Where Did The Time Go
Oh, hey there, stranger.
Okay, some of you actually are new subscribers, so that’s at least a somewhat accurate greeting. For the rest of you though, yes, I know it’s been more than three months since the last time I sent one of these.
But before we get into all of that…
Support my work
Work-Life Balance – an award-winning prose/comics hybrid co-created with Benjamin Chee
Worlds Apart: A Conversation About Mental Health – a comic co-created with Nurjannah Suhaimi
So, what happened?
My reason for this edition’s tardiness is the same as the last time this happened: I was ridiculously busy.
Something I realised is that a monthly schedule might be a little ambitious for me, moving forward, especially as I dedicate more time to finishing my novel. I’m thinking that maybe I’ll send out one of these newsletters every couple of months instead.
In the meantime, most of you are already following me on Instagram. If you’re on Bluesky, you can follow me there too. I’ll have more regular updates on those platforms.
I’m still not a fan of social media (well… social media run by Meta or that piece of shit right-wing oligarch, specifically. I’m actually having fun on Bluesky), but it allows me to keep you guys up to date on my books, events and everything else, without taking up as much time.
The CliffNotes update
Instead of a super lengthy edition that gets into detail about everything I’ve been up to since September, here’s a relatively quick rundown:
Freelance work.
Ben and I were invited to the OzAsia Festival in Adelaide—our first ever festival on a whole other continent. We had a couple of fantastic panels with amazing creators—like Rachel Ang, Vajra Chandrasekera, Bora Chung, Anton Hur and Siang Lu—some of whom we also spent a decent amount of time with off-stage. We sold Work-Life Balance and Worlds Apart to a few comic shops in Adelaide, and Work-Life Balance sold out at the festival’s bookshop! Also, I got to attend the legal marriage ceremony for my friends, Audrey and Dean. Congrats, guys!
Ben and I were on a panel at the Singapore Writers Festival with Hwang Bo-reum and, as expected, it was a full house (though we are well aware that most of that wonderful crowd weren’t there for us). We went out for dinner with Sonal Patel and Sami Shah, two of the organisers of OzAsia, along with Sarah Malik and Anton. And Work-Life Balance sold out at this festival’s bookshop too!
More freelance work.
Ben and I had a signing session at Singapore Comic Con. I was also supposed to moderate a panel with Sean and Jacob Phillips, but unfortunately, they couldn’t make it this year. Instead, I did a decent amount of networking (thanks, Johnny Lau!) and spent a lovely evening with Yuko Shimizu (thanks, Anngee Neo!).
We celebrated five years of HANTU, the production company started by myself and Kyle Ong. HANTU’s behind the podcast, Ghost Maps, and the hit Mediacorp show, Tales From Incredible Tales. We held an anniversary party with some of our fans and collaborators. It was a lovely night filled with plenty of laughs and, of course, lots of ghost stories.
I’ve started playing Dungeons & Dragons with a couple of friends. Our dungeon master, Luke, is amazing. I’m a bard because, obviously, I’m a bard.
I’m writing this from Perth, where Nadia and I are celebrating Christmas and New Year’s with my sister, her family, and some of my cousins. In the months leading up to this holiday, there was, of course, the usual whirlwind of planning and packing. This time, however, we also needed a babysitter for Luca. What we got instead were two babysitters—friends, Atty and Tiqqy, who are taking turns to watch over our little gremlin. Here’s a photo of said gremlin, taken by Atty.
What’s next?
Hopefully less freelance work, for one. Not that I’m not grateful for the cash that comes with it, but as I said before, I need to hunker down and focus on my novel—which was the original plan for this year.
Clearly, things didn’t go according to said plan. And, sure, it’s been an eventful 2024, filled with festivals and new shows and award nominations, but my novel remains the most important thing for me, professionally.
So, the hope is that I’ll be working on it full-time for the first half of 2025. “Hope”, of course, being the key word there. I’d like to not have to take on as many of those freelance jobs during that time, but that’s just the reality of the working writer.
While that’s something that’s mostly out of my control, everything else isn’t. There’ll be no new projects on the horizon. Whatever I’m already working on is manageable. Bigger events will have to wait till the later half of the year. And my therapist and I have been working on ensuring that I’m in the right head space to juggle my manuscript with my personal life.
That’s it then?
Yep. That’s it. You’ll get another update from me sometime in the new year, but not any time soon. Until then, if you’re looking for last-minute Christmas presents for your loved ones, you can always get my stuff.
And don’t forget to follow me on Instagram and Bluesky.
Until the next edition hits your inbox, take care!