Voices is the Dorset Echo's weekly youth page - written for young people by young people.

This week Saskia Fry talks about her experiences at the Dorchester Literary Festival.

Last week between October 18 and 22, the third annual Dorchester Literary Festival was held, directed by Paul Atterbury and Janet Gleeson.

Sponsored primarily by Dukes Auctioneers, the festival aimed to celebrate literature and raise money for The Dorset Community Foundation.

The Festival was a huge success, starring a variety of writers ranging from Iby Knill, a holocaust survivor, to Henry Blofeld, a celebrated cricket commentator.

Literature is such an important and present part of the world we live in today, it is ever changing and shapes society, so events such as the Dorchester Literary Festival are held in order to celebrate it.

As said on the website the festival is there to 'enlighten, amaze and entertain you'.

This year’s festival was even more successful than last year and was, described as, ‘going from strength to strength’.

Personally, the talk I found most inspiring was Kim Hughes’ talk on his book ‘Painting the Sand’. During the talk he described his experiences in Afghanistan as a bomb disposal operator.

His actions were very memorable and extraordinary and it is no surprise that as a result of them he won the George Cross in 2010.

The 2017 Dorchester Literary Festival was a huge success and helped to spread the importance of all kinds of literature.

Its increasing popularity means Dorchester now has a place on the literary map and shows how more people are recognising literatures importance in society. 

By Saskia Fry