recommendation: For those who are interested in requesting Advanced Reading Copies (ARCs) of books you may love, check out NetGalley (sponsored…NOT. I wish). I think I may have accounts on other websites like such, but I just maintain my NetGalley one, which I’ve had since 2009 or something.
📝 Writing, Editing
I know how hard it is to write and edit, even after what feels like a lifetime of doing so (13 years of those in professional settings). Even experts and professionals can still make the simplest mistakes. Every day is just truly an opportunity to learn, relearn, and unlearn things.
That said, I relaunched the Simple How-To Thursdays on my Patreon, which is all about sharing practices, tips, and experiences in terms of creative work (any of it). This month, we’re treading on, voila, self-editing. Here’s the link to Part 1 (patrons on the Cheerleader tier already have access). I’m excited to exchange knowledge and funny editing stories with you and of course, learn from you!
🎨 Creating, Collaborating
→ I refreshed my pfp; click and see below. What do you think? (My hair is shorter now, yep, but hair grows back so that’s still me 😂)
→ OK to BE zine is back, and we have two issues for 2023, so far. One is OK to BE Away, which you can access here, and the other is OK to BE Too Much, in collaboration with Danice Mae P. Sison, author, creator of Boys’ Lockdown, and someone who knows when too much is just right and enough.
All the OK to BE zine issues are available on my Gumroad. You can get them for free when you join my Patreon as part of the benefits.
To all those who collaborated with me on Issues 1~5 (many of you are here; thank you), I want to remind you that the personal codes I sent to you still work and they always will. You can promote the zine anytime you want; all purchases are recorded by Gumroad.
For the next issue (March), I’m asking for my patrons’ help re theme and title. If you want in, here is a link to the poll. If you want to see a particular thing from me or if you want to collaborate on an issue, let me know!
→ In other news, OK to BE Journaling is also making a comeback (again, do not cue party streamers). I was so intent on keeping a yearly/quarterly journal that it almost didn't occur to me sooner that I could return to a monthly! I’m using the small journal (cats and dogs in a giant bunk bed) I posted about on my @kbsteps IG:
If you’re keen on seeing my first few March pages, click here.
→ In other other news, you may have seen me post about this countless times on social media last month, but we at Bookbed managed to raise PHP 10, 615 for Lakbay-Kuwentuhan, a storytelling and book-giving caravan. Thank you so much for your support and donations! All the updates are here.
✨ More Being Human
→ Previously (or rather, a few times before), I shared about my plans of pursuing further studies abroad. Just a recap: I have a master’s in public administration, but that’s not what I do anymore, so the courses I applied for were generally in Communications (because this is what I’ve been doing since since and what I do to this day). I received acceptance letters to a few universities last year, and I have been eyeing two of them (and have been kind of working on them) in the past months.
But I do recognize that a lot of things have happened since I made that initial decision (I deferred my slots as soon as I knew the weight of it all), and now that I’m trying to get back on a new track, I’m overwhelmed by all the steps I still need to take. Financially, I’m not ready, and that’s not only number 1, but also the most important 1. I do try my best and try to be hopeful, applying to scholarships here and there and saving up, but we know how these things can go.
What I need help with is to process the pros and cons. I have my own list (and mind and life, lol) for sure but if you can humor me and share your two cents (and maybe some concrete advice and suggestions and personal experiences) about this plan, I’d love to hear.
***
That’s all for now! I hope you picked up something fun or useful.
If you have any questions, suggestions, or nice things to say (hehe), type them in the comments section below or reply to the email. You can also always join my Patreon and/or the OK to BE Discord, and visit my page.
See you in the next one!
☀️ KB
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Huge thanks to all the readers of this newsletter, my patrons, and the OK to BE Discord community! If you enjoyed this, you can help me keep the newsletter going by buying me a coffee. :)
Oh, I'm also starting over too! Here's to the trying again, KB!
Like the new pfp (please tell me what this means haha!). You have interesting reads so far and a few are on my TBR, I occasionally see your Twitter threads, do you post reviews somewhere, KB?
GO FOR IT!! Although financial factor is a huge one. I remember withdrawing a scholarship grant because enrolling would also mean giving up a part of what secures my living. I wasn't ready but to be honest, I always have that thought "what if I pursued it?", and, "if I pursue it now... but I'm much older and years have gone by".. these thoughts. MAYBE if I've had these thoughts back then, I would have pursued it regardless. So have that "a year from now, five years from now" thoughts maybe??