Issue One is out!
Here is issue one, published October 2025, when the veil starts to thin between our world and the spirit realm.
ginger & smoke is a digital publication dedicated to reclaiming Filipino folklore, mythology, and fairy tales—retelling them with new fire while honouring their roots. Here, the boundaries between genres blur, but the heart beats strongest for fantasy and speculative fiction.
Reclamation is an act of return, of protection, of creation. It asks questions without expecting one answer:
Is it the longing to reconnect with our ancestors?
The ache born from generations of disconnection?
A shield for what’s sacred?
A spark of art?
A breath of freedom?
We welcome the dreamers and the protectors, the warriors and the storytellers:
Do you whisper to Mayari or Tala in your meditations?
Do you charge your anting-anting under moonlight?
Do you wish for an RPG where your kris sword strikes true?
Do you carry enough garlic to make the aswang tremble?
If so—this is your hearth. This is where we gather.
About the EIC
Nathalie De Los Santos is a writer and creative. She created PilipinxPages, a platform that features Filipinx authors. She was a fellow of the Lambda Literary Retreat for Emerging LGBTQ Voices, where she workshopped her YA fantasy novel Diyosa Mata under the tutelage of Aiden Thomas. Her short story Bakunawa and the Seven Sisters was shortlisted by Fractured Lit, and her novel Debt of the Heart was longlisted by Anvil Press. She is one of the key organizers of the Filipino-Canadian Book Festival. Her publications appear in Magdaragat: An Anthology of Filipino-Canadian Writing, The Globe and Mail, SAD Magazine, and more. She also hosts the Filipino Fairy Tales, Mythology, and Folklore podcast.
Thank you to:
Lele Chan | Graphic artist of Ginger and Smoke word mark
Erica Dionora | Volume 01 design + website
Sam Moore | Copy editor for Volume 01
Dani, Asia & Maria | Fil-Can Book Fest Community!
Domenic De Los Santos | Communications