The literature of Singapore comprises a collection of literary works by
Singaporeans. It is written chiefly in the country's four official languages:
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ide ...
,
Malay
Malay may refer to:
Languages
* Malay language or Bahasa Melayu, a major Austronesian language spoken in Indonesia, Malaysia, Brunei and Singapore
** History of the Malay language, the Malay language from the 4th to the 14th century
** Indonesi ...
,
Standard Mandarin
Standard Chinese ()—in linguistics Standard Northern Mandarin or Standard Beijing Mandarin, in common speech simply Mandarin, better qualified as Standard Mandarin, Modern Standard Mandarin or Standard Mandarin Chinese—is a modern standar ...
and
Tamil
Tamil may refer to:
* Tamils, an ethnic group native to India and some other parts of Asia
** Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka also called ilankai tamils
**Tamil Malaysians, Tamil people native to Malaysia
* Tamil language, nati ...
.
While Singaporean literary works may be considered as also belonging to the literature of their specific languages, the literature of Singapore is viewed as a distinct body of literature portraying various aspects of Singapore society and forms a significant part of the
culture of Singapore. Literature in all four official languages has been translated and showcased in publications such as the literary journal ''Singa'', that was published in the 1980s and 1990s with editors including
Edwin Thumboo and
Koh Buck Song
Koh Buck Song (; born 1963) is a Singaporean writer and poet. He is the author and editor of more than 30 books, including six books of poetry and haiga art. He works as a writer, editor and consultant in branding, communications strategy an ...
, as well as in multilingual anthologies such as ''Rhythms: A Singaporean Millennial Anthology Of
Poetry
Poetry (derived from the Greek ''poiesis'', "making"), also called verse, is a form of literature that uses aesthetic and often rhythmic qualities of language − such as phonaesthetics, sound symbolism, and metre − to evoke meanings i ...
'' (2000), in which the poems were all translated three times each into the three languages. A number of Singaporean writers such as
Tan Swie Hian and
Kuo Pao Kun
Kuo Pao Kun (193910 September 2002) () was a playwright, theatre director, and arts activistKwok, Kian-Woon. "Remembering Kuo Pao Kun (1939–2002)." Inter-Asia Cultural Studies 4.2 (2003): 193–201. in Singapore who wrote and directed both Man ...
have contributed work in more than one language. However, such cross-linguistic fertilisation is becoming increasingly rare and it is now increasingly thought that Singapore has four sub-literatures instead of one.
Business Times (Singapore) has written that writers in Singapore can also be "highly experimental", and quoting the poet,
Cyril Wong, literature in the country "doesn't necessarily mean writing that's on the page. It can be writing that is performed or even writing that is translated into video or images or photographs...including writings that are less tangible. Writings that are expressed through other mediums." Singaporean literature has even begun to make its mark on the international stage, with
Sonny Liew
Sonny Liew (born 26 September 1974) is a Malaysia-born comic artist/illustrator based in Singapore. He is best known for ''The Art of Charlie Chan Hock Chye'' (2015), the first graphic novel to win the Singapore Literature Prize for fiction.
Ea ...
's graphic novel ''The Art of Charlie Chan Hock Chye'' winning three
Eisner Awards and the Pingprisen for Best International Comic in 2017.
Literature in English
Poetry
Singaporean literature in English started with the
Straits-born Chinese community in the colonial era; it is unclear which was the first work of literature in English published in Singapore, but there is evidence of Singapore literature published as early as the 1830s. The first notable Singaporean work of poetry in English is possibly Teo Poh Leng's ''F.M.S.R.'' This modernist poem was published in 1937 in London under the pseudonym of Francis P. Ng. This was followed by
Wang Gungwu
Wang Gungwu, (; born 9 October 1930) is a Chinese-Singaporean historian, sinologist, and writer. He is a historian of China and Southeast Asia. He has studied and written about the Chinese diaspora, but he has objected to the use of the word ' ...
's ''Pulse'' in 1950.
With the independence of Singapore in 1965, a new wave of Singapore writing emerged, led by
Edwin Thumboo,
Arthur Yap
Arthur Yap Chioh Hiong (; 1943 – 19 June 2006) was a Singaporean poet, writer and painter.
Biography
Arthur Yap was born in Singapore, the sixth child of a carpenter and a housewife. Yap attended St Andrew's School and the University of Si ...
,
Robert Yeo
Robert Yeo (born Robert Yeo Cheng Chuan; 1940) is a Singaporean poet, playwright and novelist.
Career
Yeo is a retired lecturer of the National Institute of Education and Nanyang Technological University. In 2011, he is a teacher of creative wri ...
,
Goh Poh Seng
Goh Poh Seng (; July 1936 – 10 January 2010) was a Singaporean dramatist, novelist, doctor and poet, was born in Kuala Lumpur, British Malaya in 1936. He was educated at Victoria Institution in Kuala Lumpur, received his medical degree from Uni ...
,
Lee Tzu Pheng
Anne Lee Tzu Pheng (born May 13, 1946) is a Singaporean poet. She has five volumes of poems to her name; of these, the first three, ''Prospect of a Drowning'' (1980), ''Against the Next Wave'' (1988) and ''The Brink of An Amen'' (1991) were winne ...
, Chandran Nair and Kirpal Singh. It is telling that many critical essays on Singapore literature name Thumboo's generation, rightly or wrongly, as the first generation of Singapore writers. Poetry is the predominant mode of expression; it has a small but respectable following since independence, and most published works of Singapore writing in English have been in poetry.
There were varying levels of activity in succeeding decades, with poets in the late 1980s and early 1990s including
Simon Tay
Simon Tay Seong Chee () is a Singaporean lawyer and legal academic who served as a Nominated Member of Parliament between 1997 and 2003.
Early life and education
Tay was born on 4 January 1961 in Singapore. His father, Tay Seow Huah, was a sen ...
, Leong Liew Geok,
Koh Buck Song
Koh Buck Song (; born 1963) is a Singaporean writer and poet. He is the author and editor of more than 30 books, including six books of poetry and haiga art. He works as a writer, editor and consultant in branding, communications strategy an ...
, Angeline Yap,
Heng Siok Tian
Heng Siok Tian (born 1963) is a Singaporean poet and educator. She has published five volumes of poetry: ''Crossing the Chopsticks and Other Poems'' (1993), ''My City, My Canvas'' (1999), ''Contouring'' (2004), ''Is My Body a Myth'' (2011) and ''Mi ...
and Ho Poh Fun. In the late 1990s, poetry in English in Singapore found a new momentum with a whole new generation of poets born around or after 1965 now actively writing and publishing, not only in Singapore but also internationally. Since the late-1990s, local
small press
A small press is a publisher with annual sales below a certain level or below a certain number of titles published. The terms "indie publisher" and "independent press" and others are sometimes used interchangeably.
Independent press is general ...
es such as firstfruits,
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 ...
and
Math Paper Press have been actively promoting the works of this new wave of poets. Some of the more notable include
Boey Kim Cheng
Boey Kim Cheng (; born 1965) is a Singaporean Australian poet.
As a student, Boey won the National University of Singapore Poetry Writing/Creative Prose Competition and has since received the National Arts Council's Young Artist Award (1996 ...
, Yong Shu Hoong,
Alvin Pang
Alvin Pang (Chinese: 冯啟明; pinyin: ''Féng Qǐ Míng''; born 1972, Singapore) was named 2005 Young Artist of the Year (Literature) by the National Arts Council Singapore. He holds a First Class Honours degree in English literature from the ...
,
Cyril Wong,
Felix Cheong
Felix Cheong is a Singaporean author and poet.
