ABOUT
Melissa De Silva is the author of ‘Others’ is Not a Race, winner of the Singapore Literature Prize 2018 (Creative Nonfiction), about Eurasians in Singapore. Her fiction has been published in Best New Singaporean Short Stories Vol. 3, Singapore Quarterly Literary Review and LONTAR: The Journal of Southeast Asian Speculative Fiction. Melissa has worked as a journalist and book editor and is Singapore’s Education Ambassador for online global creative writing platform for teens, Write the World. She has an Honours degree in English Literature from the National University of Singapore.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
2017 – ‘Others’ Is Not A Race (Singapore: Math Paper Press, 2017)
ACHIEVEMENTS
2018 – Singapore Literature Prize (Creative Nonfiction in English), winner
WORKSHOPS BY MELISSA DE SILVA
INTRODUCING CREATIVE NONFICTION I: FUNDAMENTALS OF EXPLORING THE PERSONAL
For: lower sec, upper sec, junior college; 10–25 pax
Availability: 3 hours per session; single session
Description: This workshop will explore the creative non-fiction writing genre through reading and responding to excerpts of memoir, food writing and travel writing written from the personal perspective. How will learning to write creative non-fiction benefit students? Writing imaginatively will allow students to learn about empathy and explore and process their own emotional experiences and the world around them; an added benefit is they will gain the necessary skills to excel at the ‘hybrid essay’ type question at the O-Levels that prompts students to write about a personal experience and reflect on what they have learned from it.
Learning Outcomes: Students will learn the fundamental skill of writing creative non-fiction based on personal experience – how to turn themselves into the ‘I’ character; be introduced to the concept of the scene as the basic building block of fiction and creative non-fiction and learn how to effectively construct a scene.
INTRODUCING CREATIVE NONFICTION II: EXPLORING THE PERSONAL THROUGH ENGAGING NARRATIVES
For: lower sec, upper sec, junior college; 10–25 pax
Availability: 3 hours per session; single session
Description: Based on their knowledge of how to create their ‘I’ character and how to build a scene from Introducing Creative Nonfiction I, students are guided to examine a significant personal experience and craft this into a cohesive, engaging narrative. Students will also be introduced to the idea of the narrative arc and be guided on how to structure their stories on this framework, to produce a micro three-act structure which readers find inherently satisfying. Integral to the session will be constructive feedback on the students’ writing done during the workshop by the instructor.
Learning Outcomes: Understanding the idea of the narrative arc; understand how to structure stories using this idea; producing a micro three-act structure based on this idea.
EURASIANS IN SINGAPORE: A BRIEF TOUR OF THE EURASIAN COMMUNITY, HISTORY AND CULTURE
For: all students; min. 10 pax
Availability: 1 hour per session; single session
Description: A talk by Melissa De Silva spotlighting the long history and unique culture of Eurasians in Singapore, told from the personal point of view of her own experience.
Learning Outcomes: Learn about the community, history and culture of Eurasians in Singapore.
ABOUT OUR PROGRAMME / OUR WRITERS / OUR WORKSHOPS / OUR CAMP / F.A.Q.
Book A Writer is Sing Lit Station's workshop-for-schools programme, featuring a roster of Singapore's most important writers at work today. *Do you want to Book A Writer? For enquiries on Melissa De Silva's availability and workshop rates in Sing Lit Station's Book A Writer programme, do fill in the form below. Messages should take no longer than 2-3 days for a reply.