Gold in the ordinary: A story of belonging and one writer’s search for tales of the land we call home
By Yvonne T KUCHING, Oct 17: For 31-year-old Sibu native Ivy Lau Chien Jie, first prize winner of the Adult Category of DayakDaily’s 2026 writing competition, inspiration can be found in the familiar, sometimes in places so ordinary that their stories go unnoticed. Sungai Merah, a river so familiar it barely earns a second glance, became the starting point for Lau’s imagination when she began exploring its origins and the stories behind it. What emerged was a tale of migration, sacrifice and…
Ivy Lau won a writing competition with a story about Sarawak's history and belonging, inspired by a local river.
Ivy Lau's story 'The Crimson Covenant' explores migration and belonging through a Sarawak river.
She used fantasy to highlight human connections to history and land.
Lau hopes her work encourages appreciation for Sarawak's heritage and hidden stories.
Summarised automatically by AI from the original article by DayakDaily. AI can make mistakes, so check the original for details.
KUCHING, Oct 17: For 31-year-old Sibu native Ivy Lau Chien Jie, first prize winner of the Adult Category of DayakDaily’s 2026 writing competition, inspiration can be found in the familiar, sometimes in places so ordinary that their stories go unnoticed.
Sungai Merah, a river so familiar it barely earns a second glance, became the starting point for Lau’s imagination when she began exploring its origins and the stories behind it. What emerged was a tale of migration, sacrifice and the search for belonging, centred around a place that holds meaning for generations who have made Sarawak home.
Her winning entry, the ‘The Crimson Covenant’ tells of her take on a tale shared among Sibu folks on the story of Sungai Merah and Sarawak’s pioneering history.
Read the full story on DayakDailyThat's the opening of the story. The full piece is published by DayakDaily.
AI summary 17-year-old Christian won DayakDaily's writing competition after two attempts, fulfilling a personal promise to keep competing until he won.
