Last weekend, I swapped Newtown for Newcastle thanks to the National Young Writer’s Festival, held as part of This is Not Art (TiNA). These were my high points.
Feminism versus beer
This NYF, I was lucky enough to be part of Cherchez La Femme, a live talkshow that couples feminist banter with icy beer. Topics covered: Molly Lambert, reality television and the secret life of Kanye West. You can download the podcast here!
Paper trail
Hand-stitched, illustrated, glossy, matte…I’ve always been obsessed with magazines. It was so inspiring to meet a bunch of publishers, editors and makers proving that there’s still magic in the printed word.
Failing better
If you’re a writer, all the personal brand mantras in the world can’t touch the terror that comes with failing. The Fail Better panel offered a heartening look at how other writers deal with this.
Stage fright
This year, I was also part of a live debate that pitted cultural criticism and opinion writing against news journalism, along with some very talented panelists. A high school redux that also (partly) chased away my public speaking fears.
Small city serendipity
In Newcastle, scale seems to breed serendipitous moments. Here, following a stretch of sand and sea always leads you back where you need to be and navigating a street of shuttered restaurants ends in a post-panel dinner on a starlit balcony. Both reasons why I’m coming back.