VICTOR EMMANUEL CARMELO D. NADERA, JR. is an award-winning poet, fictionist, playwright, and essayist. Aside from a novel, he has published three poetry collections, an epic, and a research on the use of poetry as therapy.

 

A B.S. and M.A. in Clinical Psychology degree-holder from the University of Santo Tomas -- he pioneered Poetry Therapy in the country when he gave a series of free sessions for cancer patients. Eventually, it became instrumental in coming up with – “the Asia’s first expressive arts workshop” -- at the National Arts Center in 1995 and the staging of his satire Sens Op Tyumor (1996) wherein victims became victors as actors.  Up to now, he is still giving poetry workshops at the Stairway Foundation in Puerto Galera, Mindoro for their National Commission for Culture and the Arts-funded performance poetry production (2001) after conducting poetry therapy sessions at the National Bureau of Investigation Treatment and Rehabilitation Center as well as with Persons With AIDS at the Bahay Lingap of the San Lazaro Hospital.  The Philippine Society of Oncologists is currently supporting him in its outreach program called Three Ps in different hospitals. At the Philippine Book Fair 2000, he launched, together with his two books, his masteral thesis re-titled Poetreat: The Use of Poetry Therapy in Mutual Support Groups of Cancer Survivors in Metro Manila (2000) published by the UST Publishing House, that also is responsible for his latest poetry collection Asinta: Mga Tula at Tudla (2002), the same year he translated Federico Garcia Lorca’s El Publico for Dulaang UP, William Shakespeare’s Love’s Labor’s Lost for CCP Tanghalang Pilipino, and Roy Iglesia’s Intramuros for the Department of Tourism.

 

During the Balagtas Day  in 1998, Vim became the youngest recipient of the Recognition Award from the Commission on Filipino Language, the same body known formerly as Institute of National Language, that proclaimed him the youngest Poet of  the Year in 1985.

 

Aside from the National Book Award (1995)  from the Manila Critics Circle for his second book  of poetry, 15 Lamang (1994),  he won in the  Rizal International Filipino Poetry Contest, Talaang  Ginto Gawad Collantes, Don Carlos  Palanca Memorial Awards for Literature, and Carlos Bulosan  Award.   He co-edited Alagwa (1997), the collection of stories from Katha, that already published his fiction in Impetu (1991),  Habilin (1991), Engkwentro (1989), and Relasyon (1999).  His essay AIDS: Anyo, Imahen, Diyalektika’t Siste (1994) and play Cofradia de San Jose (1992) received the Cultural Center of the Philippines Grant.  A former photographer and cartoonist, he bagged the 2nd   International  Peace Day Poster/Slogan Competition (1984),   University of  Santo Tomas College of Architecture and Fine Arts Inter-school On-The-Spot Painting Contest (1983), and UST Psychological Society T-shirt Design Contest (1982-1983). 

 

At the UST, where he became the  editor of  The Varsitarian and  College of  Science Journal, he founded the UST Writers’ Workshop (1991), the Moving the Pen Journalism/Literary Seminar (1991), and the USTETIKA Annual Awards for Literature (1989) that has been producing rosters of great young writers for more than one decade now.  

 

At the University of the Philippines, where he became the local fellow for poetry (1997), he is finishing his Ph.D. in Philippine Studies major in history, anthropology, and literature. He has been inspiring students since he organized amorphous mass  (1999), L (1998), Cofradia (1998), Toki (1997), Oratura (1997), Gatula (1996) and other groups known for Performance Poetry after teaching the said subject as a special project of the Department of English and Comparative Literature. 

 

Considered the “father of performance poetry in the Philippines,”  he represented the Philippines in the Kuala Lumpur World Poetry Reading (Malaysia, October 2000), International Seminar on South-east Asian Literature (Malaysia, August 2001), and Asia Arts Net Annual Conference (Taiwan, October 2001). Also he took part at the Balagtasan sa Singapore (Singapore, March 2002). He was an editor (Telon Newsposter, Ikalawang Tagpo ’96 Souvenir Program, Daluyan, USTETIKA Folio, Diyaryo Filipino, UMPIL Directory of Filipino Writers, Istudyante, Bull Today, Campus),  columnist (Health & Lifestyle, Coping Well, The Coconut), critic (Taipan), translator (Radiation Therapy and You, Fetes Philippines, Kuwentuhan Mo Ako!, Flowing On, Makabagong Tinig ng Siglo),  writer (Direktoryo ng Dulaang  Pilipino, National Theater Festival, National Drama Competition), and founding president and/or member of Linangan sa Imahen, Retorika, at Anyo (LIRA),  Philippine Educational Theater Association (PETA)  Writers’ Bloc, and Kapisanan ng May K sa Pilipinas (KMKP) or the umbrella organization of all the support groups of cancer survivors in the Philippines.

 

On 12 June 1998, through the partnership of the National Centennial Commission and UMPIL, he directed and produced the literary gathering entitled (KA)LAKARAN: Sentenaryo ng mga Makata ng Bayan  -- wherein the performance artists played the role of their favorite Filipino heroes in full costume and makeup and introducing them to the people at the Glorietta Ayala Mall for almost an entire day highlighted by a poetry reading in the middle of the mall.

 

That historic year too, his epic, Mujer Indigena, and novel, (H)istoryador(a), won at the first and only Centennial Literary Prize, eventually and exclusively published by the UP Press.

 

Aside from UST and UP, Vim  has taught literature, language, creative writing and psychology at the St. Paul College of Manila, University of the East, and De La Salle University where he won a Faculty Award in 1997.

 

UP conferred him the Certificate of Recognition from the Vice-Chancellor for Student Affairs (1999) and the Gawad Leopoldo Yabes (Outstanding Assistant Professor 2000-2001) and the Gawad para sa Natatanging Publikasyon sa Filipino (2002).

 

Tayabas-born but Sampaloc-bred, Vim is recipient of the UP Gawad Chanselor as an Outstanding Artist in 1999, 2002, 2003, and 2004.

 

Concurrently, he is the Secretary-General of UMPIL (where he recently organized the highly successful literary reading Marikit na Taludtod sa Lungsod ng Sapatos at the Teatro Marikina) and the representative for Southern Luzon at the Committee  on Literary Arts of the National Commission for Culture and the Arts (where he proposed the big hit Textanaga, the first and only poetry writing contest to be participated in by poets via text messaging a love quatrain, during the National Arts Month last February).

 

At present, Vim is the youngest Director of the UP Institute of Creative Writing.