Cheong has written two young adult fiction books used as part of a national education campaign – ''The Call From Crying House'' () and its sequel, ''The Woman In The Last Carriage'' ().
Cheong ...
,
Toh Hsien Min
Toh Hsien Min (born 1975) is a Singaporean poet. His poems have appeared in many literary journals (e.g. ''London Magazine'', the '' London Review of Books'' and ''Poetry Salzburg Review'') and have been translated into Finnish, French, Spanish, ...
,
Grace Chia,
Topaz Winters
Topaz Winters (born September 25, 1999) is the pen name of Singaporean writer Priyanka Balasubramanian Aiyer.
Biography
Winters was born in the United States and has lived in Singapore since she was seven years old. She attends Princeton Univer ...
,
Pooja Nansi
Pooja Nansi (born November 27, 1981) is a Singaporean poet, musician and educator.
Biography
Pooja Nansi was born in Gujarat, India in 1981. Her family moved to Singapore when she was one and a half years old. She is the oldest of two daughters ...
and
Alfian bin Sa'at (also a playwright). The poetry of this younger generation is often politically aware, transnational and
cosmopolitan
Cosmopolitan may refer to:
Food and drink
* Cosmopolitan (cocktail), also known as a "Cosmo"
History
* Rootless cosmopolitan, a Soviet derogatory epithet during Joseph Stalin's anti-Semitic campaign of 1949–1953
Hotels and resorts
* Cosmopoli ...
, yet frequently presents their intensely focused, self-questioning and highly individualised perspectives of Singaporean life, society and culture. Some poets have been labeled
confessional
A confessional is a box, cabinet, booth, or stall in which the priest in some Christian churches sits to hear the confessions of penitents. It is the usual venue for the sacrament in the Roman Catholic Church and the Lutheran Churches, but sim ...
for their personalised writing, often dealing with intimate issues such as sexuality.
Verse anthologies have collected and captured various aspects of life in Singapore, from the 1970s onwards, including a few anthologies under the ASEAN series for the literature of Southeast Asia. For example, the coffeetable book ''Singapore: Places, Poems, Paintings'' (1993, edited by
Koh Buck Song
Koh Buck Song (; born 1963) is a Singaporean writer and poet. He is the author and editor of more than 30 books, including six books of poetry and haiga art. He works as a writer, editor and consultant in branding, communications strategy an ...
) featured poems, paintings and reminiscences about 30 significant places ranging from Chinatown to Bukit Timah Nature Reserve, and had an exhibition at the National Museum along with paintings from the book. ''From Boys To Men: A Literary Anthology Of National Service In Singapore'' (2002, edited by
Koh Buck Song
Koh Buck Song (; born 1963) is a Singaporean writer and poet. He is the author and editor of more than 30 books, including six books of poetry and haiga art. He works as a writer, editor and consultant in branding, communications strategy an ...
and Umej Bhatia) examined the meaning of military duty. ''Reflecting On The Merlion'' (2009, edited by Edwin Thumboo and Yeow Kai Chai) brought together about 40 poems about the national tourism symbol. The most authoritative anthology to date is, arguably, ''Writing Singapore: An Historical Anthology Of Singapore Literature'' (2009) edited by Angelia Poon, Philip Holden and Shirley Geok-lin Lim, and published by
NUS Press
NUS Press is an academic press in Singapore. It traces its origins to the Singapore University Press, which the University of Singapore established in 1971 as its publishing arm. The press specialises in books and journals that deal with topics ...
.
Children
Children's literature in Singapore has gained momentum in recent years due to increased interest in the genre generated by the First Time Writers and Illustrators Initiative which discovered acclaimed writers such as Adeline Foo (''The Diary of Amos Lee''), Jin Pyn (''The Elephant and the Tree''),
Don Bosco (''Thor the Greatest''), Hidayah Amin (The Mango Tree), Edmund Lim (Where's Grandma) and Emily Lim (''Prince Bear and Pauper Bear''). Jessie Wee, one of the pioneers of children's literature, rereleased her popular ''Mooty Mouse'' series with Marshall Cavendish in 2009. According to the National Library Board, other prominent and prolific children's authors include Patricia Maria Tan, Chia Hearn Chek, Ho MinFong and Bessie Chua.
Drama
Drama in English found expression in
Goh Poh Seng
Goh Poh Seng (; July 1936 – 10 January 2010) was a Singaporean dramatist, novelist, doctor and poet, was born in Kuala Lumpur, British Malaya in 1936. He was educated at Victoria Institution in Kuala Lumpur, received his medical degree from Uni ...
, who was also a notable poet and novelist, in
Robert Yeo
Robert Yeo (born Robert Yeo Cheng Chuan; 1940) is a Singaporean poet, playwright and novelist.
Career
Yeo is a retired lecturer of the National Institute of Education and Nanyang Technological University. In 2011, he is a teacher of creative wri ...
, author of six plays, and in
Kuo Pao Kun
Kuo Pao Kun (193910 September 2002) () was a playwright, theatre director, and arts activistKwok, Kian-Woon. "Remembering Kuo Pao Kun (1939–2002)." Inter-Asia Cultural Studies 4.2 (2003): 193–201. in Singapore who wrote and directed both Man ...
, who also wrote in Chinese, sometimes translating his works into English. The late Kuo was a vital force in the local theatre renaissance in the 1980s and 1990s. He was the artistic director of
The Substation for many years. Some of his plays, like ''The Coffin is Too Big for the Hole'' (1984) and ''Lao Jiu'' (1990), have been now considered classics. Stella Kon gained international fame with her now-famous play ''Emily of Emerald Hill''. About an ageing
Peranakan matriarch, it has been produced in
Scotland
Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...
,
Malaysia
Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...
and
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
. The sole character has been played by men as well as women. More recent plays have tended to revolve mostly around social issues, especially causes such as gay rights. A few plays by writers such as
Tan Tarn How Tan Tarn How ()) is a Singaporean playwright and senior research fellow at the Institute of Policy Studies (Singapore). His plays have been staged in Singapore and Hong Kong, and have won numerous awards. In 2011, Epigram Books published a collectio ...
have ventured successfully into the realm of political satire, but their audiences and critical reception remain limited.
Fiction
Fiction writing in English did not start in earnest until after independence. Short stories flourished as a literary form, the novel arrived much later.
Goh Poh Seng
Goh Poh Seng (; July 1936 – 10 January 2010) was a Singaporean dramatist, novelist, doctor and poet, was born in Kuala Lumpur, British Malaya in 1936. He was educated at Victoria Institution in Kuala Lumpur, received his medical degree from Uni ...
remains a pioneer in writing novels well before many of the later generation, with titles like ''
If We Dream Too Long'' (1972) – widely recognised as the first true Singaporean novel – and ''A Dance of Moths'' (1995).
Beginning as a short story writer,
Penang
Penang ( ms, Pulau Pinang, is a Malaysian state located on the northwest coast of Peninsular Malaysia, by the Malacca Strait. It has two parts: Penang Island, where the capital city, George Town, is located, and Seberang Perai on the Malay ...
-born
Catherine Lim
Catherine Lim Poh Imm (, born 21 March 1942) is a Singaporean fiction author known for writing about Singapore society and of themes of traditional Chinese culture. Hailed as the "doyenne of Singapore writers", Lim has published nine collectio ...
has been Singapore's most widely read author, thanks partly to her first two books of short stories, ''
Little Ironies: Stories of Singapore'' (1978) and ''
Or Else, The Lightning God and Other Stories
''Or Else, the Lightning God & Other Stories'' is a collection of eighteen short stories by Catherine Lim, first published by Heinemann in 1980 under the Writing in Asia Series. The book follows the success of '' Little Ironies: Stories of Sin ...
