Eksentrik
Writer, Educator
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Syamsuriatina Ishak, or Tina as friends know her, spent two decades in the legal industry handling civil litigation and corporate advisory, while involving herself in human rights and social activism. In legal circles, Tina is known for her prolific writing on social awareness and development of related law, including memoranda on law reform on behalf of the Malaysian Bar. She was a Council Member of the 36-person Malaysian Bar Council from 2010 to 2013, and helmed their editorial/publication team as the Editor-in-Chief of Praxis, a quarterly legal and lifestyle magazine of Advocates & Solicitors in active private practice in Peninsula Malaysia.
In 2013, Tina made the decision to share her myriad experiences and observations by returning to her childhood love of storytelling and, in 2016, went on to obtain a post-graduate Masters of Fine Arts (MFA) in Creative Writing with the University of Tampa, Florida, USA.
As a child, Tina was hooked on Science Fiction & Fantasy movies and fictional tales by Roald Dahl, Stephen King, Dean Koontz, and JRR Tolkien. As an adult, she immersed herself in a larger array of literary works while entertaining a penchant for Science Fiction and YA/Romance. She now brings you her own creations: stories of social realism: examining humanity (both its beauty and ugliness) and our struggle to cope in a world with ever-changing socio-technological and environmental concerns; oft times with a touch of speculative fiction. Think M. Night Shyamalan but in prose!
Tina has published numerous short stories and is presently working on her debut novel under the pen name Tina Isaacs (a name she went by while schooling in England). Find out more about her fiction projects in Titles and discover the quirkiness of her literature.
To combine her experiences as a lawyer and an author, and Tina’s natural aptitude as a nurturer, this website also presents two of Tina’s non-fictional running blogs on legal issues: Copyright & The Writer and A Practical Guide to Legal Practice in Malaysia intended to be published under her name, Syamsuriatina Ishak.
Follow her postings on miscellaneous topics under her blog, Ramblings.