White People Like Writers Festivals, and other stories

This weekend just gone Fairlie and I spent 50 hours at the Sydney Writers' Festival*. This is the fourth SWF I've attended, the second with Fairlie schlepping up to Sydney to stop me from being a sad lonely housewife sitting by myself in the back row.

Christos Tsiolkas (The Slap) in conversation with Leigh Sales

After listening to Christian Lander, internet celebrity and founder of http://stuffwhitepeoplelike.com/, tell us that white people like yoga, adopting babies from exotic locations and moleskine notebooks I looked around me and decided that white people also like going to writers festivals. I would've pointed this out, however with 60 million hits to his blog since he started it on January 18, 2008 (!) I'm sure someone else has already done this.

The sheep races where one lines up for the free events.

This year's SWF was seriously good. Fairlie and I saw eleven sessions over our 50 hours and I don't think there was a dud among them. Fairlie was a little suspicious when I dragged her along to Marcus Chown talk about his book Quantum Theory Cannot Hurt You, and was a little bemused that I wanted to listen to a controversial geopolitical futurist tell us that America will dominate the world stage for the next 100 years. But what's not to love about a guy who can talk about String Theory in words of one syllable and a former military strategist who when told he might need a gun while riding in Montana just happened to have one on his person.

Book signing station at the Heritage Pier

Over the two days we covered the First Fleet, astronomy, parenting, music in literature, blogging, the middle classes, theatre, truth in writing, murder, quantum theory and the hazards of filming in North West Pakistan. I ensured that Gleebooks would survive the GFC by buying 11 books and I practised my patented queuing technique for getting an author's signature toute suite. My most excellent queuing technique was of particular use when I managed to beat a hoard of fellow bookclubbers to the line to get my copy of The Slap signed and thereby managed to get not only a signature but a between session snack as well.

Conversation stage at the Sydney Theatre, Walsh Bay

The one thing Fairlie and I never learn is to ensure that we have sufficient breaks in the day for food. With half and hour between sessions which are usually taken up with book signing and walking to the next venue we mostly ate quickly, and on the run. I have never eaten so many apples in one weekend.

Daily run sheet, and sold out events

For an excellent rundown on the book highlights of the festival click over to Fairlie's blog. My only addition to her list would be Quantum Theory Cannot Hurt You. Unlike Fairlie I don't yawn at the thought of String Theory or singularities. Baffled perhaps. But interested.

Having been a long time supporter of the Melbourne Writer's Festival* I finally declare that in 2009 Sydney has surpassed its rival. Sydney's festival is fun, easy, atmospheric and full of quality sessions both free and ticketed. I look forward to the Melbourne festival in September but it has a lot to live up to.

*I've placed the apostrophes where the individual festivals choose to place them in each instance.