'' (1980). These two books were incorporated as texts for the GCE 'O' Levels. Lim's themes of Asian male chauvinistic gender-dominance mark her as a distant cousin to Asian-American writers such as
Amy Tan. She has also been writing novels, such as ''
The Bondmaid
''The Bondmaid'' is 1998 novel by Catherine Lim, which tells a tragic love story of Wu, the master of a household, and Han, his maid, in 1950s Singapore.
Plot
Sold into servitude at age of four by her own mother and treated harshly by fellow bond ...
'' (1998) and ''Following the Wrong God Home'' (2001), and publishing them to an international audience since the late 1990s.
Han May is the
pseudonym
A pseudonym (; ) or alias () is a fictitious name that a person or group assumes for a particular purpose, which differs from their original or true name (orthonym). This also differs from a new name that entirely or legally replaces an individua ...
of Joan Hon who is better known for her non-fiction books. Her
science-fiction
Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel univers ...
romance ''Star Sapphire'' (1985) won a High Commendation Award from the Book Development Council of Singapore in 1986, the same year when she was also awarded a Commendation prize for her better-known book ''Relatively Speaking'' on her family and childhood memories.
Rex Shelley
Rex Anthony Shelley (27 October 1930 – 21 August 2009) was a Singaporean author. A graduate of the University of Malaya in Malaysia and University of Cambridge, Cambridge trained in engineering and economics, Shelley managed his own busin ...
hails from an earlier colonial generation, although he began publishing only in the early 1990s. A
Eurasian
Eurasia (, ) is the largest continental area on Earth, comprising all of Europe and Asia. Primarily in the Northern and Eastern Hemispheres, it spans from the British Isles and the Iberian Peninsula in the west to the Japanese archipelago ...
, his first novel ''The Shrimp People'' (1991) examines the regional Eurasian community and their experience in Singapore. The book won a National Book Prize. His three other novels, ''People of the Pear Tree'' (1993), ''Island in the Centre'' (1995) and ''River of Roses'' (1998) all examine similar themes of the Eurasian community in the Southeast Asia region. He has won the
S.E.A. Write Award
The S.E.A. Write Award, or Southeast Asian Writers Award, is an award that is presented annually since 1979 to poets and writers of Southeast Asia.
The awards are given to the writers from each of the countries that comprise the Association of S ...
in 2007.
Haresh Sharma
Haresh Sharma (born 1965) is a Singaporean playwright. To date, he has written more than 100 plays that have been staged all over the world, including Singapore, Melbourne, Glasgow, Birmingham, Cairo and London. Sharma has a BA from the Nationa ...
is a playwright who has written more than fifty
plays that have been staged all over the world, including Singapore,
Melbourne
Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...
,
Glasgow
Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...
,
Birmingham
Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the West ...
,
Cairo
Cairo ( ; ar, القاهرة, al-Qāhirah, ) is the capital of Egypt and its largest city, home to 10 million people. It is also part of the largest urban agglomeration in Africa, the Arab world and the Middle East: The Greater Cairo metro ...
and
London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
.
In May 2010, his highly acclaimed play ''Those Who Can't, Teach'' was published in book form by the independent publisher
Epigram Books.
Su-Chen Christine Lim
Suchen Christine Lim (born 1948) is a Malaysian-born Singaporean writer. She was the inaugural winner of the Singapore Literature Prize in 1992.
Early life
Lim was born in Ipoh, Federation of Malaya and had her early education at the Conve ...
's works consider varied themes surrounding issues of gender, immigration and orthodoxy. In 1993, her novel, ''Fistful of Colours'', was awarded the first
Singapore Literature Prize The Singapore Literature Prize (abbreviation: SLP) is a biennial award in Singapore to recognise outstanding published works by Singaporean authors in any of the four official languages: Chinese, English, Malay and Tamil. The competition is organis ...
. Her other novels take up the relationship between the Malays and Chinese immigrants in colonial Malaya, and the issue of land (''A Bit of Earth'').
Gopal Baratham
Gopal Baratham (9 September 1935 – 23 April 2002) was a Singaporean author and neurosurgeon. He was known for his frank style and his ability to write about topics that were often considered controversial in the conservative city-state.
Life
...
, a
neurosurgeon, started as a short story writer and later wrote politically charged works like ''A Candle or the Sun'' (1991) and ''Sayang'' (1991), which courted some controversy when they were first published.
Jean Tay
Jean Tay (born 1974) is a Singaporean playwright, best known for her plays '' Everything But the Brain'' and ''Boom''. Her works have been performed in Singapore, the US, the UK and Italy. She is the Artistic Director and co-founder of Saga Seed ...
is an economist-turned-playwright. Her play ''
Everything but the Brain
''Everything but the Brain'' is a tragicomedy by Singaporean local writer Jean Tay. The work revolves around two main characters: Elaine Lim, a Science physics teacher, and her father Lim Chong Boon, a stroke-afflicted former professor. Originally ...
'' won the Best Original Script at
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 ...
' Life! Theatre Awards in 2006. Two of her plays, ''Everything but the Brain'' and ''Boom'', were published in book form by the Singapore-based independent publisher
Epigram Books.
Augustine Goh Sin Tub who began his writing career writing in Malay, burst on the literary scene after his retirement with more than a dozen books of short stories, most of which were founded on his own personal history, thus making them part fiction and part non-fiction. Works like ''One Singapore'' and its two sequels ''One Singapore 2'' and ''One Singapore 3'' have found fans among the different strata of Singapore society and well acclaimed by all.
Around this time, younger writers emerged. Claire Tham and Ovidia Yu wrote short stories, while playwright Stella Kon put forth her lesser-known science-fiction novel, ''Eston'' (1995). Of the younger generation,
Philip Jeyaretnam
Philip Antony Jeyaretnam (born 1964) is a Singaporean judge, lawyer and author who has been serving as a Judge of the High Court of Singapore since 1 November 2021, having been first appointed to the Bench as a Judicial Commissioner on 4 Januar ...
has shown promise but has not published a new novel since ''Abraham's Promise'' (1995). His first two books, ''First Loves'' (1987) and ''Raffles Place Ragtime'' (1988), were bestsellers in Singapore.
Kelvin Tan, a musician and playwright, has been sporadically in sight, publishing the works ''
All Broken Up and Dancing'' (1992) and the ''Nethe(r);R'' (2001).
Colin Cheong can perhaps lay claim to being one of Singapore's most prolific contemporary authors, releasing three novels, one
novella
A novella is a narrative prose fiction whose length is shorter than most novels, but longer than most short stories. The English word ''novella'' derives from the Italian ''novella'' meaning a short story related to true (or apparently so) facts ...
, two short story collections, and dozens of non-fictional works thus far. He won the
Singapore Literature Prize The Singapore Literature Prize (abbreviation: SLP) is a biennial award in Singapore to recognise outstanding published works by Singaporean authors in any of the four official languages: Chinese, English, Malay and Tamil. The competition is organis ...
in 1996 for his travel diary-like novel ''Tangerine''.
Daren Shiau's ''
Heartland
Heartland or Heartlands may refer to:
Businesses and organisations
* Heartland Bank, a New Zealand-based financial institution
* Heartland Inn, a chain of hotels based in Iowa, United States
* Heartland Alliance, an anti-poverty organization i ...
'' (1999) traces an eighteen-year-old's rites of passage from
junior college
A junior college (sometimes referred to colloquially as a juco, JuCo or JC) is a post-secondary educational institution offering vocational training designed to prepare students for either skilled trades and technical occupations and workers in su ...
through to
enlistment
Military service is service by an individual or group in an army or other militia, air forces, and naval forces, whether as a chosen job (volunteer) or as a result of an involuntary draft (conscription).
