Thursday, September 13, 2018

Girl Power is in Your Hands

Hello there, Ladies! I am humbly requesting for you to take part in our Girl Power Survey. This is about our monthly visitor (menstruation) that almost every girl is uncomfortable dealing with. All personal information and answers will not be shared publicly. 


Here is a simple 9-question survey to all the ladies who have experienced the horrible, horrible  (not really) monthly period. LOL. Share with us your insights so we can tell our dear pretty, little lasses what to expect and how to deal with it.


It is true that through experience comes great advice. So here you go, take your time in the sharing portion. Merci!

P.S. We need at least 200 participants, please do share this to your family and friends. We can help a lot of people.

Surprise raffle awaits respondents.



Saturday, July 21, 2018

Sundowners Vacation Villas at Bolinao Pangasinan


Last month, we had a family vacation in one of the Top 10 Santorini-like resorts in the Philippines. It was a great experience witnessing the captivating view from Sundowners Vacation Villas. The pictures circulating online are true and staying there is a must, but let me tell you what you have to do before going there and when you are there at the resort.

mini clip of the surroundings


Our experience with their services are a bit disappointing. I am not discouraging you to go there because it is a real beauty being there. Just a few things you need to know, it is up to you if you still want to visit or not.

The Master Villa we stayed at is the largest villa at Sundowners. It has 6 bedrooms, 6 toilet and bathrooms, an open mezzanine bedroom, large private infinity pool, a mini movie "room"  and a fully equipped kitchen.

Sundowners Marina


We traveled for 5 hours from Pasig City, though some areas are raining it was not a hindrance in the traffic. Our check-in time is 3PM, we arrived at the resort around 11AM. So we have to wait for 3 more hours before stepping in the villa. At Bolinao proper (bayan), you won't see any fast food chains like Jollibee, McDo or KFC, but they have Tapa King a kilometer away from the resort which opens 10AM daily. Near here is the wet and dry market. Better go there around 9 to 11AM so you'll have more choices of food to cook. I spent 2 hours in the market because I have to buy for 2.5 days meals. It was a tiring experience of going back and forth the parking lot, because of the heavy bags.
Master Villa parking area and entrance
You don't have to worry about limited space in cooking. Their kitchen has an electric 4 burner- stove and a 2-burner stove with lpg. They have complete dinnerware and eating utensils, but their cooking utensils have to be requested as it is only a few. They have a huge refrigerator, big cooking pots and pans.
At the back is the barbecue grill

They have a barbecue grill but you have to buy charcoal in the market. The infinity pool already has 3 floating devices  and 2 adult vests. You can rent also but it is pricey.

Rooms are clean but there are insects everywhere. The staff said it is because of the season and that during summertime, there are no insects. The flies are annoying. We have to cover each dish because we have them flying around during meal time. On our first day, there were a few electricity fluctuations, again, because of the weather. It is understood. But the next day, we were inconvenienced by the 2-hour no electricity, we thought it was the whole resort, but no. Just the master villa. The electrician said it was a short circuit and we have to endure the humidity and super flies roaming around. Soooooo inconvenient for all of us especially the kids.


Anyway, if you plan to go there, you should have an itinerary if you will be staying for 2 nights 3 days, which we did. At Patar, 30 minutes away from the resort, there is a lighthouse, beach and an enchanted cave. Going to the lighthouse will require you to take the stairs, more than a hundred steps maybe.

Nykos Kitchen at Sundowners Marina
Nykos Bar at Sundowners Villas

By the way, Nykos Kitchens at Sundowners is a Mediterranean resto bar, if you haven't tried any Mediterranean cuisine, don't attempt. It was a disappointing meal for us and there were a lot of leftovers. Pricey also. Nykos is at Sundowners Marina, a hundred-step stairs going down from the villas.

This is their group meal for 6-10 persons. Not recommended if you are looking for a flavorful meal.
For some, this meal might be delish. (",)

The whole resort gives a refreshing feels, it will give you highs, a bit overwhelmed with the view of the Lingayen Gulf from the infinity pool area. We might return, but we'll make sure it isn't rainy season.
Infinity pool view the from 2nd floor. Diving is allowed. 
La Familia :)

Plan this vacation well, so you will not be disappointed and have regrets. Just enjoy the majestic view. You need a drone there.

