Update (24 May): Round 1 results are out and shortlisted creators have been notified.

LOOMING MILESTONES, AND MISSED CONNECTIONS.
RESISTING MAINSTREAM EXPECTATIONS, AND DOING LIFE AT YOUR OWN PACE.
A BOOK OVERDUE, A POSTPONED RENDEZVOUS.
A SINGLE MOMENT, SUSPENDED AND SEPARATED.

WHAT DOES DELAY MEAN TO YOU?
SEND US YOUR STORIES NOW.

Difference Engine invites writers and illustrators to submit story pitches to our comics anthology, which will be published in 2025! DELAY: A Comics Anthology is an initiative to develop and showcase the talents of local and regional creators. Coming on board as guest editors are Charis Loke and Paolo Chikiamco, both veterans in the Southeast Asian comics industry.

We’re looking for comics that:

• Are original fiction of any genre in the theme of “delay”.
• Are inspired by Southeast Asia.
• Can potentially be developed into a finished comic of 10–20 pages.
• Are in black & white.
• Are written in the English language. Where integral to the story, the use of non-English languages in dialogue or as sound effects is welcome.

Creators must be:

• Living in Southeast Asia.
• Of Asian descent.
• Aged 18 and above upon submission.

There will be two rounds of selection: Round 1 (Call for Submissions) and Round 2 (Final Selection for Publication).

Stories selected for publication will receive a page rate of US$30.

Submission Guidelines: Round 1 (Call for Submissions)

Submissions must include:

• A written story pitch (500-800 words) outlining the plot, including the ending, typed in Arial, font size 11, single-spaced.
• One page of thumbnails or one page of concept sketches of characters/settings.
• A portfolio sample of three illustrations. 
• A short biography of each creator (50-100 words).
• A completed and signed entry form.

• All of the above needs to be compiled into a single PDF file no more than 10MB.
• Label the PDF file with the title of the story.
• Email the file to submissions@differenceengine.sg with the subject header “DELAY Submission: [title of the story]”.
• All submissions must be in soft copy. Difference Engine will not accept any hard copy submissions.

The deadline for Round 1 (Call for Submissions) is 26 April 2024, 11.59pm GMT +8.

For more details, read our rules and regulations at the bottom of this webpage, or download the PDF (they’re the same!).

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DOWNLOAD

Entry Form (PDF) / Entry Form (Word Doc)

Rules and Regulations (updated 29 Feb 2024)

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OUR GUEST EDITORS

Photo: Goh Choon Ean

Charis Loke

Charis Loke has been found drawing book covers, fantasy maps, board games, street protests, in the jungle, on a boat, and by a glacier. As an editor and curator, she’s worked with close to a hundred Southeast Asian comic creators and artists, including co-editing SOUND: A Comics Anthology, published by Difference Engine. She’s illustrated for Netflix, Orbit, Macmillan, Subterranean Press, and Mekong Review, among others, and has an MA in Visual Sociology with an interest in mapping as arts research.

“I’m excited for stories that use relationships between text and visuals to craft specific sensations of time on the page. Make us feel! Make us wonder! Make us see the world differently, without being didactic about it.”

Paolo Chikiamco

Paolo Chikiamco, from the Philippines, is a writer of prose, comics, and interactive fiction. His prose has been published in anthologies such as The Sea is Ours and The Best of Philippine Speculative Fiction, and his interactive wrestling novel Slammed! was released by Choice of Games. As an editor, he put together Alternative Alamat, an anthology of stories that reimagine Philippine myth and folklore. As a comics writer, he has co-created titles such as Mythspace, Muros, and A Sparrow’s Roar, and has been a Category Judge for the Graphic Literature category of the Philippine National Book Awards.

“I’d like to see stories that are comics stories first and foremost, submissions that are created with an eye to the strengths and capabilities of comics as a medium, with modes of expression that simply wouldn’t work anywhere else.

On a similar note, I’d like to see Southeast Asian stories that revel in that identity, where creators don’t feel a need to over-contextualise or simplify for a hypothetical “global” audience. DE is proudly Southeast Asian, this anthology is proudly Southeast Asian, and we want your stories to be as well.”

