The Singapore Series: Singapore Writers Festival 2014 - What a delight!

Participants to SWF2014 will enjoy a wider range of programmes that not only touched on literary-related works but also on music, publishing, translation and many others. There are also panel discussions on ideologies that form the undercurrents of most literary works.

As in my previous post, I volunteered for the festival. However, on days that I’m not on duty, I’m free to attend the programmes. This year I chose a mix-bag of panels to attend and two ticketed lectures: “The Beauty Myth” by Naomi Wolf and “The Roads I Travelled” by Paul Theroux.

Naomi Wolf (left) and moderator Dana Lam (right).

I was bewitched by Wolf, and her unwavering stance, the fresh ideas she brings to feminism, her confidence and oh that gorgeous hair. Now, I’m not just reducing her to her hair, but man, that mane is to-die-for. She started the lecture by describing a persona named “Barbie”, who embodies the conventional ideals of beauty, and critiquing it. She also believes that feminism in the West should look towards the East for ideas, because the feminist discourse is just beginning to take root and ideas are still fresh. The Q&A session was interesting, a small tussle between team AWARE (represented by lecture moderator Dana Lam, former president of AWARE – Association of Women for Action and Research) and team Wolf + audience member on whether males should be accepted as full members of AWARE. Team Wolf + audience member: males should be allowed full AWARE membership, Team AWARE: now is not the right time. No clear winner, but it was fun!

Paul Theroux.

Paul Theroux (left) and moderator Yeoh Siew Hoon (right).

Similarly, Theroux’s lecture greatly inspired me and gave me a whole new perspective on being a traveller and writer. This he had to say of a true traveller: a true traveller does not know where his destination is and when he is returning home but a tourist does, and a true traveller generally has a bad time but a tourist does not. Now I know that I’ve always been a tourist. But I’m not giving up on my comfort just yet. Let me be a tourist for a while, till I gain confidence in being uncomfortable and lost in a foreign place, then I can be a traveller. Theroux’s lecture is largely on his background, of how he left home to travel and never returned, and his years spent in Singapore and how it had changed the way he writes. He said that it was in Singapore that he decided that he will write about things as he saw them, not as he wishes them to be. This shaped all his writings. It was very encouraging and he said that as long as you are open to suggestions and experiences, you will change and you can achieve anything, age notwithstanding. So to those who have yet to live out your dreams, don’t despair!

"The Map of My Body" panel.

L-R: Ann Ang (moderator), Loretta Chen, Krishna Udayasankar, Heng Siok Tian.

The panels I attended were varied in topics. This year I chose to expose myself to a variety: reviews and critics (“Death by Keyboard”), celebrating the female body (“The Map of my Body”), satire (“The Art of Satire”), morality in literature (“Morality and Writing”), and essay writing (“Geoff Dyer in Conversation with Robin Hemley”). I enjoyed each and every one of the panels I attended. This has probably to do with this year’s moderators, who contributed actively to the discussion by providing their own opinions and ideas. It is like they were having an informal conversation, which I very much prefer, unlike moderators of the previous year, who asked questions but made no comments, which proved difficult to get a discussion going.

Deepika Shetty reading from her book Red Helmet at her book launch.

If I had to choose, I would say “Morality and Writing” is the best panel simply because I had the most takeaways there. It was also the first time I am introduced to local Malay writer, Isa Kamari, who was really witty (“Psychosis before synthesis” he said – best line ever in my opinion), and local poet Aaron Lee (who quoted beautiful lines of poetry and Bible verses). The other panellist was American author, Karen Joy Fowler, whose latest offering We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves I’ve yet to read but heard some intriguing spoilers about. The panel moderator was Kamini Ramachandran (occupation: storyteller!), who spoke in a casual speed with ultra-clear enunciation. Her voice, although low, is engaging and draws you in. The points I gleamed from the panel were many and I will not reiterate them here (attend next year’s fest!).

Neil Humphreys at his book signing. 

I also attended two film screenings which were part of the SWF Fringe Festival at The Arts House, “A Page of Madness” by Teinosuke Kinugasa, an avant-garde silent film (silent in that you cannot hear the actors’ talking, but there are music and sound effects) depicting the mentally ill in an asylum, and “A Clockwork Orange” by Stanley Kubrick, based on the novel by Anthony Burgess. I’ve always wanted to catch the latter, having heard about it for quite some time. Now I’m spurred to read the novel. It is very graphic, and is as controversial then as it is now, I feel. Frankly, I was quite unsettled after the film. As for the former film, it is interesting in its use of lights, music, sound effects, filmic techniques and colours to depict the mentally unsound. The plot is lean but the film itself is a lot to take in. It is difficult to make meaning of the film, but I supposed that the film is for people to watch and absorb what is shown. No need to think too much.

Overall, SWF2014 left me with many insights and much inspiration. It was fruitful and fulfilling. I am truly looking forward to next year’s edition!

Read a piece from Popspoken on SWF2014: http://popspoken.com/the-arts/2014/11/swf-2014-four-traits-true-writer

Official website: https://www.singaporewritersfestival.com/nacswf/nacswf.html

Official Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/sgwritersfest