In this ninth edition of Conversations, moderated by CELA director Frank Tazelaar and CELA project manager Simina Popa, a panel of international literary experts will discuss literary audiences. What is the purpose of literary events, and what kind of audiences should they try to reach? What changes do we see in audiences for literary festivals? Are there differences within Europe? What is the role of organisers in this? And how might they innovate towards the future?
The link to the online livestream will soon be published here.
We will discuss these questions in a live panel with experts from the CELA network, including Carmien Michiels (writer and performer, BE), Yulia Kozovlets (literary professional, UA), Marius Chivu (writer and translator, RO), Vladimir Arsenijević (writer and literary professional, RS), Roman Nesterenco (translator, BE) and Montserrat Sánchez (writer and teacher of creative writing, ES). The discussion will be divided into 3 chapters, each with its own focus topic:
Panel 1A: Audiences in literary culture: changing audiences
In our events, we mainly focus on readers. But are literary events supposed to only be for readers, or can we look for literary audiences to share literary themes and thoughts without addressing them as readers? Is a festival or a literary event a way to share literary art and ideas, or is it a way to make people read? Does the purpose of literary events change in this age of distraction? What part does the increasing popularity and visibility of spoken word play in this change, and what can we as organisers learn from this genre of literature? Should literary organisations focus on large audiences, or are there other ways to measure the impact of book talks and literary events? This round includes a video contribution.
Panel 1B: Audiences in literary culture: differences within Europe
Within the European context, we see great differences between audiences and the role literacy plays in society. How can we characterise the differences in intellectual/literary culture within Europe: between East, West, North and South? What role do politics and capitalism play in this? What generations of readers feel more or less included in literary culture nowadays? With the disappearance of intellectual culture, are we heading towards a selfish literature? Is there fellowship among writers in Europe, and if not, how can we create it? This round includes a video contribution by Iulian Bocai (writer, RO).
Panel 2: From public to participation
How can we, as organisers of literary events, innovate towards the future? How to trigger more innovative approaches to audience development and participatory practice? What do we need to create audience engagement? Might it be—as Goran Tomka reminds us—less talk of spectacular heroic audience engagement and more stories about under-reported everyday social processes? What roles do (participatory) writers play nowadays as public personalities, how can they relate to their audience, and what responsibility do they have? And what role can social media play in their outreach? This round includes a video contribution by Yara Nakahanda Monteiro (writer, AO/PT).