Speakers

Abdullah Sani Alwi

Head, Mobile Content, Apps & New Media, Multimedia Development Corporation (MDeC), Malaysia

Writers & Illustrators Conference
SESSION/S: Creating Malaysian Digital Content for the World

Abdullah Sani Alwi currently holds the position of Head, Mobile Content, Apps & New Media for the Creative Multimedia Division at the Multimedia Development Corporation (MDeC), the Government agency that oversees the development of MSC Malaysia.

Ahmad Redza Ahmad Khairuddin

President, International Board of Books for Young People (IBBY)

Writers & Illustrators Conference
SESSION/S: Celebrating Diversity Through Multicultural Children’s Literature

Ahmad Redza Ahmad Khairuddin was elected as President of IBBY for the term 2012–2014 during the General Assembly of IBBY in London, UK, August 2012. He had previously served as IBBY President for the term 2010-12. Ahmad Redza has more than 15 years of experience in publishing, distribution and retailing. He a strong passion for children and their education and has served in various not-for-profit organizations that promote children’s literature and education.

Ain Maisarah

Author

Writers & Illustrators Conference
SESSION/S: Branding and Marketing: The Pink Branding

Ain Maisarah is the number one bestselling author in Malaysia of tween and teen fiction novels. To date, she has published 43 novels, many of which became bestsellers in Malaysia and have earned more than USD2 million in five years. She has 200,000 fans in Facebook.

Akiko Sueyoshi

Author

Writers & Illustrators Conference
SESSION/S: Japanese Perspectives – The Kamishibai Way | My Journey as a Writer

Akiko Sueyoshi started writing for children in 1974 and has written over 100 books after she worked at a Japanese publisher as an editor of children’s books. Her many awards include two Newcomer Prizes for The Girl Who Returned to the Star, and the Noma Award for Children’s Literature for Mummy’s Little Yellow Elephant.

Ary Nilandari

Author

Writers & Illustrators Conference
SESSION/S: Publishing and Distribution in Asia – Trends and Possibilities

Ary Nilandari is a children's book author who promotes enthusiasm for reading among parents and teachers so they become reading role models for children. She also trains fellow writers to create suitable and fun stories for children. She has written 36 books and hundreds of short stories and poems for children.

Azree Hanifiah

Writers & Illustrators Conference
SESSION/S: The Business of Digital Content for Kids

Azree Hanifiah is a digital executive at PTS, the largest book publishing company in Malaysia. PTS has published about 1500 titles, many of which are children's books. He was also involved in a specialized team for children's content for digital publishing.

Coonoor Kripalani

Author

Writers & Illustrators Conference
SESSION/S: Bridging Two Worlds: Bilingual Publishing

Coonoor Kripalani writes bilingual picture-books in Hindi and English for pre-school children. She is the author of a succinct biography of Gandhi for the lay reader, and she also writes on popular Hindi film and radio broadcasting in India.

Eliza Teoh

Author

Writers & Illustrators Conference
SESSION/S: Survival and Success as a Singaporean Author, Conceptualising and Writing Books for Series

Eliza Teoh, an editorial consultant, was a political journalist and sub-editor at The Straits Times. She is also the author of the bestselling Ellie Belly series of children’s books, which has sold more than 25,000 copies since its launch two years ago.

Etsuko Nozaka

Author, Translator

Writers & Illustrators Conference
SESSION/S: Japanese Perspectives – The Kamishibai Way | My Journey as a Writer

Etsuko Nozaka is a prolific Japanese translator of Dutch, English, and French children’s literature. She is also a founding member of the International Kamishibai Association of Japan (IKAJA), being in charge of international projects. She gives intensive lectures and workshops on kamishibai both at home and abroad.

Eva Nukman

Author, Translator

Writers & Illustrators Conference
SESSION/S: Publishing and Distribution in Asia – Trends and Possibilities

Though she graduated as pharmacist from Bandung Institute of Technology, Eva decided to pursue a career as translator and writer. She has published Aku Suka Sekolah, Layang-Layang Patah, Batu-Batu Bercerita, and more. She also works as managing editor of Irfan, a children's magazine.

Evelyn Wong

Writers & Illustrators Conference
SESSION/S: Splash! Asia session: Water Themed Books in the Asian Setting

Evelyn is an independent consultant and writer, with over 35 years experience in Canada and Singapore as researcher, writer, educator, director and consultant in industrial relations, international relations, leadership and sustainable development. She has authored and edited publications on labour issues and corporate social responsibility. A Singaporean, born and raised in Canada, she celebrates the world through children’s literature and creative writing.

