Tag: The Literary

Singapore Steampunk Anthology: Update!

Since I keep seeing it in my keywords searching more about the Singapore steampunk anthology by Two Trees… Here’s a public update! The non-acceptances have been emailed out with comments and the rest have been updated that they’ve passed through the first round!

At the moment, we’re sorting through which stories will fit together in the whole anthology since there ARE quite a lot! The results of that will most probably get through after New Year’s and then we’ll email once more who got through the final cut!

From then onwards, we’ll note to them which parts need editing if they need, etc.

So yes, submissions are closed but we’re still working on it to get it all together!

TGIO PARTY!

Hello, hello. We’ve had the kick off and now it’s the Thank Goodness It’s Over Party! Details in the poster but pretty much:

Date: 4 December 2010

Time: 2.30pm-4pm

Location: Earshot Cafe at The Arts House

It’ll be very informal and there will be cake, pastries, muffins and tea and coffee! Want to talk about anything literary or anything bookish or about writing, just come on even if you’re not a Nanowrimo-er! It’s always good to go to meet other writers and readers for this is usually one of the free events in which they’d come to!

SDS 2.17 – Misery Business

And so the 30th October was the kick off party for Nanowrimo in Singapore! It was at the multipurpose room of the national library. Most people ask why do Nanowrimo since you have to write at least 50k in 30 days well… That is pretty much the point! For others it’s a daunting task, to writers it is fun!

Continue reading SDS 2.17 – Misery Business

The line up!

Here’s the line up guys. (For the official poster of the event, click here.)

National Library, Multipurpose room (basement 1) at 6.30pm (till 8.30pm)

The theme: Superheroes (people are gonna dress to the theme so don’t get freaked out, you’re at the right place!)

Anyone can leave before 8.30pm but that’s the maximum time slot we can be there because the library would close soon after.

Who should come?

  • Nanowrimo-ers
  • Readers and writers
  • Comic fans and geeks

First we’ll have the Nanowrimo kick off! Things start at 6.30pm and all and it’ll lead on towards the mini launching of Bubble G.U.M (because some of us Nanowrimo-ers wrote it)! The book is just $15 just for the launch. You guys will want to buy it there because when it gets stocked at Kino or any other store, they’ll put GST and everything on it which could get the book priced above $19 or something. (We’ll have our previous publication Happiness at the End of the World there at $15 too.)

After the mini launch, we would end the main Nanowrimo events but stay to talk to each other and have our cake while we discuss on the evening’s theme of graphic novels and of speculative fiction in it! They’re related since graphic novels ARE a graphic form of speculative fiction. Batman, Superman, Powergirl and much more! If you’re there just for the discussion, come around 7.20pm! Our main programme isn’t going to be that long, the kick off is more for people to know each other and what they’re writing and reading anyway!

Continue reading The line up!

Time to get sticky

Hey guys! BUBBLE G.U.M IS OUT! Or rather, it’s printed and ready to be shipped by the distributors. HOWEVER, it will take time before the stores will receive it but I’m able to get copies from the publisher themselves. Ah! What’s BUBBLE G.U.M? If you read the last pages of Happiness at the End of the World, you’d be able to see a preview of it.

Here’s a brief description of what the story is though:

It’s 2045 and Prix Chan is beginning her National Service. Her father, Pierre, believes she can handle it but her mother, Su, is hysterical at the thought of her daughter leaving the safety of Singapore’s Green Underwater Metropolis, the Bubble G.U.M., a self-sufficient city-state protected three miles beneath the waves by a dome of chewing gum.

Little does anyone know that in less than a week Prix will cause the biggest crisis to hit Singapore since the planet went into meltdown creating a world of water and a human civilisation on the brink of annihilation.

Yes, it’s science fiction about futuristic Singapore! It’s a young adult with elements of comedy and adventure in it too. A very interesting 6 person collaboration by the Happy Smiley Writers Group.

You guys get can it during the Nanowrimo Kick-Off on the 30th October, 6.30pm at the National Library or email me to “pre-order” it if you want to have a copy before the date or to make sure you do get a copy before then. Why pre-order? Because it’ll take time for the distributors to put it in the stores and I might just have limited stock in my hands when I get some stacks of them from the publisher.

It’s not up for online sale at Two Trees yet but it will be.

What’s the price? $18! It’s probably going to be more expensive in stores when they include GST though. (Un?)Fortunately, you can only get a special sale price of $15 if you go to the Nanowrimo Kick-Off! But hey, if you’re going to the kick-off, you’ll be able to meet the writers, get autographs, listen about writing, talk about geekery such as books and comics while having cake!

It’s totally more worth it to pre-order one and collect it at the event itself. What’s my email? Check my about page, heh. Or ok. It’s sarah @ seriouslysarah.com

Online Book Store Battle!

Hello everyone! This is an updated review of online book stores compared to back then when I wrote Open Trolley is my alternate universe Amazon! If you read the comments there, things got a bit heated up from the various stores telling me that they’ve got offers and whatnot and other people’s experiences with them. (The comments ARE very informative by the way.)

Now you need to know one thing from that era of me using Open Trolley, Acma Mall didn’t give free shipping to Singapore. That post was in August 2009 and then they had the free shipping later. That includes the existence of Book Depository to us Singaporeans even if the about page says it had been founded in 2004. It was just then, no one here really used BD to tell us it isn’t dodgy and all that.

