For its fifth year, Melbourne’s Emerging Writer’s Festival will bring together new and experienced writers, editors and publishers from all over Australia. Budding writers looking to nurture their creativity should make their way to any of the scheduled events in the CBD from May 27–June 6. Or they can just hang out and grab a drink with other creative people at the festival’s hub, Thousand Pound Bend. We caught up with festival director/writer/editor Sam Twyford-Moore for his take on this year’s festival.
By KELLY PIGRAM
First things first: what events are you most looking forward to next week? Anything particularly inspirational that students might be interested in?
I’m looking forward to it all, but then I would. I’d be really interested to hear what students are into, actually, and if there’s anything that complements their studies.
Emerging Editors is a bit of a standout, in as much as you can hear from the people who work behind the scenes, and it’s great opportunity to see how the professional side of writing works. Editing as a career is certainly viable and I see it as being increasingly recognised as a creative act.
Our late night events are just incredible too – there are so many great nights being run by literary mags. And the performance events, Mixtape Memoirs at the Toff in Town and Amazing Babes at the Workers’ Club are going to be incredible. Sweatshop’s #Three Jerks made the 7pm news bulletin in Sydney last week, so that’s going to be such a vital event too. The list really goes on and on in an amazing way. It’s a big festival.
What are the differences in this year’s festival from previous years?
That’s an interesting question – and one that comes up only occasionally. Annual festivals are interesting in that they are often a mix of exciting new events and popular regular programing – getting the mix is really important. I’m really proud of this year’s festival, because over 80 per cent of the artists weren’t in last year’s program and I think that’s very important for a festival that calls itself “emerging”.
We need to be going out and finding new voices and promoting them every year. That’s what I’m doing year round when the festival isn’t on and it’s a pretty awesome thing to do. So, new faces, some great new events and hopefully a sense that we’ve really found the future direction of writing in this country this year.
Do you think creative writing can be taught or is a natural ability? Has what you were taught at school been useful in your writing career?
I’m looking forward to our panel called The Future of Teaching Writing, which will look at what alternative models might be out there for teaching writing. I believe writing can be taught – creativity isn’t born in a vacuum, it comes from sharing knowledge and education.
I was lucky to grow up in a fairly creative family, with a lot of artists and musicians, and a few journos around too for good measure, and that influenced me, and then I found some really inspiring teachers. I’ve never done anything good on my own. I’d love to see more writers acknowledge mentorship models that have worked for them and to break down the myth of the solitary writer.
You recently mentioned on your podcast with the Rereaders that you like to eavesdrop on people in public for inspiration. What’s the best thing you’ve heard and do you use this as a go-to source for inspiration in your writing?
Ha, I must sound like a stalker. I recommended eavesdropping not for inspiration’s sake, but just for the pure pleasure of hearing another conversation. That instance was … well, there was a young couple and they were talking about nothing in particular but it was just kind of lovely to listen to these two people do this little dance in conversation around each other. I don’t know if I’ve ever consciously used something like that for inspiration in my writing, but I guess you subsume that stuff daily and that feeds into what you write. Writers have got to be good listeners, surely.
Sam Twyford-Moore is on Twitter (https://twitter.com/samtwyfordmoore) and hosts the Rereaders podcast.
The Emerging Writer’s Festival is on from May 27 – June 6.