Ep 295 - The Archipelago of Our Various Selves with Mel Hilario

What do comics, writing, and Pilates have in common? None other than this week's guest, Mel Hilario! In this episode, we talk about all kinds of things from intuition to creative expression to somatic practices and everything in between! Including what it's like to be a daughter of Filipino immigrants who don't understand what we do in our lives. Join us as we continue the celebration of Filipino American History month with this episode!

We embody many different roles and I have likened this existence to that of our ancestral lands: an archipelago. Tune in to hear how we link up all of our multiple passions and identities into who we are being. And how that in and of itself is a form of resistance.

Mel Hilario Book: https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Agent-Cupcake/Mel-Hilario/9781637158760

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3NmlshGX4ijHPXmFIgT1Nu

Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/spiritual-grit/id1497436520

===============

Today’s poems/ Books mentioned:

• Tarot/Oracle Card: Queen of Cups

• “The Sorcery”

===============

Courses / Exclusive Content / Book Mentioned:

• Subscribe to mailing list + community: suryagian.com/subscribe and get the 7-day meditation challenge, “Spark Joy in Chaos”

• Subscribe to “Adventures in Midlife” newsletter: leslieann.substack.com

• Instagram: @leslieannhobayan

• Email: [e-mail]

• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLxAeQWRRsSo5E7PBJdZUeoEAYXnAtuyRy

• Kundalini Yoga Classes: https://www.suryagian.com/anchor-amplify-kundalini

• Speak Your Truth: https://www.suryagian.com/speak-your-truth

===============

About the Guest:

Melanie “Mel” Hilario is a writer who empowers readers by helping them understand the world around them, blending genres and transforming traditional character archetypes into fully realized people, with their own quirks, language, and interior lives. Mel received her MFA in Creative Writing from Mills College, has been a recipient of the Elizabeth George Foundation grant and residencies at VONA (Voices of our Nations Arts), Las Dos Brujas Writers Workshop, Writing by Writers, and Hedgebrook. She has developed characters for toy lines, masterminded educational workbooks, and written wrenching essays, most recently for the Kindred Souls anthology, Angry Women.

Along with Lauren Davis and Katie Longua, Mel is part of the Eisner-nominated team, Triple Dream Comics. Together, they created the middle grade graphic novels, "Debian Perl, Digital Detective" and "Agent Cupcake." Their short story, "Traitor, Trickster, Dummy, Doll" appeared in The Nib and was nominated for the 2022 Eisner Award for Best Short Story.

When she isn’t writing fiction, nonfiction, and comic books, Mel is in martial arts or ballet class, teaching Pilates, or attempting to stay off social media and failing miserably. She lives in Oakland with two of the largest cats her friends have ever seen.