Judge, Ako? (My thoughts plus Giveaway)

When my good author friend Jahric Lago asked me if I can be a preliminary judge for the next Jahric Lago Present's anthology called Misty Moon, I was excited and nervous.

It was my first time to be invited as a judge.

I accepted the position because my writing career started at JLP. My first self-published book was printed under TBC Publications. I felt like it was time to give back and at the same time, as an alumna of the anthology, I hoped to help fellow and upcoming writers too.

There were 52 short stories that I need to finish reading and give feedback before May 10. I was pressured because I know how slow sometimes I read and I was worried that I might not be able to submit on the said deadline.

What did I do?

-I read four stories a day. I usually started by late afternoon and tried my best to end before 12 midnight.

-Research. There were unfamiliar words that I encountered like higera, sipres, brumosa, baiser dela mort and tako kichi to name a few. There were things that I also need to check out.

-Be like a sponge. While reading and critiquing the stories, I absorbed whatever I can learn from each one of the entries.

-Put myself in their shoes. When I sent my first JLP story: I Love You Goodbye, I was scared. I knew how it feels to joined with self-doubt. As much as possible, I took the time to be fair to my comments and feedback to the submitters.

-Enjoy. There were nights that I read almost the same characters like mermaids and it drained me yet, I would always look forward to the next manuscript.

I savored the experience that's why I'm sharing it will all of you. Because you might be a judge or be invited to be part of a decision making that can change the lives of people.

I'm grateful to Jahric Lago and TBC Publications for considering me as one of the judges of the upcoming anthology. It was a privilege to read the stories first and helping out to improve fellow writers with their crafts. Thank you for your trust in picking the top 20 semifinalists.

I'm extending my gratitude to my preliminary judge partner, Master Istoker aka Garb for correcting me of some stories that I did not understand and for exchanging thoughts. Thanks for clearing my clouded mind and pointing out important details that I missed.

And to boost the confidence of the contestants vying to be part of the top 10, let's support them by reading the excerpts, vote, and even giving out comments!

To make this more exciting, I'm having a giveaway that runs today until May 31, 2020.

Check out my FB post with this blog post to know how but I'm listing down the links where you need to visit:

Vote and leave your comments here for Misty Moon entries: https://www.wattpad.com/story/224656566

Vote and leave your comments here for Rainbow entries:

https://www.wattpad.com/story/224658595