In Between Worlds

The lab test came back negative: the sample was benign.

But I have to watch my diet, switching to a low-carb/low or no sugar regime. :P

Still looking for a job. Not nice, when my bank account looks like the Sahara: dry.

On a happier note: I wrote about Singaporean SFF women writers.

... plus, more pictures from the world-building workshop: here.

The Apex Book of World SF II.

"Ark", a drabble, is in issue 008 of Luna Station Quarterly. Luna Station Quarterly is a publication dedicated to up-and-coming women authors. So, please do support them by signal boosting.

So, Advent has started. I know that many people on my f-list are not fans of Christian holidays. For me, as I am Christo-Pagan, Advent is part of my Wheel. It's a period which I go within. There is buying of stuff and pressies and what not. But I also tend the inner garden.

Speaking of gardens, my Mollucan spinach are growing well. They love the wet. Ceylon spinach is suddenly having a growth spurt. It too loves the wet. Shelob munches away at random bugs - loves how she dissolves all the insect parts. :P One day the worm is whole, the second it is chopped up in tiny bits.

Yesterday was my last day at work. I still have mixed feelings about it. I am going to miss my students.

Of course, I went back straight into writing though, at the moment it's not bringing in the dough. ;) I added a new chapter for Path of Kindness: http://jolantru,wordpress.com.

I will be speaking at Writecamp held during Singapore Writers' Festival. The topic is genre fiction.

Women in SF Roundtable with Aliette de Bodard (France), me, Csilla Kleinheincz (Hungary), Kate Elliott (US), Karen Lord (Barbados), Ekaterina Sedia (Russia/US).

Quote:
"I feel that – as what I have ranted – is that the discussion is still very US/UK-centric. It is fine that the POC and minorities are speaking out in – say – the States, but that is still very US-centric/dominated. I also feel that women from places like Southeast Asia might not have the same experiences/common ground to talk about and we end up grappling and confused. There is a lot of intersectionality – what are Southeast Asian women (with different experiences/backgrounds) going to say? What are Southeast Asian women supposed to say? Likewise, when it comes to SFF, what we experience might be similar but vastly different as well. Often as such, we end up trying to conform to foreign-sounding standards and end up feeling confused.

I grew up watching Star Trek and many other American SFF shows. At the same time, I watched wu xia series (Jin Yong, anyone?) and listened to Chinese legends. So in a way, I am straddling in between two worlds. I was not American (because I am not), but I grappled with issues of identity and self-perception. The educational system in Singapore was based on the Anglo-Saxon system, thanks to British colonialism. I think and speak in English… and struggle with my Mandarin Chinese. I speak Cantonese than Hokkien, my mother tongue, simply because my mother was brought up Cantonese by her mother.

How am I going to approach SFF with this skein of experiences?"

My June holidays are almost over. The marking has been done, the report written. So, what happened to me?

I attended Pink Dot 2011. I went on short trips (Malacca and Bintan). I somehow managed to submit one story and have begun the task of going through my first round edits (for book two of urban fantasy series). In between, I corresponded with a local book distributor regarding my novels.

That's the exciting part.

I am also feeling - at the moment - drained/tired, probably because of my monthly *ahem*. Taking as much as naps I can...

For people who are curious, I have posted most of my writery stuff on A Wolf's Tale. For people who read my UF novel as well as my YA fiction, please do keep on signal-boosting. :)