EIBF: Bittersweet

 Wednesday, 25 August 2010

Talking about the lost kingdoms of Scotland, was writer and historian, Alistair Moffat. His new book The Faded Map examines the kingdoms south of the highland line, and attempts to recover these lost histories, languages, and cultures. Explaining the difficulty of studying such a topic, where there is so little prior research, sources or information, he went on to impart some phenomenal discoveries.

The fact that Old Welsh was originally spoken in these parts, and not Gaelic, was certainly news to me. Scotland has completely forgotten its Welsh ancestry and heritage, Moffat claimed.

Other discoveries came through Moffat’s examination of DNA strands. One important fact that emerged was how women’s DNA is scattered over a vast expanse, whereas the male Y chromosome tended to be more localized. He explained this by the fact that men inherited land, whereas women were moved around, traded, and sold.

Moffat’s examination of DNA gave doubt to the assumption that Scotland is separated by a North-South divide. In fact, the divide is actually East-West, and people from these two sides have completely different DNA. Moffat traced his own DNA, which is part German, and part East Asian—from 40,000 years ago—deep time, which I can’t even begin to conceive.

Thursday, 26 August 2010

So, it turns out that my new idol is novelist and screenwriter David Nicholls. Nicholls, first notably credited for writing a few episodes of Cold Feet—which he is quick to discredit himself for, given he was brought on with characters and a chemistry which were already brilliantly established—rose to prominence with his novel, and later screenplay, Starter for 10.

Locals will be delighted to know that Nicholl’s new novel, One Day, begins and ends in Edinburgh – it is also currently in film production, starring Anne Hathaway and Jim Sturgess, alongside a star-studded supporting cast. Nicholls jokingly recalled the difficulty of filming in Edinburgh because the script had to be rewritten constantly to adapt to the schizophrenic weather, which completely changed the nature of the scene. That said, he is delighted by what he has seen so far, and the lead actors are phenomenal in their respective roles.

“Bitter-sweet” was the headline for this novel, as Nicholls claimed he wrote it in light of turning 40 and realising that many friendships you thought would last forever have faded, and the great loves of your life have left you. Yet, there is a tremendous  nostalgia and fond memories – One Day is a tribute to resilience. It is both a love story and a story of friendship, as the romance between the two very different characters is spread out over the course of 20 years. Nicholls claimed that his premise was to avoid tracing the big events such as marriage and children, and instead look at the smaller, seemingly less significant moments that constitute a relationship. The idea results in 20 snapshots, over 20 years of this relationship, leaving readers to fill the gaps.

Nicholls also spoke about the difference between screenwriting and writing a novel. “A screenplay isn’t a literary form, it’s a set of instructions”, with infinite parameters of cost and practicality, often requires sometimes 20-30 rewrites, as well as being a collaborative project with directors, produces and actors. A novel, however, is your own – you have complete control, it’s deeply personal, and often vastly autobiographical.

I left Nicholl’s talk feeling incredibly inspired, and wanting to sit day-dreaming in a coffee shop, and attempting to pen thoughts for a novel. Roddy Doyle, however, soon threw the wet blanket of reality onto my romanticism – “just do it”, was his top writing tip. “Don’t sit around and wait for ideas”.

In an event for children, Doyle read from two of his children’s books, and answered questions posed solely by his youngaudience. It was extraordinarily refreshing to attend an event at the EIBF where the average age was 9, and not the usual average closer to the retirement age. And the children were remarkably well behaved.

Doyle, having been a teacher for years, struck the perfect balance required to engage with children. With not a hint of patronisation, and instead extreme earnestness and honestly in his answers, he paid children the respect they are rarely given. Describing his intention for the next kid’s book, he claimed he was inspired on a recent trip to Palestine, and very distressed by the situation there. As a result, he wants to write about children that grow up both sides of a wall – it will be a funny book, he claimed, but with a sad deeper meaning. That’s what life is, he explained – a mixture of funny and sad.

He spoke about his endless love for reading and writing, and I can almost be certain that every child left the RBS Tent either plotting their first book, or making a beeline for the bookshop. This was a truly wonderful event, and something that the Book Festival should continue and expand in the future.