December 2004
EDITOR’S
NOTE
Welcome to the December edition of e-WordNEWS. We have come to the end
of 2004. We hope you enjoyed our workshops, seminars and conferences
this year. The Book Council has organised more courses including Text
Book Writing, Indexing and many more for 2005. It has been great bringing
e-WordNEWS to you this year. Thank you for your support and we look
forward to bringing you more news, events and reviews next year. In
the meantime, sit back, relax, have a great holiday. See you next year.
Merry X’mas and A Very Happy New Year to all…..
Enjoy!
From the NEWS desktop of...
Anita Paul, Editor
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EVENTS IN 2004
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In March 2004, the Book Council’s Chairman, Mr. R Ramachandran, who was also the Deputy Chief Executive of National Library Board, resigned. The Council held its 35th Annual General Meeting on 29 July 2004 and a new Chairperson, Ms Lim Li Kok, was voted in. Ms Lim started out in the industry as a book retailer, and then progressed to be a library supplier and distributor. Today, with 28 years of experience in the local book industry, she is an established publisher specialising in Asian culture. She is currently the Managing Director of Asiapac Books Pte Ltd, one of Singapore’s leading and established publishers.
In April 2004, the Centre for Literary Arts and Publishing (CLAP) was officially launched to meet the growing demand for structured training. Workshops, seminars and conferences for publishing and the literary arts were organised throughout the year under CLAP.
In May 2004, the Book Council organised a seminar, Empowering Literacy, for the Society for Reading and Literacy. Parents, personal tutors and educators from primary and secondary schools attended the seminar to learn from professionals how to help children with special needs in literacy skills and in educating them.
In September 2004, the Book Council organised the National Education Seminar. The Council proposes to organise the seminar again in March 2005.
Also in September, Mr Richard Balkwill from The Publishing Training Centre, UK, conducted a professional development workshop for publishers, editors and book distributors. It was a success and more similar workshops have been requested for 2005.
In November 2004, the Book Council held its annual conference and congress – Asian Congress of Storytellers (ACS) and Asian Children’s Writers and Illustrators Conference (ACWIC). A Storytellers’ Showcase (SC) was organised for two nights at the Asian Civilisations Museum on 29 and 30 November 2004.
The Book Council celebrated
its 35th Anniversary on 25 November 2004 with a buffet dinner. Held
at the Asian Civilisations Museum, the celebration incorporated The
Singapore Literature Prize Awards Ceremony 2004. Four winners were announced
at the awards. Mr M Elangkannan won the award for Thoondil Meen under
the Tamil category. Mr Mohamed Latiff Mohamed won the award for Bagiku
Sepilah Sudah under the Malay category. Mr Ying Pei An won the award
for Sao Dong under the Chinese category and Ms Tan Hwee Hwee won the
award for Mammon Inc. under the English category. The Book Council was
pleased to have Dr. Balaji Sadhasivan, Senior Minister of State for
Information, Communications and the Arts & Health as the Guest of
Honour at the function.
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BOOK REVIEW
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Mammon Inc.
by Tan Hwee Hwee (winner of the Singapore Literature Prize 2004)
Would you sell your soul for that dream
job?
That’s the question that confronts Chiah Deng when she’s
offered the chance to join the twenty-something jet-setting elite, to
enter the Hollywood of Hollywood stars, rock idols and fashion mavens.
Mammon Inc., the largest company in the world, is looking for a new Adapter: someone who can teach their executives how to cross cultures. Born in Singapore and educated in Oxford, Chiah Deng thinks she’s the ideal candidate.
But before they make her a globo-boss, Mammon demand that Chiah Deng pass three tests: first, she has to go to New York, to the ultra-hip Gen Vex party, and convince everyone that she is a member of the hipster-rati. Next she has to teach her Chinese sister how to be white. Finally, she has to turn her white flat-mate, Steve, into a Chinese geek.
Professor Ad-oy, Chiah Deng’s mentor at Oxford, warns that Mammon Inc. is out to seduce her. Their symbol – the Red Dragon – is the sign of Satan. But Chiah Deng’s parents tell her that the Chinese Red Dragon is a divine creature that will shower down blessings from heaven on her.
Who should she believe? Caught between her Christian guru and Taoist parents, Chiah Deng struggles to straddle the gap between East and West, chopsticks and credit cards.
Witty and unique, Mammon Inc. is the perfect
allegorical satire for our e-everything world.
