Culture, Arts and Refugees

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Janna Eliot, Exiled Writers Ink!

Location Visited

Stockholm, Sweden

What did you do?

The main purpose of my visit was to examine methods of working with, and finding funding, for projects with refugee communities, particularly in regard to a recipe book, (MATLADAN), and a book of children's poems, (I DENNA VIDA VARLD), both edited by award winning writer Gunilla Lundgren. This is with a view to doing something similar under the auspices of Exiled Writers Ink! I'm particularly interested in using languages as an inclusive resource by featuring different languages and translating them into the host country language. An unexpected offshoot of my visit was participating in Holocaust Day events at the Ethnographic Museum in Stockholm, where I met actors, photographers, singers, activists and journalists. The exhibition and day itself concentrated on Roma/Sinti in the Holocaust, and it was fascinating to see the plight of Roma victims in WW2 given full recognition.

What did you learn from your study visit?

My visit confirmed to me that schools and community centres are rich sources of talent, which need funding to draw out. This funding can be self-raised by concerts, events, community events, etc. The Swedes have a fascinating system whereby every time a book is lent out by a local council library, a small tariff is paid by the library into a central fund. Writers can then apply for a grant from this fund to self-publish a book. This method is a bit complicated, although very democratic, as any writer can apply for money. I saw several examples of "unique" books, which had been designed, set up and printed with money from one funder. This "unique" book (ie. the only copy in the world) is then hawked round to other possible funders, so that money can be raised to get the already finished book actually distributed and marketed. It is a very time-consuming, often frustrating process with no guarantee of a quick or even positive result. This showed me that life in Sweden is no less easy for writers than it is in Britain, although there are many more possibilities for publishing.

I also saw how valuable such initiatives such as MATLADAN and I DENNA VIDA VARLD were to the participants and the wider community.

What key issues or questions did it raise for you?

I asked one participant how she felt contributing to the recipe book. She said she felt a bit hassled at first, as she is very busy and it meant thinking what to cook and what she would say. When the book was published, she said she felt very proud to see her dish and her words in print. I asked if there were any other recipes in the book she liked. "To tell you the truth," she replied, "I only read my contribution. I haven't had time to look through the rest of the book yet." The book was published in April 2007.

So the key issue is – how really inclusive are such projects? Do they really influence the participants and make them more open to the multi-cultural vision such works are supposed to promote. This is something I've been wondering about for some years, although I am happy to believe in the Utopian principle.

In what ways has this experience changed or enriched you professionally?

My knowledge about Sweden and the Swedish language has grown, which will be of use in the future. It certainly has helped widen my knowledge of Swedish literature and I learned how much the Swedes love books. The opportunity to visit a Swedish school was invaluable, and I was able to talk to about twenty children there. They showed me a project they are working on, taking local and family snaps with a disposable camera, writing captions in Swedish and English, and mounting displays. This work will be exhibited in the local library, before being taken to South Africa by a Swedish teacher on a forthcoming exchange visit.

I've had the opportunity to meet journalists, actors, writers, car mechanics and a wide range of school staff, which I'm sure will be useful in future.