Updates
(13 Oct)
The fifth edition of NEW WORKS 2021 is in fact a double bill! On 17 Jul, join writers Mahita Vas, Danielle Lim and Ang Shuang in an honest conversation at 2pm about how the literary arts enables (or inhibits) conversations on mental health; later at 3.30pm, Xiangyun Lim, Desmond Kon and Kum Suning will discuss how to navigate stigma and biases in publishing.
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In celebration of International Women’s Day, this edition of NEW WORKS commemorates the personal stories of six women and their perspectives on love, life and loss. What do they dream of and hope for the future? What does it mean for them to be rooted in their sense of self? What secrets empower them?
NEW HOPES / NEW WORKS puts a spotlight on five poets from the Migrant Writers of Singapore -- Haidee Roiles, Lora Jane, Naicy Candido, Rolinda Onates Española and Shy Lhen Esposo. Join them as they share their latest writing. A Q&A segment moderated by Janelyn Dupingay will follow the readings.
To make this edition of NEW WORKS accessible to all, there will be no ticket fees. If you would like to help Sing Lit Station develop writers and provide them opportunities to showcase their work, do consider a donation to Sing Lit Station's giving.sg page. Alternatively, you can show your support to the writers by purchasing copies of Call & Response 2: The Anthology, No CindeRella and Shy Hawk's Path from the following places:
BooksActually (https://tinyurl.com/Books-Actually-Shop)
City Book Room (https://tinyurl.com/4watk9jb)
Google Form (https://tinyurl.com/p4jd5wef)
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DETAILS
Price: Free (registration required; donations encouraged via giving.sg)
Date: 21 Mar 2021 (Sun)
Time: 11am SGT
Venue: Facebook Live
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NOTE ABOUT COVID-19: Sing Lit Station considers the health and safety of our staff and patrons our utmost priority. We are presently operating and conducting our programmes under the latest guidelines and measures stipulated by the government. If you note anything of concern, please reach out to us.
Haidee Roiles is from the province of Cebu, in the Philippines. She's one of the contributors of Call and Response 2 and a member of Migrant Writers of Singapore.
From Taguig City Philippines,
Lora Jane was shortlisted at the Migrant Workers Poetry Competition Singapore 2020 with her entry “Flower Road”.
Naicy Candido is from Western Visayas, the Philippines. She was invited to perform at various poetry festivals and is a team leader in the non-profit Uplifters.
Rolinda Onates Española is formerly a Foreign Domestic Worker who worked in Singapore from 2012-2019. Currently she is a published author in Singapore and enjoys life with her family in Bacolod City, Philippines.
Shy Lhen Esposo is a domestic helper and the self-published author of Shy Hawk's Path, Dreams Are My Reality and Shy I Love You Today Tomorrow and Shyrotica.
Janelyn Dupingay Vergara is from Diadi, Nueva Vizcaya Philippines. She was a featured speaker at the Singapore Writers Festival and her poem "Forgive Me" was selected for an ebook of multilingual poems.
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In this edition of NEW WORKS, our Jalan Besar Writing Residency writer-in-residence Victor Fernando R. Ocampo explores the history of speculative fiction in Singapore. NEW SURVEYS / NEW WORKS will be a lecture, featuring Victor's findings from his paper, titled "The Roots of Singapore Speculative Fiction: An Initial Survey of Works that appeared before the SF Anthology Fish Eats Lion."
Fish Eats Lion (Math Paper Press, 2012), edited by Jason Erik Lundberg, was arguably Singapore’s first major anthology of speculative fiction. However, stories with elements of the fantastic have existed in the literature of the island long before it became a city-state. From early legends in the Malay Annals, to the forms of literature that were introduced and evolved during the early colonial period, to the rise of modernism and post-colonial writing that arrived decades before the birth of the republic, “speculative” fiction that explores the human condition through the unreal or the otherworldly continues to thrive and to grow because it speaks to something deep within readers that cannot be addressed by realism.
This paper seeks to trace the roots of speculative fiction in Singapore, acting as an initial survey of proto and early works and situating them within their historical circumstances. Join Victor on Facebook Live as he delves deep into his findings on speculative fiction, and its deep roots in the history of Sing Lit!