Check this video to see the magnificent Sundowners Vacation Villas. 



Thank you to Tita Elvie, for bringing us at Sundowners.

Disclosure: This is not a sponsored post.

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Wednesday, May 9, 2018

Free Trials Everywhere You Wouldn't Want to Miss

I am a freebie gal when it comes to online services and software. I love free trials and experiencing the ultimate in that service. Some of the trials that I continued are the following:




  Netflix - Love Love Love this one, I have been binge watching Koreanovelas and my kids also are into anything cartoon-series. Huh! Ben 10 and Boss Baby is being played over and over again. I sometimes caught myself saying the lines. Yes, I know some of it. LOL. 
With the free 3 other gadgets that can use my account, I am satisfied with Netflix because I can share it with my parents and in-laws. They see what we watch and we see what they are watching too. Creepy for some. LOL

Note: All these banners and links will redirect you to the Free Trial registration.







*  Spotify - though the trial period is short, I enjoyed playing shuffled songs in my type of genre. This one is on a monthly basis. Having the premium Spotify account lets me choose whatever song I want to listen too. I play it together with my UE Boom bluetooth speaker. This is a party!




Amazon Prime - even if I am not based in the US, I was able to get the benefits in the trial of my Prime account. I got the free shipping and 2-day shipping. I just found out that there are so many perks inside Amazon Prime that I was not able to explore like Movies, Music, Discounts, stock photos etc. I will renew it again soon.




Kindle Unlimited - I can browse and read all available famous books here at Kindle. There is also music like in the Prime account. Every story you want to listen too are also available in the Kindle Lending Library, where you can lend your books to a friend or family for a limited time. Free downloads of great collection of books are also offered at a certain period. So, book lovers out there, Kindle Unlimited will be your bff soon.




Here are other free trials you don't want to miss: 

No time to scan the book's pages? Here is Audible... listen anytime, anywhere you want.


A free reading app that I also installed....




Prime's CBS All-Access... anytime, anywhere... Choose the channels you want...



Britbox is here too!


The favorite HBO channel..



Have had enough free trials? More to come.... brace yourselves!


Let them deliver your groceries at your doorstep! Amazon Fresh 30-day Free trial




Online Gamer? Overwatch is here with Prime and Twitch!





Showtime Prime video channels!



You can keep you own Amazon Prime, or share it with your family... Amazon Family



Don't get tired of these trials BECAUSE THEY ARE FREE. Continue the monthly subscription if you feel like keeping it. You can cancel anytime before the free trial ends. 

Disclaimer: Some have affiliate links when clicked and registered will help this website earn an incentive. 


Thank you for dropping by. Sharing is caring. Please share with your friends and family on your preferred social media accounts.


Tuesday, May 8, 2018

16 Easy Step by Step Guide to Self-Publishing using Createspace



It's been a while since I logged in to my Createspace account. I uploaded my manuscript a few years ago and just left it hanging there. I didn't know how to market my book in different social media networks and find it hopeless to continue with the publishing.

Until recently, when I joined a group of young writers, who I find very enthusiastic in what they are doing. I asked myself why I didn't do before what they are doing now- write and write and write!

It made me think for a moment that it's not too late yet. Not too late to reopen my Createspace account and upload my revised manuscript. This time I am determined to move forward and do the best I can to market my book on Amazon and Kindle Publishing.

So this blog post will be about creating an account on Createspace and make your life, yes, you dear author, easier!

Some might be discouraged in the first few parts of the process because they have no idea what to do. I hope this post might help you in pursuing your dream to become international; your story to be internationally distributed.

Step by Step Guide to Createspace Self-Publishing

1.  Make sure that you use an email address that you often check. Sign up and register at createspace.com. 

Sign-up Page (Createspace IW101)

Fill out the form completely.
Create My Account (Createspace IW101)
Member Agreement (Createspace IW101)


Verification (Createspace IW101)

You will be asked to confirm your account in your email address. Go to Click here to Get Started link.
Click to Get Started (Createspace IW101)
2.  Once you clicked the link from your email, you will be redirected here. Since this will be your guide, you can ignore talking to a consultant. But if you feel like doing it, go ahead and ask away.

Set Up Your Book (Createspace IW101)
3. If you have a ready manuscript in PDF/doc file, Start a new project. Enter the name/title of your manuscript and choose Paperback and then click on Get Started.

