Hay Festival Scribblers Tour 2022

During this term, we were given the opportunity to experience the Scribblers event at Aberystwyth University, thanks to Welsh Government Funding. The tour provided us with the opportunity to express our creativity and ideas, and even share them with others: honing our confidence to write creatively and ability to express one’s thoughts in the form of writing.

First and foremost, Joseph Coelho was introduced to us. Joseph Coelho, a poet and playwright, delved into the story ‘The Girl Who Became A Tree.’ Briefly discussing his childhood and the source of his story’s inspiration. The story is told in poetry, creating an immersive and finely crafted series of events and storylines. Throughout the session, he stressed the value of poetry and its unique ability to express a story in a less conventional manner. He gave us passages from his book to emphasise the power of poetry. Though I did not find the passages particularly engrossing, I can see why others would find it interesting because it provokes thought: often, in poetry, we are made to think, which can be challenging. In addition, we were given the opportunity to write our own poetry based on ourselves during the session. Personally, I found this to be quite frustrating; nevertheless, I’m sure that some of my peers can relate.

Manjeet Mann, an actor and author, was the next speaker. We learned a little about Manjeet’s childhood, both the good and the bad, in a similar way to the first session. This, however, was extremely important and played a significant impact in the development of her book ‘Run Rebel.’ To be honest, I enjoyed the discussion and found it to be insightful and engaging. I got the impression that she was very enthusiastic about her work, which was motivating, in my opinion. Furthermore, I believe her book and session were appealing since they identified more with young people and were easier to relate to. During the session, we were given the chance to have some fun while also thinking about what we believe is most important, such as if we had to pack our most crucial belongings into a backpack or write a poem about our views regarding a specific sport.

As a whole, this was an amazing opportunity and there were very few things I disliked about it. I would gladly return in order to broaden my literary knowledge.