Herb Library Literary Lunch

Felix Cheong is a Singaporean author with 25 books across various genres, including poetry, short stories, children's picture books, and graphic novels. His works are often included in anthologies and featured in 'O' and 'A' level exams. He has received nominations for both the Frank O'Connor Award and the Singapore Literature Prize. His latest publication is Sprawl: God's Lonely Man, a graphic novel created in collaboration with Malaysian artist Arif Rafhan. In 2020, Felix's libretto At One Time, with music by Jonathon Shin, won third place in the New Opera Singapore Open Call for Composition competition.

Felix Cheong adalah penulis asal Singapura yang telah menghasilkan 25 buku dalam berbagai genre, termasuk puisi, cerpen, buku anak bergambar, dan novel grafis. Karyanya sering masuk dalam antologi dan muncul dalam ujian 'O' dan 'A' level. Ia telah menerima nominasi untuk Frank O'Connor Award dan Singapore Literature Prize. Terbitan terbarunya ialah Sprawl: God's Lonely Man, sebuah novel grafis yang dibuat atas kolaborasi dengan seniman Malaysia Arif Rafhan. Pada tahun 2020, libretto karya Felix At One Time, dengan musik oleh Jonathon Shin, meraih juara ketiga dalam kompetisi New Opera Singapore Open Call for Composition.

Jonathan Rachman is an Indonesian interior designer born in Lampung, Sumatra. Educated in Switzerland, he spent much of his life in California. Recently, he has also made Bali his home, commuting between Bali and California, and referring to himself and his husband as the 'Balifornians.' Jonathan has been with his husband Stephen for nearly twenty-seven years, including six years of legal marriage. They have fifteen 'fairy' godchildren whom they consider part of their ohana. In addition to his career as an internationally recognized interior designer, Jonathan is a travel enthusiast, with Bali being his favorite island and future home.

Jonathan Rachman adalah seorang desainer interior asal Indonesia yang lahir di Lampung, Sumatra. Menempuh pendidikan di Swiss, ia menghabiskan sebagian besar hidupnya di California. Baru-baru ini, ia juga menjadikan Bali sebagai rumahnya, bekelintaran antara Bali dan California dan menyebut diri dan suaminya sebagai 'Balifornians.' Jonathan telah bersama suaminya, Stephen, selama hampir dua puluh tujuh tahun, termasuk enam tahun dalam pernikahan sah. Mereka memiliki lima belas anak baptis yang mereka anggap sebagai bagian dari keluarga mereka. Selain kariernya sebagai desainer interior yang diakui secara internasional, Jonathan juga merupakan seorang penggemar perjalanan, dengan Bali sebagai pulau favorit dan rumah masa depannya.

Laura Elizabeth Woollett is the Australian author of a short story collection, The Love of a Bad Man, and three novels, Beautiful Revolutionary in 2018, The Newcomer in 2021, and West Girls in 2023. The Love of a Bad Man was shortlisted for the Victorian Premier’s Literary Award for Fiction and the Ned Kelly Award for Best First Fiction. Beautiful Revolutionary was shortlisted for the 2019 Prime Minister’s Literary Award for Fiction, the Australian Literature Society Gold Medal, and the Kathleen Mitchell Award. Laura was the City of Melbourne’s 2020 Boyd Garret writer-in-residence and a 2020–22 Marten Bequest scholar for prose. She is currently working on her first nonfiction book.

Laura Elizabeth Woollett adalah penulis Australia yang dikenal dengan kumpulan cerpen berjudul The Love of a Bad Man dan tiga novelnya, Beautiful Revolutionary dari tahun 2018, The Newcomer dari tahun 2021, dan West Girls dari tahun 2023. The Love of a Bad Man masuk dalam daftar pendek Victorian Premier’s Literary Award for Fiction dan Ned Kelly Award for Best First Fiction. Sedangkan Beautiful Revolutionary masuk nominasi Prime Minister’s Literary Award for Fiction 2019, Australian Literature Society Gold Medal, dan Kathleen Mitchell Award. Laura adalah penulis residensi Boyd Garret Kota Melbourne tahun 2020 dan penerima beasiswa Marten Bequest untuk prosa tahun 2020–2022. Saat ini, ia sedang mengerjakan buku nonfiksinya yang pertama.

María Gómez Lara is a Colombian author who has published five books of poetry. She was awarded the Loewe Foundation International Award for Young Poets, and her poems have been translated into multiple languages. She holds a PhD in Latin American Poetry from Harvard University.

