Quiet Quarter
Before we begin, please head to my website and…
Eventful
Ben and I will be part of “Imaginarium II: Dystopian Hope” on 30 November, an event by the British Fantasy Society. We have the 2:30pm (GMT)/10:30pm (GMT +8) slot for the panel, “Opportunities in Speculative Fiction”.
Here’s the official description:
A round-up of all the wonderful things that have been happening in speculative fiction across all forms of media, where trends are kicking off, in which parts of the world, by whom, and much more! Join moderator Lauren McMenemy, and panellists Wayne Ree & Benjamin Chee (author & illustrator of Work-Life Balance: Malevolent Managers and Folkloric Freelancers), CW Shern (game narrative designer) and Zhui Ning Chang (producer of time travel adventure Asian Pirate Musical), as they explore how ESEA creatives are making it out in the wild!
Tickets are already on sale, so get yours right now.
For those of you keeping count, that’s three confirmed events for me so far within this quarter. Here’s a handy dandy list of them:
7 October: “From YouTube to Print: Uketsu’s ‘Strange Pictures’ | Worth the Hype?”
17 October: “Lit After Dark”
30 November: “Imaginarium II: Dystopian Hope”
I’ll keep updating that list whenever anything new is confirmed. I have maybe one or two more left for the year, though not the ones you might be thinking of.
Friend-ventful
I won’t be a part of the Singapore Writers Festival and Singapore Comic Con this year. I didn’t pitch a panel for SWF, and wasn’t invited for either event.
Anyone who has heard me speak knows that “snarky” is my default tone, so I want to make it perfectly clear that I’m genuinely okay with not getting an invite. Both events have treated me very well over the last couple of years. They’re run by good folks with a desire to produce the best events possible—all while being absolutely lovely to every single guest.
Truth be told, it’s also good for me to not be involved. As mentioned in the last edition, I’ve been adjusting my priorities, so a quieter last quarter will help me focus on my work and, more importantly, on myself.
That said, I also have friends who’ll be part of SWF, whose events I do want to highlight. I’ll stick to two of them because if I’m going to list everyone, I might as well just copy and paste a sizeable chunk of the festival’s programme schedule.
The first is Siang Lu. Siang is a writer with whom I shared the stage at OzAsia Festival last year. More importantly, he was one of the most encouraging, generous, and funny people that Ben and I met while we were in Adelaide. Any panel he’s on is going to be fantastic, so I recommend checking out both of his.
The other is my Worlds Apart partner in crime, Nurjannah Suhaimi. Jannah and I hadn’t seen each other since my wedding, but when we were reunited at the How Are You Feeling? launch, we encouraged each other’s nonsense like no time had passed. Everyone sees Ben and Kyle as my work-spouses, and rightfully so, but my collaboration with Jannah remains a career high point. She is a light in this world, and also an immensely powerful storyteller, and I hope that we can work together again at some point. In the meantime though, I’ll see her—and all of you!—at her SWF panel.
The list of panels for SGCC isn’t out yet, but I’ll definitely be there to meet creators like Sean and Jacob Phillips, Simon Bisley, and Glenn Fabry (who I doubt will remember that time him and I were comparing David Bowie impressions over dinner, but it’s a memory I’ll always treasure at least).
Depending on the panels, I’ll probably be there for a single day, though I’m not sure which day just yet.
(Hey, remember when I had a man-bun?) (Please do not show this photo to my hair stylist. She will kill me.)
The Luca fund
Yet another subscriber and friend has contributed to the Luca fund: Atty! Thank you, Atty. Like Peter and Timi, your donation has helped to pay for Luca’s prescription food.
For those of you who missed the last couple of editions, our cat, Luca, has been diagnosed with kidney failure. His vet bills regularly set us back quite a bit—from check-ups and blood tests to said prescription food designed to help with his kidney health. If you want to donate some cash to ease that financial load, you can send any amount to me via PayNow if you’re in Singapore. Just respond to this email to get my number, if you don’t already have it. If you’re not in Singapore, you can send your donations via my Ko-fi account, which is linked to my Paypal.
If you don’t feel like just donating though, you can get a digital copy of Mr Memphis, my first collaboration with Ben. It’s the release that most directly and immediately benefits both of us. It would help greatly if you paid more than the $5 minimum though.
I also have shrink-wrapped copies of all three issues of FlashINK, the Singaporean tattoo magazine started by my sister-in-law. It has interviews by yours truly with Chris Garver from Miami Ink and the world’s most tattooed man, Lucky Diamond Rich, as well as a piece written by the late X’Ho. I’m letting all three of these go for a total of SG$75. If you want them, just reply to this email and we’ll work something out.
Kind words are also very welcome. In case you’re wondering how Luca’s doing…
… he is unimpressed by Rogue One, especially after two seasons of Andor. I think he’s being a little harsh, but I respect his opinion.
And that’s it for now
As always, please head over to my website and…
I’m still going to send out a new edition in a few weeks to announce my latest project. Just to tease you a little bit, it’s another collaboration with Kyle, but it’s not related to the supernatural this time.
I’m currently on a social media break. When that project’s announced, I’ll log back onto Instagram and Bluesky to talk about it too.
Until then though, take care, folks.