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The winner of the Historical Figure-Mythical Monster Mash-Up is Tandang Sora, palabang lola by johnbristol6. It’s inventive, bizarre, witty, and (high compliment) it made coffee shoot out of my nose. (Budjette, let’s make it a comic book!)

The prize:

We enjoyed the entries that futzed with the Hero vs Monster formula, so we decided to award consolation prizes to

Jose Rizal: the man, the legend, the aswang by hypnerotomato
Revisionist History—Now Na! by stellalehua
Love and Diversity by kindler
Agaw-Dilim, Agaw-Liwanag: Mga Itinagong Kwento ng Rebolusyon by Grafton Uranus

If you haven’t read their stories, they’re here.

Hypnerotomato gets The Once and Future King by T.H. White, stellalehua gets The Cry of the Sloth by Sam Savage, Kindler gets Uther by Jack Whyte, and Grafton Uranus gets A Nation Rising: Untold Tales of Flawed Founders, Fallen Heroes, and Forgotten Fighters from America’s Hidden History.

Congratulations! You may pick up your prizes any day starting today, 16 July 2010 at National Bookstore in Power Plant Mall, Rockwell, Makati. Go to the Customer Service counter. Your prize is listed under your username and the email address you used to register on this site. Yes, you may send someone to pick up your prize as long as he/she has the information.

Thanks to our friends at National Bookstore for the prizes. The Weekly LitWit Challenge returns soon.

The publishing industry is convinced that its salvation lies in the undead.

Among the most-touted books of the season are The Fall, the sequel to The Strain by Guillermo Del Toro and Chuck Hogan, out in the fall (where there is fall); and The Passage by Justin Cronin.

The success of Pride and Prejudice and Zombies has spawned a host of literary/historical mash-ups, including Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter and Queen Victoria: Demon Hunter.

Vampires, demons, and zombies are all very interesting, of course, but for true weirdness I prefer manananggal, tiyanak, and other creatures of the Filipino darkness.

Let’s make some mash-ups!

The rules:

1. The protagonist has to be a Philippine historical figure.

2. The monster has to be a creature out of Philippine mythology: manananggal, aswang, tikbalang, kapre, tiktik, tiyanak, mambabarang, etc. Yes, it’s tempting to cast a politician; no, we want a more attractive monster.

3. The setting has to be somewhere in the Philippines.

4. The tale has to be told in less than 1,000 words. It doesn’t have to be a short story, it can be a concept paper, movie treatment, or synopsis for a novel.

5. The entry has to be posted in Comments by noon of Thursday, 15 July 2010.

6. The prize: Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter and Queen Victoria: Demon Hunter.

Thanks to our friends at National Bookstore for the freebies!

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ATTENTION: WINNERS

enajie, swanoepel, overnitesensation, gilbertjohngarcia, irvin mclovin: Upon swanoepel’s suggestion I’ve asked Budjette Tan to sign your copies of Alexandra Trese. You can pick them up starting Monday, 12 July 2010 at National Bookstore in Power Plant Mall, Rockwell, Makati.

epaloids: You said July, right? You can claim your copy of PostSecret at National Bookstore in Rockwell any day starting Saturday, 10 July 2010.

Alrey and Richelle: When are you going to pick up your watches from the Prince of Persia contest?

* * * * *

Entries received so far:
Apolinario Mabini: Manananggal Killer by rinabanana
Lapu-Lapu: Vampire Hunter by e@rl_hickey
Jose Rizal: the man, the legend, the aswang by hypnerotomato
Tandang Sora: Palabang Lola ni johnbristol6
Revisionist History—Now na! (or, OMG, ang anak ni K!) by stellalehua
Francisco Dagohoy, Imortal ni jeffwar314
Jose Rizal, Doppelganger Slayer by wickedmouth
Love and Diversity by kindler
Agaw-Dilim, Agaw-Liwanag: Mga Itinagong Kwento ng Rebolusyon by Grafton Uranus
Tooth and Nail: The Declaration of War and Martial Law by banzai cat
The Real Treaty of Paris by virgoan
Apolinario Mabini: Child of Prophecy, The Last Bruha Slayer by blahblah
The Aswang Trilogy by flipflopstore

Click on Comments to read the contestants.

avignon! The correct answer: Consomme Celestine. Avignon, please post your full name in Comments and tell us when you would like to claim your prize: Consomme Celestine for two at La Cuisine.

