OVER three days, George Town Literary Festival (GTLF) 2017 welcomed about 4,500 literary “monsters”, to Penang, where they were immersed themselves with panel discussions, literary activities and book launches.

This year’s theme “Monsters and (Im)mortals” captured the attention of  many who were intrigued not only with the mythical creatures in storybooks but also the significance of this terminology to current social happenings.

During the opening ceremony, which was held at Majestic Theatre, Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng said “the ‘real monsters’ are the ones that prey on the fears of society, they magnify stress when there isn’t any and try to create disunity, promoting an extremist and even a narrow worldview that cease to divide and makes us strangers amongst each other. Now these are the real monsters.” 

Taking the stage before Lim, GTLF 2017 keynote speaker and national laureate, Muhammad Haji Salleh gave the audience an insight into the ghosts and ghouls that were told in the past and still exist in the life lessons of society’s modernisation.

“These old myths points to possible solution to present-day problems, others are reminders that amongst citizens sometimes, monsters may appear to trample their gardens and their rice,” he said, ending his speech with a pondering thought: “We ask ourselves, are they in fact ourselves? Our alter egos? Or part of our subconscious?”

The festival is supported by the Penang state government, and has been helmed by Bernice Chauly as festival director. Here, Bernice talks about what she has planned for next year. So, those who missed this year’s GTLF will get another chance to participate next year.

Q: What do you have in mind for next year’s GTLF?

Bernice: With an overwhelming response yearly, we have decided to extend the festival to four days for next year’s GTLF. So, definitely there will be more in store for literary fans. The Translators’ Roundtable will be intensified to include in-depth half-day workshops and more translators in different languages. We will also be creating an Emerging Writers platform as next year coincides with the 70th Anniversary of the Declaration of Human Rights, there will be many diverse voices as possible and will be including a designated focus on queer writing.

Q: How many feature writers, poets and authors would you like to be present next year?

Bernice: We had 32 featured writers and poets this year and that may increase next year, as the programme will stretch to four days and with more than 60 speakers, moderators, workshop facilitators and performers in total. This year was our biggest so fa,r but the numbers will slightly increase, as we still want to maintain the level of intimacy that the festival is known for many years.

Q: Which author would you personally like to invite for GTLF 2018?

Bernice: I have a slew of writers that I would love to invite. However by inviting big names (which is always challenging), especially when we do not pay for business-class tickets or speaking fees. The writers that we invite have to be accepting of our humble terms, but if there is a big name who does agree to come, then we may do the necessary to raise more funds. We are definitely working very hard on bringing some stellar writers to GTLF next year.

The Penang state government has funded this festival throughout the years, what would your plans be like in carrying forward this vision of the state government has for GTLF not only positioning Penang as a major literary hub in the region but also elevating the Malaysian literary scene. 

The Penang state government is committed to this festival, as it is a free festival for all. The GTLF is an international literary festival that focuses on world literature and the key players in Malaysian literature have been well represented in the festival so far. The Emerging Writers platform will give more opportunities for writers who are embarking on this literary path and for newer voices who are making names for themselves in the local scene. The GTLF is already known internationally and is one of the most anticipated literary events in Asia, so we need to grow from strength to strength and continue the work that we do. We welcome corporate and individual sponsors as we work with a very modest budget, so every little bit counts, but the Penang state government will continue to be a very important contributor to  GTLF. Also, there are many literary events already taking place around Malaysia, GTLF is the biggest international event, yes, but the smaller events are also part of celebrating what Malaysians are writing. – December 26, 2017.