The word that holds: literary presentations as a space for experience and professional growth

This winter, Ternopil became the venue for important literary events that brought together authors, readers, students, and teachers around the living word. Olga Kharlan, head of the Department of Ukrainian and Foreign Literature and Comparative Literary Studies, visited interesting presentations of books by Ukrainian authors, keeping her finger on the pulse of the contemporary literary process in Ukraine. The presentations of new books took place at the Ye Bookstore on Valova Street and at the Ternopil Regional Universal Scientific Library and demonstrated that literature today is not only texts, but also a space for meeting, dialogue, and reflection on the experience of war.

On 19 January, the Ye Bookstore hosted the presentation of a new book of poetry, Hunters Always Return, by Ukrainian writer, poet and illustrator Hanna Osadko. In an atmosphere that combined sincerity and inner concentration, poems were read about the complex and painful experiences of our time, but also about light, love and the ability to persevere. Amidst the hum of generators, the author read her texts and shared her creative plans, and a special moment was the song “Tango in the Oak Forest” performed by Lyutsyna Khvorost. This evening was an example of how poetry helps us live through reality and maintain inner strength.

On 6 February, another significant meeting with military officer and writer Viktor Yankevych took place in Ternopil. The event was dedicated to the search for meaning, strength of spirit, and literature as a way to persevere in difficult times. Two books were discussed: Born to Win, a motivational story for teenagers about self-belief, inner strength, and responsibility for one’s own choices, and I Will Not Forget, a profound work about war, memory, and acceptance. Despite the complexity of the subject matter, this book is extremely important for young people, as it shapes their understanding of the value of shared history and their personal involvement in it.

On 26 February, the reading room of the Ternopil Regional Universal Scientific Library, in collaboration with the publishing house “Navchalna Knyha – Bohdan,” hosted a presentation of Boris Humenyuk’s collection “The Fourth Wave: Poems from the War.” This book has become a poetic testimony of the times – texts written on the borderline between pain and hope. The poet compiled the collection in February 2022, and with the start of the full-scale invasion, he volunteered to go to the front and has been missing in action near Bakhmut since December 2022. The meeting was moderated by Ivan Andrusiak, an editor, writer, literary critic, friend of Boris Gumenyuk, and well known to our university. The presentation was attended by writer Oleksandr Vilchynskyi, who knew the author, as well as members of Boris Gumenyuk’s family, which gave the event a special emotional depth.

Such meetings are much more than cultural events. They become a space for lively interaction between the author and the reader, between the text and reality. For philology students, this is an opportunity to hear contemporary literature performed by the author, ask questions, feel the intonation of the time, and understand the context in which the work was created.

It is clear that such events are an important addition to the educational process of all philology majors at the Faculty of Philology who study contemporary Ukrainian literature, but they are most important for students of the Literature and Arts Management programme. For them, it is not only a meeting with a writer, but also a practical case study in organising a cultural event. Each presentation is an example of teamwork: preparing the location, collaborating with the publisher, moderating, communicating with the audience, providing information support, and creating the right atmosphere.

 Students can analyse the format of the event and its concept; the role of the moderator in building dialogue; the author’s interaction with the audience; the informational promotion of the event; and the specifics of working with different audiences.

 In today’s environment, when the cultural sphere is going through difficult times, it is precisely such live events that shape future cultural managers who are capable not only of organising an event, but also of creating a meaningful space around it.

As Professor Olga Kharlan emphasised, “such presentations are of great importance for understanding the peculiarities of the modern literary process and become valuable material for students studying the educational programme ‘Literature and Arts Management”. Therefore, literary presentations are not just events on the cultural calendar. They are a space for developing professional competencies, an environment for gaining experience, and a laboratory for the living word. In times of trial, they become a point of support for authors, readers, and those who are learning to create the cultural events of the future.

Hanna Tabakova, Associate Professor, Department of Ukrainian and Foreign Literature and Comparative Literary Studies