“An image says more than a thousand words, but I have yet to see one”, said Martin Suter as he spoke about keeping literature relevant at the 2nd WoW Gstaad symposium. Hosted from the 24-26 of June in the Salle Baccarat at Gstaad Palace hotel and with an evening session at the Cinema Gstaad.

Surpassing last year's inaugural author lineup was always going to be a hard act to follow. Still, the team behind WoW succeeded once more and this year was packed with yet another diverse group of literary talent and culinary highlights. French/Korean author Elisa Shua Dusapin, and her renowned translator Aneessa Higgins, English novelist and bestselling author of Captain Corelli’s Mandolin Louis de Bernières captivated the audience in a filled Salle Baccarat on Saturday morning.

GstaadLife was present at the iconic Cinema Gstaad for the evening event when American novelist and screenwriter Lea Carpenter talked to WoW founder Thomas D. Gommes. She spoke about her extraordinary workshop at Columbia University where she teaches the importance of storytelling to law students. Later, at the same venue, acclaimed Swiss writer, columnist, and screenplay writer Martin Suter, kept it real with Monocle24 moderator Georgina Godwin in their discussion about staying relevant as an author.
Sunday in the Salle Baccarat the audience was buzzing and engaged with Elliot Ackerman, American author, former White House Fellow and Marine followed by French writer, literary critic, journalist, and television presenter Frédéric Beigbeder.

What makes this event so special is the interaction between the authors and the audience. The exchange of ideas across the table while at the same time enjoying a meal together creates a unique atmosphere. This year’s apero was held at the recently open bookstore Librairies des Alpages in Saanen.
All presentations have been recorded, and an extensive event photo gallery is available for free on the website. Next year’s event will take place in June 2023 or even sooner, so stay tuned.

JEANETTE WICHMANN

WOWGSTAAD.COM