OPEN CALL INFO SESSIONS

Interested in submitting but need more details first? Join the editors for a virtual info session! Facilitated by the DE team, the sessions will cover the following, and more:

• Introductions to Difference Engine, the DE team, and the anthology’s editors.
• What the theme DELAY means to us, and inspiration for potential stories.
• Insight into the editorial process contributors can look forward to.
• Tips on preparing a compelling and comprehensive submission.
• Q&A.

Who knows, you might even find a potential collaborator amongst your fellow attendees!

Both sessions will cover similar content. However, the Q&A segment will vary based on the questions raised by attendees.

Session 1: Wed, 20 March 2024, 8pm to 9pm GMT + 8, via Zoom (Register here)
Session 2: Sat, 6 April 2024, 3pm to 4pm GMT + 8, via Zoom (Register here)

Please sign up for a session using the respective links above. The Zoom link will be sent to you closer to the session’s date.

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RULES AND REGULATIONS FOR DELAY: A COMICS ANTHOLOGY

1. Theme

The theme of this comics anthology is “delay”. The stories must be inspired by and/or take place within Southeast Asia. The theme could be interpreted 

• As an element of the plot and/or
• As a comics technique.

2. Content Eligibility

Content must be:

• Original fiction of any genre, and not currently under review or previously published by a publisher. We accept stories that have been self-published on personal blogs, personal social media accounts, personal websites, platforms like Webtoons and Tapas, e-newsletters like Substack, Patreon, or elsewhere. We will also accept excerpts from longer work if they can be understood as a standalone without the need for additional context.
• 10–20 pages long.
• Black & white.
• Written in the English language. Where integral to the story, the use of non-English languages in dialogue or as sound effects is welcome.
• Suitable for readers aged 13 and above, containing no explicit content, including but not limited to graphic language, depictions of violence, drugs, and sex.
• Content that appears in the submission must not be output from any generative AI tools that draw from copyrighted material.

Creators/creative teams whose stories are selected will be working with the anthology editors to prepare it for publication. Selected creators/creative teams should expect – and look forward to! – a professional and highly collaborative editorial process intended to support the development of the story to its full potential.

3. Creator Eligibility

Creators must be:

• Living in Southeast Asia, of Asian descent.
• Aged 18 and above upon submission.
• Creators can submit as an individual or as a team.
• Multiple submissions are accepted, up to a maximum of 3 submissions per creator.
• Creators/creative teams must own all copyrights to their submitted work.
• Difference Engine reserves the right to request for verification of eligibility.

4. Submission Guidelines: Round 1 (Call for Submissions)

Submissions must include:

• A written story pitch (500-800 words) outlining the plot, including the ending, typed in Arial, font size 11, single-spaced.
• One page of thumbnails or one page of concept sketches of characters/settings.
• A portfolio sample of three illustrations. 
• A short biography of each creator (50-100 words).
• A completed and signed entry form.

• All of the above needs to be compiled into a single PDF file no more than 10MB.
• Label the PDF file with the title of the story.
• Email the file to submissions@differenceengine.sg with the subject header “DELAY Submission: [title of the story]”.
• All submissions must be in soft copy. Difference Engine will not accept any hard copy submissions.

Timeline for this round:

Round 1 Call for Submissions closes on 26 April 2024, 11.59pm GMT +8.

Shortlisted creators will be informed by 24 May 2024 if their submission has been selected for Round 2 (Final Selection for Publication).

5. Submission Guidelines: Round 2 (Final Selection for Publication)

Creators/creative teams will be requested to submit:

• A full script with page and dialogue instructions.
• Five pages of thumbnails.
• One page of finished comics.

Timeline for this round:

Round 2 submissions close on 16 August 2024, 11.59pm GMT +8.

Final creators/creative teams whose stories are selected for publication will be informed by 27 September 2024.

6. Publication Details

Creators/creative teams selected after Round 2 will be offered a contract in September 2024.