I would like to quote George Stevens who had used all three before I get on with my review. This is one comment that’s very useful from that older post:

OK- tried all 3 of the stores above- here’s the results- all orders were for books shown as “in-stock”-

OpenTrolley- order placed January 6th, available for pickup January 15th- 7 working days. Paid $0.50 to pick them up at Plaza Singapura.

Acma Mall- order placed January 10th, delivered January 26th to my house- 12 working days. 40% off of best sellers and free shipping made this the best price, but the longest delivery.

Book Depository- order placed January 17th, delivered January 26th to my house. Overall good prices and best delivery time (6 working days), even though they are not local. Will probably continue to use them in the future.

I think both of the “local” bookstores are just a website who then order in bulk from overseas, thus the long lead times.

Right. So there you go. It’s pretty much the same timeline for me too. I’ve ordered from OT, AM and lately BD.

Continue reading Online Book Store Battle!

A whole bunch of talks or competitions!

Woooh, a whole bunch of events! Well, usually these things tend to run in the second half of the year onwards. Click the more cut to read more. We have:

  • Talk: ‘In the Footsteps of Raffles’
  • Workshop: What’s Your Singapore Memory?
  • Talk/ Book Launch: ‘A life of its Own’
  • Competition: e-Mote Digital Storytelling
  • Workshop: e-MOTE storytelling
  • Competition: 2010 Adelaide Review Short Fiction
  • Competition: Man Asia Literary Prize 2010
  • Competition: The Iowa Short Fiction Award
  • Competition: The 30th Arvon International Poetry Competition 2010
  • Competition: Hedwig Anuar Children’s Book Award 2011

Uuuungh. I did wonder to split this post into two or something but whatever. I’ll put them under headlines so you can scroll and pick at it at your own pace or something. Or usually, I’d just copy just the title of the event and press ctrl+f it or apple+f depending on which computer I’m on.

Onwards we go!

Continue reading A whole bunch of talks or competitions!

Like a cheap $2 Bra

We don’t get enough support.

There.

I’ve said it.

The we defined here refers to the writers of fiction in Singapore. Don’t give me rubbish of that we have do get some support from various ministries or councils. I said we don’t get enough support. It doesn’t include said ministries or councils. It needs to involve more than that.

Here’s a post in January at Bibliobibuli about “Singapore’s Fiction Famine”. Technically the main article is on the link on her blog but I linked to that post since it has her opinions on it too.

Well, it’s all fine and dandy that Ng Yi-Sheng did say about NAC and Jacaranda in that post but alas. That’s not enough. Amusingly, he did also say about Nanowrimo which heh, I am the municipal liaison in Singapore to know very much well about.

You know what? There are fiction writers in Singapore but they’re all hidden like rebels against the imperial army or unicorns in a forest. They’re there and difficult to find but if you did find one, you might find the rest and realize why they’re hidden. See, being the ML of Singapore’s Nanowrimo, I get to actually see or meet these hidden writers and woah if you get the chance to read their things, you’d go “WHY IS THIS NOT IN THE BOOKSTORES?”.

It’s definitely not because of their skills but more of what we write. (You might doubt my skills, whatever but I have read very well written things by others.)

And we actually write fiction. GENRE fiction. The fun stories you’d actually pick up and buy in bookstores about fantasy, science fiction or romance! Drama, crime thrillers and all sorts of genres! The stuff people read and talk about online and go “OMGOMG I SHIP THIS PAIRING!” and write fanfic about.

You’d think that’ll be interesting right? But no. See, even if we write (and yes we do) these things, they won’t get published here. If they do, it’s usually by a small press publisher or done by the writer’s own initiative. The rules of getting published in Singapore is different than those in the US. Some of those guides or “rules” that one might read in articles of becoming a published author don’t really work here.

Continue reading Like a cheap $2 Bra

And with an appearance…

Well hellooo.

This weekend, there is Spore-Con at Pasir Ris Community Centre. Besides gaming of the board game variety, card games and miniature table top ones, there will be some science fiction and fantasy panel there!

Let me copy and paste:

SPORE-CON SFF PANEL & BOOK SIGNING
 “Yes, We do exist – SFF writing in Singapore”

Room: TIA
Date: 5/6/2010

Time: 11am-12pm

We have readings and a book signing!

Yes. DO come because I’ll be there along with Rozen of Two Trees where you can ask about writing genre fiction in Singapore and such.

For more info, you can check out their page here. Have any friends who like to write and what not? Ask them to come along. After all, besides fiction, it is a gaming convention where you have to think and make up stories for your campaigns. At the time of this post, the room number is still to be advised. Fret not! You’ll probably know which room when you go there and ask if you haven’t checked the website before then.

How to get there?

Pasir Ris East Community Club

No 1 Pasir Ris Drive 4 #01-08 Singapore 519457

SBS Bus Services along Pasir Ris Drive 1:
12, 17, 21, 39, 53, 81, 358, 359 and 518

Contact Numbers for the CC is:  65811861

SEE YOU AROUND, you guys!

A literature prize, Script Frenzy and 48 hours competition!

Howdy ya’ll. It’s that time of year again! The time where I go ahh that it’s nearly the mid year and what have I done and what costumes am I gonna make? Oh right, well, cosplay season is coming soon but meanwhile, literary wise and competition wise we have…

  • The Singapore Literature Prize
  • Script Frenzy
  • 48 Hours film competition 2010 (Singapore)

Here we go!

Continue reading A literature prize, Script Frenzy and 48 hours competition!