Jade Fang

Illustrator

Writers & Illustrators Conference
SESSION/S: Asian Illustrators Panel: Injecting Asian Flavour into Your Work

Jade Fang is an illustrator and art teacher. She received her BFA and MFA in Illustration from Academy of Art University, San Francisco. She loves picture books and is always happy to work on one. Picture books that she has illustrated include Twelve Days of Christmas, Purple Paw Prints, and its sequel, Paw Prints on Magic Sofa.

John McKenzie

Educator

Writers & Illustrators Conference
SESSION/S: Branding and Marketing: The Pink Branding, Adapting Asian Folklore for Children’s and YA Literature, Asian Trickster Tales and their Educational Value, Promoting Translations in the Children’s Market

A leading academic in the field of children's literature in New Zealand, John McKenzie was a founding member of the Australasian Children's Literature Association for Research and has numerous conference papers, publications and consultancies to his credit. He reviews for the Australian Children’s Book Council’s journal Reading Time. In 2005, he was awarded the Betty Gilderdale Award for Services to NZ Children’s Literature.

Leo Vincent

Director, Advance Library Services Pte Ltd

Writers & Illustrators Conference
SESSION/S: The World at Your Fingertips: The Art of Book Acquisitions

Formerly from MPH, Leo Vincent has over 30 years of global sourcing experience. In 1999, he established Advance Library Services (ALS) Pte Ltd, a shelf-ready vendor with a full spectrum of library services. Today, ALS is a major library services vendor to NLB, institutions of higher learning, and international schools.

Nadira Mohd Yusoff

CEO, Nadi Ayu Technologies

Writers & Illustrators Conference
SESSION/S: Creating Malaysian Digital Content for the World, The Business of Digital Content for Kids

Nadira Yusoff is the CEO of Nadi-Ayu Technologies Sdn Bhd, a technology company in Malaysia that provides innovative and creative technologies and solutions to the education sector, early learning and children’s lifestyle sector. She is also the co-founder of MORRIELAND™ , a children’s edutainment network aimed at cultivating a reading habit in children through animated digital storytelling and games.

Nicholas Mark

Author

Writers & Illustrators Conference
SESSION/S: Young Professionals’ Journeys

A long held passion for Indonesia recently led Nicholas Mark, a twenty-four year old Australian, to collaborate with Indonesian illustrator Bambang Shakuntala to create a fantasy/adventure children’s book written in Bahasa Indonesia. Petualangan Anak Indonesia (The Indoventurers) integrates Indonesian and Western mythology and is inspired by Nicholas’ experiences living and travelling throughout Indonesia.

Norman Jorgensen

Author

Writers & Illustrators Conference
SESSION/S: Writer/Illustrator: Working together – Pleasure or Pain, Laugh Out Loud: Humour in Children’s Literature, Asian Trickster Tales and their Educational Value

Norman Jorgensen is a spotty 12 year old boy trapped in the body of an aging award-winning writer. He spends his days pretending to research history, but in reality is usually plotting fiendishly silly scenes for his comedies. He lives in Western Australia with his wife Jan but would rather be living on Treasure Island.

Panna Kantilal

Librarian

Writers & Illustrators Conference
SESSION/S: The World at Your Fingertips: The Art of Book Acquisitions

Panna, a Senior Librarian with the National Library Board, Singapore, has over 13 years’ experience as a collection development librarian. She specialises in the selection of children’s and young people’s materials and was responsible for the built collections at the Woodlands Regional Library, Bishan Public Library, and the Serangoon Public Library among others. She is also an avid storyteller.

Patrick Yee

Illustrator

Writers & Illustrators Conference
SESSION/S: Asian Illustrators Panel: Injecting Asian Flavour into Your Work, The Art of a Picture Book – Presentation and Discussion

Patrick Yee holds a degree in Graphic Design specializing in illustration from Camberwell College of Arts, London, and a Master’s degree from the University of Brighton. He has worked as an illustrator both locally and overseas to international acclaim. He has twice won the Macmillan Children’s Book award and currently has almost 100 books to his credit.

