About Sheilah

My name is Maria Sheilah Manalo. But I prefer to be addressed as Sheilah (with an extra h, for good measure).

When I was a kid, I fell in love with writing. I wrote essays, poems, plays and declamation speeches. I also found joy in rewriting “commercials”.

In the Philippines, where I was born and bred, “commercials” (the everyday Filipino term for advertising) are entertainment as much as they are reflections of our lives and aspirations. They tell our stories while making us want to buy stuff in the process. So as a born storyteller, I was naturally drawn to them. For my own amusement, I wrote parodies of TV commercials. What fun I had with my 10-year old imagination.

Today, I’m a highly experienced advertising copywriter, brand builder and a recreational blogger.

My advertising career includes stints at Dentsu, Young & Rubicam (Philippines), Lowe (Philippines), LH.M (Singapore), TYA (Singapore), and Hogarth & Ogilvy Singapore as resident copy mistress for Singtel and IHG (InterContinental Hotel Group), among others.

I currently work as Head of Communications for a multi-brand Fintech company. My team of digital, above the line and below the line creatives functions as the company’s in-house ad agency. I’m still writing. And still having fun.

Collaborate with me >> sheilahmanalo@gmail.com