Jerrold Yam is a Singaporean poet and lawyer whose poetry has been widely published and anthologised.

Biography

Yam completed

secondary education Secondary education or post-primary education covers two phases on the International Standard Classification of Education scale. Level 2 or lower secondary education (less commonly junior secondary education) is considered the second and final pha ...

as well as the

International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme The International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme (IBDP) is a two-year educational programme primarily aimed at 16-to-19-year-olds in 140 countries around the world. The programme provides an internationally accepted qualification for entry into ...

Anglo-Chinese School (Independent) Anglo-Chinese School (Independent) (ACS(I)) is an independent Methodist secondary school in Dover, Singapore. Founded in 1886 by Reverend William Fitzjames Oldham, it was recognised as an International Baccalaureate World School in 2005, and ha ...

in 2009. He then read Law at

University College London , mottoeng = Let all come who by merit deserve the most reward , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £143 million (2020) , budget = ...

, from which he graduated with first-class honours (in addition to receiving the Dean's List award) in 2015. Yam currently works as a corporate lawyer in the

City of London The City of London is a city, ceremonial county and local government district that contains the historic centre and constitutes, alongside Canary Wharf, the primary central business district (CBD) of London. It constituted most of London fr ...

Literary career

In 2012, Yam was nominated for the

Pushcart Prize The Pushcart Prize is an American literary prize published by Pushcart Press that honors the best "poetry, short fiction, essays or literary whatnot" published in the small presses over the previous year. Magazine and small book press editors are ...

, making him then the youngest Singaporean to be nominated at 20 years old. His first collection of poetry, ''Chasing Curtained Suns'', was published that same year by Math Paper Press. Yam's works have been published in more than a hundred publications across twenty countries, including '' Ambit'', ''Axon'', ''

Hayden's Ferry Review ''Hayden's Ferry Review'' is a literary magazine published biannually by Arizona State University (ASU). The magazine was established in 1986 and is headquartered in the Virginia G. Piper Center for Creative Writing at ASU. It also manages a bl ...

'', ''Mascara Literary Review'', '' Oxford Poetry'', '' Prairie Schooner'', ''

Quarterly Literary Review Singapore ''Quarterly Literary Review Singapore'' (''QLRS'') is a Singapore online literary journal founded and edited by Singaporean poet Toh Hsien Min in 2001. Overview The first issue of ''QLRS'' appeared in October 2001. The journal is an online publi ...

'', ''

Wasafiri ''Wasafiri'' is a quarterly British literary magazine covering international contemporary writing. Founded in 1984, the magazine derives its name from a Swahili word meaning "travellers" that is etymologically linked with the Arabic word "safari" ...

'' and ''

Washington Square Review ''Washington Square Review'' (usually shortened to ''ON SQU'') is a nationally distributed literary magazine that publishes stories, poems, essays and reviews, many of which are later reprinted in annual anthologies. It is the graduate equivale ...

.'' His poems have also been anthologised in ''Lines Spark Code'' (

Ethos Books Established in 1997, Ethos Books is an independent book publisher based in Singapore. It is an imprint of Pagesetters Services Pte Ltd, a communications and design house. Ethos Books specialises in publishing literary works of fiction, non-ficti ...

, 2017), which is included in the Singapore A-Level literature syllabus, ''A Luxury We Cannot Afford'' ( Math Paper Press, 2015), ''Kulit: Asian Literature for the Language Classroom'' (

Pearson Pearson may refer to: Organizations Education *Lester B. Pearson College, Victoria, British Columbia, Canada *Pearson College (UK), London, owned by Pearson PLC *Lester B. Pearson High School (disambiguation) Companies *Pearson PLC, a UK-based int ...

, 2014), ''Manoa'' ( University of Hawai‘i Press, 2014) and ''Mildly Erotic Verse'' (Emma Press, 2013). He was a featured author at the Interrobang Book Fair (2013), London Book Fair (2013),

Ledbury Poetry Festival Founded in 1996 by a group of local poetry enthusiasts, the Ledbury Poetry Festival is now the biggest poetry festival in the UK. History The first Ledbury Poetry Festival was held in 1997 in Ledbury, Herefordshire. It was opened by jazz singer ...

(2014), SEA Arts Fest (2014) and

Singapore Writers Festival The Singapore Writers Festival is a literary event organised by the National Arts Council. Inaugurated in 1986, the festival serves a dual function of promoting new and emerging Singaporean and Asian writing to an international audience, as well ...

(2013 to 2015), and was also an invited speaker at the Southbank Centre's Festival of Love (2014). Yam described his debut collection ''Chasing Curtained Suns'' as being a voice for his generation, exploring the "transition from adolescence to adulthood" and "what growing up truly means in the context of modern and painfully practical Singapore". The collection "draws inspiration from National Service, celebrity culture, young love and ingaporean localities such asUpper Thomson Road." He tackles similar subjects in his second and third collections, but with greater scrutiny on " isown weaknesses", and the "sum of iscollected fears" in ''Scattered Vertebrae''. The collection is "driven by psychological, emotional and physical desire, ... and sa genuine celebration of life’s perplexing lots."

The Straits Times ''The Straits Times'' is an English-language daily broadsheet newspaper based in Singapore and currently owned by SPH Media Trust (previously Singapore Press Holdings). ''The Sunday Times'' is its Sunday edition. The newspaper was established ...

mentioned that "the recurring motif then, in this collection, is the dichotomy between wholeness and brokenness, and that of creation and destruction, which the title – Scattered Vertebrae – bears out beautifully." His third collection, ''Intruder'', explores "themes of impermanence and displacement" and the idea of home as constantly evolving. The Straits Times mentioned that "filial duties, family ties and the search for identity are the themes of Yam’s heartfelt personal poetry." Yam's poems have been translated into Mandarin and Spanish. His inspirations include Cyril Wong, Sharon Olds and

Louise Glück Louise Elisabeth Glück ( ; born April 22, 1943) is an American poet and essayist. She won the 2020 Nobel Prize in Literature, whose judges praised "her unmistakable poetic voice that with austere beauty makes individual existence universal". He ...

Works

Poetry collections

* ''Chasing Curtained Suns'' ( Math Paper Press, 2012) * ''Scattered Vertebrae'' ( Math Paper Press, 2013) * ''Intruder'' (

, 2014)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Yam, Jerrold 1991 births Singaporean people of Chinese descent 21st-century Singaporean writers Singaporean poets Anglo-Chinese School alumni Alumni of University College London 21st-century poets Singaporean male writers Living people