Moon Dog and Rainbow Dreaming

'Mortis’s ’I Dreamt of Gold’ is a vibrant and thoughtfully measured poetics of self-discovery. As the poem’s speaker works to find their musicality and lyricism, we see them also arrive at a deep knowledge of the beauty of heritage and history residing within.'-Barbara Jane Reyes, author of Diwata, Letters to a Young Brown Girl, Daughtersong Diaspore, and others Published by DILIM Press, this collection highlights stories and poems originally featured in the diaspora dark fiction project Galleon Dreaming as well as new work. Presented for the 2026 Filipino American International Book Festival in San Francisco, California.Contributors:J. J. de Melo: The science fiction short story 'Tethered' focuses on a monster from Filipino folklore aboard a spaceship, while 'Mind Sweep' explores AI moderation on relationships.Maleia Mortis: Poems 'I Dreamt of Gold' and 'Sapin Sapin' examine heritage, memory, and self-discovery.Monica T. S. Flores: 'Moon Dog' is a magical realism tale with horror elements about a supernatural dog-guardian, while 'The Forty-First Day' is an origin story of the first to land on the archipelago.With an original illustration by artist Raf Banzuela.About the Contributors:J.J. de Melo is a queer Filipino-American and Portuguese writer based in San Francisco, California. He’s an active member of the literary community at the City College of San Francisco, where he earned his degree in Creative Writing. He’s also an epidemiologist, working a double life as an author-scientist. Find him at jjdemelo.wordpress.com.Maleia Mortis is a queer Filipinx-American experimental poet based in the San Francisco Bay Area. Their poems have appeared in Visual Verse: An Anthology of Art and Words, BuliLit Magazine by Sampaguita Press, and Datura Literary Journal. Readers can find more of their writing on their poetry blog, mxmortis.wordpress.com.Monica T. S. Flores’ work is in the speculative fiction benefit anthology 'Hope is Not Passive,' Faoileánach Journal, Amethyst Review, and zines by Capital Letters Eclectic Fiction. Her poetry is in 'Haunt' by Michigan State University Libraries and at the Capital City Film Festival. Her origin story, The Forty-First Day: Selurong Arrival, is recognized on the Community of Literary Magazines and Presses (CLMP) 2026 Asian/Pacific American Heritage reading list. Find her at monicatsflores.wordpress.com.Raf Banzuela is an illustrator based in Legazpi, Philippines. 6