about jes tongio
Jesilou (Jes) Tongio is an indie author from Toronto, Canada.
In 2024, she founded the imprint Laser Lotus Publishing, under which she launched a collection of edgy, sports-themed novels called the Game Over series.
As an authorpreneur, Jes aims to blur the line between independent and traditional publishing by creating a professionally crafted, fully immersive reader experience. She leverages her skills and experience as a journalist and digital producer, which is why she feels right at home as an author-publisher.
From 2010 to 2014, Jes was a sports journalist for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, specializing in hockey coverage for a national audience. From 2014 to 2019, Jes worked as a senior writer / digital producer with CBC Unscripted Content. Her work with the Canada’s Smartest Person digital team won a 2017 Canadian Screen Award for Best Cross-Platform Project (Non-Fiction). She currently works as a freelance video editor, graphic designer, and writer. She primarily creates sponsored digital content for BuzzFeed Canada.
In her spare time, Jes enjoys singing, gaming, and cooking. She stays up late, loves cats, and advocates for public health.
Additionally, she live-streams her subpar gaming on Twitch, and runs an Etsy shop. She’s happiest in her cozy, all-white home office, surrounded by her mechanical-keyboard collection, twinkling fairy lights, and the subtle glow of lilac-purple smart LEDs.
As an author, Jes mainly writes contemporary fiction. Break the Ice is her first novel, which she had originally written when she was 15.
To see more of Jes Tongio’s work, visit her portfolio.
What’s up with the name? 🤔
The author’s given name, Jesilou, is a combination of her grandfather’s name (Jesus) and grandmother’s name (Lourdes).
Jesus Niespla — better known as Jess Niespla — was a prominent Filipino journalist who covered crime and politics in Manila from 1950 until his death in 1984.
Jes continues to honour her late grandfather by using a variant of his pen name. Her first novel, Break the Ice, is partially dedicated to Jess and Lourdes Niespla.
The name of Jes Tongio’s publishing imprint, Laser Lotus Publishing, was inspired by the show Community:
"My Buddhist church is having its annual ascension ceremony, and I will be becoming a level-six laser lotus."
— Pierce Hawthorne
TL;DR 😅
Refer to the author as Jes (not Jesilou). Thank you!
The author’s pronouns are she/her.
Credit: Author photo by Yoni M2K