DELAY: A Comics Anthology will be published in print and digital formats.

Estimated Publication Date: September 2025

7. Payment

Stories selected for publication will receive a page rate of US$30 (or the creators’ local currency equivalent). Creative teams may determine the payment division between them.

Each creator will receive two complimentary copies (up to a maximum of six copies per submission).

8. Rights Requested

Exclusive first world anthology rights for one year from the date of publication in both print and digital formats.

Continuing non-exclusive rights to print and reprint as this anthology for 10 years from the date of publication in both print and digital formats.

Copyright to the published work will remain with the creator(s).

9. PDPA

Difference Engine will take all reasonable efforts to ensure that your personal data is securely handled according to the guidelines set out by the Personal Data Protection Act of Singapore.

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FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Q: Which countries are considered part of Southeast Asia?

A: Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Timor-Leste, and Vietnam.

Q: I am of Asian descent but not living in Southeast Asia. Am I eligible to submit to the anthology?

A: Unfortunately not. DELAY: A Comics Anthology was initiated to offer opportunities to creators who reside in Southeast Asia. Therefore, all members of the creative team must also reside in Southeast Asia.

Q: How do I show proof of residence in Southeast Asia?

We accept documents that have both your legal name and residential address printed on it, such as your recent utilities or telecommunications bill (not more than six months old). You will need to scan your documents and email them to us when requested.

Q: If I am not eligible to submit to this anthology, will there be other opportunities to pitch my work to DE?

Yes! If you have a story that you would like to see published, please head over to our general submissions page here.

Q: Do the portfolio samples need to be linked to the story I am pitching for DELAY?

A: They do not need to be linked.

Q: Do the portfolio samples need to be in black & white?

A: They do not need to be in black & white.

Q: Can I submit AI-generated content for the pitch?

A: No, you may not submit AI-generated content in your submission. Difference Engine reserves the right to request to view working files in cases where a submission is suspected to include AI-generated content.

Q: How many stories will be included in the anthology?

A: Similar to SOUND: A Comics Anthology, there will be 13 to 15 stories in DELAY.

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DOWNLOAD

Entry Form (PDF) / Entry Form (Word Doc)

Rules and Regulations (updated 29 Feb 2024)

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Updated 29 February 2024

Difference Engine reserves the right to amend these rules and regulations at any time without prior notice. We will take reasonable efforts to communicate key changes.

Wouldn’t it be magical if we could just wave a wand and fit in? Unfortunately, in Magical Sweet Gula, that reality seems to be pie in the sky for Gula Gulali. Born part-Magi, Gula sticks out whether she wants to or not, with her cotton candy pink-hair and pointed ears in her Terran-majority school. Which, in turn, makes her the low-hanging fruit target of her school’s insatiable bullies.

To add salt to her wound, even amongst the general school population, Gula finds herself in an uphill battle against the rampant sensationalised stereotypes that inundate the media her peers consume. Even when she walks on eggshells, all it takes is one untimely discharge of her magic, and she is dropped quicker than a hot potato by her schoolmates.

Gula’s constant calibration to find the perfect measurement of “normal” amidst her mixed Magi and Terran heritage is a quandary that is especially close to the heart of the title’s co-creator Johanes Park. “Even though this comic book is a work of fiction, the story is inspired by my own experience living in a multicultural Indonesian society as a mixed child,” he shares. Born to a Korean father, and a Chinese-Sundanese mother, Johanes recalls feeling lonely and outcasted. It was from this vantage point of trying to find harmony in cultures and perspectives that Magical Sweet Gula was first conceptualised.

Jessica Leman, the other pea in this husband-wife creator pod, elaborates, “Books or graphic novels with narratives about searches for identity usually portray people who live outside the country of the ethnicity they are descended from, and how they struggle to integrate after.” Noting a lack of multiracial characters in transmigrant stories, she continues, “In Magical Sweet Gula, we tried to share a story of the next level of identity searching – where the character is of mixed ancestry. Being multiracial, the character has a unique struggle where neither ethnic group will wholly accept her as a part of them.”

