Telling her story

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Telling Her Story How a Kalinga Village Girl's Writing Journey Led to Literary Success

In the mountains of Kalinga province, a young girl once walked barefoot to school along dirt trails. Today, that same girl, Joan Saga-oc, is an author who has gained international recognition for her writing.

Saga-oc, 33, from the Uma tribe in Sitio Magmag-an, Barangay Upper Uma, Lubuagan, Kalinga, was recently named first-prize winner in the 2025 Carlos Palanca Memorial Awards for Literature for her personal essay, Echoes of Life in a Kalinga Village Past and Present.

The Power of Storytelling

Growing up in the 1990s in a small mountain village with no electricity or proper roads, Saga-oc's childhood was spent helping in the fields, playing in the forest, and gathering at night in a communal hut with other children to listen to elders share stories. This nightly entertainment was her training ground for writing.

At just 8 years old, she discovered a love for reading in secondhand textbooks brought by her mother from Manila. While managing the irrigation flow in their family's rice paddies, Saga-oc would read by the canals. However, it was the storytelling sessions with elders that truly shaped her writing skills.

A Legacy of Storytelling

Saga-oc credits her mother for introducing her to a love of books when she brought back secondhand texts from Manila. This sparked her desire to write like those authors. Little did she realize that the village's Friday night storytelling events, where children would gather at the hut of their village narrator, were her real training ground for writing.

Pursuing Her Passion

Saga-oc's writing is deeply rooted in her childhood experiences in a remote Kalinga village without modern conveniences. Her work focuses on preserving the memory and culture of her village through stories that echo far beyond her community.

In 2024, she self-published two books Stories from Kalinga Memoir of a Village Girl and Folktales from a Kalinga Village. The former was selected by the National Book Development Board to represent the Philippines at the Frankfurt Book Fair in Germany. Her folktale collection also received a competitive grant from the National Commission for Culture and the Arts for helping preserve oral stories at risk of being lost.

Balancing Life and Writing

As she pursues her passion, Saga-oc balances her demanding schedule with her writing, finding time early mornings, evenings, or on weekends to work on new projects. Her Palanca-winning essay is part of her upcoming second book of essays on life in a Kalinga village.

Future Plans

Saga-oc is already working on more projects, including a collection of household stories and folk tales from the children of Uma Elementary School. She has also begun researching topics related to village life, planning to record the oral traditions of the elderly community members.

Conclusion

The Carlos Palanca Memorial Awards for Literature are among the country's highest honors for writers. Saga-oc's win is a testament to her dedication and passion for storytelling, as well as a tribute to the culture and community that raised her.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

Major achievement Joan Saga-oc won first prize at the 2025 Carlos Palanca Memorial Awards for Literature for her essay Echoes of Life in a Kalinga Village Past and Present.
Inspiration and themes Her writing is rooted in her childhood experiences in a remote Kalinga village without modern conveniences, with an emphasis on preserving oral traditions and cultural heritage.
Dual career Saga-oc serves in the Philippine Air Force while balancing her passion for writing with her demanding full-time job.
Previous success She has self-published two books and received recognition for her work, including being selected to represent the Philippines at the Frankfurt Book Fair and receiving a grant from the National Commission for Culture and the Arts.
* Future mission Saga-oc's ongoing work remains focused on cultural preservation, with plans to record more stories from the community's elders and compile a book of folk tales collected from elementary school children.

Edward Lance Arellano Lorilla

CEO / Co-Founder

Enjoy the little things in life. For one day, you may look back and realize they were the big things. Many of life's failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up.