Adelaide Writers’ Week 2018
A beautiful green park, with dappled light from trees that tower above, a cool autumn breeze passes through. You can here the birds in the trees and there are people chatting and laughing as they are enjoying this day. There is an amazing sense of tranquility for a park in the midst of the city, this is the perfect place for Adelaide Writers’ week.
A collection of creatives, avid readers, passionate writers and long time thinkers of all ages gather here. One big creative organism brought together for the same cause. Strangers talk to each other about books and authors, about how they have related to a talk, and suggesting to each other what to go see and what book to check out, like old friends meeting up for coffee.
A man explains the connection he felt to the reading of the first manic episode described by author Alexander Maksik. He suggests to his table companion that she should check out the Authors next talk about his book.
Long lines of people waiting for fancy food and beverages, a busy yet pleasingly organized area. There are ordered lines of polite people, respectfully patient of those around them. Smelling mostly of coffee and fried food. Over the bustle names are called out, ‘Gerald, flat white,’ ‘order for Zoe.’
Grateful and smiling people step forward to collect their order and then move on to their chosen talk or table.
People gather in the pop up bookshop, it has all the books from the authors who are here at Writers’ Week. They gather around the tables trying to find the author they just heard talk, others browse the tent looking at any book that stands out to them. Lines to pay fill quickly as time comes close to the next Authors’ talk. People line up with one book and some line up with ten. Those serving here seem to have perfected the pattern of moving the line quickly through.
There are two stages set up for people to gather and hear local and visiting Authors talk about their new book, past books, experience and give advice.
A group gathers around the east stage to hear Alexandria Marzano-Lesnervich talk about her book, ‘The Fact of A Body, A Murder and a Memoir’. Silence comes over the crowd as the host starts talking. There are people holding her book, others holding notepads, people with a drink and food, all silently sitting and listening into what is being discussed. Alexandria is talking about a heavy subject, but an important one to discuss. Her book is about a pedophile on death row, her experience with his case and her personal experience as a child from her grandfather.
A group of small young children laughing, playing, running around in brightly coloured silk like costumes of birds. Jumping around and flapping their arms like wings, while running up hills and through crowds of people. Big smiles, bright eyes, joy in their faces.
The audience is drawn away from the talk with smiles on their faces to the joy and laughter of children. Then their attention sways back to the topic of the talk they are attending, tuning back into words being spoken, molestation, pedophilia and descriptions. A shift of changed emotions is felt throughout the crowd, heavy, disappointed, worried and shocked all about the presence of innocent children during the discussion of such a subject.
A joyfully oblivious lady who moments earlier was sitting in this group listening to the introduction of this book, blissfully ignorant she would go away and return with this group of young children now questionably in her care. Parading this innocence through a highly inappropriate moment.
This is the backdrop to a dark mind.