Some nations (e.g., Mexico) require ...
and thereafter. The novel has been selected to be a set text at secondary school level.
Hwee Hwee Tan graduated with a
First Class Honours from the
University of East Anglia
The University of East Anglia (UEA) is a public research university in Norwich, England. Established in 1963 on a campus west of the city centre, the university has four faculties and 26 schools of study. The annual income of the institution f ...
, and a
master's
A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice. from
Oxford University
Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...
. She grew up in Singapore and in the
Netherlands
)
, anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands
, established_title = Before independence
, established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
, and her cosmopolitan experience can be readily seen in her novels. Her snazzy, humorous prose can be read in ''Foreign Bodies'' (1997) and ''Mammon Inc.'' (2001), both published by
Penguin Books
Penguin Books is a British publishing, publishing house. It was co-founded in 1935 by Allen Lane with his brothers Richard and John, as a line of the publishers The Bodley Head, only becoming a separate company the following year.[Simon Tay
Simon Tay Seong Chee () is a Singaporean lawyer and legal academic who served as a Nominated Member of Parliament between 1997 and 2003.
Early life and education
Tay was born on 4 January 1961 in Singapore. His father, Tay Seow Huah, was a sen ...]
, currently the chairperson of
Singapore Institute of International Affairs
The Singapore Institute of International Affairs (SIIA) is a Singaporean research institute and think tank which focuses on international relations, especially in ASEAN and the Asia-Pacific (APAC). The Institute conducts research, hosts events, an ...
and a former nominated
Member of Parliament
A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...
, has a short story collection and a novel under his belt. These are ''Stand Alone'' (1991) and ''City of Small Blessings'' (2009).
A newer wave of playwrights have emerged included
Faith Ng,
Joel Tan
Joel Tan (Simplified Chinese, Chinese: 陈文传; pinyin: ‘‘Chén Wén Chuán’’; (born 25 June 1987), is a Singaporean playwright and dramatist.
Biography
Tan is the second son of three; his mother is a nurse and his father is a manag ...
, Lucas Ho, Nabilah Said, Helmi Yusof and Nur Sabrina Dzulkifli.
Sonny Liew
Sonny Liew (born 26 September 1974) is a Malaysia-born comic artist/illustrator based in Singapore. He is best known for ''The Art of Charlie Chan Hock Chye'' (2015), the first graphic novel to win the Singapore Literature Prize for fiction.
Ea ...
, a comic artist/illustrator, won three Eisner Awards in 2017 for Best Writer/Artist,
Best U.S. Edition of International Material - Asia, and Best Publication Design, for his graphic novel "The Art of Charlie Chan Hock Chye", which also won the Singapore Literature Prize in 2016. "The Art of Charlie Chan Hock Chye".
The late 2010s saw a trend of young Singaporean female novelists bringing out novels with international publishing houses based in
London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
and
New York
New York most commonly refers to:
* New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York
* New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States
New York may also refer to:
Film and television
* '' ...
. These novelists include Sharlene Teo, Kirstin Chen, Balli Kaur Jaswal, Clarissa Goenawan,
Rachel Heng, Thea Lim, Amanda Lee Koe, and
Jing-Jing Lee
Jing-Jing Lee (born 1985) is a Singaporean author who writes in the English language; her best-known work is the novel '' How We Disappeared'' (2019).
Early life
Lee was born in Singapore in 1985 and grew up speaking Mandarin. She was not read ...
.
List of Singaporean writers
The following is a non-exhaustive list of notable Singaporean writers:
*
Alfian bin Sa'at, playwright, poet and fiction writer
*
Gopal Baratham
Gopal Baratham (9 September 1935 – 23 April 2002) was a Singaporean author and neurosurgeon. He was known for his frank style and his ability to write about topics that were often considered controversial in the conservative city-state.
Life
...
, neurosurgeon and writer
*
Boey Kim Cheng
Boey Kim Cheng (; born 1965) is a Singaporean Australian poet.
As a student, Boey won the National University of Singapore Poetry Writing/Creative Prose Competition and has since received the National Arts Council's Young Artist Award (1996 ...
, poet
*
Don Bosco, writer and publisher of children's fiction books
*Kamaladevi Aravindan, Tamil fiction writer, Malayalam and Tamil playwright
*
Colin Cheong, poet and novelist
*
Felix Cheong
Felix Cheong is a Singaporean author and poet.
Cheong has written two young adult fiction books used as part of a national education campaign – ''The Call From Crying House'' () and its sequel, ''The Woman In The Last Carriage'' ().
Cheong ...
, poet, fiction writer
*Christine Chia, poet
*
Grace Chia, poet
*
Michael Chiang
Michael Chiang (born 27 October 1955 in Muar, Malaysia) is a prolific playwright and screenwriter in Singapore. He is known as "Singapore's most famous and successful playwright".
From 1990 to 2009, Chiang was the editorial director of Mediacorp ...
, playwright
*
Tania De Rozario
Tania De Rozario (born 20 February 1982) is a writer and visual artist, generally emphasising themes of gender, sexuality, loving and losing.
Biography
Tania De Rozario was born on 20 February 1982. Tania De Rozario has showcased her visual art ...
, poet, fiction writer, and artist
*Clarissa Goenawan, novelist
*
Goh Poh Seng
Goh Poh Seng (; July 1936 – 10 January 2010) was a Singaporean dramatist, novelist, doctor and poet, was born in Kuala Lumpur, British Malaya in 1936. He was educated at Victoria Institution in Kuala Lumpur, received his medical degree from Uni ...
, poet and novelist
*
Gwee Li Sui Gwee Li Sui (; born 22 August 1970) is a poet, a graphic artist, and a literary critic from Singapore.
Biography
Gwee went to the now-defunct MacRitchie Primary School and then Anglo-Chinese Secondary School and Anglo-Chinese Junior College. In ...
, a literary critic, poet and graphic artist
*
Suffian Hakim, satirist and writer
*Raymond Han, novelist and teacher
*
Rachel Heng, fictionist
*
Heng Siok Tian
Heng Siok Tian (born 1963) is a Singaporean poet and educator. She has published five volumes of poetry: ''Crossing the Chopsticks and Other Poems'' (1993), ''My City, My Canvas'' (1999), ''Contouring'' (2004), ''Is My Body a Myth'' (2011) and ''Mi ...
, poet
*
Joshua Ip
Joshua Ip (born 1982, Singapore) is a Singaporean poet, and writer.
Biography
Joshua Ip attended Anglo-Chinese School (Independent) and Raffles Junior College before completing a degree in Creative Writing at the University of Pennsylvania. He ...
, poet
*
Philip Jeyaretnam
Philip Antony Jeyaretnam (born 1964) is a Singaporean judge, lawyer and author who has been serving as a Judge of the High Court of Singapore since 1 November 2021, having been first appointed to the Bench as a Judicial Commissioner on 4 Januar ...
, novelist and lawyer
*
Koh Buck Song
Koh Buck Song (; born 1963) is a Singaporean writer and poet. He is the author and editor of more than 30 books, including six books of poetry and haiga art. He works as a writer, editor and consultant in branding, communications strategy an ...
, poet
*
Desmond Kon
Desmond Kon Zhicheng-Mingdé (born 1980) is a poet, former journalist, interdisciplinary artist and founder of Squircle Line Press. He has authored six poetry collections, an epistolary novel, and edited more than fifteen books. He has an MFA in c ...
