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Resilient

Over the past year, we’ve heard the Philippine government praise the Filipino people for their resilience during the pandemic. And let me just say it right here, I am sick and tired of hearing this lame excuse for incompetence. Resilience is what they call Filipinos who have no choice but to pick themselves up and…

2021 is a sentence

The past year has been filled with a chasm of uncertainty. It crept into our veins as if we were living in a big world of suspended animation. The lockdown happened in March 2020. It was particularly daunting for me because I spent my 28th birthday knowing that I would wake up the next day…

March 2021 Micro Poetry Round-Up

Looking at these poems, it seems like I was on a roll during my birthday month! I think I made a conscious effort to sit down and write something for the week. Here’s to hoping that it actually becomes a habit that I’ll keep for the rest of the year. Over the past month, I…

About Me

Neen (she/her) is a Pinay (Filipina) living in Sydney, Australia, who enjoys exploring pop culture and diving into the endless rabbit holes of the Internet. A lover of good books, Starbucks, and the Oxford comma, her body of work reflects the complexities and truths of the Filipino diaspora.

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Couldn’t let @booktober end on Halloween night without posting about one of the best poetry collections I’ve read this year: KONTRA by @eunice.andrada 🖤 My first review for @booktober is up on the site. Clara Capybara is such a fun little read. As a lifelong people pleaser, I related to the theme. Many children want to please, and adults will see themselves in her. The book never scolds her. But shows how boundaries can also be kind. When Clara says ‘no’, it’s seen as self-care, making the book reassuring rather than heavy-handed. Asked my friend to ❤️ the photos he thought were keepers from last week. So here begins my #KatoombaLore. What a week! 🥹 Huge thanks to the dream mentors @lookingthinkingwording + @alexandria_burnham + @westwordsws, the magic of @nationalwritershouse, and the new friends (Tina, @marianna.saran and @beauxpetitsenfants), who made it all sparkle. From fireplace dinners with the best dark & stormie by Ally 🍹, to our one-last-hurrah in Leura, and of course the obligatory Boar’s Head lookout (petition to rename it #CapybaraHead 🫡) with drinks + nibbles—it’s been the absolute best. My poem Rodrigo Duterte is Someone’s Father has found a home in All My Relations, Volume 9: Revolution. 🥹 I know it’s been years since I made a post on this account but I couldn’t let the EOFY pass without saying how much the writing community at @westwordsws has helped me this year. From being part of the Academy’s 2025 cohort to my first open mic night, all of these are such valuable opportunites that support emerging writers like me. So please donate, if you can. Link in bio.

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