Book A Writer / Our Writers

ABOUT

Tse Hao Guang (谢皓光) is the author of The International Left-Hand Calligraphy Association (Tinfish Press, 2022) and Deeds of Light (Math Paper Press, 2015), the latter shortlisted for the Singapore Literature Prize. He is a 2016 fellow of the University of Iowa's International Writing Program, and the 2018 National Writer-in-Residence at Nanyang Technological University. His poems appear in Poetry, Poem-a-Day, Dreginald, Tammy, New Delta Review, Pain, Minarets, Big Other, Entropy and elsewhere. He was born and raised in Singapore, where he continues to live and work.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

• 2017 – Unfree Verse (Singapore: Ethos Books, 2017)

• 2015 – Deeds of Light (Singapore: Math Paper Press, 2015)

• 2013 – Hyperlinkage (Singapore: Math Paper Press, 2013)

ACHIEVEMENTS

• 2016 – International Writing Program fellow, University of Iowa

• 2015 – Singapore Literature Prize (English Poetry) shortlist

• 2014 – MA in Humanities (Creative Writing), University of Chicago

TESTIMONIALS

FROM MR NAZRUL RASHIDI (HOD EL & LIT)
PASIR RIS SECONDARY SCHOOL
“Throughout the workshop, Hao Guang, being accessible and warm, has inspired the students to appreciate poetry and write their own poems. He was also generous in sharing his insights and experiences with the students, and this has sharpened the way they look at poetry and their own works.”

WORKSHOPS

HOW TO WRITE POETRY?
For: all students; min. 5 pax
Availability: 2 / 3 hours per session; single session
Description: This is a beginner's-level workshop that asks pertinent questions to every aspiring poet: What is a poem? Why write poetry? What are the building blocks of poetry? What is an image? This exploratory session will deal with finding a personal connection to your work and generative writing strategies. 
Learning Outcomes: a sense of what a poem is and can be; form your own idea of what poetry should be; how to generate writing; what is the relationship between your imagination, and images & metaphors. 

WHAT IS POETIC FORM?
For: upper sec, junior college; 5-20 pax
Availability: 2 / 3 hours per session; single session
Description: This is an intermediate-level workshop that asks: What is poetic form? Is it all about Shakespeare or is there something more? How can I read and write poetry in form effectively? This session will expand your idea of form in the arts and poetry, and introduce you to local poetry written in all kinds of shapes and sizes.
Learning Outcomes: a broader understanding of form beyond rhyme, meter, and dull rules; the relationship between form and chaos; how to have fun with restrictions; how to read a formal poem; how to break rules meaningfully.

POETIC REVISION & WORKSHOPPING
For: upper sec, junior college; 5-12 pax
Availability: 2 /3 hours per session; single session
Description: This is an intermediate- to advanced-level workshop that asks: Do you love writing poetry? Interested in learning how to edit and revise your work? This session will introduce you to the principles of poetic revision, as well as give you a taste of the workshopping process. Participants should have a portfolio of at least 5 poems in hand.
Learning Outcomes: an understanding of creativity as a process rather than a result; how to give and take constructive critique; how to form and sustain your own workshop group; how to identify tendencies and tics in your own work and in others'; how to begin to find your own voice.

READING TO WRITE, WRITING TO READ
For: upper sec, junior college; 10-15 pax
Availability: 2 / 3 hours per session; single session
Description: Tackling the "unseen" can be made much less mysterious if students are able to try their hand at creative writing. This workshop equips students with the tools to read and interpret poetry by giving them the opportunity to experiment with different poetic techniques. 
Learning Outcomes: how to apply literary techniques in their own creative writing; how to read and interpret a variety of poetry written in a variety of styles; how to gain confidence in "unseen" exams

PLAYING WITH WORDS
For: all students; 5-20 pax
Availability: 2 / 3 hours per session; single session
Description: This is a beginner to intermediate-level workshop. Fun – serious fun with language – is at the heart of poetry. In this workshop, we will play improvisational word-games, work on collaborative writing, and get fascinated by how the human brain does weird things with words. 
Learning Outcomes: exercising creativity; introduction to improvisation; introduction to aspects of poetic form including rhyme, meter, and more complex received forms; introduction to creative collaboration.