I published Lingon, my first self-published book, through offset printing in 2016. I can’t believe it’s almost been 10 years! It’s now 2025 as I’m writing this. Let me tell you about the book and how I came to publish it.
Ever since I was young, I’ve always loved reading komiks. I remember when my mom would come home, she’d bring us puto and komiks as pasalubong. My brothers and I would always ask her to get us the latest issues because we were following the stories. I grew up reading Bata Batuta and Funny Komiks. I still have most of my komiks at home in Pangasinan.
I started making my own komiks when I was in first year high school. The title was Batang Y—a story about a group of friends who were abducted and gained powers, like the Power Rangers. I loved that first komiks because the main characters were me and my friends. They enjoyed reading about themselves and their adventures.
The second komiks I created was Mukat—an adventure story that was kind of like Dragon Ball Z meets Final Fantasy. The artwork had improved compared to my first. I think I drew it when I was in second or third year high school.
The third komiks I created was also titled Mukat. I regret naming it the same, but I’ve moved on. This version was full-blown Final Fantasy meets Pokémon meets Yu Yu Hakusho. I poured all my influences and the media I consumed into that story. It’s currently on a long-term hiatus, but I’d love to finish it someday. I don’t want it left hanging. Mukat (the second version) was actually born out of a requirement from our art group, eklipse.co.
Eklipse.co was a group of Funny Komiks fans—mostly artists. We exchanged artworks and letters with each other. It’s one of my fondest teenage memories.
I was also an avid reader of Culture Crash Comics. I joined their 8-page comics creation contest twice. I submitted high-resolution copies of my short komiks. The first was Payt 4 Lab—a story about two warriors fighting for the attention of their princess. The second was Kagubatan, a story about protecting nature.
I continued making komiks until I graduated college. But when I got my first job, I decided to focus on work and set aside my art. That decision haunted me for a long time. Because of it, I wasn’t able to continue Mukat and lost the momentum to draw. I just couldn’t find the time anymore.
I was introduced to Komikon by Kuya Bing Cansino, a Filipino komiks artist who had worked for Marvel, Image Comics, and more. In 2008, I joined the Komikon Comics Creation Contest. I submitted Baboy—a short story about a boy who turns into a vampire pig. The following year at Summer Komikon, I joined again with Dog Style—a love story between two dogs, inspired by Disney’s Lady and the Tramp. Later that same year, I joined once more and created MLU: Madramang Lambingan sa Umaga—another love story, but this time, the girl saves the boy.
After that, I joined an art group that participated in conventions. During that time, I released Mukat (the second version) in single issues and eventually compiled them into two books.
Around 2012, we launched our webcomics series. The one I wrote and drew was Lucky Coin—a story about a man who finds a lucky coin. The reader follows his lucky adventures with unexpected twists and turns.
I also joined the 24-Hour Comic Book Challenge twice—once on-site, and the other from home. I successfully completed the second attempt. On my first try, I didn’t know what to expect and unfortunately failed, but I did manage to finish the story after the 24-hour mark.
Years later, I joined another komiks group—this time made up of Pangasinense creators. Together, we launched the SIKAMI komiks anthology. As of now, we’ve published eight books. We took a break during the pandemic, but we’re back! Currently, I’m reaching out to members so they can contribute to the next volume in time for the upcoming conventions in late 2025.
Over the years of working on SIKAMI, I built up a collection of short komiks, which I eventually compiled into Lingon: A Short Comics Anthology. More to come!
