Words in Winter has now been around for 24 years – I think we can safely say that it’s likely to be sticking around for a long time to come. In fact, next year will be its 25th anniversary which will no doubt be a major celebration not to be missed.
I thought that it might be interesting for people to hear about some of the events I attended just in case you missed them or were unsure about attending. Sometimes it just takes some encouragement to think about buying tickets and getting along to a festival. This one was definitely worth the effort!
The festival ran from Wednesday to Sunday and the opening of Words in Winter was held at the Daylesford Town Hall on the Wednesday evening. I think we can all agree it’s great to have the town hall back in use for the town and, with a large audience to accommodate, this was the perfect venue. The evening kicked off with a quick introduction and welcome from Devon Taylor and a welcome to country from Aunty Alison McRae. This was followed by the Honeytones Choir, a local choir group singing four songs and frankly they did a great job with an interesting mix of tunes. Student readings of original works was next on the agenda with 5 students from Daylesford Secondary College (DSC) who were most impressive, showing great maturity in their writing. After some sponsor acknowledgement and for only the second year, the WiW Hall of Fame inductees were recognised for their major contributions to past WiW festivals. Maia Irell and Kevin Childs were both inducted prior to finishing off the evening with 3 songs from the DSC Jazz Band who were great – their version of Fever, went down particularly well with the crowd. As an opening night I found it very entertaining, well-paced and managed and just the right length to keep everyone’s interest.
My next event, having a keen interest in wine, I signed up for the Six Peaks Speak- Wine and Stories with Barry Golding. It was held at the studio and cellar door of Dilworth and Allain and included 6 tastings of locally made wines from winemakers/vineyard owners Chris Dilworth, Josh Cooper and Norman Latta. Norman was also in attendance to support Barry’s discussion around the terroir in the Daylesford area, while Chris managed the wine tasting. This was an interesting combination of discussions around the peaks, the volcanic terroir, the geology, the rocks and the wine. It was not only informative but became a very interactive discussion with the audience, as we talked through how terroir can affect wine. Both Barry and Norman have deep knowledge that they are very willing to share as Chris guided us through the tasting. Not only did I Iearn more about terroir, but I met some new local people and enjoyed the wine I tasted. Great value event.
My last event at WiW was to attend the Convent Conversation between Rebecca Lister and Rosalie Ham. Rosalie is the author of The Dressmaker, which was her debut novel and made into a movie starring Kate Winslet. For this conversation, Rosalie was there to talk about her new book which was non-fiction – her first non-fiction book – called Look After Your Feet. Essentially, it’s a book that she describes as ‘some keen observations on the unexpected advantages (and indignities) of getting older’. Since Rosalie turned 70 she decided it was OK to publish her darkly funny experiences about getting older. No spoiler alert required here, as I won’t go into some of the hilarious anecdotes that Rosalie spoke about, but I would highly recommend you check out the book. Rebecca’s interview technique allowed Rosalie’s stories and tales to flow freely and, on looking around, I could tell the audience thoroughly enjoyed their experience. An author of Rosalie’s calibre was certainly a coup for WiW and great value for money, in fact it was so popular, that the event had to be moved to a larger room to accommodate the demand for tickets.
While I was only able to attend 3 events, there were many more and I heard lots of great feedback about all of them. I would encourage everyone to support this great event next year when Words in Winter turns 25 (their silver anniversary) and can’t wait to see who is proposed for next year’s event. Want to know more about WiW? Got to their website Words in Winter Literary Festival | Daylesford and Hepburn.
