I have always argued that Neil Gaiman is more than just a writer. He’s a story teller. There are some writers, who, when you listen to them speak, sound as if they are speaking in prose. The sentences they construct are uttered with a cadence that makes you stop to listen to every word as he effortlessly highlights his point with stops, intonation and the perfect choice of words.
Mr. Gaiman tells how Philippine literature is rich in realism, yet not so in unrealism as, according to him, we have the richest culture in the world. He didn’t say one of the richest. He said we are the richest. Don’t you wonder?
P.S. Perhaps you’ve already heard about it, but during the 2007 Ad Congress, Neil Gaiman served as pastor to two bronze award winners. The tale is recounted here for the guy and here for the girl. Neil writes about it here. Sadly, I was not able to make it to the ad congress, but I did catch him at Fully Booked, where he recounted the tale.
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One of the richest probably. Given the number of tribe, kingdoms, colonizers, and traders that came to the Philippines it is not surprising.
Even during the Early Spanish Colonial Period Manila was known as a cultural melting pot.
you were there too? were you at the press con?
I was able to attend the press con and took tons of pictures.
I have a link to my pictures in my blog.
you stop to listen to every word as he effortlessly highlights his point with stops, intonation and the perfect choice of words.
Definitely. If he had lived in ancient times, he would probably have been one of the most respected bards/storytellers EVER. Its not often we get to see and hear someone that good with words.
he said also that the greatest american comic artist..is a filipino!
great to hear that
conrad de quiros calls this a “magic realist” country. he’s coming from a different direction compared to neil gaiman, but between the two of them, there’s definitely a lot of material for a story teller
@azrael — yeah i forgot his name though but he’s supposed to draw the next series after Civil War!
you remember his name? hes the cover artist for expeditions
@rina: makes you wonder why were flooded with a lot of korean telenovelas.
We have culture? Hehe. I wonder how he came to that conclusion. I sure hope he’s being sincere — and I hope to see whatever culture he’s talking about. hehe
[...] this, send some love over and allow us folks from the Philippines to listen to your audiobooks. You love it here anyway [...]