Part 2 - The Book That Turned the Light On

At the "Same Same But Different" writers' festival held at Auckland University of Technology on February 12th, 2016, a group of distinguished speakers engaged the audience with personal reflections and stories revolving around the theme "The Book That Turned the Light On." Spanning several decades from the 1970s to the 2010s, these speakers - Cole Meyers, Jeremy Hansen, Michael Stevens, Victor Rodger, and Whaitiri Mikaere - shared insights into their lives and experiences shaped by various forms of literature.

Victor Rodger highlighted the significance of identifying with non-heteronormative characters in books and magazines during their younger years. Reflecting on childhood, Rodger mentioned the influence of gossip magazines which relayed stories like that of Janis Ian, who realized they were gay at 11. This resonated with Rodger, who knew their sexuality from a younger age, foraging in books about Hollywood's golden era and Sidney Sheldon's "Bloodline," which sparked a shift from Hardy Boys mysteries to an interest in more adult works by authors like Jackie Collins. This led to the discovery of gay literature, which further deepened Rodger's understanding of their identity.

Cole Meyers shared a story that didn't revolve around a single transformative book, but rather how sci-fi and fantasy books provided an escape, a reprieve from their struggles with mental health issues. Through journaling, Meyers engaged in a self-dialogue, creating a written record that functioned as both a historical document and a means of self-affirmation. This practice helped maintain "the light" during dark times, simultaneously allowing for self-discovery and recovery.

Jeremy Hansen took listeners back to the idyllic rural setting of their childhood, filled with books and devoid of television, to their later years at a sports-centric boys' school. Hansen detailed the process of realizing their sexuality in a less accepting era, recounting the haunting experience of signing a petition against homosexual law reform due to peer pressure. Books became a refuge, offering a way to explore an evolving gay identity discreetly and providing characters to identify with, despite the often bleak tone of LGBTQ+ narratives at the time.

Michael Stevens recollected their teenage years at King's College, marked by feelings of isolation and suicidal thoughts due to the internal struggle with their gay identity. Stevens discussed the profound impact of Patricia Nell Warren's "The Front Runner" – a book about gay love rather than just gay sex – which offered hope and a vision of a life filled with love and meaningful relationship possibilities.

Whaitiri Mikaere, a poet, related heartfelt childhood memories and reflections on identity, which informed their journey as a butch lesbian. Mikaere shared a personal poem, inviting the audience into their emotional world, offering a mix of vulnerability and strength through spoken word.

The event, rich with personal anecdotes, highlighted how literature serves as a mirror for identity, offering reflections of oneself that can affirm or challenge personal experiences. Books and writing acted as both sanctuary and beacon, illuminating a path to self-acceptance and shape the lives of the speakers. These narratives underscore the transformative power of storytelling and its role in identity formation within the LGBTQ+ community.

This summary is created using Generative AI. Although it is based on the recording's transcription, it may contain errors or omissions. Click here to learn more about how this summary was created.

Cole Meyers Jeremy Hansen Michael Stevens Victor Rodger Whaitiri Mikaere

1970s, 1980s, 2010s, a boy's own story (book), a little life (book), a pictorial history of the talkies (book), academia, academics, acting, activism, addiction, alan bates, alan hollinghurst, angela d'audney, anorexia nervosa, another country (book), anxiety, aotearoa new zealand, arts, auckland, auckland university of technology, batman, beats, betty grable, black faggot (play), bleakness, bloodline (book), boarding school, bogs, books, born again (christianity), brett sheppard, buckwheat, burt reynolds, butch, children, chocolate speedway driver, christchurch, cis female, cole meyers, colm toibin, corn holing, cosmopolitan (magazine), dale peck, dangerous desires (1991), daniel blum, david halls, death, demolition work, depression, derek jarman, derek jarman's garden (book), desperate remedies (1993), directing, disability, dyke, eating disorders, edmund white, edward cowley, elizabeth taylor (actress), fag, faggot, family, fantasy, feminism, flash fiction, france, fucking martin (book), garnet station (auckland), gay, gemini (star sign), gender, gender reassignment surgery, gratitude, greenwich village (new york), greta garbo, hanya yanagihara, hawkes bay, helen reddy, heroes out west (auckland), hippy, hiv / aids, holding the man (book), hollywood wives (book), home (magazine), homosexual, homosexual law reform, homosexual law reform act (1986), homosexual law reform petition, how to be a complete bitch (book), hudson and halls (television), i am woman (song), indigenous peoples, internet, invisibility, jackie collins, james baldwin, janis ian, jeremy hansen, john fox, john inman, joseph olshan, journal, journalism, joyfulness, kereru, kevin smith, king's college (auckland), kissing, library, life (magazine), linwood high school (christchurch), love, macho, marlene dietrich, marriage equality, masculinity, matariki poetry slam, mental health, michael stevens, michelangelo signorile, mixed-race, music, my name is gary cooper (play), māori, napier, napier boys highschool, ngāti maru, ngāti pukenga, nights in the gardens of spain (book), nightswimmer (book), objectification, oliver reed, optimism, out (magazine), out! centre bookshop, overdrawn (poem), palangi, pamela stephenson, paris, patricia nell warren, paul diamond, peanuts (comic), peter hudson, photo journalism, poetry, poetry idol slam, poetrylive at the thirsty dog (auckland), psychology, public library, public toilet, queer, queer in america (book), quentin crisp, rainbow tick, reading, reflection, relationships, religion, revolution, richard burton, robert burns fellowship (university of otago), rona barrett, rona barrett's hollywood (magazine), rupert everett, safe sex, samesame but different (2016), samoa, school, school uniform, sci-fi, sex, shame, short story, sidney sheldon, socialism, sons (play), spoken word poetry, staircase nightclub, suicide, superman, surgery, takatāpui, teaching, television, terd tapper, testosterone (t), the blackwater lightship (book), the block (tv), the boys on the rock (book), the day after (film), the famous five (book), the front runner (book), the hardy boys nancy drew mysteries (tv), the line of beauty (book), the naked civil servant (film), tim conigrave, tom selleck, trans, transgender, unity books (auckland), university of otago, victor rodger, vulnerability, whaitiri mikaere, who's afraid of virginia woolf? (film), whole earth catalog, whānau, witi ihimaera, women, women in love (film), writing

abuse, acceptance, advertising, advice, agenda, artist, attraction, balance, bear, beauty, belief, bible, birthday, board, boat, born again christian, boxes, breasts, butch dyke, capital, career, change, charity, chocolate, choice, class, closet, comics, community, consent, conservative, cricket, denial, desire, dog, drama, drugs, eating, elizabeth taylor, engagement, escape, exercise, expression, fashion, fear, film, flaming, friends, fun, gender fluid, god, growing up, guilt, hastings, hate, headmaster, health, hell, history, holland, hollywood, homosexual law reform, hope, hysterectomy, identity, jazz, joe, journey, kindness, kinship, ladies, language, law, lesbian, lifestyle, listening, loneliness, magazines, masculine, media, mining, mirror, misogyny, news, nightclub, normal, nude, opportunity, otago, other, outing, pain, pants, parents, people, petition, pregnancy, primary school, privilege, race, radio, rainbow, romantic, running, rural, russia, scene, sexual orientation, sexuality, silence, smile, social, social media, space, spaces, spain, sport, stepfather, stereotypes, stigma, straight, study, suffering, swimming, teacher, teenage, the closet, the other side, time, tramping, trolling, truth, uniform, university, virginia woolf, vote, walking, work, youth