To make this edition of NEW WORKS accessible to all, there will be no ticket fees. If you would like to help Sing Lit Station develop writers and provide them opportunities to showcase their work, do consider a donation to Sing Lit Station's giving.sg page. Every dollar counts!
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DETAILS
Price: Free (registration required; donations encouraged via giving.sg)
Date: 30 Apr 2021 (Fri)
Time: 5.30pm SGT
Venue: Facebook Live
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NOTE ABOUT THE RESIDENCY: The Jalan Besar Writing Residency selects 2-3 Singapore-based writers every year and grants them full access to our office to work on any form of literary creation. Towards the close of their Residency, our Writers-in-Residence will be obliged to hold a public-facing programme (i.e. talk, workshop, reading) to commemorate the end of their time with Sing Lit Station.
NOTE ABOUT COVID-19: Sing Lit Station considers the health and safety of our staff and patrons our utmost priority. We are presently operating and conducting our programmes under the latest guidelines and measures stipulated by the government. If you note anything of concern, please reach out to us.
Victor Fernando R. Ocampo is a Singapore-based Filipino writer. He is the author of the International Rubery Book Award-shortlisted The Infinite Library and Other Stories (Math Paper Press, 2017) and Here be Dragons (Canvas Press, 2015), which won the Romeo Forbes Children’s Story Award in 2012. His play-by-email interactive fiction piece “The Book of Red Shadows” debuted at the Singapore Writers Festival in 2020. Visit his blog at vrocampo.com or follow him on Twitter @VictorOcampo.
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The creation of any new work begins with a vision. Whether it is just a twinkle in the eye or a clear end point, this vision shapes the journey ahead. Join poets Pooja Nansi (We Make Spaces Divine), Yeow Kai Chai (One to the Dark Tower Comes) and Paul Tan (When the Lights Went Off) in this edition of New Works as they share poems from their new collections.
NEW VISIONS / NEW WORKS will also explore how their time as Festival Directors of the Singapore Writers Festival shaped the way they approach their creative and professional pursuits and how their creative backgrounds shaped their visions of the festival.
To keep this edition of NEW WORKS accessible to all, there will be no ticket fees. If you would like to contribute to Sing Lit Station's work in developing writers and providing them opportunities to showcase their work, do consider a donation to Sing Lit Station's giving.sg page at http://giving.sg/singlit-station. Every dollar counts! <3
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DETAILS
Price: Free (registration required; donations encouraged via giving.sg)
Date: 14 May 2021 (Fri)
Time: 7pm SGT
Venue: Facebook Live
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NOTE ABOUT COVID-19: Sing Lit Station considers the health and safety of our staff and patrons our utmost priority. We are presently operating and conducting our programmes under the latest guidelines and measures stipulated by the government. If you note anything of concern, please reach out to us.
Pooja Nansi’s latest and third collection of poetry We Make Spaces Divine was published in January 2021. Her previous collections include Stiletto Scars and Love is an Empty Barstool. She is also the co-founder of Other Tongues, a literary festival of minority voices and the current festival director of the Singapore Writers Festival.
Paul Tan has published five collections of poetry, a couple of short stories and currently works in the National Arts Council. His latest hobby is trying to rear betta fish.
Yeow Kai Chai is a poet, fiction writer, and editor. He has three poetry collections, One to the Dark Tower Comes (2020), Pretend I’m Not Here (2006), and Secret Manta (2001).
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In this session of NEW NAMES / NEW WORKS, join us on IGTV and IG Rooms for the first time to listen to an episode of nor's The Neosantara Chronicles.
To keep this edition of NEW WORKS accessible to all, there will be no ticket fees. If you would like to contribute to Sing Lit Station's work in developing writers and providing them opportunities to showcase their work, do consider a donation to Sing Lit Station's giving.sg page at http://giving.sg/singlit-station. Every dollar counts! <3
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DETAILS
Price: Free (donations encouraged via giving.sg)
Date: 18 Jul 2021 (Sun)
Time: 7.30pm SGT
Venue: IGTV / IG Rooms
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NOTE ABOUT THE RESIDENCY: The Jalan Besar Writing Residency selects 2-3 Singapore-based writers every year and grants them full access to our office to work on any form of literary creation. Towards the close of their Residency, our Writers-in-Residence will be obliged to hold a public-facing programme (i.e. talk, workshop, reading) to commemorate the end of their time with Sing Lit Station.
