Book A Writer / Yeo Wei Wei

ABOUT

Dr Yeo Wei Wei holds a PhD in English from the University of Cambridge and a MA with Distinction in Creative Writing from the University of East Anglia. She is known as a writer, educator and translator. She has over twenty years of teaching experience and has given lectures and workshops for the Ministry of Education’s Creative Arts and Creative Writing Programmes as well as other institutions such as the University Scholars Programme at the National University of Singapore and the School for the Arts (SOTA).

BIBLIOGRAPHY

• 2015 – These Foolish Things & Other Stories (Singapore: Ethos Books, 2015)
  

TESTIMONIALS

FROM CAMP LIT ALUMNI
“The exercises in the course actually served to break my writer’s block and I would definitely use it in the future. THANK YOU! <3”

WORKSHOPS

LIVE IT, TELL IT: HOW TO WRITE CREATIVE NON-FICTION
For: upper sec, junior college; 10-25 pax
Availability: 2/3 hours
Description: The course description below is written with the kind of voice that readers encounter in creative non-fiction. In short, the writer/instructor speaks directly, using first-person: ‘The fact that you are reading my brief tells me that you are alive. I am glad to be alive; are you? This is the kind of question that creative non-fiction can approach. Also: what is your life like? That’s not known to me, or to anyone for that matter, unless you choose to tell it. And the telling of your lived experiences to others through writing, where you try to choose the best words for the job of bringing those experiences to life again on the page – this is creative non-fiction. My course is called ‘Live It, Tell It’ for this reason. Just as there is an art to living, there is also an art to the telling of true-life stories, my course will show you the tools and processes of this art-form. In creative non-fiction, we are interested in using language to express ourselves. We are also curious about learning more about ourselves through thinking and writing. If you like the sound of all this, then this course is for you.
Learning Outcomes: Students will learn the tools and processes required to effectively write creative non-fiction.

DEVELOPING EMPATHY
For: lower sec, upper sec, junior college; 10-25 pax
Availability: 2/3 hours
Description: Reading is carried out in solitude and yet reading is said to develop one’s empathy for others. Empathy is necessary for fulfilling relationships at work and at home. In this close reading workshop (featuring selected texts chosen in collaboration with school teachers), students will be learn that the study of literature provides essential grounding in human understanding, and thus fosters empathy. Lessons gleaned from interpreting literary works will be applied to real-life situations.
Learning Outcomes: how to read and analyse literary texts; how to apply lessons learned from studying literature to real-life situations. Eligible for Tote Board Arts Grant Subsidy

HOW TO SPEND TIME WITH A POEM
For: all students; 10-25 pax
Availability: 3 hours in a bundle of 2/3 sessions (1 hour or 1.5 hours per session)
Description: Dr. Yeo Wei Wei wrote her doctoral dissertation on poetry but when she was at school she didn't understand what was required of her whenever she was given a poem to "close read". These sessions will provide students with essential skills to develop their appreciation of poetry. There will also be step-by-step instruction and advice on the art of writing essays based on close readings.
Learning Outcomes: how to analyse a poem; how to write practical criticism essays on unseen and known texts

HOW TO CREATE FICTIONAL CHARACTERS
For: all students; 5-15 pax
Availability: 3 hours; single session
Description: Fiction allows us to meet interesting and absorbing characters. How do writers create characters? This workshop will teach students how to create memorable characters by applying their understanding of human nature, imagination, and language skills. 
Learning Outcomes: how to write descriptive passages and scenes to breathe life into characters; how to learn and improve the art of characterisation through the close reading of exemplary works of fiction.

HOW TO BAKE A PLOT
For: all students; 5-15 pax
Availability: 3 hours; single session
Description: Plot is a sticky term for writers. Some writers, like Stephen King, claims that he doesn’t bother with plot because human lives are plotless. F. Scott Fitzgerald proposed that plot is character and character is plot. E.M. Forster threw another term into the mix by saying that plot is different from story because stories are where things happen, and plots give us this in the framework of causes and effects. At the beginning of this workshop, students will get a taster of plots drawn from the literary canon and bestseller fiction. In the middle of the session, they will be trying their hand at baking their own plots, giving rise to much suspense and tension. What the ending looks like is anyone’s guess; hopefully everyone lives happily ever after. 
Learning Outcomes: how to differentiate between story and plot; how to structure a narrative by using causality, chronology and sequence; how to handle dramatic irony; How to write a satisfying ending