Start a New Project (Createspace IW101)

4. Fill out the Title Information form, leave it blank if you have nothing to declare. Make sure you write the author's name and the language used in your manuscript. Then click Save and Continue.

Title Information (Createspace IW101)
5.  ISBN is important because this will act as your manuscript barcode. Each title has a different ISBN. It stands for International Standard Book Number. Get your free ISBN on this page. After entering the title and ISBN has been provided, it can't be changed.

ISBN (Createspace IW101)

ISBN Result (Createspace IW101)


6.  Interior. This is where you will upload the body of your book, from title page, table of contents, chapters to acknowledgments. Select the type of paper, color and size of the book you like. Size should be the same as the size of your body in MsWord, or any software you used in writing. Then upload your file and click Save.

Interior (Createspace IW101)
Bleed only matters when there is an image or elements in your interior that extends in the margin. Click the second one for your manuscript without images. Honestly, I still don't understand this. Enlighten me if you can explain it better.
Interior Bleed (Createspace IW101)
7. A book cover must be in PDF file if you already have one prepared. You can also use the book cover launcher, they have beautiful designs that suits your taste. Your back cover must be in text, so prepare for a synopsis of your story. You can also place About the Author at the back cover. Choose between Matte and Glossy cover.

Build Your Cover Online (Createspace IW101)

Matte of Glossy Cover (Createspace IW101)
Here are some of the designs in the Build Your Cover option:

Cover Designs (Createspace IW101)
You can place an image and change the color of the spine. Spine is applicable on book with 100 pages and up. You can always go back on the previous setting if you wish to change the design.
Cover Options (Createspace IW101)

Uploading your own book cover in PDF file should have at least 300dpi. If you don't know how to change the dpi of your image (jpg), there is a free online dpi converter available as well as a free jpg to pdf converter.

Upload Your PDF Cover (Createspace IW101)
9. There you go, you have completed setting up your whole book. Wait for 24 hours after you click the Submit File for Review.

Submit File for Review (Createspace IW101)
10. While waiting for the approval of File Review, you can set up the Distribution Channel wherein you can select all that is available. Your book can be purchased almost anywhere in the world. Click Save and Continue.

Distribution Channel (Createspace IW101)
11. Pricing is the best part. You can go high or average in your royalties. It is up to you how much you think your book can sell as long as you set it above their production cost.

Pricing (Createspace IW101)
12. Choose again your Cover Finish. I don't know why they asked again.


Cover Finish (Createspace IW101)
13. The Description of you book can be seen along with the book cover and price. Choose the category of your story, language used, your location and some keywords for easy searching of your book. There is also a portion where you tell readers about yourself. Bragging rights. Tell your accomplishments, your other books available and your interests. I love reading Author Biography, sometimes you can tell in their description that they are fond of supernatural things, or mystery or treasure hunting to come up with stories they created. It is good knowing there is somebody behind the story.

Description (Createspace IW101)
14. The last thing on Createspace after approval of your File Review, and Proofing Your Book, is Publishing on Kindle. You can either export the Createspace file to Kindle or upload your ebook in Kindle format. There is a free help on this called Kindle Create. It will automatically adjust your settings and format so that it will be easy to read on Kindle tablet.



Publish on Kindle (Createspace IW101)

15. Publishing on Kindle will redirect you to kdp.amazon.com as this platform is a separate publishing entity. Createspace is for paperback while Kindle is famous for ebook. Kindle Publishing has more earning opportunities that is why you have to send your book to KDP Select. If you already have an AMAZON.com account, you can use it here. If not, create a new account.

KDP (Createspace IW101)


16. You can check the file that is being forwarded to Kindle, if you like the book set up, you don't have to change anything. Scroll every page to see if there are no breaks in the chapters.

Kindle Ready Book Cover (Createspace IW101)

So, that's it. I hope this article helped you in self-publishing. Remember to set up your Account Settings especially in the Payment portion. You may apply a Payoneer account here if you wish to receive a Direct Deposit (US account) even if you are not in the US.

If you are confused on some parts or want to know more, just ask in the comment section below, I will try to reply as soon as possible.

Thanks for reading this. Follow me by email for more updates.

First posted in IndieWriters101.