NOTE ABOUT COVID-19: Sing Lit Station considers the health and safety of our staff and patrons our utmost priority. We are presently operating and conducting our programmes under the latest guidelines and measures stipulated by the government. If you note anything of concern, please reach out to us.
nor is a multidisciplinary artist whose practice is rooted in self-portraiture. Their works span the disciplines of photography, film, video, performance, text and spoken word poetry to engage with ideas of belonging and identity through the frameworks of gender performance, ethnographic portraits and transnational histories. They are currently working on a speculative fiction piece titled The Neosantara Chronicles.
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A Spoonful of Sugar: Writing as Medicine
17 Oct 2021, 2pm–3pm
In this edition of NEW WORKS, we invite three writers to discuss the triumphs and challenges of processing their mental health journey in writing. What goes behind the process of making soul-baring work? How can one offer emotional integrity without self-exploitation? Join writers Mahita Vas, Danielle Lim and Ang Shuang in a an honest conversation about how the literary arts enables (or inhibits) conversations on mental health.
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Holding Space: Sustaining Conversations on Mental Health
17 Oct 2021, 3.30pm–4.30pm
Mental health inclusivity is an industry-wide effort that includes editors, publishers, book-sellers and advocates. In this edition of NEW WORKS, hear from both sides of the industry as editors and writers share their reflections on their publications on mental health. What gatekeepers did they encounter in developing narratives about mental health? How can one uplift and protect writers as they produce deeply personal work? What does one need to consider after a publication is published and the conversation starts?
Join Xiangyun Lim, Desmond Kon and Kum Suning for a meaningful discussion on how to navigate stigma and biases in publishing.
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Ang Shuang graduated with an MFA in Creative Writing from Sarah Lawrence College. Her writing has been published by the Asian American Writers' Workshop, the Rumpus, and QLRS. Shuang enjoys crisp cider, Taylor Swift songs, and snuggling with her dog. Her debut collection, How To Live With Yourself will be published in November 2021.
Desmond FX Kon ZC-MD is the author of eighteen books, spanning fiction, poetry, memoir, lyric essays, and hybrid works. A former journalist, he has edited over twenty-five titles, including the e-anthology, Atelier of Healing. Among other accolades, Desmond is the recipient of the IBPA Benjamin Franklin Award, Independent Publisher Book Award, National Indie Excellence Book Award, Poetry World Cup, Singapore Literature Prize, and three Living Now Book Awards. He helms Squircle Line Press, and can be found at: desmondkon.com
Kum Suning is Editorial Manager of Ethos Books. Amongst others, she is the editor of Loss Adjustment (2019); The Magic Circle (2017); 17A Keong Saik Road (2017); The Sound of SCH (2014); and the orbit series—powerful, pocket-friendly stories from Singapore and beyond. Currently overseeing the publishing output and schedule of the house, Suning also helps handle rights and permissions for the catalogue, and continually works to surface new voices and critical narratives.
Danielle Lim is an award-winning author of three books. Her short stories, And Softly Go the Crossings, have been shortlisted in the Singapore Book Awards 2021 (Best Literary Work). Trafalgar Sunrise, a novel exploring Sars and leprosy, was shortlisted in the Singapore Book Awards 2019 (Best Literary Work). The Sound of SCH: A Mental Breakdown, a Life Journey, won the Singapore Literature Prize 2016 (non-fiction), and has been translated to Chinese and Tamil, published in Taiwan and India. The Publishers Weekly listed Danielle as one of Singapore’s top writers in 2016. She has been invited to speak at local and international events, and her works have been featured in both local and overseas publications.
Xiangyun Lim (Xy, she/her) is the publisher and editor of White: Behind Mental Health Stigma. The collection looks at mental health in our personal, social, and civic lives through a range of perspectives — from organisations and academics, to practising professionals and personal experiences. She founded Klin Studio with the intent to examine how we approach mental health, and practise care in our everyday through publishing.
Mahita Vas was diagnosed with Type 1 bipolar disorder in 2005, after more than twenty years of struggling with mood swings and suicidal ideation. As a mental health advocate, she speaks candidly about mental health. She is also a volunteer with Transient Workers Count Too. She has written three books, including a memoir on mental illness. A Good Day To Die is her fourth book. Mahita is married and has twin daughters in their late twenties.