These thoughts whisk themselves in the bowl of my skull: a quiet righteousness, pacing restless in its room, its hands grabbing ontonothing; how my tongue is slowlycurling backwards onto itself; my voice falling into the pit of my throat. There is so much I can do little about that I wish I were God. I […]
Author: lim
A member of Singapore-based writing collective /stop@BadEndRhymes ("/s@ber"), Valen dwells in the swamp of poetry. He has been published in various publications, including Anxious Poets Society, Eunoia Review and Quarterly Literary Review Singapore. He has performed his work at the Arts House, the Singapore Art Museum, and in various dingy bars.
FREEWRITING EXERCISE #102
In recent months I have beenabandoned by sadness. Moreaccurately, I have left her behind. No more the plucking of leavesfrom her overgrown crown, herlaurel of memory. She would not let me go – a root, tangled aroundan arm. My fingers planted in the bark. As a trade, I had to cut off my tongue, toss […]
FREEWRITING EXERCISE #101
Door shut. Silent afternoon.Mother, couch. Phone, charging, candy crushing comic reading quiet waiting. One call. No answer.Two calls.No answer. Please, come, sit down. Rare visitor appears again.He wraps his handsaround fists.Bald brotherstanding unsteadyvoice trickling into phone. Answer muffled.Breakfast cold, voices unsteady,mother trickles within kitchen. Locked out. No context. I sit in silence. Shut afternoon.Quiet, rare.Couched […]
FREEWRITING EXERCISE #100
The flowers on my balcony bloombut shed their petals in a week. The floor is now an aftermath. I sweep up the shredded whiteand place them into the soil.I live so comfortably well that I only have to kill once in a while.An ant, a spider. A wayward fly. Tonight I will sleep without guilt.Tomorrow, […]
FREEWRITING EXERCISE #99
words scrawled on an unknown walllast names taken without context faces as smooth as a washboard mingling in a sea of cotton buds and in the air there is capitalismthat quiet + usual summer bloomas we walk down the red carpet of suburbia and middle-class livingand everyone is dressed and drapedin a thick viscous layer […]
FREEWRITING EXERCISE #98
head empty no thoughtshead on backwardseyes staring into the past like beams of light in a thick endless fogthere’s so much anxiety my brain is wrapped within like bubble wrapI close the door and leave the housewith my unhappy face onI close the door and dim the lightsand take off my unhappy faceto put on […]
GOLDEN POINT AWARD 2019
Ecstatic to announce that I’ve been awarded Third Place in English Poetry for the Golden Point Award, 2019. The Golden Point Award is Singapore’s premier creative writing competition for Short Story and Poetry in the nation’s four official languages: English, Chinese, Malay and Tamil. Established by the National Arts Council since 1993, the national literary writing competition […]
FREEWRITING EXERCISE #97
A ball on a table, my thoughtsunspool and drape off the edge,sentences unravelling their silkas my words break formation, their knees buckling under theweight of yet another period. I am constantly catching up to the kite-strings of my owntongue, and all its strugglesagainst the walls of its cell.Apostrophe, apostrophe. Nothing makes sense anymoreand it is […]
STATISTICS IN SEARCH OF STRUCTURE
Glad to say that my poem, “Statistics in Search of Structure” was published recently in OF ZOOS. Check out the poem here! http://ofzoos.com/8.1=ValenLim.html
FREEWRITING EXERCISE #96
What have you done to me I demand an explanationWhat have you done to me I am here having a heart attackover the smallest of minutiae like an entire story clumped as a comma I am no longer alone in the living room of my head thoughts of you pack themselves to the ceilingand spread […]
ugly stage 