Golden Point Award 2015

Ms Kathy Lai, CEO, National Arts Council

Ms Lee Chor Lin, CEO of Arts House Limited;

Ladies and Gentlemen 

1. Good evening. I am very happy to be here this evening as we celebrate the art of creative writing at the 2015 Golden Point Award. 
   

2. It may have been many years ago for many of us, but I'm sure we remember our days of 'compo' writing in school. We started out having to write stories based on a series of pictures and coincidentally, mostly framed around the lives of Xiao Ming, Ali and Devi! We then moved on to writing expository essays, based on a theme or an issue. So all of us here are writers of creative writing at some point in our lives, and there's a bit of talent in writing literature in each and every one of us.
   

3. And this is important, because creative writing stretches our imagination and helps us think outside the box. It allows us to process our experiences, heighten our sense for details, yet express our ideas creatively. It is also a way to express and communicate our culture and identity, regardless of our age. And this year's entrants are a good example, with the youngest being 10, and the most mature at 83.

4. So we hope that more Singaporeans reacquaint ourselves with creative writing. Most participants have busy day jobs, but yet continue with their passion for literature. I understand that over the years, NAC has seen more people submitting their poetry and stories, and it is a record high this year at almost 800 pieces received. I am encouraged at this trend, and hope that future editions will see even more people picking up their pens, or hitting the keyboard, to get involved in creative writing.
   

5. We want to help our writers achieve greater excellence in the literary arts. For example, Govindarajan Elangovan, who won second prize for Tamil poetry in the last GPA, entered again this year and I'm happy to hear that he has clinched first prize. Another writer, Joshua Ip, won first prize for a short story in the English category last time around, and I understand that he has now tried his hand at Chinese poetry, and is receiving a Honourable Mention tonight. Joshua, along with other past GPA winners like Chow Teck Seng and Yazid bin Hussein, were also awarded the prestigious Singapore Literature Prize award last year. 
   

6. So we are glad to see our local writers make such headways and continuing to pursue their passion in literature. We are also committed to helping our writers develop their talent and skills. NAC has various residency and mentorship programmes, such as the NTU-NAC Singapore Writing Residencies and the Writer-in-the-Gardens Residency programme, in partnership with the Singapore Botanic Gardens and Gardens by the Bay. NAC also continues to co-organise international residencies such as the University of Iowa's International Writers Program and the Toji Cultural Foundation's Toji Writing Residency. So there are many opportunities out there – I urge all our writers to seize these opportunities to take their literary careers to the next level. 
   

7. We are now in the midst of the Singapore Writers Festival, and it is truly exciting to see the works of over 200 Singaporean writers and artists. This number swells each year as our literary community continues to grow, and we celebrate the arts bringing people together regardless of language. 

8. On this note, I congratulate all writers again and encourage each of you to continue being part of our literary heritage. I hope that you will never lose the wonder of writing. Thank you.