Both creators are well aware that the desire to fit in, to get along like peas and carrots with your peers in school despite being different, is a concept that many children are familiar with. Magical Sweet Gula offers its young audience food for thought on the ways in which multiracial children may experience prejudice. To make the subject more accessible to younger readers, the creators made Gula immediately visually distinct from her peers. “Since Manakarta is based on Jakarta, where people have naturally dark hair, we found the most eye- catching way to show contrast was through one’s appearance, especially using colour,” Jessica explains.

Besides using bright colours and a very generous sprinkle of magic as visual markers for Magi in Magical Sweet Gula, Johanes also highlights how spicing up the pages with Peranakan desserts extends the metaphor of fitting in. “I believe in “Bhinneka Tunggal Ika” which means “even if we have many differences, in the end we can still have the same feeling”. I think this philosophy is also reflected in Peranakan culture, especially their foods.” The creators go on to explain how food recipes in Indonesia often draw their history from multiple heritages—the antithesis of “too many cooks spoil the broth”. When researching on jajanan pasar (market snacks), Jessica and Johanes found further inspiration for Gula’s growth and journey in how these snacks were often served together in a single tampah (flat woven bamboo basket), even when they come in multiple flavours.

Commenting on Difference Engine’s decision to publish Magical Sweet Gula, Publisher Felicia Low said, “A core tenet of Difference Engine is to support the amplification of stories and voices that may not have the same reach and platform as that of the majority. Magical Sweet Gula is earnest in its exploration of a multiracial character coming to terms with their identity, and holds both sweet and bitter halves of Gula’s experiences. While concepts like bullying and self-perception might seem intimidating to younger readers, Jessica and Johanes’ vibrant colour palette and humorous panels do wonders to ease readers into these topics.”

Magical Sweet Gula is now available in bookstores in Singapore and Malaysia. It is also available for purchase online with local and international shipping options. The book retails at SGD15.90 (w/o GST).

Purchase the print or ebook at bit.ly/magicalsweetgula.

For enquiries about the book, contact: readcomics@differenceengine.sg.

Magical Sweet Gula is the first of a two-volume series, with Book 2 scheduled for release in 2024.

Difference Engine is honoured to have had the opportunity to work with writer Vinita Ramani to tell the story of her son Mithra and her experience with pregnancy loss. Their story is illustrated by Griselda Gabriele in Bearing Witness, and is published under our DE Shorts imprint.

Almost one quarter of all pregnancies are estimated to end in pregnancy loss, either a miscarriage or in stillbirth. Despite that, those who fall into this quartile rarely find themselves part of the conversation about pregnancy and childbirth.

Bearing Witness, with its unfiltered and sincere retelling of writer Vinita Ramani’s and her family’s experience with the loss of her second child, Mithra, offers parents affected by pregnancy loss a shared space to have their experiences recognised. More importantly, it creates a conduit through which families who have experienced such loss are able to share and amplify their voices and grief.

Shailey Hingorani, the Head of Advocacy, Research, and Communications at AWARE, the Association of Women for Action and Research, commented on the direction of Bearing Witness, “Through immensely affecting visuals and writing that is precise yet visceral, author Vinita Ramani and illustrator Griselda Gabriele have created a work that delves deep into a topic that many find too harrowing to even mention. They capture how overwhelming it can be to undergo the physical and mental toll of experiences like postpartum depression and pregnancy loss, without passing judgement on any choices made. There is a deep sadness here, but there are also moments of acceptance, support and even joy. This comic is vital for any number of readers — whether you relate to the author’s experience intimately or have little knowledge on pregnancy loss.”

By choosing to set the story in Vinita’s lived moments, Bearing Witness makes the heavy nature of pregnancy loss accessible to all through the proxies of her thoughts and emotions; family and faith. Moments of her loneliness are always surrounded by the presence of her family and friends, especially her husband Mahdev and daughter Sahana. Her family acts as guides not just to Vinita, but also for the readers – lifting from the weight of Vinita’s grief to the memory of familial comfort of the readers’ present.

