Saturday Afternoon at the MWF

I’ve been saying for years that I’m going to head to attend the Melbourne Writer’s Festival, hob-knob with the literati, maybe see a few authors speak, get some books signed.  Literally years, but there’s always been some other distraction.  Late last week I signed the JB (he wanted to) and I up for the Festival Lovers Package, which consisted of four one hour sessions.  

We started at 1pm in the BMW Edge Theatre with the Elizabeth Jolley Lecture chaired by Jan McGuinness and conducted by Brian Dibble, Jolleys’ biographer.  He delivered a pretty thorough lecture, I haven’t read a lot of Elizabeth Jolley so it was interesting to hear about her from a personal perspective, some of the influences for her writing and why she tackled some of the more controversial topics that she did.  Considering she wasn’t published for the first time until her 50’s and went on to become a well known and respected author is quite a feat.  My only criticism is that Dibble spoke quite fast and in a thick American accent and when people asked questions at the end he seemed to struggle with some of the answers.  It was okay though, we both walked out with more knowledge than when we walked in.

The next session was across the way at ACMI.  The session titled Visions of the City was chaired by Rjurik Davidson (Overland) and included China Meiville, Margo Lanagan and Jack Dann as the panelists.  Both the JB and I felt this was probably the worst session we attended for the day; the authors just seemed to make it all too intellectual and went off in too many tangents.  It made me realise that a good panel/session is really dependent on who is chairing.  The chair needs to ask good questions to get the panel thinking and then manipulate the discussion so that it stays on topic and gets the best out of each speaker.  Davidson introduced each author (by name only, and not by their publications which was not helpful for the JB and I who hadn’t read them) and then just sat, nodding at each comment.  At points when the discussion dried up he sat and nodded rather than grasping the subject and leading it on.  He seemed unprepared.  I thought Margo Lanagan was the best on the panel, relaxed, straight to the point and quite funny.  China seemed to take himself too seriously (talked more about movies than books which the JB and I found a little odd) and I just didn’t get anything that Jack was saying.  He made the least sense.  So quite disappointing.

Our third session for the day was titled Our Restless Life hosted by another Overlander, Kalinda Ashton and the two panelists were John Carroll and Brigid Delany.  Carroll is a Sociologist and Peter Garrett look-a-like who delivered quite an interesting talk on how society is not really changing that much we just think it is.  He referred to stats and pulled on numerous sources, historic and current day, to make his points.  He was quite interesting, although I think the panel form of discussion didn’t really suit his style; I think he’d be better using the lecture form of presenting.  Delany who has just launched a book on how restless society is in terms of love and work spoke well enough, but I found her subject matter a little whiny.  She talked of how  these days people are inclined to use speed dating and on-line social networking sites to partner; how today people are more inclined to contract which means they don’t grow in a professional sense or establish quality working relationships.  I went in to the Readings bookshop at Fed Square afterwards thinking I’d collect a copy of Carrolls’ book, Ego and Soul, although the tiny shop was so packed and I just needed to get some air.  Most people headed straight for Delany’s book but she seemed the less interesting of the two to us.  The JB summed her up as a jack of all trades but master of none.  Ashton was a good chair, she introduced both authors and set good parameters for the discussion.

The final and best session for the day was Sonya Hartnett in conversation with Sally Warhaft (formerly of The Monthly).  Any would-be chairs really ought to go and see Warhaft in action; this woman knows how to lead a discussion, how to engage with her subject and the audience.  Really fantastic.  And as for Hartnett, you don’t get many authors these days who are so honest, realistic and up front about everything including her use of Botox.  Hartnett was the recipient of the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award which has really cemented her reputation as an internationally acclaimed author.  She discussed the good and bad associated with winning such a prize, the challenges of being an Australian author who publishes for young and adult audiences and how her creative process works.  I have read Landscape with Animals and Of a Boy by Hartnett, both great books in different ways, for my money.  It was without doubt a fantastic conversation to be a part of.  Sonya was charming, friendly, warm and honest.  Warhaft really got the best out of Hartnett and that’s what made this one of the best ‘in conversation’ sessions I’ve ever seen.  I would have paid the $50 that we paid for the 4 sessions just to see Hartnett and Warhaft for an hour.  Excellent.

