“The weight of a bookseller in the literary cultural life of a place, we don’t realize how important it is,” says the writer we met over coffee.
William S. Messier grew up in Cowansville, Granby and Dunham, before making the jump to Montreal and returning to his roots to settle in Estrie in Sherbrooke.
The author published the fiction stories in Marchand de Feuilles. Townships, Epic et Dixie. In 2017, he published with Le Quartanier Basketball and its fundamentals. His latest book The Miraculous is in the list of finalists for the Grand Prix du livre de Sherbrooke.
“When I arrived here, for me, there was something of a compromise or sacrifice of my literary life in Montreal.”
— William S. Messier, author
Ten years later, he is one of the headliners of the 46th version of the Estrie Book Fair which will be held from October 17 to 20, 2024. The writer is expected at the Fair Center for a major interview , round tables and a writing workshop powered by the Association of Authors of Estrie.
We will also see him at the heart of the literary show in homage to Sherbrooke The Grandes-Fourches show presented at Café 440.
“I didn’t expect that when I got here. I didn’t expect to find a community, continues the artist. There is something strong.”
William S. Messier is also surprised to see the popularity of the many literary events in Sherbrooke. Independent bookstores fill up for book launches and La Petite Boîte Noire is always sold out for cabarets Literature and other nonsensenotes the writer.
“There’s something going on,” he said. We needed that in downtown Sherbrooke.”
A career in health
Through the excitement of this literary world that is growing around him, William S. Messier today considers himself “very confident” and in a “great place” in his career.
He is now at the helm of the script for the detective TV series Reasonable Doubt which stars Julie Perreault and Marc-André Grondin. “I write cursed stories,” says the full-time screenwriter for three years.
“I’m a lot more comfortable. I have a lot more control over my means,” he says.
The one who used to share fiction found himself with the desire to break boundaries in his latest autobiographical story. “As an author, as an artist, we must try new forms, try new avenues, just to see.”
Yet William S. Messier was never convinced his story needed to be told. He even apologizes in the very first pages of the book published in March 2024.
But in everything that is most banal, there is something to make a story about, the author believes. Heroism always emerges in the end.
To his great surprise, The Miraculous left its mark on its readers. “Finally, the bet paid off somewhat,” rejoices the writer. My story is worth knowing and worth reading.”
The miracle of the hospital
Unbeknownst to him, William S. Messier lived with a broken vertebra in his neck. The slightest shock could have severed his spinal cord between the ages of 5 and 15.
“For ten years, you were like in a minefield,” a doctor told him. “Images like that, normally, we see post-mortem. After an accident,” he argued.
The nursing staff at Sainte-Justine hospital then nicknamed the young man a miracle worker. “I was just lucky,” says the writer. “The only thing that [l’histoire] What’s interesting is how badly it could have ended.”
“One of the great learnings is how well all stories work,” continues the author. In fiction as in biography, the “sources” are similar. However, the constraints of reality come into play.
“I don’t turn the same knobs, but I can cringe a little when choosing where to put the light.”
— William S. Messier
In The MiraculousWilliam S. Messier assumes the “anti-tragic” aspect of his story. He doesn’t even care. “I started from a story that I was tired of telling. As an author, I wanted to try to write it,” he says.
Several versions of this story resulted in the biography. The author had tried fiction, but one thing led to another and the chapters took on a rather “engaged and personal” feel, he explains.
In a round table, William S. Messier will speak with Patrick Senécal, JP Chabot. Jean-Philippe Pleau, Mariana Mazza, and Akim Gagnon. (Jean Roy/La Tribune)
The writer allows himself more flexibility and exploration, particularly in the dialogue with the publishing houses which play a big role for him in his creative approach. “It allows you to stay focused on your goals and silence the ambient noise a little.”
Because following an initial success, readers’ expectations grow and can disrupt the desire to tell the story in their own way. “It can be really debilitating because you’re not writing for the right reasons.”
“Rightly or wrongly, you have the impression that the next one is expected,” continues William S. Messier. Maybe it’s delusion.”
— William S. Messier, author
The Sherbrooke author now says he enjoys working on “any story, whether true or false.”
It’s all in the “point of view” and the quest of the characters, notes the artist. “From book to book, I think I develop this ability to give substance to my characters, their own will and desires.”
This is also the main outline of the workshop that the author will hold at the Estrie Book Fair on Sunday, October 20. “You have to love your character like you love a member of your family,” he says.
