Introducing DIWA: A Coming-of-Age Epic Fantasy Inspired by Pre-Colonial Philippines
What if Pre-Colonial Philippines Became the Setting for an Epic Fantasy?
I’ve just published the complete First Arc of DIWA on Royal Road and Wattpad!
DIWA is a coming-of-age epic fantasy adventure inspired by pre-colonial Philippine history, mythology, folklore, and culture. Rather than retelling history, it imagines an original adventure unfolding across an archipelago inspired by the decades leading up to Magellan’s arrival, where rival clans, ancient traditions, forgotten legends, and powerful realms shape the fate of the world.
The opening arc is now fully available on both platforms, featuring a prologue, author’s note, four complete chapters, and chapter illustrations—approximately 5,600 words in total.
Prologue
Centuries ago, long before the Japanese occupation, before the American occupation, before the Spanish came to colonize the archipelago, and fifteen years before Ferdinand Magellan first set foot upon its shores, the islands now known as the Philippines were divided among four great realms: Hilagat in the north, Kanluran in the west, Timog in the south, and Silangan in the east.
These realms were ruled by powerful clans, each vying for resources, territory, and influence.
This is the story of a young boy whose goal, not unlike many of us, was simply to earn his father’s approval.
Little did he know, he would find himself at the center of a story that would change the fate of the realms forever.
I’m also planning to release a fully produced audiobook in the future, featuring professional voice acting, original music scoring, and cinematic sound design to bring the world of DIWA to life.
If you decide to give it a read, I’d love to hear your thoughts:
What stood out to you?
What did you enjoy most?
What moments or characters resonated with you?
What are you excited to see in future chapters?
And if you have any constructive feedback on the writing, pacing, dialogue, worldbuilding, or characters, I’d genuinely appreciate hearing it. I’m always looking for ways to improve.
Thank you so much to everyone who takes the time to read DIWA and share their thoughts. I truly appreciate it.
Read The First Arc of DIWA Here!
Edit: Since a few people asked about the artwork, I spoke with my illustrator about their workflow, citing possible similarities to AI-generated concept art. This was their explanation:
None of the character illustrations were generated by AI. The artwork was created in Procreate using a combination of digital painting techniques and reference-based workflows.
For example, some tattoo patterns, accessories, and textile references were gathered from reference materials, then manually warped, clip-masked, painted over, recolored, and blended into the character designs using brushes and hand painting.
This workflow is a form of photobashing and has been used by professional concept artists for many years. The goal is to speed up the creation of realistic textures and details while still requiring artistic judgment to compose, transform, and integrate everything into a cohesive illustration. It’s similar to digital collaging.
I understand why some people might have mistaken it for AI, since modern AI image generators often emulate the same concept art aesthetic. But I wanted to clarify the process behind these illustrations in the spirit of transparency and artistic integrity.
Hope this clarifies things.