Vinita explained why Bearing Witness is an important narrative to share not just with mothers, but to the wider audience, “This is a story about what it is to be a mother, to both the children we have and the ones we have lost. And it is not just a story for women: fathers will relate to the husband portrayed in this comic. A vital narrative that should be widely read, talked about, and made more visible.”

Departing from the traditional route of broaching the topic of pregnancy loss through the lens of medical facts and statistics, Bearing Witness is unapologetic in featuring the emotional nuances of Vinita’s pregnancy loss and artefacts of her spirituality against the backdrop of Southeast Asia, and invites the audience to experience every raw ebb and flow of Vinita’s emotional state.

Illustrator of Bearing Witness, Griselda Gabriele elaborated, “Vinita’s story and ways of coping with grief are very closely linked to spirituality in her daily life. In fact, this spirituality was also what allowed Vinita to see her miscarriage not only as a loss, but also a way for her to return Mithra to the universe. Most comics on miscarriage I’ve seen focus on the medical aspects and come from Western countries, which rarely depict this kind of spirituality (and positively, even more rarely). Meanwhile, it’s a norm in many parts of Asia!”

Jason Erik Lundberg, author of A Fickle and Restless Weapon, shared his experience after bearing witness to Mithra’s story, “The loss of one’s child is tragic under any circumstances, but especially so before it has had the chance to be born. Vinita Ramani’s devastating account of pregnancy loss, sensitively illustrated by Griselda Gabriele, is unflinchingly honest and allows us to bear witness ourselves to such a painful event without judgement. Your heart can’t help but break in sympathy, then find a measure of peace that comes with acceptance. An urgent and necessary work of sequential art.”

The story of Bearing Witness holds within itself the unique trauma Vinita experienced with the loss of her son Mithra. Yet that pain is simultaneously universal to all other parents who have gone through their own pregnancy loss or infant death. This graphic novel is not meant to be definitive; instead, Vinita and Griselda hope that it would be a safe space for families to share their own stories and experiences with pregnancy loss – be it the grief of losing a child, or the joy of having been able to momentarily be a home for one.

Natalie Tan, a pregnancy loss awareness advocate, expressed her appreciation for the book, “Raw, honest and poignant. Bearing Witness enables readers to live through the highs and lows of a surprise pregnancy, and feel the depths of Vinita’s heartbreak when it ends abruptly. Where there is loss, there is almost certainly grief and pain. Yet, there is also beauty, strength and hope that emerges through the darkness; through the never ending love of a parent.” As a mother of four including a set of angel triplets she had miscarried, she echoed the sentiment of finding support with others who had experienced the same loss, “This book opens our eyes to the experience of a miscarriage – a topic few have the courage to share so openly about. Bearing Witness is not simply about sharing the trauma of pregnancy loss, it is also a great reminder to all women who have miscarried that we are not alone.”

When asked why she wanted to publish Bearing Witness, Publisher Felicia Low said, “Difference Engine’s imprint, DE Shorts, is about opening up conversations about topics that are difficult to talk about, and in turn encouraging discussion and the fostering of community bonds for individuals who find themselves isolated. Pregnancy loss continues to be a topic that eludes polite dinner table conversation despite being more common than one might imagine. We hope that Vinita’s story can serve as a starting point to ignite more sharing and further discussion about pregnancy loss and infant death in Southeast Asia, away from stigma and shame.”

Bearing Witness is now available in bookstores in Singapore, or purchase the book online with local and international shipping options. The book retails at SGD17.00 (w/o GST).

Interested parties can purchase the book and the bundle at bit.ly/bearingwitnesscomic.

For enquiries about the book, contact: readcomics@differenceengine.sg

Difference Engine is proud to announce the launch of Work-Life Balance: Malevolent Managers and Folkloric Freelancers – and just in time for Halloween season!

In a world where even the supernatural are faced with the super natural quandaries of ceaseless corporate commotions, Work-Life Balance: Malevolent Managers and Folkloric Freelancers expresses the familiar, yet often suppressed, sentiment of unbalanced modern-day work culture – anchored against the distinct backdrop of Southeast Asia.

