Wednesday, August 17, 2011

...the novel that becomes tourism pitch

Pinay's hit int'l novel promotes Boracay

A new hit fiction novel by Filipino author Samantha Sotto is turning out to be a tourism pitch for world-famous Boracay Island in Western Visayas.

In a call on the Philippine Embassy to Washington, Sotto said that while her novel "Before Ever After" is set in Europe, Boracay figured prominently the story.

"She informed Philippine ambassador Jose Cuisia Jr. that] while the setting of her novel is Europe, the famous island resort of Boracay in the Philippines is an important location in the story," the Philippine Embassy to Washington D.C. said in a news release.

"My being Filipino was definitely a plus. My living overseas was not an issue at all with my publisher," added Sotto, who lives in the Philippines.

Also, she said there are no barriers to Filipino talent and one of her goals in being an author is to raise awareness about the Philippines.

Sotto's fiction novel is published by the prestigious Random House, and was released last August 2. She is the second Filipino after National Artist for Literature F. Sionil Jose to have her work published by Random House.

"Before Ever After" is a love story that defies the boundaries of time and space. Sotto wrote it at a coffee shop while waiting for her son to get off from school. It is her first work.

For his part, Cuisia expressed pride at Sotto's achievement and urged her to continue with her good work to showcase Filipino talent not just in the US but in many parts of the world, the embassy said.

Sotto said she is already working on a second book. She said she is "80 percent done" with the second book and will be back in the US in October for more promotional events. — KBK, GMA News

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