Singapore Writers Festival 2024: A Celebration of Stories Rooted ‘In Our Nature’

The 27th edition of the Singapore Writers Festival (SWF) concluded triumphantly, captivating audiences from November 8 to 17, 2024. Presented by Arts House Limited (AHL) and commissioned by the National Arts Council, this year’s festival, themed In Our Nature, delved deep into humanity’s relationship with identity, history, and the environment.

Under the leadership of first-time Festival Director Yong Shu Hoong, SWF 2024 featured over 220 programmes across 14 venues, welcoming more than 480 local and international writers. It seamlessly blended literature with other creative disciplines, offering fresh perspectives and fostering cross-cultural connections.

Stellar Line-Up and Thought-Provoking Discussions

Renowned literary figures graced the stage, including Pulitzer Prize winner Gregory Pardlo and Booker Prize-shortlisted author Esi Edugyan, who explored the reclamation of histories through fiction. Bestselling author Cat Bohannon offered fascinating insights into human evolution in her keynote talk on Eve: How the Female Body Drove 200 Million Years of Human Evolution. She also joined a powerful panel on feminist literature, discussing the transformative impact of female empowerment in storytelling.

The Literary Pioneer series paid tribute to Cultural Medallion recipient Dan Ying, celebrating her legacy with a touring exhibition and a musical tribute that brought her poetry to life.

Multilingual and Multicultural Highlights

SWF 2024 embraced Singapore’s multilingual heritage with programmes in Chinese, Malay, and Tamil. Highlights included Theodore Baskaran’s symposium on Tamil literature’s role in environmental advocacy and SEA xChange, a segment exploring Southeast Asian horror and folklore.

The Country Focus: Korea introduced audiences to Korean literature, from webtoons to translation insights with award-winning translator Anton Hur.

Spotlight on Indigenous Voices and Youth Engagement

Write The Land celebrated indigenous narratives, featuring writers from Australia, New Zealand, and Singapore. A standout performance, Ikut Arus by Zarina Muhammad and Firdaus Sani, honoured the ancestral traditions of the Orang Laut/Pulau community.

Youth engagement flourished through SWF Playground and Youth Fringe programmes. Children enjoyed interactive events like live drawing battles with Australian author Briony Stewart, while young adults explored complex themes in panels such as Sisterhood and Female Friendship and pov: you’re not like other girls.

Memorable Finale and Upcoming Highlights

The festival closed with the fan-favourite Festival Closing Debate, where Team Plastic won over the audience with wit and humor. Malaysian writer Melizarani T. Selva was named Best Speaker.

As the festival wraps up, literary enthusiasts can look forward to SWF 2025, themed Shape of Things to Come, from November 7 to 16, 2025. In the meantime, catch the touring exhibition A World of Words: Exploring Dan Ying’s Poetry or visit the K-Comics World Tour spotlighting creators behind Hellbound and Itaewon Class, running until November 30, 2024.