SMU School of Social Sciences Associate Professor of English Literature Kirpal Singh was interviewed for a Straits Times article about Singapore literature enjoying a renaissance in recent years. The Straits Times has reported on more home-grown authors winning acclaim and picking up lucrative publishing deals abroad and Singapore stories making their way into literature courses in prestigious universities worldwide. Associate Prof Singh, who has been active on the literary scene since the 1970s, noted that in the earlier decades, Singapore writing did not gain a foothold overseas because of the small volume of output and the country's poor reputation for its stranglehold on freedom of expression. He said: "Of late, Singapore has become more high-profile in the world in many ways, so there's more interest in the country from abroad, including our literature."