Day One When I was informed that our very first essay conference was to take place two days before my graduation, I’ll admit I was dubious. Such anticipation, such enthusiasm, would surely exhaust itself and leave me slogging on stage with about as much energy as an old sloth, overwhelmed with ideas, questions and a Read More
“The hardest thing of all is to see what is really there” (J A Baker) I clatter down the stairs of the Tower Extension at the University of Dundee, heart pounding inside my chest, hoping that my voice will come back to me and my nerves will disappear like the rolling haar on the Read More
I first met Joan in 2015 when she was tutoring a course on writing young adult fiction at Moniack Mhor writing centre near Inverness. As a tutor, Joan was witty, good-humoured, inspiring and passionate about storytelling and writing. In her workshops we played with ideas, with “what ifs” and with real and invented words. Joan Read More
JOHN MITCHINSON is a writer and publisher and the co-founder of Unbound, the award-winning crowdfunding platform for books. He helped to create the BBC TV show QI and co-wrote the best-selling series of QI books. As a publisher, he worked in senior positions at Harvill, Orion and Cassell. Before that he was Waterstone’s first marketing director. He is co-host of Read More
At the 2017 Dundee Literary Festival’s event for debut novelists, Ever Dundas is joined on stage by Gillian Best and Helen McClory. Dundas reads first, introducing her book Goblin. An hour later, she sits across from me in a small cafe area below the hall she has spoken in. There is a shift between the Read More
Storm Brian is rampaging across Ireland.* Works about bad weather, I test myself: Bad Weather Collage, Naomi Vona.¹ A black and white photograph of a man in a suit. There is a blue paper cloud above his head and the head itself is obscured by strips of paper in white, pink and yellow. From the Read More
In a mizzling rain that brings darkness to the red heartstone of the city, I set out to meet David Kinloch to interview him about his Ars Poetica in light of his recent publication In Search of Dustie-Fute, shortlisted only this morning for the Saltire Poetry Prize. We have arranged to meet in “Tinderbox”, Ingram Read More
With the release of the 2017 Man Booker Prize shortlist thoughts must turn not only to the books listed but to the prize itself. Amongst the myriad of book prizes from local to global, from first novels to specific genres, why does this one stand out? How was this prize was inaugurated? British literary prizes Read More
(This is a lightly edited transcript of the interview; to view the whole interview, please click image above) Cynthia Rogerson: I’m Cynthia Rogerson. I write novels and short stories. I’m from California and live in the Highlands. I’ve been there for a long, long time. Probably almost thirty-five years. Kirsty Gunn: And Cynthia’s here today to Read More
This is an edited filmed interview of a conversation that took place between Kirsty Gunn, Cameron Twiddy and James Kelman in October 2016. Cameron Twiddy’s personal account of that interview was posted on DURA, 28 July 2017.
