poetry

An Interview with Shane Strachan

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The latest episode of From the Old Brewery brings you an interview with creative writing lecturer, current Scots Scriever and performance artist Dr Shane Strachan. Shane talks about his northeast roots, his use of Doric and Scots as a creative platform and his role as Scots Scriever. He also talks about his many projects and collaborations as a poet, writer and artist, and reads his poem Doric Dwams.

We had a really engaging talk with Shane and we’re sure you’ll feel inspired learning more about his journey and his work. This is my final episode as co-host on From the Old Brewery, but after many fascinating discussions with many fascinating researchers, writers and academics, I’m very happy to end on a high note with such a prominent and talented northeast Scots writer. Enjoy.

You can listen below or find us on your preferred platform.

Deep Wheel Aberdonia

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I’m looking forward to taking part in this symposium on the 04th May at the University of Aberdeen:

Deep Wheel Aberdonia is an event celebrating writing from and about Scottish islands with special guest Harry Josephine Giles, author of recently published verse novel Deep Wheel Orcadia, in which Orkney and its language are taken on a strange science-fiction journey, carving out a radical new space for Scottish writing.

The event will be chaired by Centre co-director Professor David Wheatley and also feature Orcadian poet Ingrid Leonard, who will read from her recently-published pamphlet Rammo in Stenness (Abersee Press). I will be sharing work stemming from my residency at Island Darkroom which explores how Lewis has helped to shape the work of poets Donald MacAulay, Iain Crichton Smith and Derick Thomson.

More details can be found here.

Poetry Scotland

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I would never consider myself a serious poet, but I do like to dabble now and then, and I am very happy to have my short poem ‘Planets’ included in Poetry Scotland Issue 103.

The magazine has a long and distinguished history, summed up here from the Poetry Scotland website:

“Poetry Scotland began in the 1940s when Maurice Lindsay started publishing books and anthologies of new poetry under this title. There were three issues of Poetry Scotland and a series of slim hardback books by poets of the day, including Hugh MacDiarmid. Then there followed a hiatus until 1997 when, with Maurice Lindsay’s support, Sally Evans and Ian King of Diehard Press began to publish Poetry Scotland as a broadsheet, aiming from the first to be inclusive, encouraging women, minority languages and people from country airts.”

Now under the editorship of Andy Jackson and Judy Taylor, it publishes poems from across the UK, twice-yearly in the A4 broadsheet format of its previous incarnation. You can subscribe and purchase individual issues on the Poetry Scotland website.