, poet and publisher
*
Aaron Lee
Aaron Lee Soon Yong (born June 7, 1972) is a Singaporean prize-winning poet who writes in English. He was born in Malaysia but received his education in Singapore and became a Singaporean in 1996.
Career
Early beginnings
Aaron began writing poe ...
, poet and lawyer
*
Madeleine Lee, poet
*
Russell Lee, author of popular ''
True Singapore Ghost Stories'' series
*
Lee Tzu Pheng
Anne Lee Tzu Pheng (born May 13, 1946) is a Singaporean poet. She has five volumes of poems to her name; of these, the first three, ''Prospect of a Drowning'' (1980), ''Against the Next Wave'' (1988) and ''The Brink of An Amen'' (1991) were winne ...
, academic and poet
*
Liang Wern Fook, Chinese writer and songwriter
*
Sonny Liew
Sonny Liew (born 26 September 1974) is a Malaysia-born comic artist/illustrator based in Singapore. He is best known for ''The Art of Charlie Chan Hock Chye'' (2015), the first graphic novel to win the Singapore Literature Prize for fiction.
Ea ...
, comic artist / graphic novelist
*
Catherine Lim
Catherine Lim Poh Imm (, born 21 March 1942) is a Singaporean fiction author known for writing about Singapore society and of themes of traditional Chinese culture. Hailed as the "doyenne of Singapore writers", Lim has published nine collectio ...
, novelist
*
Su-Chen Christine Lim
Suchen Christine Lim (born 1948) is a Malaysian-born Singaporean writer. She was the inaugural winner of the Singapore Literature Prize in 1992.
Early life
Lim was born in Ipoh, Federation of Malaya and had her early education at the Conve ...
, novelist
*
Shirley Lim
Shirley Geok-lin Lim (born 1944) is an American writer of poetry, fiction, and criticism. Her first collection of poems, ''Crossing The Peninsula'', published in 1980, won her the Commonwealth Poetry Prize, a first both for an Asian people, Asi ...
, poet and critic
*
Low Kay Hwa
Low Kay Hwa (born June 18, 1985) is a Singaporean novelist known for his teen romance novels. He also runs a lifestyle page for Singaporeans.
Biography
Low Kay Hwa has studied in Boon Lay Primary School, Hong Kah Secondary School and Singapore Po ...
, novelist
*
Kishore Mahbubani, politics
*
Aaron Maniam, poet and civil servant
*
Mohamed Latiff Mohamed, poet
*
Chandran Nair
Chandran Nair (1945 – 18 September 2023) was a poet and a director and mediator of UNESCO. He was born in India, but lived and wrote in Singapore for most of his life. He died in Montigny-le-Bretonneux, a suburb of Paris, where he had moved ...
, poet and artist
*
Pooja Nansi
Pooja Nansi (born November 27, 1981) is a Singaporean poet, musician and educator.
Biography
Pooja Nansi was born in Gujarat, India in 1981. Her family moved to Singapore when she was one and a half years old. She is the oldest of two daughters ...
, poet
*
Faith Ng, playwright
*
Ng Yi-Sheng, poet and writer
*
Nuraliah Norasid
Nuraliah Norasid (born September 8, 1986) is a Singaporean author. She won the Epigram Books Fiction Prize for her first novel, ''The Gatekeeper'', in 2016. She currently works as a research associate with the Centre for Research on Islamic an ...
, fictionist and academic
*
O Thiam Chin
O Thiam Chin (born 8 December 1977) is a Singaporean author. Many of his stories explore themes of love, heartbreak, alienation and gay male sexuality.
Biography
O was born into a family of Mandarin-speaking hawkers. He studied at Ang Mo Kio ...
, fiction writer
*
Alvin Pang
Alvin Pang (Chinese: 冯啟明; pinyin: ''Féng Qǐ Míng''; born 1972, Singapore) was named 2005 Young Artist of the Year (Literature) by the National Arts Council Singapore. He holds a First Class Honours degree in English literature from the ...
, poet and editor
*
Villayil Raman Gopala Pillai, Malayalam novelist
Anitha Devi Pillai academic, fiction writer, creative non-fiction writer and poet
*
Wena Poon
Wena Poon (方慧娜, born 1974) is a lawyer and novelist based in the United States. She writes English-language fiction. Her work has been seen by academics in the UK, US and Singapore as representative of the transnationalism of her generat ...
, writer
*
Rex Shelley
Rex Anthony Shelley (27 October 1930 – 21 August 2009) was a Singaporean author. A graduate of the University of Malaya in Malaysia and University of Cambridge, Cambridge trained in engineering and economics, Shelley managed his own busin ...
, novelist
*
Daren Shiau, poet, novelist, environmentalist and lawyer
*
Damien Sin, author of ''Classic Singapore Horror Stories'' series
*
Huzir Sulaiman, playwright
*
Colin Tan Colin may refer to:
* Colin (given name)
* Colin (surname)
* ''Colin'' (film), a 2008 Cannes film festival zombie movie
* Colin (horse) (1905–1932), thoroughbred racehorse
* Colin (humpback whale), a humpback whale calf abandoned north of Sydney, ...
, poet
*
Kelvin Tan, musician, playwright and novelist
*
Hwee Hwee Tan, novelist
*
Joel Tan
Joel Tan (Simplified Chinese, Chinese: 陈文传; pinyin: ‘‘Chén Wén Chuán’’; (born 25 June 1987), is a Singaporean playwright and dramatist.
Biography
Tan is the second son of three; his mother is a nurse and his father is a manag ...
, playwright
*
Paul Tan
Paul Tan is a Malaysian motoring journalist. He is best known for his website, ''paultan.org'' or Paul Tan's Automotive News, a popular news portal which covers the Malaysian & ASEAN automotive scenes. ''Paultan.org'' is managed by Driven Co ...
, poet and deputy chief executive of the
National Arts Council
*
Tan Swie Hian, poet, translator, calligrapher, and artist
*
Tan Tarn How Tan Tarn How ()) is a Singaporean playwright and senior research fellow at the Institute of Policy Studies (Singapore). His plays have been staged in Singapore and Hong Kong, and have won numerous awards. In 2011, Epigram Books published a collectio ...
, playwright
*
Jean Tay
Jean Tay (born 1974) is a Singaporean playwright, best known for her plays '' Everything But the Brain'' and ''Boom''. Her works have been performed in Singapore, the US, the UK and Italy. She is the Artistic Director and co-founder of Saga Seed ...
, playwright
*
Simon Tay
Simon Tay Seong Chee () is a Singaporean lawyer and legal academic who served as a Nominated Member of Parliament between 1997 and 2003.
Early life and education
Tay was born on 4 January 1961 in Singapore. His father, Tay Seow Huah, was a sen ...
, poet and lawyer
*
Teo Poh Leng
Teo Poh Leng (1912-1942) was a Malayan poet and teacher who lived in Singapore, the then capital of the Straits Settlements. He was noted for having the first book-length publication in English by a person from Singapore. Teo Poh Leng was a vict ...
, poet
*
Theophilus Kwek
Theophilus Kwek (born 1994) is a Singaporean poet, editor, and critic
Biography
After his pre-university studies at Raffles Institution in Singapore, Kwek read History and Politics at Merton College in Oxford University. After graduating in 201 ...
, poet, editor and critic
*
Edwin Thumboo, poet and academic, former
Dean of the Arts and Social Sciences Faculty,
National University of Singapore
The National University of Singapore (NUS) is a national public research university in Singapore. Founded in 1905 as the Straits Settlements and Federated Malay States Government Medical School, NUS is the oldest autonomous university in the c ...
