Writers' Festival

I went to the Perth Writers' Festival yesterday and enjoyed it so much I went back again today. It was held in the beautiful grounds of the University of Western Australia.

I particularly wanted to hear an author I have admired for some time - Kate Llewellyn - and she did not disappoint. She has just published a new book "The Dressmaker's Daughter". I have bought it for Mum for her birthday as she also enjoys her writing. I hope she reads it quickly so that I can borrow it. That sounds awful, as if I really bought the book for me.

During the session, Kate criticised the Festival organisers for this construction which was outside the tent where books were being sold.



It created some passionate discussion from the audience who were in agreement with her. All said that it was a desecration to skewer authors' works on a large pencil in this way. If I had seen this 'sculpture' before I heard the discussion, I suspect I would have thought how clever it was and not given it any further thought. However, I can now see that, in the unlikely event that I had written a book and it was treated in this way, I too would be extremely upset. Just goes to show that you should never accept anything at face value.