I am an award-winning writer and editor whose work has been published internationally.
My work has won awards with the New York Times, BBC, the National Arts Council and the Singapore Literature Prize.
I also love Christ, and have an inspirational Christian blog at hweehweetan.com.
Education
I studied English Literature at the University of East Anglia, where I was one of the top students, graduating with First Class Honours. I then received a scholarship to study for a Masters in English from the University of Oxford. After graduating from Oxford, I won a scholarship from the New York Times to study for a Masters in Creative Writing at New York University.
Skills and experience
Journalism
I am an accomplished journalist. I worked as a technology and marketing reporter for Adweek in New York and also spent a stint as a lifestyle journalist for the Business Times in Singapore.
As a freelance journalist, I have contributed to major international publications, including the New York Times, TIME, Harper’s Bazaar, the Straits Times, TODAY, Prestige, Her World and the BBC.
Copywriting
I have experience with a wide range of copywriting, including writing articles, website copy, advertorials, newsletters, case studies, blogs, press releases, speeches, electronic direct mailers, books and brochures. Clients include Sony, Singtel, Nanyang Technological University, SingHealth, Randstad, Ascendas-Singbridge, Resorts World Sentosa and Singapore Tourism Board.
Fiction Work
My short stories have won numerous awards with the BBC. I published my first novel, “Foreign Bodies” with Penguin when I was only 22. The novel was featured on the front page of the Wall Street Journal for being “the first novel by a Singaporean author to receive critical acclaim in the UK and the US”. My second novel, “Mammon Inc” was also published to critical acclaim, winning the Singapore Literature Prize.
Web writing
I spent five months working on a project for Shangri-La Hotels, focusing on the re-vamp of their websites. I wrote new content and edited existing content, as well as coming up with headlines.
I worked for the Ministry of Manpower for four months, writing and editing content on their new website.
Editing
I have been the editor of publications such as SALT (National Volunteer and Philanthropy Centre), Knowledge Enterprise (National University of Singapore), CareerTracks (Nanyang Technological University) and Passport (Singapore Tourism Board). Editing duties include sourcing for stories, copy-editing and proof-reading.
Non-Fiction Books
I have written two non-fiction books. “Pioneer Panaroma” (PAP Community Foundation) celebrates the lives of people in the Pioneer constituency. I also wrote the content for SingHealth’s “Inspirational Patients and Caregivers Awards” book.
Book editing
I edited the book “r-Entrepreneurship” (Write Editions) by Joseph Ong, owner of the F&B entity, the One Rochester Group.
Corporate Communications experience
I worked as an Assistant Vice President in the Group Strategic and Marketing Department of DBS Bank. I wrote and edited Buzz Online, the online magazine for the Bank, handled media relations and ran the Corporate Social Responsibility programme.
Agency Experience
I have worked for Flame Communications, a public relations and communications agency. I worked as a writer and editor, working on case studies, newsletters, brochures, banners, articles and press releases. Clients include Singtel, Johnson Controls, Stratasys, Nikei Fine Art, Sundaram Tagore Gallery, Jebsen and Jessen Communications and PropertyBank.