Welcome to my personal site! I’m John Pucay, a writer. Feel free to read my selected stories below. You can learn more about me, my novel, and my short film at the bottom.
Creative Non-Fiction (Personal Essays)
I often write about relationships, polyamory, running, life, and living as an artist. If you like and/or relate to these pieces, please feel free to reach out: john@johnpucay.com; Instagram @johnpucay
- Soulless 9-5, 2 a.m. walks (Philippine Daily Inquirer)
- Celebrating Valentine’s As a Polyamorous Quad (Vice)
- Polyamory and the nuances of having multiple partners (Rappler)
- A Man And A Child Died In An Accident. I Survived (Your Tango)
- Summer Job (Philippine Daily Inquirer)
Medium
These are some of my most-read nonfiction pieces on the writing platform, Medium, where I earned Top Writer status for memoir-type pieces. Since Medium is paywalled, I am sharing a special friend link that allows you to read these short essays for free.
To read more of my work on Medium, feel free to visit johnpucay.medium.com
- Trying to Make a Living as an Artist (Pursuing art despite a financially challenged background)
- 3 Requests on a Last date (A long-term couple meets for the final time)
- A Night of Dancing With the Cool Kids (I’ve never been ‘cool’ as a teenager. I try to experience that now)
- How to Lose a Victory (Sometimes your morale makes all the difference)
- Childhood Wishes Have an Expiration Date (Attaining childhood wishes as an adult)
- I Found Comfort and Peace in the Darkness (The mountain is a strange, serene place at midnight)
- I Threw Away 3 Different Drafts To Complete My First Novel (Before I finally published it)
Fiction (Literary fiction, magical realism)
Unlike my essays, I have much fewer published fiction works. That’s likely because my fiction writing tends to be longer, like my novel, or ranges into 4000-word or so stories. I have several on my laptop, but they’re not ready to go into the world yet. Soon.
Missing Quarantine Pass (University of the Philippines Diliman — Likhaan Journal)
It started with an unbearable craving for strawberries. Ramil ignored the urge, browsed his email, then joined his wife in bed. But he couldn’t sleep. He closed his eyes only to see a tall mountain with a huge strawberry on top. Midnight struck, and he could no longer bear it. He knew there were no strawberries in the house. But he got up and squirreled through the fridge and kitchen cupboards, rousing Eliza, a light sleeper, who joined him. The craving was contagious, like a yawn in a room full of people. They took turns opening the fridge and cupboards again and again. They gave up after an hour. Then they noticed it was missing…
The Weight of Freedom (Anomaly Journal of Literature & Arts)
At a young age, Naila had learned that milking the government for money was her best route to a better life. There are important things in the world accessible only to the privileged, so she learned to climb the floors of an invisible, commonly denied social caste. The government was her ladder. “A bureaucratic world is only looking for two things: impeccable papers, and a convincing face to present them.” Naila’s old mentor, The Councilor, used to say. “Do this and government coffers will open up to you, like a flower.”
A Ghost in Quarantine (Brittle Star Literary Magazine — UK)
My contact list is filled with friends, family, former work colleagues, and acquaintances I can technically message, out of the blue, to talk to — especially when they’re posting things like “message me if you need someone to talk to #Quarantine, #MentalHealth” on social media — but I don’t message any of them because I can’t really talk to them…
About Me (Professional Bio)
John Pucay (pronounced Jaan Poo-kuy) writes about life, relationships, running, polyamory, and trying to make a living as an artist. His novel on 2020s dating, Karinderya Love Songs, was named one of Fully Booked Reading Allies‘ favorite books of 2022. He is the 1st prize winner of the 2023 Jimmy Balacuit Literary Awards (MSU-IIT, NCCA) for short fiction. And his short film, Game Boy Advance, is an official selection in the San Diego Filipino Film Festival 2024.
His short stories have been published in the 16th Likhaan Journal of the University of the Philippines-Diliman, Anomaly Literary Journal, and Brittle Star (UK). While his creative non-fiction essays have appeared in Vice, Rappler, the Philippine Daily Inquirer, Your Tango, and Thought Catalog, among others. The eldest son of a jeepney driver, John belongs to the Kankanaey-Ibaloi indigenous tribes of Cordillera.
More details about him and his work are available at johnpucay.com. Email him your thoughts: john@johnpucay.com; Instagram @johnpucay
Professional bio aside…
I quit my corporate profession in 2020 to pursue writing full-time. Being the eldest son of a jeepney driver, I couldn’t afford to leisurely write without earning from it. So far:
- My writing income on the platform, Medium, pays for the internet, the bills, and the cafe expenses. Meanwhile, my nonfiction book-writing client pays for my food, life, and rent money.
- I finished and published my debut novel, Karinderya Love Songs, after throwing away three different drafts.
- I also finished production on two short films. They are a pair of very expensive, self-funded labors of love. Game Boy Advance, which I finished in 2023, is an official selection in the San Diego Filipino Film Festival 2024. The other one, which finished production this year, is undergoing post-production.
- Had my FIRST tattoo at the 62nd Silliman University National Writers Workshop, the oldest creative writing program in Southeast Asia. The SUNWW is a two-week literary workshop where I was awarded a 2024 fellowship for short fiction. The experience made such an impact that my co-fellows and I inked our skin to mark it.
- Prior to SUNWW, I was also awarded a fellowship in the Iligan National Writers Workshop in 2023. INWW is the third-oldest literary workshop in the Philippines.
- Presently, I provide writing and research services for bloggers, professionals, and companies.
Karinderya Love Songs — a novel on 2020s dating and relationships
Set in the 2020s, the 23-year-old unnamed narrator is recovering from a bad breakup. He meets Kayla, a college freshman he approached at a cafe. And they spend a Viagra-assisted night together. Then they each confess a secret. She had two abortions. And he can’t get an erection unless his partner is cheating on someone by sleeping with him.
The narrator, Kayla, and R — a friend who broke off her engagement — spend drunken nights in Metro Manila and Baguio City. They purge all that alcohol through mountain excursions. And they struggle against a modern dating landscape akin to a Filipino karinderya: Bland, readily available food that gorges but doesn’t sate.
Karinderya Love Songs is a Fully Booked Reading Allies’ favorite book of 2022.
KLS is available on Amazon. Learn more about the book here, and check out the Goodreads Reviews here.
Game Boy Advance — a short film on childhood
Set in 2008, in Baguio City and Benguet, Philippines: Elias, aged 12, wants to rent a suit and attend the school dance. However, suit rentals are way above the means of a poor janitor’s son. So Elias scavenges and sells recyclable scraps to afford it.
As Elias confronts the realities of growing up in an indigent household, he is forced to make a responsible, “mature” decision that costs him a significant part of his childhood.
Game Boy Advance ©2023 John Pucay
“Sidung” and “Sidung — Acoustic (GBA Version)” are original songs by El Sarlipan. Executive producer: John Pucay. Both songs were produced for Game Boy Advance.
Learn more about the short film here.