My Schedule of Events for 2022 SWF

The Singapore Writers Festival is back in person this year, and extended from two weekends to three! Here are my events; hope to see you there!

1. Book Launch: Fish Eats Lion Redux (moderator)
12 Nov, 400–500pm
with Meihan Boey, Ng Yi-Sheng, Wen-yi Lee & Suffian Hakim
The Arts House, Living Room
Free admission

Fifteen powerfully imaginative authors examine Singapore in the distant past, in the far future, and on various points along the multiverse in Fish Eats Lion Redux. Join us and celebrate the release of this anthology of speculative short stories that The Straits Times calls “a strong showing from some of the best, as well as some of the newest and freshest, in the business”. Four of our contributors will present the visions of Singapore conjured in their stories, and discuss what went into their creation.

2. Panel: Just the World I’m Looking For: The Multiverse and Fiction (moderator)
12 Nov, 630–730pm
with Victor Fernando R. Ocampo, Nuraliah Norasid & Meihan Boey
Asian Civilisations Museum, Ngee Ann Auditorium
Festival Pass

The age-old struggle between fate and chance. The dreams and fantasies we cling to as testaments to all the versions of ourselves we could have been. We’re familiar with multiverse theory in science (and Doctor Strange), but does it hold any weight in fiction about the everyday, and do we need it? Four authors discuss the logic of creating alternate timelines, the recent interest in multiverse theory among fiction writers, and whether the multiverse provides us with answers about all the “what ifs” in our lives. This is your road not taken.

3. Panel: A Warning, or a Mirror? – Living in a Dystopian World
13 Nov, 330–430pm
with Tulika Ahuja (mod), Kass Morgan, Sylvie Denis & Jon Alexander
Asian Civilisations Museum, Ngee Ann Auditorium
Festival Pass

Recording yourself doing anything. Tracking everything from calories to your partner’s whereabouts. Living life in a metaverse. Robots… everywhere ᴮˡᵃᶜᵏ ᴹᶦʳʳᵒʳ ᴬˡᵉʳᵗ ! Not gonna lie, our world’s looking a little sTrAnGe these days with these various growing impulses. As fiction blurs with reality, four speakers answer the question: are we already living in a dystopia?

4. Panel: Occupying the “If”: Embracing the Unknown
19 Nov, 1100am – 1200pm
with Barrie Sherwood (mod), Ang Shuang & Clarissa Goenawan
Asian Civilisations Museum, Discovery Room
Festival Pass

It’s time to burn all your SparkNotes and cheatsheets. There’s a life beyond agonising over the “true” meaning of the text, unleashing your frustration with unreliable narrators, and ragequitting unsolved mystery cliffhangers. We’ve brought in three writers who thrive in the unknown, and for whom aggravating ambiguity transforms into imaginative possibilities. How deep will the rabbit hole go?