Bob Ong: Living Off Writing

Bob Ong's proof of life: his 1998 Webby PH Award

I found out too late that Bob Ong, author of the book ABNKKBSNPLAko?! and probably responsible for getting a lot of Pinoys to read, had an AMA (Ask Me Anything) session at Reddit PH. 

It took place on October 26 between 1-3PM, but because of the huge interest, it took him a good 6 hours to answer all the questions posted for him. 

While I didn’t make it on time to personally ask him a question, my favorite queries have to do with what Bob Ong does with his time. He said he fills his days with “hayop at halaman.” So basically it’s a more leisurely, less stressful life in what is probably his middle age years. 

From Bob Ong's Reddit PH AMA

What enables this life? A reader asked this: “At what point in your career did it become self-sufficient just by writing books?” 

Bob Ong said that he doesn’t really need much and lives with just water and a loaf of bread. Of course I understand that’s *not* literal. But because he lives simply, he’s been able to afford his life of “hayop at halaman,” and his peanut butter and bread by the time he published his second book. 

Part of his “proof of life” post was a picture of his Webby Award from 1998, which he got for the “People’s Choice for Weird/Humor.” This means that Bob Ong has been writing for nearly or more than twenty years, since the early days of the internet. Two decades! Wikipedia (not the best source, I know) lists his second book as “Bakit Baligtad Magbasa ng Libro ang mga Pilipino?,” which came out in 2002. This implies that if he went “self-sufficient” *after* the second book, then Bob Ong has been living off his writing by 2003. That’s nearly 15 years of living as a creative person. 

I’m not sure if he’s still working a day job. But he does mention that only his friends and family know of his true identity as Bob Ong. So if he does have co-workers still, then they don’t know they’re breathing the same air as greatness. (Naks!) 

Still interesting is that someone has been going around introducing himself as Bob Ong and then proceeds to ask for discounts and freebies in restaurants. Not cool. But then perhaps expected that someone will try to steal his identity since Bob Ong is famously reclusive and we don’t know what he looks like despite the two decades of his publishing life. 

But still, this is a goal. It’s possible to live off creative work, but then Bob Ong is like the one in a hundred million in the Philippines. You have to be Bob Ong successful to be able to do this. But the real take away for me is that you need to live simply and want not. I’ll be happy with living with “hayop at halaman” for the rest of my days. I think.