Galleon Dreaming

The inaugural anthology highlights work from twenty-five global Filipino authors.

Inspired by the galleon trade, stories and poems in this inaugural work delve into fear, darkness, and the unknown.

Read stories of mystery, horror, psychological suspense, the macabre, and re-tellings of mythology, all presented in the rich storytelling tradition of the Philippines. 

Michael Oliveros (they/them/theirs) is a genderqueer Filipino American storyteller whose work spans several disciplines, from performance to poetry to digital artwork. Regardless of the medium, they find themself wrestling with hauntings and in-betweens. Their work is contextualized by their relationship with diasporas, queerness, and grief. Find them at @inkybattlefields.

Jules P.F. is a Filipina peace and conflict researcher and author. Her research interests include critical, feminist, and decolonial approaches to conflict resolution. She is exploring creative nonfiction and essays on mythweaving Filipino folklore and futures as a form of cultural reclamation. She was born in Manila, Philippines, and raised on the unceded territories of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish), and səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) Nations (Vancouver). She is currently living in Havana, Cuba. Find her at juliapalmianofederer.com  and @julespfbooks.

Kris Pajarito started out in entertainment, pinning storyboards and running dailies for directors and producers at DreamWorks Animation while finishing a Visual Arts & Film degree at the University of California, San Diego. After two credited feature films (in story and editorial) and a concurrent M.A. in Humanities (she's obsessed with history & culture), Kris decided to change her path from film editing to writing. Over a decade later, Pajarito still doesn't consider herself a one-discipline kind of writer. Her approach to copywriting is exactly the same as when she concepts for creative writing: she thinks of consumers as characters. Who are they and what makes them tick? The backstories are endless. Find her at krispajaritowriter.com and view the YouTube interview.

Thea C. Perales was raised in British Columbia, Canada. Her family immigrated from the Philippines when she was less than two years old. As a child, she would get in trouble for wanting to read a book instead of playing soccer during recess. She would spend her days dreaming of new ideas for future books and stories she wanted to write one day. Thea completed her undergraduate degree in English literature and is continuing her pursuit of higher education to one day become a university professor. Her first published short story “Tabi Tabi Po!” seeks to deconstruct colonial influences in Philippine mythology, while navigating a maternal relationship of adoration and understanding. Through the support of her loving family, Thea is able to create work that helps her connect to her Filipino identity. Like many kids that grew up away from where their parents came from, Thea always felt out of place—writing gave her a sense of belonging. She hopes that other people who may also feel out of place find some community with her work.

Noelle Grace O. Pico is a writer, musician, and professional creative living in Pasig City, Philippines. As a classically trained pianist and a lifelong student of dance, she views the poetic line as choreography, using cadence and sound to manage the emotional narrative in an act of dialogue. Her early work appeared in the Sunday Inquirer Magazine and the anthology Crowns and Oranges: Works by Young Philippine Poets, and she's released three original songs over on Bandcamp. Her more recent poetry is featured in The Eunoia Review, Soul Poetry, Prose & Arts Magazine, and is forthcoming from Fluorescent Magazine. Currently, she is pacing her creative work as she shapes the manuscript for her debut poetry chapbook. Approaching writing outside the traditional MFA track, Noelle balances the mechanics of writing with a deep sense of play both in her personal projects and professional work. Her degree in Behavioral Science and the brief period where she pursued graduate studies for Language and Literature at De La Salle University-Manila informs her choice to treat writing as a cross-disciplinary tool where she pulls across favorite media and experiences that challenge her world view. In her downtime, Noey—as most people call her—hangs out on Instagram and Threads as @thenoeychu. There, she shares poetry sketches, personal photography, and the ongoing adventures of her overgrown soot sprite of a cat, Jinx.

