Thank you again to the organizers of the 2023 Singapore Writers Festival for including me in two panels this year.
On Saturday, 25 November 1pm to 2pm, I will be moderating the panel ” Found Families in Science Fiction ” at the The Arts House, Chamber with Vivian Shaw, Wen-Yi Lee and Jason Erik Lundberg.
Nothing tests the strength of acceptance and belonging more than speculative universes where characters of no relation come together. Add unexpected life-changing adventures in stories, and you get a mishmash of misfits and reluctant heroes, forging unbreakable bonds. Three science fiction and fantasy writers muse on found families, unconventional relationships, and how we can find human connection in the most unlikely corners of existence.
On Sunday, 26 November 12.30pm to 1.30pm, I will be speaking at a panel, ” Young Punks: The Etymology of ‘Punk’ as Subgenre ” at the The Arts House, Play Den with Arkady Martine and
Amber Chen. Our Moderator will be Joyce Chng.
Steampunk and cyberpunk have been the OGs of their sci-fi subgenre, but it looks like there are some new kids in town! Taking a look at young ‘punks’ like dieselpunk, biopunk, and even… oceanpunk(?!), we unpack the ‘punk’ suffix and why it has spawned so many variations. Is it a fetishising of technology or a commentary on technocracies out of control? What kind of tensions do they invite with our past and future? What ties all these punks together and what new punks are being born?
The Infinite Library and Other Stories 