Poet: Do the write thing

Children in the BIM Litfest Children’s Zone listening as June Stoute (out of picture) reads a story. (Pictures by Sharon Harding.)

Esther Phillips, organizer of the BIM Literary Festival, believes that Barbadian authors need to make their presence felt among other Caribbean writers.

Mon, May 28, 2012 - 12:00 AM

As Caribbean Literature continues to gain prominence across the world, the call has gone out for Barbadians to do more creative writing and produce more books.

The call was made by poet and writer Esther Phillips, the founder of Writers Ink Incorporated which has presented the BIM Literary Festival And Book Fair.

At the BIM Festival Book Village in Queen’s Park on Saturday, she said that Caribbean literature was growing and Barbados should be part of the growth.

“There is an interest being generated about Caribbean literature,” she said. “At universities overseas, they have Caribbean studies and Caribbean literature is very much central to those studies.”

She said Barbadian writers needed to have their place in that growth and development. “We have a story to tell, too. We have a culture that is interesting. Our traditions are worth telling,” she said.

In speaking of the literary festival, Phillips explained that it was created to increase awareness of the need for books and reading in Barbados. She said there needed to be some kind of credence to this reputation of Barbados having 98 per cent literacy.

She added that the society was taking a downward drift in terms of its ability to use language and Barbadians needed to be reminded of the importance of intellectual development.

“Reading will allow for people to become more reflective, more thinking and generate ideas,” she said. (LK)