*
Jeremy Tiang, fiction writer, translator
*
Toh Hsien Min
Toh Hsien Min (born 1975) is a Singaporean poet. His poems have appeared in many literary journals (e.g. ''London Magazine'', the '' London Review of Books'' and ''Poetry Salzburg Review'') and have been translated into Finnish, French, Spanish, ...
, poet
*
Cyril Wong, poet, fictionist, anthologist and countertenor
*
Eleanor Wong, academic lawyer and playwright
*
Jerrold Yam, lawyer and poet
*
Arthur Yap
Arthur Yap Chioh Hiong (; 1943 – 19 June 2006) was a Singaporean poet, writer and painter.
Biography
Arthur Yap was born in Singapore, the sixth child of a carpenter and a housewife. Yap attended St Andrew's School and the University of Si ...
, academic and poet
*
Yeng Pway Ngon
Yeng Pway Ngon (; 26 January 194710 January 2021) was a Singaporean poet, novelist and critic in the Chinese literary scene in Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong and Taiwan.
A prolific writer, Yeng's works have been translated into English, M ...
, poet, novelist and critic
*
Ovidia Yu
Ovidia Yu (born 1961) is a writer from Singapore who has published award-winning plays and short stories. She has won several awards, including the Japanese Chamber of Commerce and Industry Singapore Foundation Culture Award (1996), the Nationa ...
, playwright and novelist
*
Robert Yeo
Robert Yeo (born Robert Yeo Cheng Chuan; 1940) is a Singaporean poet, playwright and novelist.
Career
Yeo is a retired lecturer of the National Institute of Education and Nanyang Technological University. In 2011, he is a teacher of creative wri ...
, playwright and poet
*
Yong Shu Hoong
Yong Shu Hoong (born 1966) is a Singaporean poet and educator.
Biography
Yong was born in Singapore in 1966. He grew up in a bilingual household and published his first story in a Chinese student literary magazine.
Yong studied Computer Scie ...
, poet
*Joyce Chng, fiction writer
Selected works
English
*''Once the Horsemen and Other Poems'' -
Chandran Nair
Chandran Nair (1945 – 18 September 2023) was a poet and a director and mediator of UNESCO. He was born in India, but lived and wrote in Singapore for most of his life. He died in Montigny-le-Bretonneux, a suburb of Paris, where he had moved ...
(1972)
*''Son of Singapore'' - Tan Kok Seng (1972)
*''
If We Dream Too Long'' -
Goh Poh Seng
Goh Poh Seng (; July 1936 – 10 January 2010) was a Singaporean dramatist, novelist, doctor and poet, was born in Kuala Lumpur, British Malaya in 1936. He was educated at Victoria Institution in Kuala Lumpur, received his medical degree from Uni ...
(1973)
*''Man of Malaysia'' - Tan Kok Seng (1974)
*''Eye on the World'' - Tan Kok Seng (1975)
*''After the Hard Hours, This Rain'' -
Chandran Nair
Chandran Nair (1945 – 18 September 2023) was a poet and a director and mediator of UNESCO. He was born in India, but lived and wrote in Singapore for most of his life. He died in Montigny-le-Bretonneux, a suburb of Paris, where he had moved ...
(1975)
*''The Immolation'' -
Goh Poh Seng
Goh Poh Seng (; July 1936 – 10 January 2010) was a Singaporean dramatist, novelist, doctor and poet, was born in Kuala Lumpur, British Malaya in 1936. He was educated at Victoria Institution in Kuala Lumpur, received his medical degree from Uni ...
(1977)
*''Ricky Star'' - Lim Thean Soo (1978)
*''Three Sisters of Sze'' - Tan Kok Seng (1979)
*''Singapore Accent'' - Ivy Goh Nair, aka B J Wu (1980)
*''
Army Daze
''Army Daze'' is a 1996 Singaporean comedy film based on the 1987 theatre play of the same name by Singaporean writer Michael Chiang. Distributed by Cathay Asia Films and directed by Ong Keng Sen, the film portrays a group of 18-year-old Singaporea ...
'' - Michael Chiang (1984)
*''Ricebowl'' -
Su-Chen Christine Lim
Suchen Christine Lim (born 1948) is a Malaysian-born Singaporean writer. She was the inaugural winner of the Singapore Literature Prize in 1992.
Early life
Lim was born in Ipoh, Federation of Malaya and had her early education at the Conve ...
(1984)
*''Star Sapphire'' - Han May (1985)
*''The Scholar and the Dragon'' - Stella Kon (1986, 2011)
*''The Adventures of Holden Heng'' -
Robert Yeo
Robert Yeo (born Robert Yeo Cheng Chuan; 1940) is a Singaporean poet, playwright and novelist.
Career
Yeo is a retired lecturer of the National Institute of Education and Nanyang Technological University. In 2011, he is a teacher of creative wri ...
(1986, 2011)
*''First Loves'' -
Philip Jeyaretnam
Philip Antony Jeyaretnam (born 1964) is a Singaporean judge, lawyer and author who has been serving as a Judge of the High Court of Singapore since 1 November 2021, having been first appointed to the Bench as a Judicial Commissioner on 4 Januar ...
(1988)
*''Man Snake Apple'' -
Arthur Yap
Arthur Yap Chioh Hiong (; 1943 – 19 June 2006) was a Singaporean poet, writer and painter.
Biography
Arthur Yap was born in Singapore, the sixth child of a carpenter and a housewife. Yap attended St Andrew's School and the University of Si ...
(1988)
*''The Stolen Child'' - Colin Cheong (1989)
*''The Brink of an Amen'' - Lee Tzu Pheng (1991)
*''The Shrimp People'' - Rex Shelley (1991)
*''A Brief History Of Toa Payoh And Other Poems'' -
Koh Buck Song
Koh Buck Song (; born 1963) is a Singaporean writer and poet. He is the author and editor of more than 30 books, including six books of poetry and haiga art. He works as a writer, editor and consultant in branding, communications strategy an ...
(1992)
*''
All Broken Up and Dancing'' -
Kelvin Tan (1992)
*''Fistful Of Colours'' -
Su-Chen Christine Lim
Suchen Christine Lim (born 1948) is a Malaysian-born Singaporean writer. She was the inaugural winner of the Singapore Literature Prize in 1992.
Early life
Lim was born in Ipoh, Federation of Malaya and had her early education at the Conve ...
(1993)
*''A Third Map'' -
Edwin Thumboo (1993)
*''The Sea is Never Full'' - Jeffery T.H. Lee (1994)
*''Year of the Tiger'' - David Miller (2012)
*''Advent'' - David Miller (2013)
* Bahau, the Elephant & the Ham - David Miller (2014)
* DutyBound - David Miller (2014)
*''The Bondmaid'' -
Catherine Lim
Catherine Lim Poh Imm (, born 21 March 1942) is a Singaporean fiction author known for writing about Singapore society and of themes of traditional Chinese culture. Hailed as the "doyenne of Singapore writers", Lim has published nine collectio ...
(1995)
*''Glass Cathedral'' - Andrew Koh (1995, 2011)
*''Amazing, Surprising, Weird & Wonderful: Myths and Facts of Singapore''- Thomas Toh (1995)
*''Spider Boys'' - Ming Cher (1995, 2012)
*''Foreign Bodies'' - Hwee Hwee Tan (1997)
*''A Visitation of Sunlight'' - Aaron Lee (1997)
*''
Womango'' -
Grace Chia (1998)
*''The Space of City Trees'' -
Arthur Yap
Arthur Yap Chioh Hiong (; 1943 – 19 June 2006) was a Singaporean poet, writer and painter.
Biography
Arthur Yap was born in Singapore, the sixth child of a carpenter and a housewife. Yap attended St Andrew's School and the University of Si ...
