No two bodies are the same – and at this year’s Wollongong Writers Festival, the topic for discussion and debate is just that
Words by Erin Huckle
We’ve all got one, but each of our experiences inhabiting a body is unique. Whether yours is a disabled body, a sexual body, a trans body, a sick body, an aging body or a traumatised body, no two bodies are the same.
An exploration of the body is an exploration of what it means to be human, and Writing the Body is the theme for this year’s Wollongong Writers Festival (23-29 November 2020).
While some are beginning to tentatively return to in-person events, festival organisers have made the decision to deliver Wollongong Writers Festival 100% online in 2020.
Preconceptions around what a writers festival is and how it’s experienced are out the window. And for festival director Chloe Higgins, the online format has opened up new possibilities for programming and participation.
Virtual sessions mean authors and speakers from around the country and the world are more accessible, and the usual restrictions around session capacity are gone.
“There’s been a sense of playfulness and experimentation in the program this year. We were able to do things we haven’t had the confidence or resources to do in the past,” says Chloe.
“It’s opened up the way we program. As a festival in a regional city we’re always looking to make the festival more accessible – now more than ever, taking events online means audiences don’t have to travel to major cities to see these talented writers. It’s exciting.”
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“It’s a movement – a beautiful dance between intellectual stimulation, growth and learning, and building a community of people who love to read”
This year’s fresh approach to programming has resulted in an impressive line-up of Australian and international talent, and a program full of thought-provoking and diverse discussions, which are sure to inspire, challenge and surprise.
With 44 writers taking part across 12 sessions, festival highlights include literary giant and Walkley Award-winning journalist Helen Garner; Miles Franklin Award-winning author Tara June Winch; NSW Premier’s Literary Awards-winning author Bruce Pascoe; Stella Prize-winning author Jess Hill; award-winning author and appearance activist Carly Findlay OAM; Stella Prize-winning author Vicki Laveau-Harvie; interdisciplinary artist Bhenji Ra; and International Book Awards-winning author Leah Kaminsky.
From living with a hidden illness, to cross-species communication, and from growing up disabled, to the idea that ‘70 is the new 50’, the festival program is full of opportunities to gain an insight into the experiences other people have in their own bodies.
Chloe says the theme of the body is timeless, and one she’s looking forward to exploring throughout the festival.
“A lot of my own writing has been about the body, and the response we’ve had to this year’s theme already has been incredible. We’re bringing these censored topics into the public domain, and making them more accessible to the mainstream,” she says.
Now in its eighth year, the Wollongong Writers Festival has gone from strength to strength, and is a celebration of literature and stories in our coastal city. It’s an event which brings bold ideas to life, and as an event it reflects the thriving culture and arts scene in the Illawarra.
For Chloe and the festival team, this year’s program is another opportunity to bring writers and readers together to learn, and to provide a platform for conversations which need to happen – especially around themes like trans visibility, racial equality and sexuality.
As Chloe says: “It’s a movement – a beautiful dance between intellectual stimulation, growth and learning, and building a community of people who love to read. For me, it’s always been about bringing the community together.”
With the politics and pandemic of 2020 fresh in our minds, the theme of Writing the Body is well-timed. This is a year in which we’ve all become incredibly aware of our bodies – their vulnerability, their physicality and the loneliness of being isolated from other bodies.
“Our human experience is inseparable from the body. Particularly in the context of COVID,” says Chloe.
With evening and weekend sessions, the online format and affordable ticket pricing, this year’s festival is more inclusive than ever – throwing open the doors to debate, discussion and new perspectives.
We can’t wait to take part.
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