writing portfolio

[Poem] How do you Break Up with Home?

This poem was published in the University of Sydney's 2023 Annual Newcomers Journal. I wrote this poem a month after moving to Australia. I was reflecting on my decision to take up the opportunity to explore life beyond Singapore, and this poem is a result of that process. I am so thankful to have had another poem published!

[Poem] The Singaporean Marriage Proposal

This poem was published in the Nanyang Technological University's Myriad Issue 1 - Hiraeth. I never ever thought it was possible that my poem could get published and read by others was possible and it still seems quite surreal, but I now have a poem out there on the world wide web! This poem was first written a few years ago and has faced a number of rejections. It was also used in my upper secondary literature classroom as a fun intro to poetry (I changed the byline to my Chinese name and students were given the chance to critique it!). What a journey it has gone through to finally reach this stage!

[Children's Book] Spiky & Dotty

I wrote this story with a group of classmates back in my polytechnic days as an assignment. I still remember the fun we had when we read our story to kindergarten children then. It was definitely a surprise when we won Best Children's Story at the DTVM Awards 2012. Imagine my excitement when my school decided to publish it in 2018. It is a crazy feeling to have a little book with your name on it in book shops and libraries! 

[Lifestyle Writing] The Peranakan

It was only during my early twenties that I had a sort of "identity awakening". I suddenly had an urgent urge to find out more about my roots and culture. I decided to then join TPAS (The Peranakan Association Singapore) as a volunteer. As part of the editorial committee, I contributed features, lifestyle, and event articles in association's magazine. It was exciting as I was told that it was the only magazine focused on peranakan culture in the world!

[Lifestyle Writing] The Tribune/The Inverse

I spent my few years in university writing for the student union paper under the features, TV, and books sections. It was a follow up of my days as a lifestyle and features intern journalist at CNA. I wanted to continue to write (not just academic writing) and so I decided to join the student union's paper. I was very grateful for the opportunity and space to really share my thoughts about a wide variety of topics. 

[Literary Critique] Unseen Magazine

I joined the Unseen team in 2016 to help with their publicity and social media. It was pretty cool to me that it was a youth-led literary magazine in Singapore! I was going to be a literature teacher then and I wanted to participate and understand more about literature at the JC level. It was really nice that I was able to contribute my analysis of Christina Rossetti's Goblin Market for Issue Four of the magazine.

[Lifestyle Writing] enl*ght

During my time in the National Institute of Education, I contributed to enl*ght's (a publication for English & Literature teachers) issue on assessment. I decided to head back to alma mater, Singapore Polytechnic. By learning more about how polytechnic students were being assessed for their creative writing, I thought that secondary school teachers would be able to take a look at an alternative viewpoint to creative writing assessment. It was a real treat to head back to my alma mater and relook at lessons and assignments from a teacher lens!