Four Edinburgh-based writers receive New Writers Awards

Scottish Book Trust today announces the 11 recipients of the New Writers Awards 2021, which provide a selection of talented writers who have not yet published a full-length book or collection with professional guidance to help them move towards publication, as well as financial support.

Funded by Creative Scotland and run by Scottish Book Trust, the awards have supported over 100 creative individuals since 2009.

Four Edinburgh-based writers have received a New Writers Award: Hazel Knox, Deborah Chu, Thomas Stewart and Tim Craven:

• Hazel is a Children’s Occupational Therapist originally from Thurso. She was shortlisted for the 2020 Chicken House Open Coop and given an honourable mention in a 2020 Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators slush pile challenge looking for funny middle grade.
• Deborah Chu was born in Taipei and raised in Vancouver, moving to Scotland to complete an MSc in Literature and Modernity at the University of Edinburgh. She is currently a Content Editor at The List. She was the recipient of the 2019 Fringe Society’s Allen Wright Award for excellence in arts criticism.
• Thomas Stewart is based in Leith, originally from Cardiff, Wales. A writer and an English teacher, his debut pamphlet empire of dirt was a Poetry Book Society selection and is published by Red Squirrel Press.
• Tim Craven was raised in Stoke-on-Trent and is now based in Edinburgh. He has an MFA from Syracuse University and completed his PhD thesis at the University of Edinburgh on the characterisation of mental illness in Confessional poetry. His pamphlet, Lake Effect is published by Tapsalteerie.

The prestigious judging panel included Scots Makar Jackie Kay, Niall Campbell and Colin Waters for poetry; Tendai Huchu, Janice Galloway, Denise Mina and Alan Bett judging fiction; and Dean Atta, Lari Don and Hannah Sycamore (Scottish Book Trust) judging Children’s and YA entries. The Gaelic Books Council selects the two Gaelic New Writer Awardees.

Former New Writers awardees include Nicola White, whose novel The Rosary Garden (Profile) was re-released in January; Helen Sedgwick’s third novel Where the Missing Gather (Oneworld) will be published in May 2021 and Man Booker Prize shortlistee Graeme Macrae Burnet will release Case Study (Saraband) in October 2021.

The 2021 awardees are:

Poetry

Nasim Rebecca Asl

Thomas Stewart

Tim Craven

Children’s and Young Adult

Hazel Knox

Sally Costelloe

Fiction and Narrative Non-Fiction

Deborah Chu

Gillian Shearer

Hannah Nicholson

Samantha Dooey-Miles

Gaelic

Beth Frieden

Roddy Neithercut

Each of the 11 recipients will receive a £2,000 cash award and support tailored to their needs including mentoring from writers and industry professionals, training opportunities, and the platform to showcase their work to publishers and agents.

Marc Lambert, CEO of Scottish Book Trust, said: “In uncertain times, it is more important than ever to celebrate and discover new writers in Scotland.

“Working within COVID restrictions, Scottish Book Trust will support the awardees through online training, workshops and mentoring. As always, the standard of the applications were very high and we look forward to future publications from this group.”

 Alan Bett, Interim Head of Literature, Languages & Publishing, Creative Scotland said: “The list of past winners speaks for itself and gives us all reason to expect that the names on this year’s list will be on bookshelves across the country in future.

“It was a pleasure to sit on the fiction panel and the wealth of talent, while hugely encouraging, made decision making a near impossible process.”

Alison Lang, Director of the Gaelic Books Council, said: “The Gaelic Book Council’s on-going partnership with Scottish Book Trust allows us to give Gaelic writers this valuable opportunity early in their careers to work with experienced mentors and develop their craft, and we are excited to be working with new writers of Beth and Roddy’s calibre this year as they work towards their first publications.”

The New Writers Showcase, a celebration of work by last year’s awardees, will be held online through Scottish Book Trust’s social media accounts on Wednesday 31 March. Information about tickets will be available on Scottish Book Trust’s website soon.