Zeny May Recidoro is a Filipino Independent Art Writer and Artist currently residing in Orlando, Florida. She is a recipient of the Asian Cultural Council fellowship grant from 2018 to 2020. In 2024, she was part of the Burnaway Art Writing Incubator cohort, and was a fellow for Fiction at the 63rd University of the Philippines National Writer’s Workshop held in Iloilo City. She has a degree in Art Studies from the University of the Philippines, and an MFA in Art Writing and Criticism from the School of Visual Arts. Her literary works have been published in Lontar: A Journal of Southeast Asian Speculative Fiction, University of Hong Kong’s Yuan Yang, Cha: An Asian Literary Journal, quarrtsiluni, Terse Journal, Unlikely Journal, Ateneo de Manila University’s Kritika Kultura, Queen Mobs Tea House, Variable West, and Berfois. One of her early poems, We (2012; Best of the Net nominee, 2013) was translated into Chinese for Verse and Voice Poetry Magazine in 2017. As an art writer, she has written for the Brooklyn Rail, Degree Critical, Variable West, and Burnaway: a Magazine for Contemporary Art in the South. Her essay “Works-in-Progress: Artistic Practices and Digital Communities” appeared in the Philippine Contemporary Art Network’s Writing Presently. She has a suite of five poems in Likhaan: the Journal of Contemporary Philippine Literature. She works as a cook at Walt Disney World, paints, writes about art, writes fiction, and produces content for non-profit arts organization Women in the Arts, Inc. Youtube interview

Marie Sinadjan is a Filipino speculative fiction author of mythology and folklore retellings blended with fantasy, sci-fi, or horror, and themes of feminism, motherhood, or the diaspora experience. She is the co-author of The Prophecies of Ragnarok series, and her short stories have appeared in literary journals and anthologies across the world. Her short fiction includes "The Secret Keeper" (Devotion in the Open Air anthology, Inked in Gray Press), "Rite of Succession" (Paper Lanterns Literary Journal), "Requiem Trio" (Valkyries anthology, Iron Faerie Publishing), "Death Penalty" (Liwanag: Mga Bagong Alamat anthology, 8Letters Publishing), "Just A Byte" (Among Thorns and Stardust: A Sci-Fi Fairytale Anthology), and "Memento Mori" (Bloody Hell: An Anthology of UK Indie Horror). Originally from Cebu, Philippines, she now lives in the UK with her husband and daughter. Find her at mariesinadjan.com @quillandcrib.

Joshua Lim So is a Hall of Fame inductee of the Carlos Palanca Memorial Awards for Literature, twice recognized by the BBC International Radio Playwriting Competition, and a Bienvenido N Santos Creative Writing Center Fellow for Drama. He was granted an Asian Cultural Council New York Fellowship, and a St. La Salle scholarship to pursue his MFA in Creative Writing at De La Salle University. He has directed performances, including "Joe Cool: Aplikante", "Cubao Pagkagat ng Dilim", and "Acts of Piracy". His works have been published and discussed in The Best of Philippine Speculative Fiction, Likhaan: The Journal of Contemporary Philippine Literature, Science Fiction Research Association Review, The Year’s Best Fantasy & Horror 20th Annual Collection, The Routledge Concise History of Southeast Asian Writing in English, and others. He received his BA in Philippine Studies from DLSU. Born and raised in Davao City, he is now based in Manila.

Nikki Stinson received her Bachelor's degree in English from California Baptist University and her MFA in Creative Writing from Drexel University. Her debut novel Daughters of Mindanao won the 2025 Drexel Book Award and will be published with Running Wild Press in 2027. Nikki has also been published by On The Run, The Dazed Starling, The Write Launch, and more. She is originally from Riverside, California, and lives in the Philadelphia suburbs with her husband and three children. Please visit nstinson.com and follow @nikkistinson_ for news on upcoming publications or to say hi.

Michelle Tang (she/her) is a Chinese-Filipino writer of speculative fiction. Her short stories have been published by Cemetery Gates, Escape Pod, and Flame Tree Press, among others, and her debut novella, DuMort, was released in July 2025 by Ghost Orchid Press. Her debut novel, She Waits Where Shadows Gather, comes out Summer 2026.

B. C. Vidal Jr. was born and raised in Cebu, Philippines, where he first fell in love with literature. In his college years, he was a student paper editor and an ardent advocate of press freedom. After moving to the US in 2006, he settled with his family in North Carolina, where he has been working as a science professional for 20 years. He has lately returned to his love of writing, especially fiction. He is drawn to stories that teeter between reality and myth, between truth and speculation. Two of his short stories have recently been published in Hemlock Journal and Rooted Literary. When he's not behind the desk for his day job or writing stories, he's likely to be found fly fishing in the river.

Editor: Monica T. S. Flores is a short story writer exploring heritage, legacy, and identity. Her work is recognized in the Asian American Heritage Reading List by the Community of Literary Magazines and Presses.

Cover illustrator: Raf Banzuela is a graphic designer based in Legazpi.