(2000)
*''
Escape from Paradise
''Escape from Paradise: From Third World to First'' is a 2001 non-fiction book written by John Harding and May Chu Harding set in Singapore, Brunei, Australia, England, and the United States. The book tells, from the author's perspective, of her ...
'' - John & May Chu Harding (2001)
*''The Worth Of Wonder'' -
Koh Buck Song
Koh Buck Song (; born 1963) is a Singaporean writer and poet. He is the author and editor of more than 30 books, including six books of poetry and haiga art. He works as a writer, editor and consultant in branding, communications strategy an ...
(2001)
*''I Chose to Climb'' - Colin Tan (2001)
*''I Remember May'' - Yim Kein Kwok (2001)
*''Mammon Inc.'' - Hwee Hwee Tan (2001)
*''the Nethe(r);R'' -
Kelvin Tan (2001)
*''Eight Plays'' -
Huzir Sulaiman (2002)
*''Below: Absence'' -
Cyril Wong (2002)
*''The Ocean Of Ambition'' -
Koh Buck Song
Koh Buck Song (; born 1963) is a Singaporean writer and poet. He is the author and editor of more than 30 books, including six books of poetry and haiga art. He works as a writer, editor and consultant in branding, communications strategy an ...
(2003)
*''City of Rain'' -
Alvin Pang
Alvin Pang (Chinese: 冯啟明; pinyin: ''Féng Qǐ Míng''; born 1972, Singapore) was named 2005 Young Artist of the Year (Literature) by the National Arts Council Singapore. He holds a First Class Honours degree in English literature from the ...
(2003)
*''
Unmarked Treasure
''Unmarked Treasure'' is a poetry collection by the Singaporean poet Cyril Wong, held together by memories about family life and intimate relationships, charged with intense emotions surrounding love, death and exploration of an emptiness within th ...
'' -
Cyril Wong (2004/2012)
*''Frottage'' - Yong Shu Hoong (2005)
*''The Visage of Terrorism - The Hounds of Hell'' - James Villanueva (2004/2006)
*''
Tilting Our Plates to Catch the Light
''Tilting Our Plates to Catch the Light'' is a poetry collection by the Singaporean poet Cyril Wong about "two lovers who are in the process of losing each other," bringing into play his background in music, intermingling the lives of gay male-par ...
'' -
Cyril Wong (2007/2012)
*''The Lies That Build a Marriage'' - Suchen Christine Lim (2007)
*''Heartlands'' -
Koh Buck Song
Koh Buck Song (; born 1963) is a Singaporean writer and poet. He is the author and editor of more than 30 books, including six books of poetry and haiga art. He works as a writer, editor and consultant in branding, communications strategy an ...
(2008)
*''The Diary of Amos Lee'' - Adeline Foo (2009)
*''City of Small Blessings'' - Simon Tay (2009)
*''A World in Transit'' - Eric Tinsay Valles (2011)
*''Cordelia'' -
Grace Chia (2012)
*''The Black Isle'' - Sandi Tan (2012)
*''Sonnets from the Singlish'' -
Joshua Ip
Joshua Ip (born 1982, Singapore) is a Singaporean poet, and writer.
Biography
Joshua Ip attended Anglo-Chinese School (Independent) and Raffles Junior College before completing a degree in Creative Writing at the University of Pennsylvania. He ...
(2013)
*''Inheritance'' - Balli Kaur Jaswal (2013)
*''Ministry of Moral Panic'' - Amanda Lee Koe (2013)
*''The Last Lesson of Mrs de Souza'' -
Cyril Wong (2013)
*''Ten Things My Father Never Taught Me and Other Stories'' -
Cyril Wong (2014)
*''Kami and Kaze'' -
Wena Poon
Wena Poon (方慧娜, born 1974) is a lawyer and novelist based in the United States. She writes English-language fiction. Her work has been seen by academics in the UK, US and Singapore as representative of the transnationalism of her generat ...
(2014)
*''The Adventures of Snow Fox & Sword Girl'' -
Wena Poon
Wena Poon (方慧娜, born 1974) is a lawyer and novelist based in the United States. She writes English-language fiction. Her work has been seen by academics in the UK, US and Singapore as representative of the transnationalism of her generat ...
(2014)
*''Coastlands'' -
Aaron Lee
Aaron Lee Soon Yong (born June 7, 1972) is a Singaporean prize-winning poet who writes in English. He was born in Malaysia but received his education in Singapore and became a Singaporean in 1996.
Career
Early beginnings
Aaron began writing poe ...
(2014)
*''Scattered Vertebrae'' -
Jerrold Yam (2014)
*After the Fall (dirges among ruins) - Eric Tinsay Valles (2014)
*''The Art of Charlie Chan Hock Chye'' -
Sonny Liew
Sonny Liew (born 26 September 1974) is a Malaysia-born comic artist/illustrator based in Singapore. He is best known for ''The Art of Charlie Chan Hock Chye'' (2015), the first graphic novel to win the Singapore Literature Prize for fiction.
Ea ...
(2014)
*''The Mind Clones Trilogy'' - Raymond Han (2017)
*''
The Lover's Inventory
''The Lover's Inventory'' is a poetry collection by the Singaporean poet Cyril Wong inventorying objects, places, sensations, and other memorabilia that serve as springboards for memory and philosophical insight; its Confessional verse "confesses w ...
'' -
Cyril Wong (2015/2018)
*Rainbirds - Clarissa Goenawan (2018)
*Sembawang: A Novel - Kamaladevi Aravindan (author) Anitha Devi Pillai (Translator) (2020)
*The Perfect World of Miwako Sumida - Clarissa Goenawan (2020)
Selected anthologies
*''Singapore: Places, Poems, Paintings'' - Koh, Buck Song (editor, 1993). Art & Artist Speak, Singapore. .
*No Other City: The Ethos Anthology of Urban Poetry - Alvin Pang and Aaron Lee (editors, 2000). Ethos Books, Singapore.
*''From Boys To Men: A Literary Anthology Of National Service In Singapore'' - Koh, Buck Song and Bhatia, Umej (editors, 2002). Landmark Books, Singapore. .
*''Rhythms: A Singaporean Millennial Anthology Of Poetry'' - Singh, Kirpal et al. (editors, 2000). National Arts Council, Singapore. .
*''Reflecting On The Merlion: An Anthology Of Poems'' - Thumboo, Edwin & Yeow, Kai Chai (editors, 2009). National Arts Council, Singapore. .
*''Writing Singapore: An Historical Anthology Of Singapore Literature'' - Poon, Angelia; Holden, Philip & Lim, Shirley Geok-lin (editors, 2009). National University of Singapore Press, Singapore. . .
*''Tumasik: Contemporary Writing from Singapore'' - Pang, Alvin (editor, 2010). Autumn Hill Books, USA. .
*''The Epigram Books Collection of Best New Singaporean Short Stories: Volume One'' - Lundberg, Jason Erik (editor, 2013). Epigram Books, Singapore. .
*"Get Lucky: An Anthology of Philippine and Singapore Writings" - Contreras-Cabrera, Manuelita, Bravo-Dutt, Migs & Valles, Eric Tinsay (editors, 2015). Ethos Books, Singapore. .
*"UNION : 15 Years of Drunken Boat, 50 Years of Writing From Singapore" -Alvin Pang and Ravi Shankar (editors, 2015). Ethos Books, Singapore. .
*"Sg Poems 2015-2016" - Valles, Eric Tinsay, Chung, Ian, Tan Chee Lay, Chow Teck Seng, Ow Yeong Wai Kit, Azhar Ibrahim & K. Kanagalatha (editors, 2016). Ethos Books, Singapore. .