Paul Levitz, DC Comics President & Publisher from 2002–2009 said, “Think you’re stuck working with monsters in your office? Rée and Chee’s Work-Life Balance takes a whole new look at the possibility, using an interesting text/comics balance rarely seen.”

Work-Life Balance uses a harmonious merger of comics and prose to delineate the dichotomous parallels between past and present, work and leisure, and self and community beyond the constraints of a single medium.

Paolo Chikiamco, Editor of Alternative Alamat anthology and Co-Creator of Mythspace, echoed, “The power of juxtaposition is one of the strengths of graphic novels, and here comics are placed alongside prose to further provide a layered tale of identity, culture, and how we choose to define ourselves. Wayne Rée and Benjamin Chee have created a fine fantastical examination of the way communities reflect us, shape us, bring us together or tear us apart – something that isn’t very pleasant even for creatures that can segment their bodies into two.”

 

 

Creators Benjamin Chee and Wayne Rée examined how a confluence of their respective halves can help bring nuance, depth, and colour to the story. Wayne elaborated, “Work-Life Balance is a celebration of storytelling. It shows the unique strengths of prose and comics, but also how those mediums work towards the same goal: telling stories that resonate with an audience.”

Throughout the book, Wayne’s prose eases the audience into the recognisable cadence of Southeast Asian modern metropolises with all its unspoken tensions and expectations, while Benjamin’s art evokes equal parts wonderment and longing by drawing from the region’s history with his intricate settings and costume designs.

Meihan Boey, Author of The Formidable Miss Cassidy (Epigram Books Fiction Prize Co-Winner 2021), detailed her first impression of the book, “Wayne Ree’s gleeful, irreverent storytelling, matched with Benjamin Chee’s vibrant, exuberant, and undoubtedly eeee-so-cuuuute art style, come together in this funfair of a book. This is a tongue-in-cheek paean to the supernatural world of Asia and beyond, lovingly recreated in Chee’s breathtakingly intricate set pieces and character designs. The story is full of fun, fast-paced action; taking a breath now and then to ponder upon all the things we (not just momoks) have to sacrifice in pursuit of making a living.”

 

 

Elvin Ching, Creator of The Woodsman, voiced his appreciation for the book’s direction, “Work-Life Balance weaves a stunning tale blending familiar Southeast Asian folklore with office politics and drudgery to create a fresh new world that can’t help but elicit both chuckles and awe. Coupled with lush art that is at times supportive, complementary and argumentative to the story, this is a can’t-miss-it for fans of alternative fantasy!”

As much as the book is about the struggles of balancing our professional lives with other aspects of our existence, Work-Life Balance also takes much care to pay homage to the mythological influences of the region beyond the superficial.

Benjamin explained, “I hope this book is a warmer, more empathic approach to ‘ghost stories’, where the spirits and hantu featured feel more like people than a force of nature. And like people, I would like to imagine that they have preferences to the way they are being treated by others, and would certainly dislike being exploited.”

Reflecting on the conception of a book, Publisher at Difference Engine Felicia Low said, “Work-Life Balance, with its multilayered play on duality, adds to the wider conversation about the difficulties of navigating professional boundaries by providing an accessible regional perspective. By putting the spotlight on creatures that typically live in hushed whispers, Benjamin and Wayne lean into the dissonance of encouraging readers to find affinity with these beings to build a more nuanced appreciation for this aspect of our region’s culture and beliefs.”

Work-Life Balance: Malevolent Managers and Folkloric Freelancers is now available in bookstores in Singapore and Malaysia, or purchase the book online with local and international shipping options.

The book retails at SGD26.90 (w/o GST). The Work-Life Balance Starter Pack retails at SGD52.90 (w/o GST), with pre-orders open from 3 October to 21 October 2022.

Interested parties can purchase the book and the bundle at bit.ly/wlbcomic.

For enquiries about the book, contact: readcomics@differenceengine.sg