Out Now!

Expecting the friend angle to be enough, I approached this girl and asked if she would be interested in buying the latest issue of KATIPUNAN.

Knowing my expecting an easy yes, this girl playfully said, “Okay. Come on, dude. Give me your pitch. Why should I buy?”

“Do you want the serious pitch or yung may bola?”

“Both. Give me the serious one, then yung may bola.” Pause. “Better yet, because magaling ka, give me both combined in one sentence.”

I thought about this for a minute, then said, “Cuz there’s no campus publication like us and each issue comes with a 2-by-3 picture of me (referring to my column pic).”

Laughs. And sold. Well, sort of. She’ll buy when/if I see her on Wednesday when she has smaller bills with her.

One thing about being an independent magazine that I’m not particular good at or fond of is the self-selling aspect. We don’t have much of a sales team yet, so writers and editors have the awkward task of selling the magazines with our articles in them.

Being not much of a salesman, I’m left to pseudo-charming friends and acquaintances with corny humor to sell.

The particular girl mentioned in my example would later humorously admit that she was wearing her tube top to entice more members to Heights. See—in sales, you have to do what you have to do, whether joking about attractiveness or flaunting it.

(Blind item! cry a few readers: she’s part of the Heights edboard, shoulder-length hair, English Lit minor, taken.)
............

KATIPUNAN June 2007: Meeting the Grade

In this issue:
Aga Dela Torre on the state of science education.
Mina Reyes and Aeli Alba on the anti-trapo bids during the recent elections (featuring interview with Ang Kapatiran’s Jess Paredes).
April Sescon on jeepney art and the Pinoy graffiti scene (with insights from Caliph8, motherfucker!).
Cindy Custodio on Kaya ng Pinay’s voyage to the top of Everest (with interviews with the three Filipina climbers).

at column ko:
(Memoir)izing about not voting and not caring about it—wasak!

(KATIPUNAN is independently published by students of the Ateneo de Manila University. Can be bought (Php40) from staffers and editors around campus. Orders also taken here or at martin2vill@yahoo.com.ph.)