Paul Yee

Author

Writers & Illustrators Conference
SESSION/S: Asian American Authors and Their Impact on Asia

Paul Yee is third-generation Canadian. He was born in Saskatchewan and later grew up in Vancouver’s Chinatown. Yee holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in history from the University of British Columbia. History led him to a career as an archivist, working first for the city of Vancouver and then moving to Toronto to become Multicultural Coordinator for the Archives of Ontario. He is the author of numerous books for children and youth, including Blood and Iron, The Secret Keepers, The Bone Collector’s Son, Money Boy, Teach Me to Fly, Tales from Gold Mountain: Stories of the Chinese in the New World, and more, as well as Ghost Train — winner of the Governor General’s Literary Award for children’s literature and the Ruth Schwartz Children's Book Award. As well, he has written history books that feature the stories of the Chinese diaspora in Canada, including Saltwater City: An Illustrated History of the Chinese in Vancouver, which won the Vancouver Book Award. Recently, he was awarded the prestigious Vicky Metcalf Award for Children’s Literature. The love of literature and the personal importance of his cultural heritage are both important in Yee's work, where he weaves the history and culture of Chinese Canadians into his stories.

Poh Swee Hiang

Senior Publishing Manager, Pelangi Publishing Group

Writers & Illustrators Conference
SESSION/S: Publishing and Distribution in Asia – Trends and Possibilities

Poh Swee Hiang has extensive experience in book publishing and education with the Pelangi Publishing Group. The Pelangi Publishing Group is a publicly-listed company in Malaysia with offices in China, Singapore, Indonesia, Thailand and Vietnam. The company was also responsible for bringing the Malay edition of the Harry Potter and Twilight series into Malaysia.

Renee Ting

Publisher

Writers & Illustrators Conference
SESSION/S: First Pages – Writing Critique, The Future of Publishing in Digital Space, The Current State and Future Possibilities of Asian-Themed Publishing in the US

Renee Ting is the President and Publisher of Shen’s Books, publishing multicultural children’s literature that emphasizes cultural diversity and tolerance, and introduces children to the cultures of Asia. She is a graduate of Harvard University with a BA in music, and lives in California with her husband and two-year-old son.

Ruthanne Lum McCunn

Author

Writers & Illustrators Conference
SESSION/S: Asian American Authors and Their Impact on Asia

Ruthanne Lum McCunn is a writer of Chinese and Scottish descent, raised in Hong Kong, whose award-winning works have been translated into eleven languages, published in twenty-two countries, and adapted for the stage and film. She is the author of the children’s book Pie-Biter which won the Before Columbus Foundation American Book Award 1984. Her novels such as Thousand Pieces of Gold (later made into a film) and God of Luck, tell the story of early Chinese pioneers who arrived to the Americas. Her work in progress is Chinese Yankee, the true story of Thomas Sylvanus, born Ah Yee Way, who was brought to America for schooling as a boy, but enslaved in Baltimore, and then ran to freedom in Philadelphia and enlisted in the Union Army. Ruthanne lives in San Francisco with her husband, Don, and two cats.

Sophie Dewayani

Researcher, Author

Writers & Illustrators Conference
SESSION/S: Publishing and Distribution in Asia – Trends and Possibilities

Besides teaching in one university in Bandung, Indonesia, Sophie Dewayani is writing and has published children's books, adult's fictions, non-fictions, and journal articles. As a researcher, she focuses on children's literacy, multicultural children's literature, and the ways in which children respond to fiction books and use them in school setting.

Stephanie Wong

Illustrator

Writers & Illustrators Conference
SESSION/S: Asian Illustrators Panel: Injecting Asian Flavour into Your Work

Stephanie illustrates the best-selling The Diary of Amos Lee series and a designer at Epigram – an established design consultancy and publisher. She has illustrated 11 books to date, including the Amos Lee series. Beside books, Stephanie also illustrates for various magazines and collaterals. She is currently working collaboratively on an interaction exhibition with Objectiffs.

Tutu Dutta-Yean

Author, Illustrator

Writers & Illustrators Conference
SESSION/S: Adapting Asian Folklore for Children’s and YA Literature

Tutu Dutta-Yean is a keeper of old knowledge and wisdom. She was born in the little hamlet of Churachandpur in India. As a young woman and later as the wife of a Malaysian diplomat, Tutu has traveled and lived in several different countries. While in New York, her lifelong passion for culture, folklore and children’s literature inspired her to research and write her collections of folktales. She has published six books for children based on Asian folktales and illustrated two of them. Her books were included in the Best Malaysian Titles for Children, 2012. She has also worked as a teacher, research fellow and consultant.

Vatsala Kaul Banerjee

Editor

Writers & Illustrators Conference
SESSION/S: First Pages – Writing Critique, Child’s Play – Editing Children’s Books

Vatsala Kaul Banerjee started working with children and writing for children at Target, the iconic children’s magazine. She was an editor of magazine, Teens Today, after which she worked as commissioning editor with Puffin (Penguin India), and editor of a parenting magazine, Child. She is now Publishing Director, Children’s & Reference Books, at Hachette India.