María Gómez Lara adalah seorang penulis asal Kolombia yang telah menerbitkan lima buku puisi. Ia dianugerahi Loewe Foundation International Award for Young Poets, dan puisinya telah diterjemahkan ke dalam berbagai bahasa. Ia meraih gelar PhD dalam Puisi Amerika Latin dari Harvard University.

Nam Le is a Vietnamese-born Australian writer who won the Dylan Thomas Prize for his book The Boat, a collection of short stories. The Boat has been republished as a modern classic and is widely translated, anthologized, and published in various places including Poetry, The American Poetry Review, The Paris Review, Bomb, Conjunctions, Boston Review, Lana Turner, and The Monthly. Le has also received major awards in America, Europe, and Australia, including the PEN/Malamud Award, the Anisfield-Wolf Book Award, the Australian Prime Minister’s Literary Award, and the Melbourne Prize for Literature.

Nam Le adalah seorang penulis Australia keturunan Vietnam yang memenangkan Dylan Thomas Prize untuk buku kumpulan cerita pendeknya, The Boat. Buku ini telah diterbitkan ulang sebagai klasik modern dan banyak diterjemahkan, diantologikan, dan diterbitkan di berbagai tempat termasuk di Poetry, The American Poetry Review, The Paris Review, Bomb, Conjunctions, Boston Review, Lana Turner, dan The Monthly. Sebagai seorang penulis, Le juga telah menerima penghargaan bergengsi di Amerika, Eropa, dan Australia, di antaranya PEN/Malamud Award, Anisfield-Wolf Book Award, Australian Prime Minister’s Literary Award, dan Melbourne Prize for Literature.

Siang Lu is an Australian author and the writer of Ghost Cities and the award-winning novel The Whitewash, which won Audiobook of the Year at the 2023 Australian Book Industry Awards and the Glendower Award for an Emerging Writer at the Queensland Literary Awards. In 2023, Siang was recognized as one of the Top 40 Under 40 Asian-Australians at the Asian-Australian Leadership Awards. He has also contributed to film and television projects for Singapore's Beach House Pictures and Malaysia's Astro network.

Siang Lu adalah pengarang asal Australia yang menulis buku Ghost Cities dan The Whitewash, novel yang memenangkan penghargaan Audiobook of the Year di Australian Book Industry Awards pada tahun 2023 dan membawanya memenangkan Glendower Award for an Emerging Writer di Queensland Literary Awards. Pada tahun 2023, Siang diakui sebagai salah satu Top 40 Under 40 Asian-Australian di Asian-Australian Leadership Awards. Ia juga mengambil peran dalam proyek-proyek film dan televisi untuk Beach House Pictures di Singapura dan jaringan Astro di Malaysia.

Sophie Navita is an Indonesian TV presenter, MC, and the author of three self-improvement books. Her first book was published in 2016, followed by Truth: Temukan Rasa Utuhmu, Temukan Hidup, which was published by Bentang Pustaka in 2020. A practitioner of healthy and mindful living, Sophie released her latest book, Hati Yang Gembira Adalah Obat: Si Paling Overthinking, in 2024 to provide essential advice on overcoming the complexities of overthinking. She currently lives with her family in Bali while managing her coffee shop in Canggu.

Sophie Navita adalah seorang presenter TV, pemandu acara, dan penulis buku pengembangan diri asal Indonesia. Buku pertamanya terbit pada tahun 2016, disusul oleh buku Truth: Temukan Rasa Utuhmu, Temukan Hidup yang diterbitkan oleh Bentang Pustaka pada tahun 2020. Seorang praktisi gaya hidup sehat dan berkesadaran, Sophie menerbitkan buku Hati Yang Gembira Adalah Obat: Si Paling Overthinking pada tahun 2024 untuk memberikan resep penting mengatasi ruwetnya pikiran yang membelenggu. Saat ini, Sophie tinggal bersama keluarganya di Bali sambil mengelola kedai kopi miliknya di bilangan Canggu.

Tay Guan Hin, Creative Chairman of BBDO Singapore, is the author of the best-seller Collide by Penguin Random House SEA. As an esteemed keynote speaker, he has shared his expertise at TEDx, Cannes Lions, and with major firms such as Tencent and Meta. A prominent figure at industry events like TEDx and Spikes Asia, Guan has also advised top international clients. He served as the President of the Asia Professional Speakers Association from 2022 to 2023. Passionate about nurturing future talent, he established Singapore’s first advertising student awards and mentored the One Show China Youth Creative Awards in 2019.