Writers and politicians

Niall Griiffiths is on island this week.  He is a published author of fiction, travel writing, in fact he is 'a writer'. By that I mean that the act of creating using words is what he does.  I went to listen to him talk about being a writer last night and he said that writing is what sustains him, be it novels, short stories, poetry, whatever. The form is not important it is the act of writing.

Niall is everything you expect a writer to be. Passionate, words come tumbling out when he speaks, he takes off on tangents, he is a supreme raconteur.  He is almost the stereotype of the kid from a rough estate who survived by finding his passion in writing but I think that would be a grave injustice as he is that but so much more.  There is a genuineness and warmth that you don't get by acting a part.  He is so full of enthusiasm for life in all of its details both mundane and grand that it is infectious

For about an hour and a half last night he spoke about his life, his writing and then he read one of his short stories.  Considering we were just sitting in a room listening to a bloke talking it was exhilarating.

And we have several things in common. We were both born in 1966, both studied English at uni and our families emigrated to Australian.  Niall's only stayed a few years before they returned to England.  He mentioned a travelogue that he had written about driving across Australia revisiting places where he had been as a kid.  I have not read it yet but there are a few sniffy reviews on Amazon.  I get the feeling that these were written by Australians who did not take to his rather negative view of Aus.  Ok I have not read it yet but I think I might like if it takes a pop at the 'lucky country'.  I am very grateful for growing up in Australia but I don't buy the image of the land of freedom particularly when it treats the indigenous population with contempt and now the political parties seem to be falling over themselves to show who can be the toughest on boat people.

Anyway it got me thinking.  Listening to Niall's monologue about the need for him to write to make sense of the world and of himself, could politics be as creative as writing?  The desire to change the world, to improve people's lives is what I mean by politics as a creative endeavour.  Sure there is a lot of political stuff that is tedious and at times compromises have to be made.  That is the same with writing, the publicity tour, talking to 'money men' about film rights etc.  That is what the writer also has to do but it is not the core.

Perhaps this is why we have such a low opinion of politics and politicians.  Because too many concentrate on the deal making and not enough on being creative in working to help people.  Politicians need to be passionate, they need to be driven if they are going to succeed in making a positive contribution.

I once thought I could be a writer but I lacked the need, the hunger, to just write and keep on writing.  But there is something in this being elected to represent people, to want to just keep on trying to make life better for people that is every bit as creative.  I had not really thought about it until last night and now I cannot stop thinking about it.  I may not leave too many words behind but at this pivotal period in our island's history I have to do everything I can to make the community more resilient and strengthen the ties that bind it together