*"Anima Methodi" - Kon, Desmond & Valles, Eric Tinsay (editors, 2018). Squircle Line Press, Singapore. .
*"The Nature of Poetry" - Thumboo, Edwin & Valles, Eric Tinsay
(editors, 2019). National Parks Board, Singapore. .
*"Get Luckier: An Anthology of Philippine and Singapore Writings II" - Bravo-Dutt, Migs, Betita de Guzman, Claire, Lee, Aaron and Valles, Eric Tinsay (editors, 2022). Poetry Festival Singapore, Singapore. .
Malay
*''Dewi Alam Dan Burung Senja'' (collection of poems) - Noor SI (1986)
*''Jangan Tak Ada'' (collection of poems) - Muhammad Ariff Ahmad (1990)
*''Bunga Makna'' (collection of poems) - Ahmad Md Tahir (1990)
*''Diari Bonda'' (Mother's Diary) - Rohani Din (1997)
* ''Anugerah Buat Syamsiah'' (An Award for Syamsiah) - Rohani Din (2001)
* ''Bila Rama-Rama Patah Sayapnya'' (When The Butterfly Snaps Its Wings) - Mohamed Latiff Mohamed (2007)
* ''Suasana Senja'' (Evening Environment) - Masuri SN (2001)
* ''Petikan Rasa'' (Abstracts of Feelings) - Abdul Ghani Hamid (2007)
* ''Perjalananku'' (My Journey) - Mohamed Latiff Mohamed & A. Samat Ali (2008)
* ''Diari Hitam'' (Black Diary) - Mohamed Pitchay Gani Bin Mohamed Abdul Aziz(2008)
* ''Aku Bukan Penyair'' (I Am Not A Poet) - Abdul Ghani Hamid (2008)
* ''Kota Siluman'' (Siluman City) - Mohamed Pitchay Gani and Muhd Irwan Jamal (2008)
* ''Mail Mau Kahwin'' (Mail Wishes To Get Married) - Muhammad Ariff Ahmad (2008)
* ''Ayah Tidak Sayang Padaku Lagi'' (My Dad Does Not Love Me Anymore) - Rasiah Halil (2007)
* ''Mencari Pelangi Malam'' (Finding The Night Rainbow) - Ahmad Awang (2002)
* ''Menyongsong Pelangi'' (Chasing The Rainbow) - Pitchay Gani Bin Mohamed Abdul Aziz(2005)
* ''Tuhan Masih Sayang'' (God Still Loves) - A. Wahab Hamzah (2002)
* ''Bisik'' (Anthology of Malay Drama) - Teater Ekamatra (2003)
* ''Tiga Visi'' (Anthology of Malay Drama) - Perkumpulan Seni (1990)
* ''Puisi Luka dan Puisi Duka'' (Poems of Hurt and Sadness) - Suratman Markasan (2004)
* ''Bicararasa'' (Speeches of Feel) - Sarifah Yatiman (2004)
* ''Nota'' (Notes) - Abdul Ghani Hamid (1987)
* ''Ziarah Rindu'' (Visits of Reminisce) - Mohamed Latiff Mohamed (2004)
* ''Dari Dua Benua'' (From Two Ends) - Sulaiman Jeem and Muhd. Salihin Sulaiman (1999)
* ''XXL - Anak Muda Julung Berkeris'' (XXL - Young Man With a Kris) - Juffri Supa'at (1999)
* ''Yang Bilang'' - Rafaat Haji Hamzah (2007)(poem)
* ''RESAN : Antologi Puisi & Cerpen Sayembara Noktah Putih 2008'' (RESAN : Anthology of Poetry and Short Stories of White Down Writing Festival 2008) - Mohamed Pitchay Gani Bin Mohamed Abdul Aziz and Muhammad Jailani Abu Talib (2008)
* ''Kasih Bunga Merah'' - Yazid Hussein (editor)(2008)(poem)
* ''Teman Siber'' - Yazid Hussein (editor)(2008)(short stories)
* ''Aku Ingin Menulis'' - Yazid Hussein (2008)(literary guide)
* ''Kumpulan Cepen Satu Macam penyakit'' - Yazid Hussein (2009)(short stories)
* ''Bisikan Nadim - Dari Skrip ke Pentas ke Naskhah'' - Yazid Hussein (2009)(playwright)
* ''Kumpulan Drama D5D'' - Yazid Hussein (2010) (playwright)
* ''Antologi Puisi Seloka Hari Berubah'' - Yazid Hussein, Norlila Abdul Ghani & Muhammad Hafiz Yusof (2010) (poem)
* ''Dongeng Utopia: Kisah Cek Yah'' - Yazid Hussein (2011)(novel)
* ''Penulis Penyusun Kalimat, Pembaca Pentafsir Amanat, Sama-Sama Meraih Manfaat'' Yazid Hussein (2011)(literary criticism and essay)
* ''Koleksi Puisi : Susur Pendekar'' - Muhammad Jailani Abu Talib (2011)
* ''Cahaya'' - Yazid Hussein (2012)(novel)
*''Aisberg Kesimpulan'' (collection of poems) - Ahmad Md Tahir (2013)
*''Rona Wicara'' (collection of essay) - T. Ahmad Mohamed @Ahmad Md Tahir (2016)
*''Daielogy'' (collection of anecdotes) - Serban Putih @Ahmad Mustaqim Ahmad (2016)
*''Terlena Di Salah Syurga'' (collection of anecdotes) - Serban Putih @Ahmad Mustaqim Ahmad (2018)
*''Ketika Hati Berfatwa'' (collection of anecdotes) - Serban Putih @Ahmad Mustaqim Ahmad (2019)
Chinese
* ''橡胶树'' — 王润华(1997)
*''甜咸人生'' — 尤今(1982)
*''众山围绕'' — 刘瑞金(2001)
*''老人题材'' — 蓉子(2004)
Tamil
*செம்பவாங் - கமலாதேவி அரவிந்தன் (2021)
*''Cantana Kinnam'' - I Ulaganathan (1966)
*மனித உடம்பில் மாபெரும் சக்தி - ச. செயரமன் (1996) / Yogic Powers of the Human Body -
S. Jayaraman
S. Jayaraman (ச. செயராமன்; born 28 December 1930) is a Singaporean Tamil language, Tamil writer and yoga practitioner.
Jayaraman is the author of four books in Tamil, திருவள்ளுவர் கண்ட உலக ...
(1996)
*திருவள்ளுவர் கண்ட உலகம் - ச. செயரமன் / The World in the Eyes of Thiruvalluvar - S. Jayaraman, 1999
*இறை நலம் - ச. செயரமன் / Spiritual Health - S. Jayaraman (2006)
*அன்பான வீடு அகிலம் புகழ் நாடு - ச. செயரமன் / Beloved Home and a World Acclaimed Nation - S. Jayaraman, 2006
See also
*
Asas '50
*
Culture of Singapore
*
Singapore Literature Prize The Singapore Literature Prize (abbreviation: SLP) is a biennial award in Singapore to recognise outstanding published works by Singaporean authors in any of the four official languages: Chinese, English, Malay and Tamil. The competition is organis ...
*
LGBT topics in Singaporean literature
References
Additional sources
*
Quayum, Mohammad A., (2002)''Singaporean Literature in English: A Critical Reader''. Malaysia: University Putra Malaysia Press, 2002. .
External links
''Quarterly Literary Review Singapore''Singapore Literature in English: An Annotated Bibliography
{{DEFAULTSORT:Literature Of Singapore
Singapore
Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, borde ...
Singapore
Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, borde ...