Narnian Envoy at the RoD Con
Read or Die Convention Summons: February 3, 2007 :: Narnian Scribe: Francis Pasion
ast February 3 and 4, the first literary convention in the Philippines commenced. The Read or Die Convention was held at the prestigious Hotel Intercontinental Manila, with special guests composed of writers, readers, and various organizations related to literature.
The Philippine Order of Narnians was indeed privileged to have been invited to the said gathering with the help of the New Worlds Alliance—the umbrella organization of the science fiction and fantasy fan groups in the Philippines.. The gathering of the envoy was held on the first day of convention, in time for the speaking engagements of the two of TPON’s Royals, R.E. de Leon and Cristina Montes.
The talk held at a conference room in the second floor of the hotel began at around 1PM. The Narnians present were Martin, Gushi, and Francis (and who knows? There might be three or four Narnians in the audience as well). The audience at the seminar composed of writers and fans of the popular culture were reactive and engaged in the three speakers of that event: RE de Leon (TPON) on his talk of Philippine Mythopoeia, Frances Sangil (PHP) on her talk on the Villain’s Journey—very reminiscent of Joseph Campbell’s Hero’s Journey archetype, and Cristina Montes (TPON and TPTS) who spoke about JRR Tolkien’s view of the Just War.
The audience was highly enthusiastic of the talks, and indeed it brought to light the essential centers of why literature (and even film and story-telling) is still relevant today.
The seminar ended at around 1:30 pm and the Narnians proceeded towards the NWA booth to help out with the marketing of NWA and TPON. There the Narnians encountered other Narnians as well: Belay, Altariel, Mika and Mara. The group had fun and had group pictures as this is indeed a memorable event.
The convention was quite busy and the Narnians just roamed around scouting for rare books and events that might interest them. By 3:30 pm some of the Royals were already gone but the Narnians who were left were still mingling and having fun. :D