Christine Pasalo Norland (she/her) is a storyteller and award-recognized cultural worker from California. She was born in the Bay on unceded Ohlone lands, raised in Los Angeles on unceded Tongva lands, and adults in San Diego on unceded Kumeyaay lands. A daughter of immigrants to the U.S., her roots extend to the Ilocos region of the so-called Philippines, by way of the Province of Pangasinan.

In her free time, Christine can be found reading, crocheting, playing ukulele, thinking up zines, and listening to her son make up jokes, explain Pokémon evolutions, and humming to himself as he creates games in Scratch and Super Mario Maker.

Christine's work prioritizes people whose identities and experiences aren't typically centered or treated with dimension. In recognition of her cultural work in the comics arts community, she received a Kinnard Award in 2022 from the indie comics press Laneha House.

As the editor of Hello Barkada and a contributor to Popverse by ReedPop and Gladiolus Magazine by Black Josei Press, and a past contributor to San Diego Magazine, she writes profiles and interviews of artists, writers, performers, and proprietors from historically marginalized communities. 

As a cultural producer, she coordinates and hosts artists and writers on Allowed, Hello Barkada's conversation series; is the founder of Convoy Zine Fest, which will be hosted in June 2024 in San Diego's Convoy District; presents the Hello Barkada panel From Burnout to Brainstorm at in-person and virtual popular arts conferences; and publishes zines, such as Hello Barkada's annual Isang Mahal.

Christine's clients include Townspeople, The Epilepsy Foundation of San Diego County, Pacific Arts Movement, Sharon Lee De La Cruz, and the Convoy District Partnership. She is a member of United AAPI Artists and a past member of Women in Comics Collective International (WinC). She has moderated and appeared on panels for WinC, Virtuous Con: Black History Month 2022 and 2023, WonderCon 2023 and 2024, Comic-Con International 2022 and 2023, and DiverseToons' 2nd Annual Diversity Summit. 

Before founding Hello Barkada, she coordinated volunteers as well as produced events, programs, and social media and website content for Comic-Con International and the Comic-Con Museum. 

Visit the Hello Barkada Stories page and Christine's Contributing Writer page on Popverse for her most recent writing samples, and her LinkedIn profile to learn more about her 10+ years as a freelance writer and her 20+ years of professional experience in event and publishing operations.

Hello Barkada is her first independent venture. 

LET'S COLLABORATE!

Hello Barkada offers creative services on a contract basis to educators, micro and small press publishers, small business owners who are from historically marginalized communities, arts organizations and institutions, libraries, and nonprofits that support underserved communities. Scroll through for examples of the ways Hello Barkada can be of help to you and/or your organization.

Christine is also available to moderate panels and roundtables, to interview creators, to coordinate volunteers for virtual or in-person events (e.g. San Diego Asian Film Festival), and to support artists and writers preparing grant applications or convention/festival panel pitches.

Please reach out to contact[at]hellobarkada.org for further information, including rates on a sliding scale (i.e., pay according to your means) and availability. A portion of income earned creates freelance opportunities for artists and writers to contribute to Hello Barkada, and supports Hello Barkada's operations.