Babbling Point

When TRESE: UNREPORTED MURDERS was nominated in the 2008 National Book Awards, I wrote this speech, thinking we had a good chance of winning since we were the only finalist. As most if you already know, we didn't win last year . When were told that TRESE: MASS MURDERS was a finalist for the 2009 National Book Awards, I felt happy and excited, but tried not to get my hopes up. And yet, I couldn't help up but dig up that speech I wrote, thinking that maybe November 13 (the day of the awards) would be our lucky day. Since I knew I'd still be in the UK during the night of the awards, I emailed my speech to Nida Ramirez, our publisher and asked her to read it in case we won. As it turned out, November 13 was our lucky day as TRESE: MASS MURDERS got awarded the National Book Award for Best Graphic Literature of 2009 . Here's the speech I would've wanted to read on the night of the awards: To the National Book Development Board and the Manila Critics Circle, than...

The Official Citation from the 2009 National Book Awards : Powerful, iconic characters comic book characters Darna , Zuma and Captain Barbell, among others, emerged fully-formed from the mind of Filipino comic creators. That creativity continues to this day, in all directions, in different ways. But in Trese, Budjette Tan and Kajo Baldisimo have a stunningly original idea, swathed in the irresistible spookiness of our folklore and the edged mythology of our urban legends. Alexandra Trese, the enigmatic paranormal investigator and her lethal bodyguards the Kambal helps the police when encountering cases that just don’t make any sense of the normal kind. In the process, Tan and Baldisimo offers us a peek into the supernatural embedded into Metro Manila’s badly lit corners. In the first volume, Trese: Murder on Balete Drive, we are introduced to Alexandra and her team, and the second volume, Trese: Unreported Murders, showed us one peculiar procedural after another. But it is in this th...

The NBDB and the Manila Critics Circle are pleased to announce this year's finalists of the 29th National Book Awards. Winners will be announced on November 13 at The Metropolitan Museum of Manila. Graphic Literature 1. Trese: Mass Murders, Ferdinand-Benedict G. Tan and Jonathan A. Baldisimo (Visprint) 2. El Indio A Graphic Novel by Francisco V. Coching (Vibal Foundation) See the complete list of finalists at: http://nbdb.gov.ph/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=827&Itemid=1

You can now order the complete set of TRESE at http://powerbooks.com.ph Just click on the links below: TRESE: MURDER ON BALETE DRIVE http://powerbooks.com.ph/webinternal/products.asp?product_id=4204 TRESE: UNREPORTED MURDERS http://powerbooks.com.ph/webinternal/products.asp?product_id=4770 TRESE: MASS MURDERS http://powerbooks.com.ph/webinternal/products.asp?product_id=5049

As of this writing TRESE: MASS MURDERS is now available in Comic Odyssey. It will be available in bookstores and other comic book shops by next week and will be available nationwide by the end of November. While you wait for it to arrive in a store near you, here's a preview of the first chapter of the book. Enjoy! TRESE: MASS MURDERS 15-page preview More diabolical treats for you! TRESE: The Devil's Playground http://tresekomix.blogspot.com/2009/10/trese-devils-playground.html TRESE: Masquerade (preview pages) http://tresekomix.blogspot.com/2009/10/trese-gone-rogue.html More TRESE art from Kajo: http://exhibit13.blogspot.com/search/label/Kajo

During the 2005 Komikon, we launched the very first issue of TRESE. We sold that Xeroxed edition of TRESE: AT THE INTERSECTION OF BALETE AND 13TH STREET for P30. Six hours after the gates of the Komikon had opened, we had already sold out all the copies of TRESE. I excitedly texted family and friends that my comic book was sold out. Great! Wonderful! Congrats! How many copies did you sell?, they all asked. I replied : 50 copies! In the recently concluded 2009 Komikon, we launched TRESE: MASS MURDERS. Two hours after the gates had opened, we had already sold all the copies. I leaned over to Ella of Visprint to ask how many copies did they bring. 180 copies, she replied. That did not even include all the copies of TRESE Book1 & 2 that were sold. So, if my 2009-version traveled back to talk to my 2005-version and told him we’d sell almost 1,000 copies in a single day, I would’ve probably told him he was insane! Which would not have been surprising considering this whole TRESE experie...

