Neil Wilson’s never been one to stray from controversy — some might say he’s even drawn to it.
Wilson got his first taste of conflict before he had even graduated from Carleton’s journalism program. He covered the uprising in Ireland at its explosive start.
Next, he took on the referendum that could have led to Quebec’s separation in 1995 as the press secretary for the Canadian Minister of Heritage.
However, Wilson said he’s bringing the controversy that he’s always wanted as the director of the Ottawa Writers Festival.
“I celebrate when people get a little hot under the collar. I think it’s incumbent about us to look at the same situation with as many views as we can so that we can make informed decisions,” Wilson said.
Wilson founded the festival 16 years ago and said he has always prided himself in bringing guests some audiences might deem controversial.
This year will be no exception.
Deepa Mehta will kick off the festival Oct. 24 for a screening of her new film based on Salman Rushdie’s novel, Midnight’s Children. Her film Water was famously banned following the Hindu outcry for her portrayal of widows.
Wilson said he takes the term “controversial” lightly and that people often use it to simply describe a different point of view. If that’s the case, he said everything at the festival could fall into that category.
One of the festival highlights for Wilson is an event on short stories featuring local author Nadine McInnis along with Miranda Hill and Steven Heighton.
“They’re not global issues but they are globally recognized issues,” Hill said.
The Hamilton-based writer will be reading selections from her debut collection of short fiction Sleeping Funny at “Long Story Short,” an event exploring short stories Oct. 28.
Sleeping Funny’s title story follows Clea, who seems to be perpetually drawn back to a pet store to replace dead pets. Hill said this mirrors her own helplessness. The eight accompanying short stories cover a range of issues but all tie back to the central question of how someone should live a happy life.
“The short story really mirrors life,” Hill said, alluding to its conversational tone and ability to drop readers into the intensity of a moment. She said this also leads to great conversations like the ones that will take place with fellow short story writers McInnis and Heighton at the festival.
Wilson said he likes short stories because he can read them in one sitting and get a new idea about what’s going on in the world.
That’s what Wilson said the festival is all about.
“I wanted to look at the storytelling, the power of the narrative to affect change or at least to bring people to the table to have a conversation.”
Events at the Ottawa Writers Festival are free for Carleton students upon reservation.
