Emirates Airlines Literary Festival - The Beginning

Okay this year my post from the festival will be different as I won't have the opportunity to sit in many session but I am out and involved ...so more photos.

Here's the pictures from the dhow cruise...

Marguerite van Geldermalsen and Margaret Atwood

Madhur Jaffrey and Sanford

Tess Gerrtisen and her husband with Matt Rees and Brigid Coady

Tony Parsons and Charlie Higson

EAILF Margaret Atwood

Here are my notes from Margaret Atwood at the Emirates Airlines International Festival of Literature.

The first topic was the ‘banned book’ by Geraldine Bedell. Margaret said it took her five days to track down sources. There was no launch planned she just hadn’t been invited like many other writers. In the end Margaret went with the meaning of the word banned. Something happened but it wasn’t what people thought.

She would much rather be here in the sun. Margaret asked what’s the line between taste and censorship or call it sensibility and censorship.

What motivated her writing? What’s it like to go into a new book? She said it’s dark and then it get lighter.

She spoke about her path to becoming a writer back in the 1950s. She said she had very little real choice. She began writing with pen and paper – she cannot type. She now uses a computer as she she can correct without the little white brush. Her mother comment when told that her daughter was going to be a writer – you had better learn to spell and Margaret’s reply was other’s will do it for me.

Everybody comes from somewhere…write from that…the weather, the economy, the history, the language – all enter into who you are as a writer. Then she comment on the fact that being short she had a distinct point of view as she saw things differently than a tall person.

Who you are is all part of your writing.

Labels publishers use can be helpful but limit. They think its helpful as a marketing tool. Bookseller need to know where do I put this?

Quality transcends genre. Using the title literary limits interest.

Asks if she was starting now – she would despair as it is all marketing led. Publishing is not a business it is an art or a craft with a business element.

All books are unique. She likes to write book by book. For new authors it is tough to sell this way. Today you have to make money. Publishers in the past were willing to invest time and money in developing a writer – they are less willing to do this now. Writers are now much more living hand to mouth. It is brutal now.

She writes in many varieties yet most are pigeonholed. She can do this because she is old and no one has told her any different. She has had a free field – no structures.

Her ideas come from Shakespeare, history, politics….Her new novel’s title is The Year of the Flood. It took 15 titles before they settled on that one which they felt would stand the transatlantic divide however the covers will be different.

The question came from the audience about hope for the future. She said the questions she received in the 70’s were about gender then moved onto free speak. Now the questions were about hope. This reflects today.
-uncertainty
-can’t see where we are going
-environment
-human population
-the relationship of the last two
-people’s rights
-women’s rights (when jobs start to go then its is usually the women’s jobs that go first)

She said that humans are inventive/creative
-many minds are trying to solve these problems
-we have the ability
-hopes we have the political will
-it has taken us a while to see the problems
People are working hard and they have the will plus the ability which gives us hope. We have to look at water, air, energy and use the above to make sure that there is a sustainable future.

A member of the audience stated, “The west has betrayed it own values…How familiar with you with literary tradition with Arab world.
-more familiar history – it is easy to translate
-not with poetry because the meaning lost in translation
-novels fall in-between with the translation difficulties
-there is tremendous interest now

Tomorrow my last report from the festival.....Kate Mosse and Victoria Hislop.

EAILF Censorship Debate

First let me apologize for the long delay in continuing my posts on the festival. After weekend rugby break I have found it hard to put my head back into a more intense place. No surprise there really. I have also struggled with writing up the censorship debate. There are many reasons but the key one is that in a way there is no point as those truly interested can watch it all on video here. So rather than giving you my rather detailed notes please watch the the video. It is well worth it but not if you wanted more info on the whole banned or not banned book fiasco. The highlights me were:

- Andrei Kurkov's almost cheeky hit at the thing that no one was speaking about - banning a book these days was a surefire way to receive publicity

-Margaret Atwood's comment that lie was not freedom of expression

- Nelofer Pariza's commented that writers write to engage in dialogue

- the general gist of the western writers was that in the west the biggest censorship was that of self censorship and this was mainly due to political correctness

-Rajaa Al Sanea spoke about portraying humans as humans not being forced to a postive or negative stereotype. She didn't feel she had to portray women one way or other but to portry life as it is - not sugar coated; then it can cross boundaries and this is positive

-Margaret Atwood asked what is our relationship with our audience; you write by yourself then it is published; you are not there then but separated by time and space; sometimes that feel gives you a sense of safety; it was key to remember that in today's world your audience can be anyone; it is like a message in a bottle throw into the sea - sometimes it is a life line and some will be affronted. You can't control how people will react so just make it the best book possible. Your responsibility is to the work - make it the best it can be

-Rachel Billington commented the west was seriously threatened by political correctness, the pressure to be saleable, commercial pressures; writers have to be strong about what they need to write

Finally it was Rachel Billington who gave me greatest gift as a person who at times struggles with my faith and its part in my writing. She was responding to a comment on the Catholic Church and censorship which she felt was justified. She said if you are a novelist you have to feel completely free and able to create characters; that doesn't mean you don't start somewhere with your beliefs and values...in fact that is what gives the tension most writing is looking for - you gather the complications of your own beliefs with the way you are allowing your characters to behave and do dreadful things which provides great tension.

Paul Blezard blogs about the festival here .

Tomorrow - Margaret Atwood

Emirates Airlines International Festival of Literature

I can't help it. I am so excited about this despite all the controversy that has raged around it. I have very strong views about this but I will keep them to myself. Discretion being the better part of valour. I love living here but I have found Dubai to be a literary desert (yes, pun intended). I am sure there are other writers around but I haven't found them. Hopefully this will pull them out of the sand!

Today I will be attending a discussion on literary prizes and their impact, Peter James talking about Crime and Penny Vincenzi in conversation. I hate the fact that many of the ones I would like see overlap the others! I need Hermione's times twisting thing from Harry Potter.

Needless to say I will report back fully.

I am hoping that on Saturday they will have the promised discussion on censorship with Margaret Atwood attending by video link - of course this means I will miss part of Philippa Greggory but.....

p.s. the radio 2 interview went well. dd actually overcame her nerves and spoke :-)