It's going to be a bloody Sunday at the Komikon! Join us for the launch of TRESE: MASS MURDERS at the Komikon 2009, Oct 18, Sunday, Megatrade Hall . 12 midnight at Metro Manila. Try to remain calm if you suddenly spot a tikbalang speeding down EDSA or a manananggal swooping across the Makati skyline. While partying at the Fort, never ever let the enkanto at the bar buy you a drink. Yet, there are deadlier things than walk the streets of this city. One of them now demands blood and sacrifice. When crime takes a turn for a weird, the police call Trese. TRESE: MASS MURDERS contains the following: Case 9: A Private Retaliation Case 10: Patient 414 in Mandaluyong Case 11: The Fort Bonifacio Massacre Case 12: The Baptism of Alexandra Trese Case 13: An Act of War This book has an introduction by Mark Gatela, who was my co-writer in that horror radio show "The World of the Unknown". Mark was the one who thought of the name Anton Trese, so I thought it was only appropriate for Mar...

Last Saturday, we were able to get our advanced copies of TRESE: MASS MURDERS from Visprint. Aside from our personal copies, we were also given the copies for the 48 people who prepaid for it at the Manila Book Fair. So, me and Kajo signed and doodled on those books-- which should be arriving at your doorstep on or before Friday. (I found it interesting that out of the 48 who prepaid, more than half were women.) Thank you very much to the 48! Hope you like it a lot and enjoy the extra treat we've slipped in the book. And as far as the rest of you are concerned... the book will be launched at the Komikon, Oct 18, Megatrade Hall! See you there!!!

No... no... this is not the latest incarnation of the Justice League. This is a picture of me and Kajo at the Visprint booth at the recent Manila International Book Fair. (Thanks to Wella for taking the pic) And before you ask, "Who's that character beside Gloomy Kambal?" ... let me tell you that that's Bob Ong. I meant ... that's Bob Ong's KAPITAN SINO character. (Now that I look at all these characters together, it might be a bad idea to do a "marvel team-up" starring all of them. Maybe we can do that next year.) Anyway, we just wanted to say thank you to every one who dropped by the Visprint booth while we were there. Thanks to every one who pre-paid for Book 3. Thank you for being so excited and for being so patient. We're just putting the finishing touches to it right now. The Book Fair also gave us the chance to sit and chat with Alan "Girl Trouble" Navarra , David "Penumbra" Hontiveros , Carlo "Ang Kagilagilalas n...

GOOD NEWS! The MANILA INTERNATIONAL BOOK FAIR aka MIBF is happening this week! September 16-20, 2009 10:00 AM - 8:00 PM SMX Convention Center, SM Mall of Asia Complex, Pasay City http://www.manilabookfair.com/ GOOD NEWS! Visprint will have a booth at the MIBF. http://visprintpub.blogspot.com/ BAD NEWS :-( Trese Book3 will NOT be available at the MIBF. (sorry!) GREAT NEWS! You can pre-order Book3 “TRESE: MASS MURDERS” at the MIBF! We’ll deliver your autographed copy free of charge*, 1 week before the book's commercial release! You’ll even get the chance to win an original Trese artwork from Kajo Baldisimo. You can also pre-order these upcoming Visprint books: CRASH, a Not Quite Unreal sequel , by Carlos Malvar 12 , by Manix Abrera MECHANICS: 1. Promo applies to Metro Manila addresses only*. 2. Advanced order and payments should be made during the MIBF. 3. Promo forms available at the Visprint booth. See you at the Book Fair!