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ABOUT TOWN
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FLYING CIRCUS PROJECT – 10TH ANNIVERSARY
3 – 18 December 2004
Conceived and directed by Ong Keng Sen, and organized by TheatreWorks (Singapore), over 50 participants, mostly artists, thinkers and cultural workers, will gather in Singapore for two weeks to meet and dialogue at the Flying Circus Project 2004. This sharing of practice will involve performances, talks, conversations, discussions, exhibitions and screenings. The focus for the 10th Anniversary will include the literary arts, philosophy, visual art and dramatised readings by Singapore theatre pioneers Lim Kay Tong, Nora Samosir, Lok Meng Chue and the bright lights of Singapore stage, Janice Koh, Noorlinah Mohd and Serene Chen. Also not to be missed, more features from artists and performers worldwide.
Venues: The Black Box, Fort Canning Centre,
Singapore
Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts (NFA) Galleries 2 & 3
For more information, please visit http://theatreworks.org.sg/international/flying_circus_project04/index.htm
Artfields 2
12 December 2004
Anyone interested in art and poetry? Madeleine Marie Slavick will be conducting an art and poetry workshop just for you.
Time: 3.00pm – 5.00pm
Venue: Gone Fishing Café (15 Chu Lin Road)
Admission: Free
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ANNOUNCEMENTS
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Artfields 2 Art Fair
If you are interested in giving an artist talk, conducting an art workshop,
running an art programme or putting up your artworks, writings, poetry,
music as exhibits or for sale (S$5.00 to S$500.00), please contact Artfields
for details at tel. (65) 67629901
Kalimat Journal
Kalimat, a prestigious, non-profit literary journal, seeks submissions
of unpublished short stories, articles and poetry form young writers
aged between sixteen and twenty-five.
Kalimat is an international journal promoting harmony between the English and Arabic-speaking worlds. The journal accepts all genres and produces four issues each year – two in English and two in Arabic. Writers contributing to Kalimat will receive free copies of the issues in which their material is published with the potential for their work to be translated into either English or Arabic.
While this initiative is specifically geared towards young writers, older and more established writers are also encouraged to submit work. Submissions should be double-spaced and emailed to the address below with the author’s full name, age and contact details.
Please submit your work to: The Editor,
Kalimat, PO Box 242, Cherrybrook, NSW 2126, Australia
or please email .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
The deadline for submissions is 31 December 2004
The Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators
The Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators, formed in 1971
is the only international organization to offer a variety of services
to people who write, illustrate, or share a vital interest in children's
literature.
The SCBWI acts as a network for the exchange of knowledge between writers, illustrators, editors, publishers, agents, librarians, educators, booksellers and others involved with literature for young people. There are currently more than 19,000 members worldwide, in over 70 regions, making it the largest children's writing organization in the world. SCBWI Singapore is part of the Asia-Pacific chapter.
Those who want to know more, please write to Chitra Soundar, Assistant Regional Director. Become a part of the young vibrant children’s book writers’ community in Singapore.
For information on SCBWI, please write to Ms Chitra Soundar at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
2004 Noma Concours for Picture Book Illustrations
Noma Concours invites new talents! The 14th Concours invites highly
motivated illustrators and artists to participate in this renowned event
to contribute to the improvement of the quality of picture book illustration
for children. The closing date is 31 December 2004.
For more details, please visit http://www.accu.or.jp/noma
MW Enterprises - Volume 6
MW Enterprises is a ‘reality-based’ publisher. They publish
a book series called ‘A Generation Defining Itself: In Our Own
Words’ from which a generation (born 1960 to 1982) is speaking
out about its realities, dispelling the narrow, simplified stereotypes
created by the mass media and commercial marketing. Volume 5 of this
book series is out and it includes local poet Cyril Wong. MW Enterprises
is now accepting submissions for Volume 6 and they are seeking more
Asian voices for this volume.
The deadline for submissions is end of
March 2005 and no submissions will be accepted after this.
For details, please visit http://www.evenstar.net/mwe/
The John Dryden Translation Competition 2005
The British Comparative Literature Association and the British Centre
for Literary Translation (University of East Anglia) are continuing
their joint sponsorship of the translation competition for 2005.
Prizes will be awarded for the best unpublished literary translations from any language into English. Literary translation includes poetry, prose, or drama, from any period.
First prize: £350
Second prize: £200
Third prize: £100
Prize-winners will be announced in July 2005 on the BCLA website, and prizes will be presented later in the year. Winning entries will be published in full on the website, and extracts from winning entries are eligible for publication in the BCLA's journal Comparative Critical Studies. Other entries may receive commendations.
Entry fee: £5 per entry.
Closing date: 11 February 2005
For more details, please visit http://www.bcla.org/trancomp.htm
