Renato Gandia

Category: Short Fiction

  • Shortlisted is a strange kind of winning

    When I learned that I had been shortlisted for the Open Season Award in Poetry by The Malahat Review, my first instinct was not to celebrate. It was to stay quiet. Not in a dramatic, vow-of-silence way. More in the practical, self-protective way writers learn over time: if you don’t tell anyone, you don’t have…

  • Becoming Salingpusa

    When Cecilia Ortiz Luna first reached out to ask if I would help her revive Salingpusa, I paused before saying yes. It wasn’t hesitation—it was awe. I knew the name carried weight in Calgary’s Filipino-Canadian arts community: a magazine born out of the desire to give voice to writers and artists who often create in…

  • The joys of writing

    Writing is my sanctuary, my canvas, and my voice. It’s not just about stringing words together; it’s a journey of self-discovery, creativity, and expression that fills me with boundless joy. When I sit down to write, I embark on a voyage into the depths of my imagination. Whether I’m crafting a story, pouring my heart…