With the event being overseen by the watchful eye of MC Adrian Masters, the Roundtable wasted little time in starting with two lively panels to choose from. While one session discussed the question ‘Why has pop given up on politics?’, I chose to attend the launch of Wales Arts Review’s first print publication, Fiction Map of Wales. Here, John Lavin chaired a packed session in which authors Kate Hamer, Cynan Jones and Robert Minhinnick read from their contributions to the anthology and discussed the influence of place on their work. Both the readings and the conversation which followed offered an excellent introduction to a collection which seeks to map Wales through an anthology of short stories.
Next up was a fascinating panel chaired by Bangor University’s Tomos Owen on the subject of ‘Culture: Celtic Connections’ in fiction. Panellists Rachel Trezise, Thomas Morris and Colin Barrett discussed the differences and similarities between their writing, with a strong focus on the challenges of presenting a familiar regional space through literature. I was particularly interested to hear the authors’ thoughts on their preference for the short story form, with each making a compelling case for the accessibility of the form for both writers and readers alike.
After a quick break for a much needed cup of tea the discussion resumed with a panel chaired by Emma Geliot, on the future of arts criticism in Wales. Perhaps in contrast to the other sessions held at the event this panel certainly raised more questions than it was able to answer. Arguments for and against free access to online media coverage and criticism of the arts were raised, with the respective advantages and disadvantages of this approach dissected by Gary Raymond, Jasper Rees, Nia Davies and Simon Harris. A challenging topic which is becoming increasingly difficult for both critics and media organisations to ignore.
In preparation of the announcement of the winner of the Wales Arts Review search for the Greatest Welsh Novel, the final panel of the day was dedicated to a discussion of the short-, and long-, list for the competition, along with a reflection on the challenges associated with awarding such a provocatively entitled prize. The panel for this session was again eclectic, featuring Gary Raymond, Dai Smith, Francesca Rhydderch and Joao Morris. Attention quickly turned to the difficulty of labelling Welsh writing a ‘cannon’ and the potentially detrimental effects of attempting to read the work of Welsh writers in isolation from their international contemporaries.
The debate naturally took several highly relevant detours during the course of this panel, one of which touched on a subject in which I have a particular interest: the presentation of women writers in literary analysis of Welsh writing. Having confessed to an initial reluctance to raise the subject, Francesca Rhydderch rightly drew attention to the difference between the numbers of male and female authors included in the long-list for the title of Greatest Welsh Novel. Even more interesting was Rhydderch’s additional question to Library of Wales series editor Dai Smith. Drawing attention to an issue which has been too easily overlooked in other discussions of the Library of Wales series, Rhydderch asked Smith what percentage of books published in the Library so far had a female author. Smith’s cryptic answer that it was ‘more than you’d think’ offered little in the way of clarity on this matter, although his later point that the series only publishes fiction which is no longer in print did go some way to addressing the somewhat worrying gender imbalance in what is nevertheless an excellent series. Notwithstanding Smith’s explanation, the exchange suggested that more discussion may be needed on this challenging, but significant, topic.
The close of the event came, of course, with the announcement of the winner of the title of Greatest Welsh Novel. Having published some twenty five nominating essays over the course of 2014, before producing a shortlist of just six titles, Wales Arts Review had opened the award to the public vote in October. As a result of that vote Caradog Pritchard’s 1961 novel Un Nos Ola Leuad (One Moonlit Night) was announced as the winner, with the judges’ citation read by Sian Phillips. Whatever the result, the announcement would inevitably have proved controversial to a certain degree simply because of the contentious nature of the title ‘Greatest Welsh Novel’. Yet as Gary Raymond was keen to point out the in discussion which preceded the announcement, the purpose of the award was to raise the topic of Welsh writing and encourage people to talk about their favourite Welsh novels. In this respect Wales Arts Review has certainly achieved its aim. With only two days left before the close of the fundraising campaign which the editorial panel hope will support the Review as it continues its work to provide an online hub for Welsh criticism, both the competition and the Roundtable event served to demonstrate the strength of feeling about the arts in Wales. Moreover, it emphasised the centrality of organisations such as Wales Arts Review in ensuring that debate and exchange about Welsh culture continue to grow both within Wales and beyond.