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Friday, February 5, 2010

Interview with Aira Ledesma

Aira Ledesma discovered her talent in writing as early as seven years old. Up to date, she has written hundreds of pocketbooks including the very popular Bestfriends Series. Here's a short interview with her.


1.)When did you start writing?
As romance pocketbook writer,1995.

2.)Did you experience rejection? How did you cope with it?
The first time I experienced rejection, I stopped writing. I felt bad and frustrated. I kept the rejected manuscript for months. Then, there was this new publication that opened doors. I decided to submit my rejected manuscript with this in mind: if ever ma-reject ito uli, it means I am not meant to be a romance pocketbook writer. So what I did was I ironed every crumpled page of my rejected manuscript to make it appear newly typed. During that time, computers were not that popular yet so writers used typewriters instead. To my delight, which gave me a new hope, that manuscript was approved. In addition, an editor of another publication talked to me and got me to be their regular writer. That ended my frustrations and the rest was history.

3.)What do you do if you have the writer's block?
I stopped writing and turned off my computer. . I'll do something else and try to relax my mind. When I have rested enough from writing, I figured out what's wrong with my manuscript. That's the time I'll think what scenes should comes next. It is very important to get rid of the writer's block before a writer continues writing. For me, it's like an obstacle in a game. You can't continue playing in another level unless you have resolved the hindering obstacle.

4.)Any tips for the aspiring writers?
If you feel you are a borne writer by heart, don't stop dreaming to be one. Read as many romance pocketbooks as you can for a start to familiarize yourself with the formula. Yes, love story writing has a formula. As for myself, reading Mills and Boons was my training ground. By constant reading, I was able to determine how a story should run and what are the important elements that should compose it.

I got this tip from the first publisher that accepted my first published manuscript. According to him, the dilemma of the characters must already be established in the first ten pages of your story. He also said that the writer must have the ability to arouse the curiosity of the readers at the very start of the story. Most of the time, it must be written in the female character's point of view since the target market of romance pocketbooks are women. Aside from being a wide reader, the writer must know her characters and can give justification if ever there are deviations from the normal characterization.

Be attentive, be a good listener, be a wide reader, be a keen observer, be alert and aware with everything and everyone around you. For who knows? A single word that you may hear from a person next to you or a funny act from someone you bump in a department store may lead you to a good story plot.

3 comments:

GagayMD said...

hi! adgitizing here today!!


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The Twitterer said...

thanks for sharing. frustration ko ang maging romance novel writer. i had unfinished manuscripts written especially during my high school/college days but when i started working, i became busy with work. hindi ko na natapos-tapos ang mga stories.

Unknown said...

When I was in grade 6 I guess, my classmate Diane introduce your stories to me. Each day we spent our vacant time reading your pocketbooks, I found it nakaka-kilig yet not bastos just like other romance books. I love your series and I'm still remembering some scenarios from it. Looking forward to continue reading all your Bestfriend's Series 'coz I have stopped since Diane and I separated ways. I'm your big fan maam ♥

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