If you’re in Singapore this month, be sure to set aside time for the 26th Singapore Writers Festival, a fantastic international gathering of writers and creators from around the world. As a poet I had the remarkable opportunity to attend in 2022 to discuss graphopoetics and speculative poetry with some wonderful writers in many disciplines and am happy I was able to keep in contact with many of them long after. It was an eye-opening experience that left me positive that there is yet still space in the world for our diverse stories.
It began in 1986 as a biennial festival. Now organised by Arts House Limited, SWF is a much anticipated event on the cultural calendar, presenting the world’s major literary talents to Singaporeans while shining a spotlight on home grown and Southeast Asian creative talents. This year, events will take place between November 17-26th in English, Malay, Chinese, and Tamil. Previous guests have included figures such as two-time Booker Prize winner Margaret Atwood, Whitbread First Novel Award winner Zadie Smith, British poet laureate Carol Ann Duffy, Nebula winner Neil Gaiman and Lambda Literary Award winner Roxane Gay.
This year, Vietnamese American author Viet Thanh Nguyen is among those scheduled to appear as they explore the theme of “Plot Twist” which certainly applies for many of us with roots in the Southeast Asian diaspora. You can see a full range of the speakers here, and I would particularly call your attention to the Asian American spotlight that will be part of the festivities. Given the few festivals of for Asian American literature in the United States this year, it is refreshing to see that it is valued overseas, and many institutions might do well to consider their commitments to the diasporic communities in the wake of intercultural challenges that persist in the US.