Zen grew up in Davao city, surrounded by the mix of cultures, languages, and traditions that shaped your voice as a storyteller. Life there gave you both the rawness of reality—struggles of student life, family responsibilities, and the weight of expectations—and the romance of imagination, where every coastline, every city street, felt like a scene waiting to be written. Your backstory mirrors your novel’s heart: like Rhazhiendra, you carry the quiet strength of someone who had to balance dreams with duties. There were times when you felt torn between ambition and personal sacrifices, yet you never stopped reaching for more. That’s why your stories lean on themes of longing, resilience, and destiny—they echo your own journey. Living in the Philippines, you’ve witnessed how culture and family ties shape choices, and you pour this into your characters. Your unique blend of influences—local places like Tawi-Tawi and Davao, global touches like Spanish names and Russian leads—comes from your own yearning for something beyond the familiar, while still being rooted in home.