Thanks to everyone who joined our Eat the Answer contests in June, and thanks to La Cuisine Francaise, which celebrates its first birthday next month. La Cuisine is on the ground floor of Paseo Parkview on the corner of Sedeno and San Agustin Streets, Salcedo Village, Makati near Makati Sports Club. The restaurant is open 7 days a week from 10 am to midnight. For reservations call 501.5202 or 752.0335.

Last week’s question was: What comes after the hors d’oeuvres? I’ve decided not to stand on ceremony; I declare all your answers correct, be they main course/plat principal, the fish dish, entree, or burong penoy. Some of my friends believe that every meal should begin with dessert (or consist entirely of desserts).

The winner of the raffle is. . .entry no. 26, gemini. Congratulations! We’re treating you and a companion to hors d’oeuvres and a main course at La Cuisine. Please post your full name in Comments (It won’t be published) and tell me when you intend to collect your prize, and I will make the reservation.

Photos by Melo Villareal, www.pinoycravings.com.

We asked Jean d’Orival of La Cuisine for a more difficult question this week, and this is what he came up with.

What is the French name of the soup with the following ingredients: Chicken carcass and legs, Leek, Carrot, Tomato, Crêpe, Celery Stick, Onion with Clove, Egg White, Thyme twig, Laurel leaf, Parsley, Salt, and Ground Pepper?

Don’t look at me, I can’t cook at all.

Post your answers in Comments. We’ll accept entries until Saturday, 26 June 2010 at 7pm. All the correct answers are eligible for the raffle on Sunday. The winner and her/his companion will eat the answer, plus dessert, at La Cuisine, on the date of their choice.

La Cuisine is on the ground floor of Paseo Parkview on the corner of Sedeno and San Agustin Streets, Salcedo Village, Makati near Makati Sports Club. The restaurant is open 7 days a week from 10 am to midnight. For reservations call 501.5202 or 752.0335.

Saffy says: Moomooooooooooooooooooo

Your horror stories were so effective that we decided to pick not one but five winners and give each of them an Alexandra Trese comic book.

The winners are:

#17 by enajie, who recorded herself singing, then heard someone wailing in the background during playback.

#16 by swanoepel, the Coco Martin ex-fan who went to a nearly empty theatre to watch Serbis and suddenly sensed a crowd of people.

#10 by overnitesensation, where the ghosts sang along with the choir.

#15 by gilbertjohngarcia, where the little girl said, Hindi ka makagalaw ano?

#26 by irvin mclovin, the one about the Indian mango-giving ghost.

Congratulations for creeping us out! You may pick up your prizes any day starting Tuesday, 22 June 2010, at the Customer Service counter of National Bookstore in Power Plant, Rockwell. Uh-oh, I don’t have time to deliver the prizes before I leave. Sorry about that, I will notify you when the prizes are ready for pickup in July.

Until our next scary tale contest! Who is that standing behind you?

The answer to last week’s La Cuisine quiz is Escargot (and its variants). All your answers were correct and eligible for the raffle. The winner of the raffle is entry number 10, walterrobles. Congratulations! Saffy says you are psychic. You and a companion will dine on escargot at La Cuisine on the date of your choice. Let us know when, and we’ll make the reservation.

All photos by Melo Villareal, www.pinoycravings.com.

Michele the chef patron says our questions are too easy, so this week’s quiz is a little trickier.

The question: What comes after hors d’oeuvres?

Post your answer in Comments. All correct entries are eligible for the raffle this weekend. The winner will be announced on Monday.

The winner and a companion get to eat the answer at La Cuisine, Sedeno corner San Agustin Street (near Makati Sports), Salcedo Village, Makati. Telephone 8932072. Reservations: 5015202 or 7520335. Bring your appetite.