Words against the wind: A conversation with Liu Wai Tong

• Published in: Made in China Journal Vol. 6; no. 3; pp. 133 - 143
• Main Authors: Jinyan, Zeng, Tong, Liu Wai
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Canberra, ACT ANU Press 09.03.2022
• Subjects: Artists; Attitudes; Authors; Awards & honors; Collective memory; Creative writing; Freedom of speech; Influence; Literature; Poetry; Poets; Social aspects; Social exclusion; Hong Kong China; Beijing China; China; Taiwan
• ISSN: 2652-6352; 2652-6352; 2206-9119
• DOI: 10.22459/MIC.06.03.2021.16

Liu Wai Tong (廖偉棠) is a poet, writer, and photographer. He was born in 1975 in Guangdong Province, later moved to Hong Kong, lived in Beijing for five years, and currently lives in Taipei. Liu has received the Hong Kong Biennial Award for Literature, the Taiwan Times Literature Award, and the United Daily News Literature Award. He was awarded the 2012 Hong Kong Arts Development Award for Best Artist in the literature category, and is often invited to international literary events, such as the 2011 Taipei Poetry Festival, the 2013 Poetry International in Rotterdam, and the 2016 Singapore Writers Festival. Since his debut, Liu has published more than 10 poetry collections, including Bitter Angels (苦天使), Young Wanderer (少年游), Black Rain is Near (黑雨將至), Wandering Hong Kong with Spirits (和幽靈一起的香港漫遊), Barbarous Night Songs (野蠻夜歌), Eight Inches of Snow (八尺雪意), Half a Notebook of Ghost Talk (半簿鬼語), The Cup of Spring (春盞), and Cherry and Vajra (櫻桃與金剛). Poems cited in this conversation were published in Liu's 2020 book All Lights Will not Burn Out: Liu Wai Tong Selected Poems 2017-2019 (一切閃耀都不會熄滅：廖偉棠 2017-2019詩選) and his 2015 book Umtopia (傘托邦).