So we left Fed Square last night thinking it was great to do something different.  We both learned new and different things although if we do the MWF again I’ll probably look more closely at the sessions I’m more interested in seeing.  The Festival runs for a few another week or so but due to work and other commitments we won’t get there again this time around.

Balibo by Jill Joliffe

It’s in the news at the moment because of the movie’s recent debut at MIFF.  As we live in a multimedia world it has also been referenced on Australian Story (John Milkins), Stateline, 774 Melbourne and written up in all the broadsheets too.  

Balibo is the story of five Australian journalists who were killed when the Indonesians invaded Portugese Timor in October 1975.  It also covers the death of Roger East, a freelance journalist who was reportedly killed several days later.  Over the years I’ve gleaned bits of this story – I remember the inquest at Glebe a couple of years ago being covered on telly, and seeing the haunting footage of Greg Shackleton painting the Aussie flag on the front of a house with a rag- but I’ve never really read it thoroughly.  Like a lot of people who have followed the story from an arms length I was always of the impression that the five journalists were caught in crossfire.  But now, having read the Joliffe version of events, I am inclined to think that these five young men were killed openly and deliberately by Indonesian forces ’setting an example’.  And that the Australian Government of the time (and perhaps successive?) have avoided being open and transparent about their knowledge of when/how the Balibo 5 met their fate.

In 1975, Joliffe was also a young journalist covering the fallout of the Portugese pullout of Timor.  She knew one of the Balibo five reasonably well and was acquainted with the others which is why the story of the Balibo 5 has such a personal significance for her.  Not only was she one of the few journalists covering this story at the time, but she has spent a considerable part of her subsequent career following and reporting on developments, going as far as to invest her own time and money to work with ‘witnesses’ to re-enact events of October 16, 1975.  She has also at every opportunity tried to find out the fate of the other Australian journalist, Roger East.  It’s clearly been a lifelong mission for Joliffe to cover this story which is what makes this book so powerful.

The level of detail makes this a compelling reading.  Joliffe reports on the impact the deaths have had on family members, the deal struck between the Indonesian and Australian Governments and the difficulty of dealing with witnesses that have been tortured, exiled and suffered at the hands of Indonesian forces for successive years – having members of their families killed in retaliation for speaking out.

This is a comprehensive and thoroughly researched version of what happened to the Balibo 5.  Joliffe’s connections with the area continue today – she works with Timorese children and still campaigns today to ensure that these deaths are not forgotten and that the Indonesian leaders who ordered the deaths be brought to account.

The Element by Ken Robinson

A couple of months back the JB and I were eating dinner whilst tuned into Red Kerry when a guest speaker of his captured our attention.  Neither of us had heard of Ken Robinson even though he’s been knighted by the British Government for his services to education.  Considered “one of the world’s leading thinkers on creativity and innovation” (as per the front cover of his book) we were impressed and quite raptured with the interview which was interesting enough for me to think I should read a copy of his book.

On the train the next morning, I was seated next to a gent who just happened to be reading The Element by Ken Robinson.  An hour or so later I headed into Readings Hawthorn who didn’t have the book in stock and were a little unsure as to when it would be stocked.  So I headed to Borders and again no luck, but they were sure it would be in stock within a couple of weeks.  Lo and behold a week and a bit later, I had a copy in my hands. 

What an inspiring read.  For anyone who’s never really been sure about the career they’ve chosen or fallen in to, or always dreamed of pursuing a more creative life (I know you’re all out there – I often sit next to you in my writing classes!) this is the type of read that lets you know another career is possible.  If you have ever been unsure about your true direction, this is the type of book that will point you in the right way.

The book includes a series of anecdotes of well known people who have achieved success in their respective fields simply by following instinct or being exposed to key people in their lives who recognised their innate  talents.  The likes of Mick Fleetwood of Fleetwood Mac who to this day can’t read music, but is a highly successful musician because he can pick up tunes just by listening.  Robinsons’ book is littered with many examples – he cites Paul McCartney, Aaron Sorkin, Matt Groening and Terence Tao amongst others. 

As it’s part biographical, this book is both interesting and inspiring.  Whilst a lot of what Robinson says is common sense and quite logical it’s amazing that so many people accept their unfulfilling careers/jobs.