One For The Road

/ Foreword by Cheyenne Alexandria Phillips & Melizarani T. Selva

Here is where we leave everything on the table — everything we need to say before we go. 

Picture this: Two editors turned buddies, sitting on barstools, nursing the last traces of our margaritas and two years worth of memories. Semisonic’s “Closing Time” comes through the speakers and we huddle closer to murmur thank yous and goodbyes. 

Issue ⑨ marks the end of our era as SPWM editors. With full hearts, we dedicate this edition to the communities we have had the immense privilege of being part of and the ones we desire to enter.   

On the bedrock of Issue ⑨, we witness poetry editor Dr. Jenny Mak immersed in the SPWM poems of 2021, carefully selecting and curating works that spoke which carried the essence of camaraderie. Multidisciplinary artists Ila and Sonia draw us into their collaborative experience through a series of intimate emails. Centre 42’s Eugene generously welcomes us into their new digital theatre archive with an interactive tour by mascots Archie and Rexy. Finally, theatre doyenne Karen Tan wittily takes us through her (mis)adventures as a local actress. 

We have embraced all the good, ugly, joyous, complicated, simple, connections that come with creating 6 issues of SPWM, sharing the space with 5 poetry editors, 15 multidisciplinary features and over 90 poems. Starting with our very first issue, with two editors in two different countries, navigating the remote working landscape to the in-person reunion, to the finishing touches on this final issue, all the issues are part of a wonderful journey we have been on together, exploring how art moved online, celebrating interdisciplinary and multimedia poems. We’ve created issues we are proud of, featuring topics and writers that not only speak to our souls but also deserve the space to breathe in our community. 

Along this journey, we’ve had an incredibly supportive team. We would like to record our immense gratitude to our tireless web designer, Daryl Qilin Yam, our two dedicated interns, Shalani and Eunice for making the journey smoother and Charlene Shepherdson who united us in this space and offered us the opportunity to say what we needed to say. 

P.S. To the future SPWM editors, we wish you the absolute best with this adventure. May you make SPWM better. May you make SPWM your own.

/ Melizarani T.Selva is a Malaysian writer and spoken word poet. To date, she has performed in six countries with notable performances at StoryFest Singapore, ZEE Jaipur Literature Festival and TEDxGateway. Her first book, Taboo is a poetic exploration of her Masters’ thesis on the constructs and representations of the Malaysian Indian Identity. Her poems have been translated in French and Bahasa Malaysia. Presently, she co-runs If Walls Could Talk: Poetry Open Mic, the Malaysia National Poetry Slam and has co-published an anthology of 100 poems by 61 poets from Malaysia titled When I Say Spoken, You Say Word!

/ Cheyenne Alexandria Phillips is a writer, performer, educator, and Associate Artist with Checkpoint Theatre. Cheyenne’s new work A Grand Design was presented by Checkpoint Theatre as an audio experience in 2020, and its live performance is under development with them. She has co-written and performed in two plays focusing on Eurasian narratives and personal history: In The Twine (commissioned for Singapore Writer’s Festival 2018) and For The Record (Centre 42’s Basement Workshop Residency 2017). She has hosted eco-literary walks around MacRitchie Reservoir in collaboration with the Public Utilities Board (PUB) as part of Singapore Water Month 2018. Cheyenne’s writings can be found in Contour: A Lyrical Cartography of Singapore (2019) and Who are you my country? (2018). She is also a licensed Tourist Guide.