22/10/2025
"They say the horror movies you watch as a kid are the ones that really stick with you, and I think that holds true for me. The Ring and Feng Shui terrified me in ways I didn't fully understand back then, but looking back, I think it was the feeling of helplessness whenever the character had to face death alone that really stuck with me, which shaped Bela, Angelica, Diabla. As for my unforgiving character, I took inspiration from the leads in my favorite psycho thriller movies: Pearl, Midsommar, and Gone Girl.
The original title was "Magsusulat Hanggang Kamatayan," and it was supposed to be a three-chapter story. But it was hard to squeeze in all the details in three chapters, which was why I turned it into a novella. I was already done with the story when I decided to change the title kasi nag-reflect ako nang malala. Like, ayoko naman na 'yung motto ko sa pagsusulat ay ma-connect to a horror story lang, so I changed it to Bela, Angelica, Diabla. I liked the way it sounded. Very Anna Karenina.
Extending an 18k-word novella to a full-length novel, lalo na't horror, was a challenge, so I had to listen to a lot of villain-themed songs just to get in the right headspace. I even made a playlist and played it on repeat to help me visualize the scenes.
Ayoko namang drastically mabago ang kuwento, so I chose to focus on characters who were already in the original story and "expanded their universe." But it's not just about "experiencing the curse." I incorporated back stories and mga real-life horror ko, 'yung mga experiences that left deep marks. Things like being judged for what I love doing or for not doing enough, being used until I had nothing left to give pero wala pa ring nakakapansin na napapagod na ako, being seen as a failure, being someone's rebound, not being heard when I speak my truth, and working myself to death and having barely any time left for the people I love. Dito ko naisip na writing horror, specifically this story, is oddly comforting. In a way, it felt like I was able to "kill" my fears through it."
- Peachxvision, author of Bela, Angelica, Diabla (2025).
Bela, Angelica, Diabla will soon be available at Summit Books shops online and in bookstores nationwide for P225.