Catherine Lim Tells It Like It Is

This is just to give you an idea of how volatile writers like myself are and how our minds go tuk-tuk-tuk like fireworks all the time.

Singaporean author Catherine Lim is interviewed by Seth Mydans in The International Herald Tribune today in a piece entitled With a Smile, a Writer who Vexes the Men who Run Singapore.

It isn't online (which is strange)* so I have scanned it (albeit a bit clumsily in two parts) and you can read it by clicking it up to size.



Lim is described as :

... a leading voice for liberalism.

and famously a thorn in the side of Singaporean politicians. (Her latest run-in with Lee Kuan Yew is reported here.) Mydan's piece points out that Singaporean newspapers shy away from publishing some of Lim's more pointed views, and so like all subversives worth their salt she blogs them.

One post well worth reading on her blog is Kenneth Paul Tan's study about Lim's ongoing duel with the government, Who's Afraid of Catherine Lim? Her talk on Humour, Wit and satire as Tools of the Political Critic is also well worth watching. (Check out the cartoon and the quotes on the Blinking Brink blog.)

I'm much amused to hear that Lim's latest job is professional lecturer on cruise ships (e.g.) where she dresses up in her cheongsam and tells stories about :

... men and women and ghosts.

She's a very gifted raconteur, and I really loved meeting her a couple of year's back at the Ubud Writer's Festival. She appears at the Singapore Writers Festival (24 Oct - 1 November, 2009). And really, we must persuade her up to KL soon.

* It is online a day later at The New York Times. Thanks Fionally who told me via Twitter.

Developing Asian Literature

The Stars Rise in the East panel discussion. (From left) Nury Vittachi (moderator) Xu XI, Nicholas Jose and Madeleine Thien considered what kind of animal Asian Writing is, whether writers find the label useful, and where and how it's best for Asian writers to get published.

I was so pleased to finally meet Xu Xi because I chose one of her stories for the Collateral Damage anthology and we exchanged e-mails at the time. (Had I known what an impressive track record of publications she has, I think I would have held back from suggesting "improvements" to her story! Haha.)

Immediately after the session there was a launch party for a new regional support network: the Asia Pacific New Writing Partnership, which sounds incredibly exciting and is surely something that can be used to help our own writing community here grow. (Please do check it out here, and on the Sydney Morning Herald's blog.) I later had a chat to (Asia Pacific) Executive Director, Jane Camens and we exchanged contacts. I really hope something comes of it - funding, events, courses.

Asia was also the topic of another panel the following day, not surprisingly, with Korean author Lee Hye Kyung, Singapore's Catherine Lim, and Indonesia's Deborah Yatim. The women shared what had influenced their writing.

I had read some of Catherine Lim's short stories and very much enjoyed them. Nothing though had prepared me for what a lively woman she is. The stories just spill out, and they're all fascinating. (I hope they get written!) I invited her up to KL to do a reading and she said she'd love to come, but she doesn't read, she only wants to talk to her audience!

Next time someone asks me who my ideal dinner party guest would be - i think I'll choose Catherine!

Ubud Early Birds

From Ubud Writers' and Readers' Festival director Janet de Neefe:

Greetings,

There is a buzz in the air as the residents of Ubud start gearing up for the 4th Ubud Writers & Readers Festival. But don't think the chatter ends in our little village. Apparently the literati-glitterati, from as far away as London, have been talking up our next Festival. They must know that this year promises to be even more dynamic, stimulating and magical than ever.

For those who are willing to take a leap of faith and trust that this year's program will be better than ever, Early Bird Specials are available on the 4-Day Festival Pass. Purchase a 4-Day Pass from now until when the program is released on the 13 August and receive 10% off [that's a AUD$30 discount!]. With less than a month to take advantage of this special offer we encourage you to throw caution to the wind and head to the Booking page on our website to get your ticket or for more information.

Although the full Festival program won't be released until mid-August, we have released our Adult Workshop and Feature Events Programs to sate your curiosity. Tickets for these are on sale now and we recommend that you book early.

Once again, our fabulous Feature Events will take transport you into the worlds of some of our most fascinating Festival guests, whose writing and experiences are as diverse as their countries of origin. Set in some of Ubud's most elegant hotels, these unforgettable feasts of flavour, mind and soul are always quick to sell out. So book now!

It's no wonder that the Festival was named among the world's top six literary events! Join us and see what all the talk is about. You wont be disappointed!

This year will see more Malaysian participation in the festival than ever before with our Tan Twan Eng, Farish Noor, Kam Raslan and playwright Ann Lee taking part.

But some of the other invitees have a strong Malaysian connection.

There's Catherine Lim, a Malaysian-born author resident in Singapore, and Madeleine Thien, an Canadian author with Malaysian-Chinese parents whose novel Simple Recipes was a regional Commonwealth Writers' Prize finalist.

Then there's a couple of Hong Kong based authors I know because I included their stories in the Silverfish volume I edited (Collateral Damage) : Xu Xi, and Mohammad Cohen.

I hope that there will be more Malaysians attending the festival too, because, despite what Mr. Raman says, you really aren't going to feel out of place.

Check out the guestlist to know who else will be coming.

(I'm sure I've heard of this Kiran Desai somewhere ...)