"Master of the (Miss) Universe" was named "Best Bet" by "The Los Angeles Times".His debut novel, "Letters to Montgomery Clift" (MacAdam/Cage), was published in 2002, and received the 2003 Stonewall Book Award from the American Library Association, the Violet Quill Award from Insight Out Books, the Global Filipino Literary Award from Our Own Voice and the Gold Seal from "ForeWord" magazine.